GOVERNOR VIEWS FLOOD DAMAGE IN CALLOWAY COUNTY
Governor Andy Beshear visited Calloway County yesterday after flood damage from Sunday’s storms dumped almost five inches of rain in Murray. Beshear joined Calloway County Judge Executive Kenny Imes, Murray Mayor Bob Rogers, Murray State President Bob Jackson, and the Kentucky National Guard to witness flood damage first-hand. The Governor said they have the National Guard out in force working with numerous local officials. Kentucky Division of Emergency Management Director Michael Dossett said 49 cities and counties have declared states of emergency. Dossett said they have asked FEMA Region 4 to send their lead investigator to the state to look at the homes that were damaged. The Governor flew over several areas where infrastructure was severely impacted, and stopped by one location where transportation crews have been making the road drivable for residents.
MURRAY ROAD CLOSED DUE TO CULVERT FAILURE
According to Murray Public Works, Opportunity Drive between Poor Farm Road and North Elementary School Road is closed effective immediately until further notice. A storm water culvert has failed and the roadway is likely to collapse.
MORE VACCINES COMING TO KENTUCKY
Governor Beshear announced yesterday that Kentucky will receive more than 98,000 new COVID-19 vaccine doses. The White House COVID-19 Response Team told governors the supply of Pfizer and Moderna vaccines to states will increase from 14.5 million doses to 15.2 million doses per week. 2.8 million Johnson & Johnson vaccines will be shipped in the same period. A total of 18 million doses will be sent to states this week. Beshear also encouraged Kentuckians to sign up for vaccine notifications at vaccine.ky.gov.
CCHD REPORTS 8 NEW COVID 19 CASES
The Calloway County Health Department reported 8 new cases of COVID-19 yesterday, bringing the total number of cases in the county during the pandemic to 3,365. Of that total, 3,265 have recovered, 52 are isolated at home, none are hospitalized, and there have been 48 deaths. The Graves County Health Department reported 2 new cases, while the Purchase District Health Department reported one new case each in Ballard County and Carlisle County, and 19 in McCracken County.
AREA COVID-19 SCHOOL REPORT
The latest school report shows the Calloway County School District with 2 new student cases. 10 students and 2 staff members are quarantined. The Murray Independent School District has reported 1 new student case. Five students and 1 staff member are quarantined. Murray State University has reported 15 student cases over the past week.
CALLOWAY INCIDENCE RATE RISES, CALDWELL STILL LEADS THE STATE
Calloway County’s Incidence Rate per 100,000 on Tuesday was 15.8% which was up from Monday’s rate of 9.2. While most of the counties in west Kentucky are outside the red zone, Caldwell County’s rate of 237.6 is the highest in the state, with almost four times the rate of second place Lyon County at 62.6. The Calloway County Health Department’s next Regional Vaccination Clinic is being held today from 8 am to 5 pm at the CFSB Center in Murray. You must have a previously confirmed, scheduled appointment in order to be vaccinated at the Regional Vaccination Site.
STATE POSITIVITY RATE REMAINS UNDER 5%
At Tuesday’s COVID-19 update for Kentucky, 1,080 new cases and 19 deaths were reported, raising the total to 4,671 Kentuckians who are listed as covid deaths. As of Tuesday, there have been over 4.52 million coronavirus tests performed in Kentucky with a positivity rate of 4.76%, which is lower than last Tuesday’s rate of 6.3%. There are 684 Kentuckians hospitalized which is 210 less than last Tuesday, including 178 in ICU, which is 64 less than one week ago. At least 47,787 Kentuckians have recovered from the virus.
MMS CLAIMS DOE SCIENCE BOWL TITLE
Murray Middle School won the U.S. Department of Energy’s West Kentucky Regional Science Bowl last month. The contest was held virtually due to COVID restrictions. The five-member Murray team now will compete in DOE’s National Science Bowl Finals, which will be conducted virtually from April 29 to May 3. The Murray Middle School team will join Paducah Tilghman High School to compete against other schools from across the nation. Heath Middle School finished second and Calloway County Middle School finished third in the regional competition. The top 16 high school and middle school teams in the NSB finals will receive $1,000 for their schools’ science departments.
ONE INJURED IN SCHOOL BUS CRASH
One person was injured yesterday in a crash involving a Graves County school bus. The Graves County Sheriff’s Department reported that 56-year-old Danny Beyer was traveling west on KY 408 when he stopped at a stop sign before pulling into the path of a Graves County School bus. 33-year-old Savannah Frizzell was the bus driver and could not stop in time to prevent the bus from colliding with the front passenger side of Beyer’s vehicle. Beyer was taken to a hospital for treatment of possible injuries. The bus driver and passengers were not injured.
