The National Weather Service reports that remnants of Tropical Storm Bill are likely to spread heavy rain across parts of Oklahoma, Arkansas and Missouri Wednesday and Thursday and could cause flooding along many of the rivers in those areas. Be careful if you will be near a stream or river as water levels could rise quickly.
7 Day Forecast
Today
A slight chance of showers and thunderstorms after 1pm. Partly sunny, with a high near 80. East wind around 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%. Tonight
A chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly before 1am. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 68. East southeast wind 3 to 7 mph. Chance of precipitation is 40%. New rainfall amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms. Wednesday
A chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 83. Southwest wind 3 to 7 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30%. New rainfall amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms. Wednesday Night
A chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 68. South southwest wind 3 to 7 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30%. New rainfall amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms. Thursday
A chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly sunny, with a high near 83. Light and variable wind becoming southeast around 6 mph in the afternoon. Chance of precipitation is 30%. New rainfall amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms. Thursday Night
Mostly cloudy, with a low around 67. Friday
Mostly sunny, with a high near 83. Friday Night
Partly cloudy, with a low around 70. Saturday
Mostly sunny, with a high near 88. Saturday Night
A chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 70. Chance of precipitation is 50%. Sunday
A chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly sunny, with a high near 85. Chance of precipitation is 30%. Sunday Night
Partly cloudy, with a low around 64. Monday
Mostly sunny, with a high near 84.
The Chillicothe Fire Department is investigating the cause of a vacant house fire Monday morning.
“We think it was electrical,” said Darrell Wright, Fire Chief with the Chillicothe Fire Department.
Crews responded around 5:30 a.m. to an unoccupied home located in the 1600 block of 3rd St.
Wright said when firefighters arrived they found flames extending through the east side of the roof. Firelighters entered through a second story window to extinguish the fire.
Wright said there was no one in the home at the time however power was connected.
“We can’t 100% say that it wasn’t lightning,” Wright said. “lightning has hit that house before. We’ve been to that house a few times.”
Damage to the home is estimated at around $30,000.
“There was extensive fire damage to the roof and water and smoke damage throughout the entire structure,” Wright said.
He said the homeowners live in Virginia and that there were no contents in the house.
Many farmers could have fields left unplanted this year in northwest Missouri after continuous rainfall hinders the growing season.
“We continue to get anywhere from a quarter to an inch or two of rain and it’s sure put a damper on trying to get any type of field work done,” said Wayne Flanary, Agronomy Specialist with the Missouri Extension Office in northwest Missouri.
He said the outlook this year is not good for farmers still trying to get their crops in the ground.
“At this point in time it looks like we’re probably between 20 and 30 percent of corn preventative planted,” Flanary said. “As far as soybeans we probably have about 70-percent of our beans left to be planted.”
He said the deadline to plant corn is pretty much over.
“It’s getting late enough that most farmers are deciding if they’re going to plant they’re switching to soybeans,” Flanary said.
And depending on a farmer’s crop insurance, Flanary said the deadline to get soybeans in the ground isn’t far off.
“We really encourage people to check. Each agency may have some specific guidelines they want to follow besides the overall framework of the crop insurance,” he said.
While it is possible to plant soybeans in July, Flanary said farmers would be seeing reduced yields at that point.
He said crop insurance is really the only saving grace for many farmers in the region this year.
“At this point that’s what they’re looking at is just insurance,” Flanary said. “Whenever it’s too wet to plant you just don’t have any options.”
Three Stanberry teenagers were taken to the hospital with minor injuries Saturday after a two vehicle crash in Gentry County.
According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol Sierra Wagner, 15 of Stanberry Missouri was stopped at a stop sign on 3rd St. in Stanberry in a 1999 Saturn. MSHP said Wagner pulled out in front of a 2001 Dodge driven by Samantha Smith, 19 of Stanberry traveling northbound on US 169 Highway. Smith’s vehicle hit the driver’s side of Wagner’s vehicle.
Sierra Wagner, and her passenger, Skye Wagner, 17 of Stanberry were transported by ambulance to Mosaic Life Care for treatment of minor injuries. Smith was taken by Ambulance to Northwest Regional Medical Center in Albany for treatment of minor injuries.
GRAY AREA: The northeastern Missouri counties of Adair, Chariton, Linn, Macon, Randolph, and Sullivan highlighted in gray show MDC’s original management area in and around where chronic wasting disease (CWD) was first discovered. BROWN AREA: In addition, the northeastern counties of Knox, Scotland, Schuyler, Shelby, and Putnam, and the central Missouri counties of Boone, Callaway, Cole, Cooper, Miller, Moniteau, Morgan, and Osage highlighted in brown show the expanded current CWD management area in and around where CWD has been discovered.
