With Halloween just around the corner, local law enforcement officers are preparing to go door-to-door.

Buchanan County Sheriff Bill Puett said, as usual, on Halloween, there will be over 40 officers on overtime along with police officers and state troopers going out to do sex offender registry checks.

“Every year, we do sex offender checks by statute. There are very specific issues related to sex offenders, they have to be home, they can’t be out, they have to have their property posted, they can’t have a light on, they can’t be handing out candy to trick-or-treaters, etcetera,” Puett said. “All those offenders are made aware of that and we actually send teams of officers out to every house to verify that that is, in fact, the case. Sometimes the officers go back a second time to make sure that they remain in compliance, not that, okay, the Sheriff’s Office has been here, now we can go do what we want.”

Puett said, also with the holiday coming up, he wants to remind motorists to be alert for costumed kids on Halloween night.

“They’re so focused on the concept of getting that candy and having a good time and they have stuff over their faces and they just don’t pay attention a lot of times, so we ask everybody else to pay attention,” Puett said.

For more information on the Sex Offender Registry, visit the Missouri State Highway Patrol’s website.

This week, several activities will be going on at schools in the area to bring a drug prevention message.

Angela Reynolds is the Substance Abuse Prevention Coordinator at St. Joseph Youth Alliance for the Drug Free Communities Program. Reynolds said Red Ribbon Week is a national campaign that is used to bring awareness to drug and alcohol use.

“It’s kind of a prevention message that many of the schools and community coalitions use to talk to kids about not using drugs and alcohol,” Reynolds said. “Just kind of a way to raise awareness about drugs and alcohol and the dangers of using those. People wear red ribbons to kind of symbolize their commitment to raise the awareness.”  

There are activities and projects going on throughout the week as part of Red Ribbon Week, including a chalk project at local schools.

“The kids can actually use red and white chalk to make prevention messages and positive messages about not using drugs and alcohol at their schools. We’re (also) going to be helping distribute banners that kids can put up in their schools,” Reynolds said. “We’re going to be placing a banner over Frederick Avenue down toward the Noyes area that promotes Red Ribbon Week.”

According to the Red Ribbon Campaign website, the National Family Partnership NFP provides drug awareness by sponsoring the annual National Red Ribbon Campaign. In response to the murder of DEA Agent Enrique Camarena, parents and youth in communities across the country began wearing Red Ribbons as a symbol of their commitment to raise awareness of the killing and destruction caused by drugs in America.

For more information about Red Ribbon Week, visit redribbon.org.

United Way is seeking volunteers to read with children this fall and for books to be given to elementary children through United Way Reading Adventure.

According to a press release, to connect children with a reading volunteer during the fall, United Way will partner Coleman, Mark Twain, and Lindbergh elementary schools. Each program is held at a different time, and volunteers are needed from October through December to read with students. Reading sessions last one hour, and volunteers can sign up to read once, a few times or on a regular schedule.

Students in the United Way Reading Adventure program will also receive books throughout the fall to encourage reading at home, so new and gently used books for elementary children are needed as well. Additional schools will offer the program in the spring.

Launched in 2011, United Way Reading Adventure works to help students maintain and improve their reading skills. The program follows a model that has been successfully used by HOPE Outreach Ministries, Inc. for many years.

Individuals and organizations interested in volunteering to read, donating books or conducting a book drive can contact Jodi Bloemker at 364-2381 or jodi.bloemker@stjosephunitedway.org or register online at stjosephunitedway.org.

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. – The following is a listing of general highway maintenance and construction work in the Northwest Missouri region planned for the week of Oct. 22 – 28 from the Missouri Department of Transportation.

In addition to the work listed below, there may be other road work conducted throughout the region. Many of these will be moving operations and could include lane closures with delays. All scheduled maintenance and construction projects are subject to change.

MoDOT reminds the public to stay alert, watch for road work, buckle up, slow down, and drive with extreme caution through work zones and in changing weather conditions.

For more information about a project, please contact MoDOT at 1-888-ASK-MoDOT (888-275-6636) or visit modot.org/northwest. You can also follow MoDOT’s Northwest Missouri District on Twitter @ModotNorthwest and on Facebook.

Atchison County

U.S. Route 59 – Pothole patching and shoulder work, Oct. 22 – 26

Interstate 29 – Resurfacing project from the Iowa state line to Route 111, Oct. 22 – 27

Buchanan County

U.S. Route 169 (Belt Highway) – Pedestrian crossing improvement project at Faraon Street and U.S. Route 36, Oct. 22 – 26

Carroll County

Route 10 – Resurfacing project from Route FF to Business U.S. 65 near Carrollton, Oct. 22 – Oct. 20. Flaggers and pilot cars will direct motorists through the work zone.

Route 10 – Bridge maintenance, Oct. 22 – 23

Route D – CLOSED for a culvert replacement from Route W to County Road 160, Oct. 25 – 26, 8 a.m. to 3:30 daily

Clinton County

Route H – Bridge maintenance at the I-35 overpass, Oct. 22 – 25. This includes an overnight lane closure with temporary traffic signals directing traffic.

