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ALTON - Alton Deputy Police Chief Jarrett Ford said Alton was hit hard in the Wednesday severe thunderstorm that plowed through the city around 5 p.m. Deputy Chief Ford said he fielded reports of power lines down behind Halpin's in Alton and a variety of trees down in the city. He also said a tree fell on a power line on East 12th Street. Riverbender.com has photos of trees down on 4th Street. Ford added that water had collected on some of the streets, especially in the Milton area, but traffic was still flowing. Traffic lights were out on Homer Adams Parkway and in various other Alton locations, Ford said. Ameren Ilinois spokesperson Brian Bretsch presented the good news first and said the areas of Brighton and Bunker Hill had about 1,600 customers out for 25 minutes after a breaker inside a substation tripped, but they were able to close it and those customers were back on. Bretsch said the Alton power outages started around 4 p.m. Wednesday. Bretsch added: "The outage that

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ALTON - Alton Battalion Chief Jeff Knipp and his late afternoon firefighter group were extraordinarily busy during a 10-minute stretch after 5 p.m. Wednesday. Three reports came in during that span - a call of fire from a power line near Halpin Music, another of a tree that ripped off the side of a house on 12th Street, and a call of a generator smoking on the theater side of Alton Square Mall. Godfrey Fire Protection District handled the call to Alton Square and found a generator was burning oil. Halpin's thankfully was not struck by the power line down near it and the fire department was able to get that situation under control. The Alton firefighters also worked the tree damage on 12th Street. Knipp said Alton definitely received its share of calls this Wednesday compared to the previous storm that hit St. Louis so hard. During his conversation with Riverbender.com, he and his fire department members had to depart to a report of smoke in a basement on College Avenue in Alton.

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MADISON - Madison Police Chief Jeffrey Bridick on Wednesday said Police Officer Khalind D. Hayes, 27, of Fairview Heights, has been placed on administrative leave without pay based on the charges announced in St. Clair County. Hayes was off-duty when an alleged incident in the first block of North Charles in Belleville occurred early Sunday morning. He has been charged with three counts of Aggravated Battery with a Firearm, a Class X Felony in the case. Hayes was booked at 7:57 p.m. on Monday, Aug. 1, 2022, and his bond is set at $250,000. The cash amount for release is $25,000, plus a $50 sheriff bond fee. Chief Bridick said now the Belleville Police Department will continue its investigation into the case. He said he could not provide any additional comments at this time. ALSO: Convictions Continue In Tri-County Theft Ring Belleville Police Department released this synopsis of what allegedly happened at 1:56 a.m. on July 31, 2022: "Belleville Police responded to the first

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GODFREY - A gas line was ruptured while contractors were working in a yard in the 4800 block of Cinderella Drive in Godfrey on Tuesday morning. The contractors were digging in the yard when the rupture occurred. Godfrey Fire Protection District members responded to the scene. Ameren Illinois had team members quickly dispatched to the scene to rectify the problem. Ameren Illinois reported the line problem was fixed within an hour and a half to 2 hours with no other issues.

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ST. LOUIS – Today, the City of St. Louis is reminding residents of upcoming Multi-Agency Resource Center (MARC) opportunities in the St. Louis region, including in the City of St. Louis. Stood up by the State of Missouri, these are one-stop locations for flood survivors that provide trained experts in areas like housing, insurance, food stamp replacement, mental health counseling, and other critical areas of need. “The City of St. Louis is in constant contact with our partners at every level of government to help provide relief to our residents,” said Mayor Tishaura O. Jones. “St. Louisans impacted by flooding should visit any of the available MARC locations to get connected to legal services, insurance information, and more.” The City of St. Louis MARC will be held at Friendly Temple Church at 5515 Dr. Martin Luther King Drive. The center will be open on Friday, August 5, 2022, from 3:00 pm - 8:00 pm and Saturday, August 6, 2022, from 10:00 am -

