Two people escaped with minor injuries after a single-vehicle, rollover crash on I-35 north of Cameron Wednesday morning. The Missouri State Highway Patrol crash report indicates 51-year-old Curtis Barfield lost control of his vehicle, which left the roadway and overturned shortly after 8:30am.

Barfield and his passenger 38-year-old Merissa Nelson are both from Kansas City, Kansas. Both were transported to Cameron Regional Medical Center for treatment of minor injuries.

Governor Jay Nixon on Wednesday presented the state’s Medal of Valor to nine people, including three conservation agents who helped rescue motorists stranded by floodwaters in Northwest Missouri in September of 2014. Agents Eric Abbott, Jade Wright and Michael Maupin rescued a bus driver near Squaw Creek and helped numerous motorists trapped by flooding along I-29 near Mound City.

The following information is from the announcement from the governor’s office.

On Sept. 9, 2014, over nine inches of rain swept across northwest Missouri in a matter of hours, leading to widespread flash flooding, including along Squaw Creek in Holt County. A school bus with only the bus driver onboard was swept off Highway N, becoming lodged against a fence. With the swift water rising rapidly, a Department of Conservation boat was launched into a flooded ditch. Agent Wright maneuvered the boat through the roiling water with Agent Maupin and a Missouri State Highway Patrol sergeant also aboard. Together they were able to rescue the driver.

The flash flooding grew worse and shortly before midnight, in a matter of minutes, over three feet of water rushed across a one-half mile stretch of Interstate 29 near Mound City. Four vehicles were swept off the interstate, trapping seven motorists.

Agent Abbott had been first on the scene. He immediately shut down I-29. One of the four vehicles that were swept off the highway came to rest in the depressed highway median. The vehicle was entirely submerged, with only the luggage rack above the surface of the water. The driver was clinging for his life to the luggage rack. The rushing water was too turbulent to attempt a boat rescue. Agent Abbott grabbed rescue equipment and climbed onto the front of a MoDOT road grader, which was then driven into the swift water to the desperate motorist. Surrounded by swirling water, Agent Abbott threw the man a rescue rope and instructed him on how to secure it. On the count of three, the victim jumped toward the road grader into the roiling water. Agent Abbott braced himself on the grader and quickly pulled the victim to safety.

Agents Wright and Maupin improvised and used a MoDOT front end loader to reach a total of six trapped motorists, whose vehicles had been swept down an embankment. Riding in the front end loader’s bucket with life jackets and rescue equipment, they, along with a Highway Patrol sergeant, maneuvered through the swirling water and loaded the victims from their flooded vehicles into the bucket, and then safely back to land, in two separate trips.

Officials say this might be the first time agents from the Department of Conservation have received the Medal of Valor.

The Medal of Valor was first awarded in 2008 and is bestowed annually based on recommendations submitted by the Medal of Valor Review Board. Recipients must serve a public agency, with or without compensation, as a firefighter, law enforcement officer or emergency personnel. The nominating form states the Medal of Valor is awarded “to a public safety officer who has exhibited exceptional courage, extraordinary decisiveness and presence of mind, and unusual swiftness of action, regardless of his or her own personal safety, in the attempt to save or protect human life.”

Hillcrest Transitional House has released a statement regarding a shooting incident that took place Tuesday near the Hillcrest Transitional Housing Apartment Complex at 3000 Parkway A.

The statement said that upon investigation, law enforcement determined that the parties involved in the incident were in no way related to the residents or staff at Hillcrest Transitional Housing.

It also said the criminal activity was performed in the alley that is located on the property of Hillcrest, a local non-profit agency that helps the homeless of the community to regain self-sufficiency through a strict and accountability driven 90-day program.

“I thank God that none of our residents or staff were hurt,” said Shannen White, Affiliate Director of Hillcrest Transitional Housing of Buchanan County. “They are shaken up, but no one is hurt from Hillcrest.”

The police are still investigating the situation. White said Hillcrest does not have any information about the victim, the motive behind the incident or why it happened on Hillcrest property. The whole Hillcrest community continues to pray for the victim and other parties involved.

She adds that the goal of Hillcrest is to provide a safe and nurturing environment for the families and individuals that come through the program. Anyone with information about the incident is asked to contact the St. Joseph Police Department.

School districts across the nation are cleaning up their older school bus fleets with help from the Environmental Protection Agency.

Five Missouri school districts, including one in Bethany, have been awarded a total of $230,000 by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to replace or retrofit 13 older diesel school buses:

 
South Harrison R-II, Bethany, Mo. – $40,000 – two buses
Holcomb R-III School District, Holcomb, Mo. – $20,000 – one bus
Winston R-VI School District, Winston, Mo. – $20,000 – one bus
Sherwood Cass R-8 School District, Creighton, Mo. – $20,000 – one bus
Blue Springs R-IV School District, Blue Springs, Mo. – $140,000 – eight buses

The Missouri awards are part of more than $7 million in rebates to replace or retrofit 400 older diesel school buses. The rebates are going to 85 school bus fleets in 35 states, each of which will receive rebates through EPA’s Diesel Emissions Reduction Act (DERA) funding. The new and retrofitted buses will reduce pollutants such as nitrogen oxides and particulate matter that are linked to numerous health problems, including asthma and lung damage.