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) is asking deer hunters in 19 central and northeastern Missouri counties to help limit the spread of a deadly deer disease through increased harvest opportunities this fall and winter.
The Missouri Conservation Commission recently approved several changes to regulations for the upcoming 2015-16 fall deer hunting season that focus on slowing the spread of chronic wasting disease (CWD).
Chronic Wasting Disease infects only deer and other members of the deer family by causing degeneration of brain tissue, which slowly leads to death. The disease has no vaccine or cure and is 100-percent fatal.
“A primary way CWD is spread is through deer-to-deer contact,” explained MDC State Wildlife Veterinarian Kelly Straka. “Deer gathering and interacting in larger numbers can potentially increase the spread in an area. Young bucks can also potentially spread the disease to new areas as they search for territories and mates.”
REGULATION CHANGES
The regulation changes focus on slowing the spread of the disease in and around counties where CWD has been found. The changes will remove the antler-point restriction so hunters can harvest more young bucks. The changes will also increase the availability of firearms antlerless permits from 1 to 2 to help thin local deer numbers.
COUNTIES IMPACTED
These regulation changes add to similar measures MDC enacted in 2012 for six counties in northeastern Missouri after CWD was discovered in Linn and Macon counties. Counties affected by those regulation changes were Adair, Chariton, Linn, Macon, Randolph, and Sullivan.
The recent regulation changes add five more northeastern counties of Knox, Scotland, Schuyler, Shelby, and Putnam and come after six deer tested positive for CWD this past fall and winter in Adair County.
The recent regulation changes also include eight counties in central Missouri and come after a buck harvested in Cole County tested positive for the disease this past winter. Those counties are Boone, Callaway, Cole, Cooper, Miller, Moniteau, Morgan, and Osage.
“The challenge with CWD is that there is no way to fully eradicate the disease from an area once it has become established,” said Dr. Straka. “While we do not expect short-term population impacts from the disease, CWD is likely to have serious long-term consequences to the health of Missouri’s deer herd. Therefore, we have and will continue to focus on slowing the spread of the disease among deer in the affected areas, and trying to limit the spread to new areas of the state.”
CWD TESTING RESULTS
The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) reports that a total of 16 new cases of CWD were found in free-ranging deer through its testing efforts this past fall and winter. Of the 16 new cases, nine were found in Macon County, six in Adair County, and one in Cole County.
These 16 new cases bring the total number of Missouri free-ranging deer that have tested positive for CWD to 26 overall since the disease was first discovered in the state in 2010.
MDC collected more than 3,400 tissue samples for CWD testing from harvested and other free-ranging deer this past fall and winter. The Department has collected more than 43,000 tissue samples since it began testing for the emerging disease in 2001. MDC will continue increased testing efforts this fall and winter in areas where CWD has been found.
MDC is also considering regulation changes for the 2016-17 deer season that would require testing of deer harvested during the opening weekend of the fall firearms season in the 19 counties in and around where CWD has been found.
DON’T TRANSPORT CARCASSES!
Dr. Straka said that hunters can also spread the disease by transporting and improperly disposing of potentially infected deer carcasses. She explained that CWD can be spread through carcass parts that contain brain, spinal cord, eyes, spleen, or lymph nodes.
“To help prevent the spread of diseases, such as CWD, we strongly discourage deer hunters from moving carcasses of harvested deer from the immediate area,” she said. “If possible, remove meat in the field and leave the carcass behind. If it’s necessary to move the carcass before processing, place the remaining carcass parts after processing in trash bags and properly dispose of them through a trash service or landfill.”
She added that some parts of a harvested deer are safe to move out of the immediate area.
“Items that are safe to transport are meat that is cut and wrapped, or has been boned out,” she explained. “Also safe to transport are quarters or other portions of meat with no part of the spine or head attached, hides or capes from which all excess tissue has been removed, antlers including ones attached to skull plates or skulls that have been cleaned of all muscle and brain tissue, and finished taxidermy products.”
MDC is considering regulation changes for the 2016-17 deer season that would prohibit the movement of carcass parts from the 19 counties in and around where CWD has been found and prohibit the importation of certain cervid carcass parts into Missouri.
AVOID FEEDING DEER
Dr. Straka added that MDC strongly discourages hunters and others from feeding or providing salt and minerals to deer.
“Feeding and mineral sites can concentrate deer from a broad area and place them in very close proximity to one another,” she explained. “This can increase the transmission of the disease.”
A regulation that prohibits the feeding of deer and placement of consumable products — such as salt and mineral blocks — that are intended to concentrate deer is already in effect in Adair, Chariton, Linn, Macon, Randolph, and Sullivan counties.
MDC is considering a regulation change for the 2016-17 deer season that would expand that regulation to include the 13 additional counties in northeastern and central Missouri in and around where CWD has been found.