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MARYVILLE – Motorists looking for a simple, accessible way to renew driver’s licenses and purchase vehicle stickers are invited to attend a free mobile unit event at the Wood River Police Department, sponsored by State Senator Kris Tharp in partnership with the Illinois secretary of state. “The mobile unit offers a more convenient option for residents to receive necessary services without waiting for long periods of time at a driver services facility,” said Tharp (D-Bethalto). “I encourage anyone in need of an easy way to renew and obtain IDs and license plates to attend this upcoming event.” The unit operates like a DMV office and offers driver’s license renewals, identification cards and license plate stickers. Tharp reminds residents that REAL ID services will not be available at the mobile unit, and residents aged 75 and over must visit a permanent facility for renewal services. All payments must be made by check, credit card, debit card

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ALTON - Alton Little Theater will launch the 89th Season at the Showplace with a new play by Londros D' Arrigo, former comedy writer for Lilly Tomlin, Phyllis Diller, and a host of other variety shows. The playwright has come up with a winning script about a group of feisty seniors living in Florida who tire of their selfish, greedy, and irresponsible children and decide to establish a philanthropic Foundation for people truly near and dear to their hearts. A recent widower Martin Wheeler (portrayed by Joe Laffler) and a lonely woman living next door Angie Drayton (portrayed by Kathy Bredenkoetter) set up a Foundation on a lark called" SIN" (Spend It Now) -- and much to their surprise and joy their efforts become popular with a whole community of seniors longing for something more than just golf and sunshine --seniors who actually enjoying doing good work and having meaning to their daily activities once again. Of course, some scheming children portrayed by Amanda Arment and

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GLEN CARBON - Erika Kohoutek of Glen Carbon has announced her candidacy for Madison County Board, District 24. An established resident of Madison County, Erika has spent her professional career in the private sector, working as an IT Project Manager and business leader for Citigroup, Bank of America, and other prominent organizations. She is known both personally and professionally as a relationship builder and problem solver with a proven track record of completing projects on time and on budget. After conducting a series of listening sessions with residents in District 24, Erika says she “wants to move forward the ideas that folks feel are important to their family’s quality of life.” Those ideas include promoting solar energy initiatives, sponsoring fiscal responsibility workshops for teenagers, expanding Madison County trails, engaging in smart planned development, and seeking public and private sector grants for community projects. Erika believes her project

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CASEYVILLE — Governor JB Pritzker joined Tyson Foods, Inc., as well as state and local officials, to announce a new expansion of Tyson’s Caseyville facility, which will expand the production of Hillshire Farm® and Jimmy Dean® products. The company's commitment to expand its Caseyville facility is expected to bring a $180 million investment and create 250 new jobs - generating economic benefit for the region and state. The new facility is expected to be complete in the summer of 2023. “I am thrilled to celebrate the expansion of Tyson Foods’ Caseyville facility thanks to our EDGE credit program,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “Tyson will be expanding their regional footprint by 170,000 square feet and over 250 new jobs with a total investment of $180 million in this community. Tyson’s decision to expand in Illinois speaks to our strengths in manufacturing, our world-class infrastructure, and our abundant — and highly talented —

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ST. LOUIS - Circus Harmony, St. Louis’ only social Circus school, is flying in to fall and you can soar with them. Flying at City Museum Register now for their fall semester circus classes at City Museum. Classes start August 29 and registration closes August 21. They have classes for ages 3 through adult in a variety of circus arts including juggling, unicycling, hula hooping, trapeze, and more! While most people take our classes for fun and fitness, Circus Harmony is also an internationally respected, pre-professional, circus training school. If you want to run away and join the circus for an hour or a career, this is the place!! Information on their website at www.circusharmony.org . Flying Downtown Thanks to the support of the Regional Arts Commission and the City of St. Louis’ Downtown Engagement and Public Safety Initiative, Circus Harmony is presenting a series of free shows in downtown St. Louis. Come downtown and have some fun! Look for us on Wednesday,

