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Planned road work for northwest Missouri, April 29 – May 5

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. – The following is a list of general highway maintenance and construction work the Missouri Department of Transportation has planned in the Northwest Missouri region for the week of April 29 – May 5.

Continued flooding may cause schedule changes in some of the planned work. There may also be moving operations throughout the region such as pothole patching, striping, signal work, etc., in addition to the work mentioned below.

All work is weather permitting and subject to change.

Andrew County

Route O – CLOSED at the Platte River Bridge for a bridge replacement project. The bridge will be closed through the end of September. More info: modot.org/route-o-platte-river-bridge-replacement.

Interstate 29 – Bridge maintenance at the Nodaway River Bridge, April 29 – May 2

Business U.S. 71 – Resurfacing project from Main Street in Savannah to just south of I-29, April 29 – May 3. The contractor will begin at the northern end of the project and work south in approximately two-mile sections. One lane, each direction, will remain open at all times. This project will continue, Monday through Friday, through mid-May. A 14-foot width restriction is in place.

Atchison County

Route CC – CLOSED UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE due to a damaged culvert under the roadway.

Route J – CLOSED at the Tarkio River Bridge for a bridge replacement project through the end of August. More info: modot.org/atchison-route-j-tarkio-river-bridge-replacement.

Route C – CLOSED for a culvert replacement from Route V to Route O, April 29, 8:30 am to 3 p.m.

Route 46 – Shoulder work from Route 113 (Nodaway County) to Route EE, April 29 – May 1

U.S. Route 59 – Shoulder work from U.S. Route 136 to the Tarkio River Bridge, April 29 – May 3

Buchanan County

I-229 – CLOSED due to a failure of the bridge joint on the ramp from Charles Street to I-229 and from I-229 northbound to Edmond Street, April 29 – May 2. The closure will be round the clock until repairs are completed.

U.S. Route 36 – CLOSED for joint repair on the ramp from U.S. Route 36 westbound to I-229 northbound, April 29 – May 4. The closure will be round the clock until repairs are completed.

U.S. Route 59 – Drainage work in the city limits of Halls, May 2 – 3

Caldwell County

Route KK – Pothole patching from Route D (Carroll County) to Route A, April 29 – 30

Route B – Pothole patching from Soon Line Drive to the Ray County line, May 1

Route B – Pothole patching from Nettleton Road to Route U, May 2 – 3

Route U – Pothole patching from Route K to Route 13, May 3

Carroll County

Route KK – Pothole patching from Route D to Route A (Caldwell County), April 29 – 30

Route UU – Pothole patching from Route M to U.S. Route 65, May 1 – 2

Chariton County

U.S. Route 24 – Bridge maintenance at the Long Creek Bridge and Chariton River Bridge near Keytesville. The bridges will be narrowed to one lane with a 15-foot width restriction through May 31.

Route W – Pavement repair from Route 129 to Route 3 (Randolph County), April 29 – May 3

Route YY – CLOSED for a culvert replacement just west of Pershing Road, April 30, 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Route 5 – Resurfacing project from the city limits of Marceline to the city limits of Keytesville, May 2 – 4. This includes a 10-foot width restriction.

Clinton County

U.S. Route 69 – CLOSED for bridge rehabilitation at the I-35 overpass through early June. More info: modot.org/clinton-and-daviess-county-bridge-deck-replacements.

Daviess County

I-35 – Bridge maintenance at the Grand River Bridge and the Grand River Overflow Bridge, April 29 – May 3. A 16-foot width restriction is in place.

Route BB – Bridge maintenance at the I-35 overpass bridge, April 29 – May 3. This includes overnight lane closures and a temporary traffic signal will be in place to direct traffic.

DeKalb County

U.S. Route 169 – CLOSED at the Third Fork Platte River Bridge for a bridge replacement project through the early July. Detour along Routes 48 and M. More info: modot.org/third-fork-platte-river-bridge.

Gentry County

U.S. Route 136 – Resurfacing project from just east of U.S. Route 169 to 0.5 miles west of Route C in Albany, April 29 – May 3

Route T – CLOSED for a culvert replacement from 8th Street to 415th Street, April 30, 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Route DD – CLOSED for a culvert replacement from 237th Street to 590th Road, May 1, 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Route N – CLOSED for a culvert replacement from 240th Street to 245th Street, May 2, 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Route AF – Pothole patching, May 2 – 3

Route N – CLOSED for a culvert replacement from 280th Street to 300th Street, May 3, 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Harrison County

I-35 – Resurfacing project from Eagleville to the Iowa state line, April 29 – May 3. A 14-foot width restriction is in place.

