MITCHELL - One of the most dramatic car fires in recent memory occurred this past weekend on Illinois Route 270 just over the Mitchell border. The Illinois State Police explained today what happened in the fiery incident: "At 6:36 p.m. on June 9, 2023, Troop 8 responded to a vehicle fire on I-270 westbound at the intersection with I-255 southbound in Madison County," ISP said. "Unit 1, a 2021 Chrysler Voyager, struck an unknown piece of debris in the roadway. The driver of Unit 1 pulled onto the shoulder and noticed that Unit 1 was on fire. "The driver and five occupants safely exited the vehicle and Unit 1 became fully engulfed in flames. Mitchell Fire arrived on the scene and extinguished the flames. " The State Police said no further information is available about the incident.
WASHINGTON — Senate Democrats for the third time this year made their case that U.S. Supreme Court justices must follow stronger ethics rules, including recusing themselves from cases where they have a financial stake or other connection to a case. The series of hearings by the Senate Committee on the Judiciary and its subcommittees came […]
A year ago, 22nd Circuit Court Judge David Mason was joined by hundreds of St. Louisans as he unveiled the Freedom Suits Memorial, located at the Civil Courts Building on 10 N. Tucker Street in St. Louis, Missouri.
ALTON - Each day, the new Starbucks in Alton gets closer to being a reality. Much progress has been made at the location, which is fenced off just off Homer Adams Parkway in Alton. The shell of the new structure is in a place where the old Shop 'n Save gas station was once located. Alton Mayor David Goins said he believes the new location will open soon. He hopes to see doors open sometime in July or in the summer. Mayor Goins said he knows the new Starbucks will provide a boost in tax revenues because it is such a popular coffee house and it has been sought for many years. Starbucks is an American chain of coffeehouses and roasters reserves headquartered in Seattle, Wash., and is the nation's largest coffeehouse chain. Starbucks has hot and cold drinks, whole-bean coffee, espresso, coffee latte, full and loose-leaf teas, juices, Frappuccino beverages, pastries and snacks with free Wi-Fi internet service. "We are really excited to see the progress on the Starbucks," the mayor said.
Evelyn Thompson from Kirk Day School was chosen as the winner of the Nicholas Maxim Award for cursive writing in the 2023 Zaner-Bloser National Handwriting Contest.
The status of being publicly queer or trans has become increasingly fraught in Missouri in 2023. Historian Steven Louis Brawely and artist Steve Willits reflect on commemorating Pride month, and LGBTQ history, at a time when events are playing out, as Brawley says, in “real time.”
GODFREY - Godfrey Mayor Mike McCormick is stepping down from the Great Rivers & Routes Tourism Board of Directors to focus on his mayoral duties. The board, which oversees the Great Rivers & Routes Tourism Bureau , will be saying goodbye to McCormick after more than 20 years of service. “My main job is being the mayor of the Village of Godfrey, but I’ve really enjoyed watching the Great Rivers & Routes Tourism Board and how they’ve grown through the years,” McCormick said. “I have enjoyed the time I spent on the board, but it’s time for me to move on.” McCormick originally joined the board as a business owner. He owned Imo’s Pizza in North Alton before he accepted the job of mayor 14 years ago. “People needed somebody to represent the restaurant industry in the local area, and asked me to go on the board,” McCormick said. Over the next 20 years, he watched the Great Rivers & Routes group expand into the tourism
When the Missouri Department of Transportation’s Emergency Response Team first took to area roadways, it was to help with a battery jump or provide a stranded motorist with a gallon of gas.
Northbound Earth City Expressway, also known as Highway 141, reopens Friday morning after three months of bridge replacement work. The southbound side closes Monday for the same reason and won't reopen until mid-September.
GRAFTON - A large bobcat was viewed near Grafton off Powerline Road recently and definitely was “above average in size,” Scott Isringhausen, a Pere Marquette park ranger, said after a review of a photo. Bobcats are definitely appearing in the area more frequently, Isringhausen said. “Male bobcats are bigger than females, so my guess is it is probably a male in the photo,” he said. “Bobcats are definitely around more than they were a couple of years ago. There aren’t many predators for them and they are becoming more plentiful.” Bobcats don’t normally attack a person, Isringhausen said, but they will attack chickens, ducks and possibly pets. “We occasionally see a bobcat during the day, but they are very shy and secretive and usually you can see them at night,” he said. “They also prey on rabbits, quail and songbirds and they kill to kill. Sometimes they don’t even eat what they killed.”
Mike Yastrzemski hit a game-tying two-run homer in the ninth inning and Thairo Estrada had the go-ahead single in 10th, and the San Francisco Giants rallied to complete a three-game sweep of the St. Louis Cardinals with an 8-5 victory on Wednesday.
ALTON - Rosetta Brown is taking a group of teens to Raging Rivers Waterpark , and she’s asking for your help. “There are quite a few underserved children who have not been able to experience this, so I decided I would make this happen,” Brown, Alderwoman for the 4th Ward, said. For $15, teens ages 12–16 can join Brown on July 8 for a trip to the waterpark. This discounted rate includes bus transportation, entrance to the park and lunch. Brown is asking for donations so that every teen who wants to participate can do so. “I’m very honored and very appreciative of the residents of the 4th Ward,” Brown said. “They are ready to help out however. I do have a core group of volunteers who assist in any way that I ask, and I am very appreciative of them.” The Alderwoman’s office has also partnered with Darlene Croft from Next Step Forward Community Development Corporation and Kennedy Smith from Unity in the Community
A lot has been written about The Beatles, but apparently there are even more goodies to discover about the iconic band, and a new book hopes to help folks do that. …
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Flag Day is nationally recognized each year on June 14 to commemorate the birthday of the American Flag. In 2023, the star-spangled banner is celebrating its 246th year. According to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs , the flag’s design was approved and early renditions were created in 1777 - however, the first observance of Flag Day didn’t occur until about a century later. The original resolution approving the flag’s design read as follows: “That the flag of the United States shall be of thirteen stripes of alternate red and white, with a union of thirteen stars of white in a blue field, representing the new constellation.” Since then, the flag has gone through about 27 different iterations before becoming the 50-star flag we know today, but it retains the original 13 stripes, symbolizing the 13 original English colonies the United States consisted of during the flag’s initial design. While that original 13-star
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