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ST. LOUIS - Today, Mayor Tishaura O. Jones signed Board Bill 47, creating the Division of Civilian Oversight, an independent agency where civilians will lead investigations on the incidents that directly impact St. Louisans and their neighbors. This bill strengthens existing oversight provisions, and the Division will investigate police misconduct and force incidents and initiate the disciplinary process. “Improving trust between community and police is essential to make our neighborhoods safer,” said Mayor Tishaura O. Jones. “Through the hard work of the Board of Aldermen and community leaders, we are taking a critical step forward in fostering that trust. The bill I’m signing today creates the Division of Civilian Oversight, which strengthens our existing oversight provisions for our public safety departments.” The Division of Civilian Oversight will review complaints, which can be filed in-person or online, for police misconduct and force incidents an

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LOS ANGELES — First-Class Mail will travel from “Infinity to Forever” with the newly released commemorative stamps featuring the iconic image of Buzz Lightyear. A dedication ceremony for the stamps was held today at the El Capitan Theatre in Los Angeles, CA. “Buzz Lightyear captured our hearts and imaginations in the first ‘Toy Story’ movie,” said Isaac Cronkhite, the Postal Service’s chief logistics and processing operations officer and executive vice president and dedicating official. “He taught us about heroism, loyalty and perseverance. And now he is the star of his own feature film — ‘Lightyear.’ Just like Buzz, the Postal Service has also looked to the stars for inspiration. We have many stamps honoring NASA’s accomplishments, including the space shuttle, and the Apollo program that took us to the moon. And then there are our STEM Education stamps that emphasize the importance of science, technology,

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COLLINSVILLE – The Wonder Years preschool program has a distinctive curriculum that combines the active and academic needs of young children. A Family Fun Night & Open House Registration is scheduled for August 5th, 2022 - 5:45 p.m. - Ribbon Cutting - 6-7:30 p.m. - Preschool Exploration & Play Time Each child must have a signed waiver on file to play. You can sign the waiver ahead of time at www.prideofil.com/waiver . The Wonder Years preschool welcomes future scholars ages 3 through 5 years to 926 McDonough Lake Road in Collinsville, Illinois. It is situated within the Pride of Illinois gym which has been teaching young people character through athletics for over 17 years. Pride of Illinois hosts over 175 preschool students in our dedicated skills classes each week and now is the time to expand the specialist services we offer to include academic excellence. The Wonder Years staff are well qualified, experienced and fully invested in developing the young minds of the Metro

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EAST ST. LOUIS – The educational campus serving East St. Louis for more than 20 years is being renamed in tribute to one of the area’s longest-serving advocates. The East St. Louis Higher Education Campus (ESLHEC) will now be known as the Wyvetter H. Younge Higher Education Campus in honor of the East St. Louis native and longtime state representative who, for years, worked to better the lives of the people of St. Clair County. The ESLHEC first opened in January 1999, on the former campus of Metropolitan Community College. The campus is owned by the Illinois Community College Board (ICCB) and co-managed by ICCB and Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE). On April 23, 2021, the Illinois House of Representatives adopted House Resolution 50 (HR 50), sponsored by Representative Greenwood, asking the General Assembly to change the name of the East St. Louis Higher Education Campus to the Wyvetter H. Younge Higher Education Campus. “I filed HR 50 to honor

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SPRINGFIELD — Governor JB Pritzker along with local officials, stakeholders, and the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today announced $21 million in funding to the City of Cahokia Heights to support infrastructure projects in the area. The funding, made available through Gov. Pritzker’s historic Rebuild Illinois Capital Plan, will include rehabilitation of lift stations and improvements to the sewer collection system. “No community should have to go without clean drinking water and functional waste infrastructure, and our Rebuild Illinois capital plan is investing across the state to correct those inequities,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “Today, I’m proud to announce more than $21 million in state funding that will bring 21st century wastewater infrastructure to the Cahokia Heights community. This new investment will upgrade the existing wastewater collection system and prevent the sewage flooding that has become notorious for area residents