Holt County

I-29 – Bridge repair 3.4 miles south of Route W, April 29 – May 2

Linn County

Route 129 – CLOSED for a culvert replacement from Mesa Road to Nutmeg Road, April 29, 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.

U.S. Route 36 – Pothole patching from the Macon County line to Route 139, April 30 – May 3

Route 5 – Pavement repair from Route C to U.S. Route 36, April 30 – May 3. This includes an overnight lane closure.

Livingston County

Route C – CLOSED for bridge maintenance at the Shoal Creek Drain Bridge through late May. The bridge was closed after a regularly scheduled inspection revealed critical deterioration.

U.S. Route 36 – Pavement repair from the Meadville junction to the city limits of Chillicothe, April 29 – May 3

Nodaway County

Route 46 – CLOSED for core drilling at the Big Slu Bridge and the Florida Creek Bridge, April 29, 12 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Route 148 – Pavement repair from Route CC to U.S. Route 71, April 29, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Access to Route CC will be CLOSED during this time.

Route 46 – Shoulder work from Route 113 to Route EE (Atchison County), April 29 – May 1

Route 148 – Resurfacing project from the Iowa state line to U.S. Route 71 near Maryville, April 29 – May 4

Route 46 – CLOSED for core drilling at the Big Slu Bridge and the Florida Creek Bridge, April 30 – May 2, 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. daily

Route MM – Pothole patching, May 1

Route 46 – CLOSED for bridge maintenance at the Nodaway River Bridge, May 1 – 3, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily

Route AF – Pothole patching, May 2 – 3

Route B – CLOSED for a culvert replacement at Route FF, May 2, 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Putnam County

U.S. Route 136 – Scrub seal project from the city limits of Mount Moriah to Route FF, April 29 – May 4. This includes a 12-foot width restriction with a pilot car directing traffic through the work zone.

Route W – CLOSED for a culvert replacement from Route 149 to Route FF, May 1, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Sullivan County

Route PP – CLOSED UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE at the East Medicine Creek Bridge after a regularly scheduled inspection revealed critical deterioration to the structure. The bridge is currently scheduled for replacement in fiscal year 2020. More info: modot.org/sullivan-county-route-pp-east-medicine-creek-bridge.

Route BB – CLOSED for a bridge deck replacement project at the Rooks Branch Bridge through mid-June.

Route 6 – CLOSED for a bridge replacement project at the West Locust Creek Bridge through early July. More info: modot.org/route-6-bridge-replacements-near-milan.

Route 139 – Resurfacing project from the city limits of Newtown to the city limits of Osgood, April 29 – May 3. A 10-foot width restriction is in place.

Route K – CLOSED for a culvert replacement from Route EE to Jewel Road, April 30, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Worth County

Route YY – CLOSED UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE at the Middle Fork of the Grand River after a regularly scheduled inspection revealed critical deterioration to the structure. The bridge is currently scheduled for replacement in fiscal year 2021. More info: modot.org/worth-county-route-yy-bridge-replacement.

Route 46 – CLOSED for a culvert replacement just east of Route B, April 30, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Route 46 – Pothole patching from U.S. Route 169 to Route W, May 1.

Research center will study rural drug abuse in Missouri, Kansas

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — The University of Nebraska-Lincoln has received a nearly $12 million federal grant to research challenges connected with rural drug abuse in the Midwest.

Kirk Dombrowski, professor of sociology at Nebraska, will lead the university’s new Rural Drug Addiction Research Center.

The five-year grant from the National Institutes of Health will fund a research initiative called the Rural Drug Addiction Center. Researchers will track 600 rural drug users in Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas and Missouri.

Nebraska has seen a drastic jump in its drug overdose rate in recent years. The issue is complicated by a trend among the state’s drug users who are often addicted to a combination of substances. It’s an understudied phenomenon that’s been seen in other Midwestern states.

The program’s leader, Kirk Dombrowski, says current drug addiction treatment focuses on brain chemistry, but understanding social patterns of abuse can lead to new treatments.

Kansas Has Classes To Stop Domestic Violence, Perpetrators Often Drop Out

Almost half the people locked up in Kansas prisons admit they have a history of domestic violence — getting the cops called after an argument with a partner, having a restraining order against them or serving time for beating or threatening a family member or partner.

