Home

On Friday afternoon, August 16, 2019 at 3:25pm, the Barron County Sheriff’s Department received a 911 call of a 14 year old male who was struck in the head by a falling tree that was being cut down by another person. The incident occurred near 7 th Avenue and 19 th Street, Town of Prairie Lake, Barron County. Initial investigation shows 14 year old Floyd Lehman, of Melrose, WI, was part of a group cleaning up downed trees from a

The life expectancy in Wisconsin continues to decline.  Data released today by the Wisconsin Policy Forum shows a decline for the second straight year, which mirrors a national trend.  The life expectancy for Wisconsin babies born from 2015 to 2017 is 80 years, down slightly from 2014 to 2016.  The Policy Forum says there was a concerning rise in the rate of deaths due to alcohol especially among black residents and for people in their 20s and 30s due to opioids. 

The Boys and Girls Club of the Greater Chippewa Valley Board of Directors has announced today that they have chosen Ann Kaiser as the organization’s new CEO. Kaiser will succeed interim CEO Denisha Tate-McAlister in September. Ann has served as Director of Philanthropy for HSH Sacred Heart Foundation for more than 13 years and achieved designation as Certified Fund Raising Executive status in 2008.

A man is dead after a rollover crash in Saint Croix County.  Reports say Corey Peterson rolled down an embankment early Saturday morning and was thrown from his car.  Peterson was pronounced dead at the scene.  He’s the tenth traffic death of the year in Saint Croix County. 

A La Crosse woman is facing her fourth OWI charge.  The Wisconsin State Patrol says Colleen Kjos was pulled over on US 53 in La Crosse over the weekend for not moving over for a stopped emergency vehicle.  The patrol says the trooper who stopped Kjos saw signs of impairment, performed a field sobriety test, and arrested her. 

University of Wisconsin Med Flight has a new base in Portage.  The base was unveiled during an open house yesterday where people could take tours, look at the helicopters, and ask questions about services.  Med Flight officials say the new base will help them be able to reach people faster. 

There could be a few more answers about a missing Rusk County teen by the end of the day.  Authorities yesterday said they found the girl with a man who she’d been chatting with online.  They were reportedly heading to Florida.  Rick County’s sheriff is not identifying the man who took her, or saying how the two were caught.  The sheriff says the suspect will face weapons charges in Illinois before being brought back to Wisconsin to possibly face charges here. 

One western Wisconsin lawmaker is pushing for a regional mental health center as a way to ease some of the pressure on local sheriffs.  State Rep. Gae Magnafici last week wrote an open letter to her fellow lawmakers urging them to support a mental health center for Eau Claire.  She says having a regional center for western Wisconsin would free-up beds and resources in county jails by giving local sheriffs a place to send people who are battling mental illness.  Magnafici is quick to

Authorities are asking for your help. In the early morning on August 17th, the Springbrook Church was damaged and broken into. The vehicle and individuals shown in the photos are believed to be involved. The vehicle is a grey or green Ford 500 and there appeared to be 3 females and 2 males. We are looking for any information regarding this incident. If you have information and would like to remain anonymous, contact Dunn County Crime Stoppers.

Two Wisconsin based Native American tribes are getting federal funding for green energy projects.  Yesterday, WISC reported the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa and the Forest County Potawatomi Community are benefiting from a total of two-point-five-million-dollars from the federal Office of Indian Energy Policy and Programs.  The money will be used to pay to set up solar energy generation for each tribe.