“Schools and other organizations that install clean diesel technology are doing more than just saving money — they’re creating cleaner, healthier air for children and all community residents,” said Christopher Grundler, director of EPA’s Office of Transportation and Air Quality. “This program continues to help thousands of children breathe easier and lead safer lives year after year.”

This was EPA’s third round of the rebate program aimed at replacing older diesel school buses. Applicants replacing buses with engine model years of 2006 and older will receive rebates between $15,000 and $25,000, depending on the size of the bus. This year, applicants also had the option of retrofitting school buses with engine model years 1994 to 2006 with a Diesel Oxidation Catalyst plus Closed Crankcase Ventilation system (DOC plus CCV) to reduce toxic emissions. EPA will fully fund the cost of these devices up to $3,000.

Three Kansas school districts were awarded a total 0f $220,000 to replace or retrofit 11 older diesel school buses. School districts included are:
Turner Unified School District (USD) 202, Wyandotte County, Kan. – $80,000 – four buses
Altoona-Midway USD 387, Buffalo, Kan. – $20,000 – one bus
Maize USD 266, Maize, Kan. – $120,000 – six buses

IKM-Manning Community School District in Manning, Iowa, and the Sioux City (Iowa) Community School District have been awarded a total of $60,000 to replace or retrofit three older diesel school buses. IKM-Manning CSD will receive $40,000 for two buses and Sioux City CSD will receive $20,000 for one bus.

Ord Public Schools of Ord, Neb., and Auburn Public Schools in Auburn, Neb., were awarded a total of $90,000. Ord Public Schools was awarded $30,000 for two buses while Auburn Schools was awarded $60,000 for three buses.

EPA has implemented standards to make newer diesel engines more than 90 percent cleaner, but many older diesel school buses remain in operation and pre-date these standards. Older diesel engines emit large amounts of pollutants such as nitrogen oxides and particulate matter, which are linked to instances of aggravated asthma, lung damage, and other serious health problems. Nearly 17,000 of our country’s schools are located within steps of a heavily-traveled road, potentially exposing more than six million children to traffic-related pollution at a time when their developing lungs are particularly vulnerable to the harmful effects of air pollution.

Since 2008, the DERA program has funded more than 650 clean diesel projects across the country, reducing emissions in more than 60,000 engines.

A threat to turn off the power unless a payment is made is prompting a warning from the Livingston County Sheriff’s Office.

Tuesday the office said it received notice from two citizens of a call they received in which a man said he represented a reputable electric company and the citizen’s utility service was being shut-off unless payment was quickly made.

“Of course, the scammer would have gladly accepted payment information over the phone but fortunately neither of the intended victims fell into his game,” said Sheriff Steve Cox. “The caller had a foreign accent and was most likely not in the United States.”

The office said there are several versions to this type of scam and unfortunately they occasionally are successful. It said if you fall victim to a scam to report that information to your local law enforcement agency.

“Scammers and criminals never seem to quit,” Sheriff Cox said. “Be safe and keep your money.”

The Big Muddy continues to rise, but the rise is slowing, and the flood warning has been shortened.

At 6:30 a.m. Wednesday, officials reported the Missouri River stage at St Joseph was 21.94 feet, nearly a foot above the moderate flood stage (21 feet).   The river is expected to crest at about 6pm Wednesday at 23.8 feet before beginning to recede.

The flood warning is now in effect through Saturday evening.

A St. Joseph man is accused of pointing a realistic looking handgun at two people who confronted him while he was trying to steal from a vehicle.

Nathan Hutchison, 20 has been charged in Buchanan County with a misdemeanor for theft/stealing.

According to court documents police responded to the 1500 block of Frederick around 3 a.m. Monday.

“According to police reports the suspect Nathan Hutchinson pointed a handgun at two subjects when they confronted him for being outside of a vehicle,” said Officer Greg Ogdahl with the St. Joseph Police Department in a probable cause document. “The subjects believed the gun was real. A black realistic air soft gun was recovered from the suspect.”

A second probable cause document filed said around 1 a.m. Hutchinson was reported to have stolen from a vehicle in the 1500 block of Jules.

“The suspect was caught with items matching the description of items that were stolen from the vehicle,” Ogdahl said.

Capt. Jeff Wilson said the charge stems from an investigation into one case that began Monday. As we previously reported, an officer deployed a taser during the arrest of a suspect Monday near the 1500 block of Frederick after a passerby called police to report a man believed to be breaking into a car.

Bond for Hutchison is set in the amount of $5,000. An arraignment is scheduled for Friday.

A St. Joseph man made his first court appearance Tuesday by video conference from the Buchanan County Law Enforcement Center on a charge of child molestation.

William J. Bartlett, 33 was charged Friday in Buchanan County with a felony for first-degree child molestation.

According to court document, Bartlett is accused of sodomizing a 9-year-old girl with his hand between Jan. 1 and Oct. 1 of 2015.

Online court documents show a plea of not guilty was entered for Bartlett during the Tuesday arraignment. Bond for Bartlett remains at $25,000 cash only. He is also not allowed to have contact with the victim.

A preliminary hearing is set for Jan. 7