Almost half of the people attending batterer intervention programs in 2018 didn’t finish. Program coordinators say cost, transportation and waiting lists are among the barriers to completion.
B. JAMIE / PUBLIC DOMAIN

Some of those people end up in batterer intervention programs — sometimes while they’re behind bars, other times during probation or parole. The weekly workshops stretch over months, aiming to pinpoint what drives someone to violence, and searching for ways to break those cycles.

The completion rate for the state’s program is lower than the overall rate. Out of 487 participants in 2018, 20 people completed the program while incarcerated at the Lansing Correctional Facility and 47 finished it while on parole.

Those statistics reflect the difficulty of leaving prison, the stringent requirements of parole or probation and the emotional stress of confronting one’s own history of violence, say the people who run the programs.

“People come here afraid. They don’t want to be here,” said Steve Halley, the director of Family Peace Initiative, an organization that provides batterer intervention services in the Shawnee County area and helped develop a curriculum used statewide. “They don’t want to be vulnerable. And changing and ending cruelty is a very vulnerable process.”

Halley’s program requires at least 25 weekly sessions of learning about trauma, gender roles and personal responsibility in groups of about eight to 12. Men and women are placed in separate groups. About half of the people drop out in the first five to eight weeks.

Of those who complete the program, about 22% committed domestic violence again. Of those who left early, 44% committed another act of domestic violence, according to the Shawnee County District Attorney’s Office.

Each session costs $35, with additional costs for assessment and orientation sessions. The program offers a sliding scale for people who are unemployed, but even that cost can be a burden for participants, about 80 percent of whom have been mandated to attend by a court, Halley said.

“By far we’re serving, basically, the poor,” he said. “Their life is so chaotic that to be able to make it, to attend a class once a week for six months, is a huge request.”

Rural batterer intervention programs face similar challenges.

But a program based in Hays, in northwestern Kansas, sees completion rates of about 90%, well above the statewide average.  Its attendees come from a range of socioeconomic backgrounds and nearly 20 counties in a sparsely populated part of the state, said Dian Organ and Nance Munderloh, who run the program.

They said court orders mandating the program contribute to the high completion rate.

“Our people,” Organ said, “want to get off of supervision.”

Many of their attendees have to carpool because they don’t have driver’s licenses or access to public transportation. Some have to drive for almost two hours. That commute can complicate the typical barriers to attending several months of classes: the cost, low-paying jobs, struggles with addiction and unstable housing.

“It’s quite the stress,” Organ said, “on some of them.”

Those challenges can be magnified on parole, said Danielle Thompson, who supervises the batterer intervention program at the Kansas Department of Corrections.

The state runs a program specifically for people on parole because they find it particularly difficult to attend every session while looking for housing, finding work, staying away from drugs and meeting other conditions of parole, Thompson said. Unlike community programs, the state’s batterer intervention program doesn’t have any fees.

“Parole offenders really struggled with paying those fees because of the jobs they were able to get and all the other fees they had to pay for,” she said. “Being able to offer it at the parole office was an attempt to make it a little bit more attainable.”

The state-run program also serves people held at the Lansing Correctional Facility in northeastern Kansas. Forty-two percent of respondents to a Department of Corrections survey said they have a history of domestic violence, but Thompson estimates that a more accurate proportion might be closer to 50% or 60%.

“We know the immense trauma that offenders in our custody and who we are supervising have experienced,” she said. “We know that unresolved trauma can result in perpetrating violence onto others.”

One reason for the state program’s low completion rates, Thompson said, is the waiting list. People might not make it into the program until a few months into their parole term. Often, a parole term can end before the batterer intervention program is complete.

Thompson said the state program doesn’t accept people with less than five months left on parole who can’t commit to at least four months of batterer intervention. It can take eight to 10 weeks for attendees to build rapport, learn empathy and start applying new skills to their relationships. Before that point, they’re often hostile, defensive and emotionally vulnerable, which puts them at risk of committing further violence.

“If they don’t have that minimum amount of time, we don’t put them in the group because it would be counterproductive to safety,” she said. “It can actually increase the risk and make them more dangerous.”

More staff, Thompson said, would increase the program’s capacity. It’s easy for the batterer intervention program to keep on dedicated employees, but it’s harder to hire enough people with both the skills and the willingness to work on an emotionally difficult subject. Kansas also requires people to obtain a special license in order to conduct assessments for people nominated for batterer intervention.