Daviess County

Route J – CLOSED for culvert replacements from Route 6 to Route D, Oct. 22 – 25, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily

Route J – CLOSED for culvert replacements from the Daviess County line to Route D, Oct. 25 – 26, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily

DeKalb County

U.S. Route 36 – Pavement repair eastbound from Locust Road to Baker Road, Oct. 22 – 26. This includes overnight lane closures and a 12-foot width restriction.

Grundy County

Route 6 – Shoulder work from Route 146 to Route WW, Oct. 22 – 26

Harrison County

I-35 – Resurfacing project from the Iowa state line to Route N at Eagleville, Oct. 22 – 26. This includes a 14-foot width restriction.

Route O – CLOSED for a culvert replacement from Route N to the Iowa state line, Oct. 22, 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.

I-35 – CLOSED on and off ramps at the exits to Eagleville mile marker 106 and U.S. Route 69 mile marker 116:

• I-35 southbound to Route N – Oct. 22, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• Route N to southbound I-35 – Oct. 22, 2 to 6 p.m.
• I-35 southbound to U.S. Route 69 – Oct. 23, 6 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• U.S. Route 69 to southbound I-35 – Oct. 23, 2 to 6 p.m. (may extend until Oct. 24)

Route 46 – Shoulder work from U.S Route 169 (Worth County) to U.S. Route 69, Oct. 22 – 26

Route BB – CLOSED for a culvert replacement from Route P to U.S. Route 136, Oct. 23, 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Holt County

I-29 – Pavement repair from Route 118 (Exit 84) to U.S. Route 59 (Exit 67), Oct. 26

Linn County

U.S. Route 36 – Pothole patching from Route 139 to the Macon County line, Oct. 22 – 23

Nodaway County

Route E – CLOSED for a culvert replacement from 220th Street to 230th Street, Oct. 22, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Route E – CLOSED for a culvert replacement from 230th Street to 240th Street, Oct. 23, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Putnam County

U.S. Route 136 – CLOSED for a bridge replacement project at the West Locust Creek Bridge. The road will be closed through early November. A signed detour is in place.

U.S. Route 136 – CLOSED for a bridge replacement project at the Elm Branch Bridge. The road will be closed through early November. A signed detour is in place.

Route 139 – Resurfacing project from the Iowa state line to Route 6 (Sullivan County), Oct. 22 – 26. This includes a 10-foot width restriction.

Sullivan County

Route 5 – Pothole patching from the Linn County line to Route M, Oct. 22 – 26

Route 139 – Resurfacing project from the Iowa state line (Putnam County) to Route 6, Oct. 22 – 26. This includes a 10-foot width restriction.

Worth County

Route YY – CLOSED at the Middle Fork of the Grand River after a regularly scheduled inspection revealed critical deterioration to the structure. At a minimum, the bridge will remain closed through November. The closure could be extended if further assessment warrants.

Route HH – Pothole patching, Oct. 22 – 23

Route 46 – Shoulder work from U.S Route 69 to U.S. Route 69 (Harrison County), Oct. 22 – 26

Route 46 – Pothole patching, Oct. 25 – 26

A Savannah teenager was seriously injured in a crash after falling asleep at the wheel Sunday morning.

According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol, shortly before 5 a.m., 17-year-old Sean L. Houston was driving a Ford F-150 north on US 71 about four miles north of Savannah. Houston fell asleep and his vehicle went off the left side of the road and hit an embankment before coming to rest on its wheels.

Houston was transported by Andrew County EMS to Mosaic Life Care for treatment of serious injuries.

According to the crash report, Houston was wearing a seatbelt.

With the November election just a few weeks away, an upcoming forum in Maryville will give voters the opportunity to learn more about candidates and various issues on the ballot.

According to Maryville Chamber of Commerce Director Lily White, they allow candidates running for any local, state or federal office to come and speak at the forum.

“We also have the incomparable Dr. David McLaughlin, who is a retired political science professor from Northwest Missouri State, he helps us so much,” White said. “Our forum is a educational forum, so we do not say, ‘This is which way you should vote,’ or ‘This is which way we feel you should vote.’ We say, ‘This is what the proposition or the question on the ballot says,’ and make sure everyone understands the language and understands what that question is really getting at and then we let them draw their own conclusions. Dr. McLaughlin helps explain all those things.”

Candidates will give opening statements and the audience will then have the opportunity to ask questions.

The candidate forum begins at 7 p.m. on Tuesday at the County Courthouse in Maryville. For more information, click here.

CAMERON, Mo. – Plans are underway to replace the decks of five bridges over Interstate 35 in Clinton and Daviess Counties.

The Missouri Department of Transportation will host two open house public meetings to discuss the deck replacements of the Clinton County U.S. Route 69 and Daviess County Routes KK, DD, C and B bridges.

• Tuesday, Oct. 23, from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. at the Cameron Intermediate School Commons, 915 S. Park, Cameron, MO
• Thursday, Oct. 25, from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. at the Pattonsburg School gymnasium (dome building), 1 Panther Drive, Pattonsburg, MO

These will be in an open house format with no formal presentation. Designers and engineers from the Missouri Department of Transportation will be on hand to discuss the construction plans for the bridges, detour routes and gather public input.

The public is invited to drop in any time and is encouraged to offer comments and ask questions. Participants will also have the opportunity to document their comments and sign up to be included on project updates via email. The project is currently scheduled to go out for bid to contractors in January 2019.

For more information, click here.