PUBLIC COMMENTS WELCOME
MDC welcomes public comments on the regulation changes under consideration for the 2016-17 deer season. Comment online at mdc.mo.gov/node/6.
DEER HUNTING IN MISSOURI
Missouri offers some of the best deer hunting in the country, and deer hunting is an important part of many Missourians’ lives and family traditions. The continued spread of CWD in Missouri is likely to reduce future hunting and wildlife-watching opportunities for Missouri’s nearly 520,000 deer hunters and almost two million wildlife watchers. Deer hunting is also an important economic driver in Missouri and gives a $1 billion annual boost to the state and local economies.
DEER HUNTING DATES
Fall deer hunting season dates are as follows.
Archery: Sept. 15 to Nov. 13 and Nov. 25 to Jan. 15
Urban Firearms: Oct. 9 to 12
Youth Firearms: Oct. 31 to Nov. 3 and Jan. 2 and 3, 2016
November Firearms: Nov. 14 to 24
Antlerless Firearms: Nov. 25 to Dec. 6
Alternative Methods: Dec. 19 to 29
8:30 a.m. ST JOSEPH PD: Missing 8 year old white male Caden Stout located safe.
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The St Joseph Police Department is trying to find a missing 8-year-old.
Caden Stout is described as having blonde hair/blue eyes. He was last seen wearing a black t shirt and blue jeans.
Child was last seen around 7:30 p.m. Friday near 2200 N 7th. He is wearing a black t shirt with the words “brother of an angel” and blue jeans.
Authorities have positively identified the man’s body found Wednesday in a burned vehicle with an infant as the father wanted in connection with an Iowa AMBER Alert.
The man has been identified as 33-year-old Elvis Habibovic. Police in the Des Moines suburb of Urbandale had been looking 9-month old Logan Habibovic. An Amber Alert was issued for him early Wednesday morning with the belief that he’d been abducted by his father, Elvis.
The alert matched the description of a burned vehicle found Tuesday evening in a conservation area in Harrison County, Mo.
“We’ve been able to identify Elvis through dental records,” said Josh Eckerson, Harrison County Sheriff. “The child’s DNA has been sent to Jefferson City to the Highway Patrol Lab along with DNA from the mother to get a positive ID on the child.”
Eckerson said the official cause of death is still undetermined.
Logan Habibovic (Photo courtesy Missourinet)
“We speculate he piped in the fumes from the tailpipe intro the car,” Eckerson said. “The actual cause of the fire is still undetermined.”
The State Fire Marshall is assisting with the investigation.
“They’ve collected some samples from the crime scene to try to determine if there was any accelerant that may have been used,” Eckerson said.
He said he does not believe there was a third party involved but believes Elvis drove to the conservation area intending to commit suicide and murder.
FF and H Highways. Courtesy Google Maps (Click to enlarge)
The St. Joseph Police Department is warning drivers to avoid the area of SE State Highway FF and State Highway H due to water over the roadway.
An alert was sent out about the flooded road at 10:34 a.m.
Flooding he caused many road closings around the area.
The National Weather Service urges drivers not to drive through flowing water. Nearly half of all flood fatalities are vehicle related. As little as 6 inches of water may
cause you to lose control of your vehicle. Two feet of water will carry most vehicles away.
These peregrine falcon chicks were among 13 recently given identification bands in the Kansas City area. Joe DeBold, MDC urban biologist, monitors falcon nests and led the banding. The falcons will soon fledge, or fly. They are endangered in Missouri but MDC restoration efforts with nest boxes placed high on skyscrapers and power plant smokestacks are helping their numbers. Photo courtesy MDC
Kansas City, Mo. –Endangered Peregine falcons will be monitored even after they fly away from their nests in the Kansas City area.
The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) biologists with the aid of USDA Wildlife Services recently banded 13 chicks hatched and reared at four nests, seven males and six females. The identification bands will aid in tracking the falcons’ movements and survival.
“All chicks appeared to be extremely healthy and vigorous,” said Joe DeBold, MDC urban wildlife biologist. “Fledging should take place in the next three weeks.”
Until the chicks fledge, which is when they fly from the nest, some are viewable online via streaming video. Web cameras are mounted at nests at the KCP&L Iatan Power Plant north of Weston, to view CLICK HERE, and the American Century Investments building near the Country Club Plaza, to view CLICK HERE.
Peregrine chicks also hatched at KCP&L’s Hawthorn Power Plant and Sibley Power Plant. The nests are located in high elevation locations, as falcons originally nested on cliffs. The falcons, agile flyers and capable of diving at high speeds, are endangered in Missouri.
A longtime nest site at Commerce Tower in Kansas City’s downtown area was inactive this year. But DeBold expects falcon pairs to utilize the ledge there again in future years because it is a prime nest site.
Biologists are investigating a falcon pair with a nest near Main Street and Grand Boulevard in Kansas City.