“We serve the highest-risk people,” she said. “It takes a certain set of skills to be able to do this work.”

In 2016 and 2017, 19% of people who completed the Department of Corrections batterer intervention program were convicted of another domestic violence crime. Seven percent had a restraining order issued against them due to abuse of a partner or household member.

Progress is often slow, Thompson said, but she finds the work rewarding.

“Sometimes success is, instead of calling her ‘my baby Mama,’ it’s ‘her name is Rachel.’ It’s moving from objectifying them to identifying them as a human,” she said. “Instead of strangling her, it’s pushing her. There’s still violence, but the violence has decreased.”

Nomin Ujiyediin is a reporter for the Kansas News Service. You can send her an email at nomin at kcur dot org, or reach her on Twitter @NominUJ.

St. Joseph woman hospitalized after ATV hits a tree

CALDWELL COUNTY — One person was injured in an accident just after 8p.m. Saturday in Caldwell County.

The Missouri State Highway Patrol reported a 2003 Honda TRX 300EX ATV driven by Raegan L. Coker, 30, St. Joseph, was northbound on a private drive at Soggy Bottom Campground four miles northwest of Kingston. The ATV traveled off the east side of the drive, struck a tree and overturned.

Caldwell County Ambulance transported Coker to Cameron Regional Medical Center. She was not wearing a helmet, according to MSHP.

Missouri man dies after vehicle overturned, struck a house

HENRY COUNTY — One person died in an accident just before 10:30p.m. Saturday in Henry County.

The Missouri State Highway Patrol reported a 2008 Ford passenger vehicle driven by Jimmy L. Quigley, 63, Kansas City, MO., was southbound on MO. 7 and SE 751 Road. The vehicle left the road, overturned and struck and house.

Quigley was pronounced dead at the scene and transported to Consalus Funeral Home. He was properly restrained at the time of the accident, according to the MSHP.

Susan G. Komen Kansas, Western Missouri names new CEO

Erica Terry

KOMENKSWMO

LEAWOOD – Susan G. Komen Kansas & Western Missouri Board of Directors announced that they have selected proven development executive and cancer advocate Erica Terry as CEO and Executive Director. Terry begins her role on April 29, 2019.

Terry joins Komen from The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art where she served as Director, Membership & Corporate Partnerships. Prior to that, she built her career at cancer-related organizations including Saint Luke’s Foundation, LIVESTRONG, and The University of Kansas Cancer Center.

The search for a new permanent CEO began in November of 2018 when Susan G. Komen Greater Kansas City and Susan G. Komen Kansas affiliates merged to become Susan G. Komen Kansas & Western Missouri. Komen affiliates have invested more than $27.5 million in breast health programs in the 112-county Kansas and Missouri service area to date.

Terry will be the newly merged affiliate’s first permanent leader, focusing on the effort to continue increasing impact in existing service areas and to begin implementing expansion of efforts to underserved areas throughout the state.

Kristin Cargin, Board President, led the search with the executive committee, recruitment firm Fenaroli and Associates and the support of the full board.

“We conducted a comprehensive regional search and it led us to a native Kansan who brings experience working in the Greater Kansas City area and throughout the State of Kansas,” said Cargin. “Her Midwestern roots, combined with the work she has done with mission-driven organizations, her proven success in development and her passion for the fight against cancer perfectly positions her to help us save more lives and ultimately end breast cancer forever.”

As part of her personal mission to end cancer, Terry founded and served as president of Tour de BBQ, an annual fundraising bike ride to support young adults with cancer. Other board positions have included Gilda’s Club Kansas City, Leukemia & Lymphoma Society – Kansas City Chapter and Kansas City Cancer Partnership.

“I couldn’t be more humbled, honored and thankful for the opportunity to lead this important organization as we expand our impact, save lives, and achieve Komen’s Bold Goal to reduce breast cancer deaths by 50% in 2026. Achieving this will not happen if we wait for someone else to do it. We can meet this goal with thoughtful planning, strategic partnerships across the region, and collaborative work to ensure nobody has to suffer from this devastating disease,” said Erica Terry.

Dr. Roy A. Jensen, director of The University of Kansas Cancer Center, said that he is absolutely delighted that Terry has been selected for this position. “Erica combines extensive experience in the non-profit world with a longstanding and deeply felt passion for cancer advocacy. I can’t think of anyone who would be better suited to lead this great organization,” commented Dr. Jensen.