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ST LOUIS, Mo. —The Red Cross is partnering with other local and state disaster assistance organizations to open multi-agency resource centers starting today for those impacted by recent flooding. These centers (MARCs) are “one-stop shops” for people needing assistance to recover from flooding. Tues., August 2, 3 p.m. to 8 p.m., Element Church, 100 Mall Parkway, Unit 500, Wentzville, MO 63385 Wed., August 3, 3 p.m. to 8 p.m., John F. Kennedy Community Center, 315 Howdershell Road, Florissant, MO 63031 Free Transportation: From the Metro Pick-up at North Hanley Station at 2:30 and 6 pm (last run) Thurs. August 4, 3 p.m. to 8 p.m., Centennial Commons (gymnasium ) 7210 Olive Blvd., University City, MO 63130 Free Transportation Metro pick-up at St. Vincent Community Center (Red Cross shelter) and the Delmar Station at 2:30 and 6 pm (last run). Fri. August 5, 3 p.m. to 8 p.m., Friendly Temple, 5515 Dr. Martin Luther King Dr., St.

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EDWARDSVILLE — Madison County State’s Attorney Tom Haine announced today that Madison County Judge Neil Schroeder sentenced William Jenkins to 75 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections for the first-degree murder and armed robbery of Andre Hutson in December of 2021. The sentence was split between 65 years for the murder (all of which must be served) and 10 years for the armed robbery (of which 5 must be served). Jenkins is 45, so he will be in prison until he is approximately 115. Today’s hearing on post-trial motions & sentencing included arguments placed by both the State and the defense, plus a victim’s statement read by the mother of Andre Hutson, Mildred Green. Green addressed the court, the defendant, and the loved ones of Hutson in attendance about the loss and effect of his murder. She described how it has affected her and his only daughter specifically. Haine commended the hard work of Assistant State’s Attorneys Mike Stewart and

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ST. LOUIS – Dogtown Pizza is pleased to announce the relocation of its production facility. On July 1, they officially moved to 3843 Garfield Ave. This new location equips the company to meet surging demand for its freshly frozen pizza and put all its operations under one roof. “We are thrilled to be in a new facility that can support our growth,” said Co-Owner Rick Schaper. “It means so much to us that we were able to build a new facility in St. Louis, the city that we love.” In the old space, Dogtown Pizza made just over one million pizzas a year. Now, the new facility, owned by Confluence Group, has the tools to increase yearly output to approximately 10 million pizzas. Dogtown Pizza merged with Fox River Dairy , a specialty food distributor, to form Confluence Food Group in 2019. The parent company also owns Crust and Sons, which manufactures all the crust for Dogtown Pizza. Formally the home of St. Louis Paper & Box Co., the 113,000-square-foot

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ALTON - Local publisher and author is releasing an anthology to promote confidence in women while supporting a local charity. Stop Walking with Your Head Down is a collection of experiences of women overcoming insecurities. Different lives, different circumstances, different outcomes…as a collective, women have so many obstacles to overcome. The women in this anthology have cracked the code on how to reach within yourself and face each day head on. Christian Cashelle, owner of Dynamic Image Publications, believes that this project will allow women the opportunity to engage in conversations about everyday insecurities such as being in male-dominated industries, singleness, motherhood, infertility, and loss of a child. This anthology will be released on Tuesday, August 9, 2022 and will be available in paperback and ebook format available through Amazon ($11.99 for paperback, $5.99 for ebook). A portion of the proceeds will be donated to Be a Bridge NFP. Be a Bridge NFP’s

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CHICAGO - Attorney General Kwame Raoul led a coalition of nine attorneys general urging the U.S. Senate to pass proposed legislation that would expand health care coverage to millions of veterans who were exposed to burn pits and other military toxins. In a letter to Senators Chuck Schumer and Mitch McConnell , Raoul and the coalition urge passage of S. 3373 , which would expand health care eligibility to post-Sept. 11 combat veterans, including more than 3.5 million veterans exposed to toxins. The proposal would also add 23 burn pit and toxic exposure-related conditions to the federal Department of Veterans’ Affairs’ list of service connection presumptions, and create a framework for the establishment of future presumptions of service connection related to toxic exposure. Raoul and the coalition are calling for the passage of S. 3373, the PACT Act, after the measure failed to pass the U.S. Senate when it was called for a vote July 27. “Veterans risked thei

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