GAS PRICES CONTINUE STEEP RISE
After increasing by 12 cents last week, gas prices in West Central Kentucky are another eight cents higher this week at $2.53 per gallon, according to AAA East Central’s Gas Price Report. Gas prices continue to increase, with the national average up nine cents on the week to $2.72. That is a 30 cent increase from the beginning of February, 28 cents more than a year ago and the most expensive daily national average since August 2019. The latest price jumps are a direct result of February’s winter storm that took 26 U.S. refineries offline and pushed refinery utilization from an average of about 83% down to an atypical low of 68%, according to the Energy Information Administration. AAA forecasts the national gas price average to increase in March. However, if refineries resume normal operations, and if crude oil prices show signs of stability, motorists may see some relief at the pump towards the end of the month.
IN AND AROUND KENTUCKY
JACKSON—Experts say the dam over Kentucky Highway 15 in Breathitt County is secure after an erosion site was letting water through to the community. An assembly line of people filled and packed sandbags around the hole yesterday, hoping to keep more water from seeping through. People in the surrounding neighborhood were evacuated as waters rose in the area.
ESTILL COUNTY—Some people in Estill County are isolated or stranded as flood waters continue to rise. Roads throughout the county are completely flooded. Waters are reaching near the tops of power poles in some areas, forcing crews to use boats to cut service. Clean up is expected to take weeks after the flooding recedes.
WASHINGTON DC—Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell says the tide is turning in the battle against the coronavirus. The Kentucky Republican said it presents an opportunity for a bipartisan approach to helping the nation recover from a difficult year. He said instead, Democrats have decided to go it alone. McConnell criticized the one-point-nine-trillion-dollar economic relief package before the Senate, saying it does not do enough to deal with the crisis and instead fills a Democratic wish list. He called the bill a plan to keep the nation shut down.
CENTRAL CITY—Central City Police are investigating after a local church was vandalized. The vandalism at First Presbyterian Church was discovered yesterday. Police say suspects knocked over a concrete fixture, damaged bricks on the sidewalks, and threw large rocks through windows. The suspects remain unknown.
OWENSBORO—An Owensboro man is facing numerous charges after police say he assaulted a driver and stole a vehicle with a four-year-old inside. Police say 26-year-old Jacob “Trace” Cameron abandoned the child, who was later brought unharmed to the police department by a Good Samaritan. He is charged with first degree robbery, first-degree wanton endangerment, and kidnapping. He was also arrested on charges related to car theft, evading police, disregarding a stop sign, and trafficking in synthetic drugs. Cameron had five outstanding warrants as well.
FRANKFORT—Supporters of Breonna’s Law want action taken on the bill. They held a rally at the state Capitol in Frankfort last evening after about 30 cars caravaned there from Louisville. House Bill 21 would ban all no-knock warrants statewide. However, with several days left in the legislative session, the bill hasn’t received a hearing after being assigned to the judiciary committee late last month.
CLINTON COUNTY—The National Weather Service is confirming a tornado touched down in southern Kentucky. The NWS in Louisville says the EF-1 tornado touched down in northeastern Clinton County on Sunday. The tornado with peak winds of 110-miles-per hour traveled over three-and-a-half miles and was 75 yards wide. It damaged trees, homes and barns along its path as it rolled through Cumberland City.
TENNESSEE—The Metro Nashville Police Department is seeking to renew its accreditation. MNPD will virtually host assessors from the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies next Monday. During the meeting, the department will be evaluated on its policies and procedures, management operations and support services. MNPD first gained accredited status in July of 1994 and since then it’s been renewed several times.
TENNESSEE—Amazon is hoping to hire about three-thousand employees to work at its fulfillment center that’s being built in Mt. Juliet. Amazon officials say the Mt. Juliet fulfillment center is expected to open late this spring or early summer. There will be full-and-part-time positions with pay starting at 15-dollars an hour. More information is available by texting MJNOW to 77088.
TENNESSEE—A Coffee County man is accused of killing his dog as part of a ritual. An arrest warrant from the Coffee County Sheriff’s Department says Brandon Lankford was arrested last month for animal cruelty after he stabbed his dog to death. The warrant says Lankford told deputies he had “stabbed his dog and removed its heart to get rid of the demons in the house.” Lankford is expected to appear in court on April 26th.
TENNESSEE—The Robertson County Sheriff’s Office is asking for help finding a missing man with a medical condition. The sheriff’s office says 44-year-old William Zack Duffey goes by Zack and is known to travel to Bowling Green, Kentucky, checking into homeless shelters. Duffey is believed to be driving a 2006 Silver Lexus ES 330. He’s described as white, five-ten about 146 pounds with brown eyes and brown hair.
TENNESSEE—Dolly Parton is finally receiving the coronavirus vaccine. The country icon has been eligible for a while, but she decided to wait because she didn’t want it to seem like she was being favored. It’s been almost a year since Dolly donated one-million dollars to Vanderbilt for COVID-19 research. She streamed her experience live from Vanderbilt on social media yesterday.