Terry holds a Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts in Political Science from the University of Kansas. She has served as a political activist, partnering with former Kansas State Senator Barbara Allen on the breast cancer license plate and Fred Logan on the Johnson County Education Research Triangle.

About Susan G. Komen®
Susan G. Komen is the world’s largest breast cancer organization, funding more breast cancer research than any other nonprofit outside of the federal government while providing real-time help to those facing the disease. Komen has set a Bold Goal to reduce the current number of breast cancer deaths by 50% in the U.S. by 2026. Since its founding in 1982, Komen has funded more than $988 million in research and provided more than $2.2 billion in funding to screening, education, treatment and psychosocial support programs serving millions of people in more than 60 countries worldwide. Komen was founded by Nancy G. Brinker, who promised her sister, Susan G. Komen, that she would end the disease that claimed Suzy’s life. That promise has become Komen’s promise to all people facing breast cancer. Visit komen.org or call 1-877 GO KOMEN. Connect with us on social at ww5.komen.org/social.

About Susan G. Komen® Kansas & Western Missouri
Komen Kansas & Western Missouri is working to better the lives of those facing breast cancer in their local communities. Through signature events like the More Than Pink Walk and BigWigs, Komen Kansas & Western Missouri has invested more than $27.5 million in breast health programs in their 112-county Kansas and Missouri service area and has helped contribute to the more than $988 million invested globally in researchFor more information, call 816.842.0410, visit komenkswmo.org or behindtheribbon.org. Connect with us on social media: Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.

 

Missouri students push for opioid overdose antidote in dorms

COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — A University of Missouri student group is pushing to make an opioid overdose-reversal medication available at campus residence halls.

Anthony Garcia is director of policy and advocacy for the Missouri Students Association. Garcia tells Columbia Missourian that it would cost the university $3,000 every two years to put Narcan nasal sprays in every residence hall.

Naloxone, the overdose-reversal drug sold under brand name Narcan, usually lasts between 60 and 90 minutes, giving first responders time to arrive and take a person to a hospital.

The National Institute on Drug Abuse says Missouri had 952 overdose deaths involving opioids in 2017.

Garcia plans to meet with university health, law enforcement and residential life officials to discuss implementing the plan in the coming weeks.

Former top Greitens’ aide to lead Republican political group

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Former Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens’ campaign manager has been chosen to lead a national group focused on electing Republicans in state-level races.

The Republican State Leadership Committee’s board of directors named Georgia-native Austin Chambers as president.

The committee in a release announcing Chambers’ hiring touted his successful work on Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey and Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp’s campaigns. It alluded to Greitens’ campaign without naming him.

Greitens resigned last year in the face of possible impeachment.

After he stepped down, a House lawmaker who investigated him filed an ethics complaint accusing Greitens’ gubernatorial campaign and a nonprofit that promoted Greitens’ agenda of multiple campaign finance violations. Chambers led the nonprofit.

An attorney for the campaign and nonprofit has said no laws were violated.

The complaint is still pending.

Kan. district fires teacher after video shows child being kicked

SHAWNEE, Kan. (AP) — The Shawnee Mission School District says it fired an elementary school teacher after a video showed her kicking a 5-year-old girl in the back.

The incident occurred Feb. 21 at Bluejacket-Flint Elementary School in Shawnee. The girl’s mother said her daughter had a large red mark on her arm after school that day and said the teacher hit her.

A video obtained by the station shows the child refusing to leave the library with the other students and hiding in a bookshelf. The teacher is seen dragging the girl out of the bookshelf and kicking her in the back.

Shawnee Mission district spokesman David Smith says the district feels terrible about the situation.

The Johnson County District Attorney’s Office is reviewing the case.

St. Joseph man hospitalized after violent crash

ANDREW COUNTY —One person was injured in an accident just after 11:30p.m. Friday in. Andrew County.

The Missouri State Highway Patrol reported a 2004 GMC 1500 driven by Zachery D. Guy, 26, St. Joseph, was southbound on Route K three miles north of St. Joseph. The vehicle crossed the center line, traveled off the east side of the road, struck a field entrance, went airborne and struck several trees.

Andrew County Ambulance transported Guy to Mosaic Life Care. He was properly restrained at the time of the accident, according to the MSHP.

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