By BRENT MARTIN

St. Joseph Post

A 22-year-old St. Joseph man has been charged in connection with the shooting and wounding of a three-year-old girl this past weekend.

Riandten C. E. Brant also faces drug charges.

The Buchanan County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office this afternoon charged Brant with a Class C felony of endangering the welfare of a child in the first degree, claiming that on June 22^nd, Brant possessed methamphetamine at 1610 Beattie Street, the residence of the child, identified only as “A.B.” in the felony complaint.

Court papers disclose that police issued a search warrant at the residence and found Brant with 28.5 grams of methamphetamine in the basement of the residence.

Police first went to the residence on a shooting call.

St. Joseph Police says the three-year-old was shot late Saturday morning. She is listed in stable condition.

By BRENT MARTIN

St. Joseph Post

Missouri has asked President Donald Trump to issue a second major disaster declaration as the state recovers from a second round of flooding as well as severe storms, including tornadoes.

The formal request was made today by Lt. Gov. Mike Kehoe, acting on behalf of Gov. Mike Parson, who is out of the country.

According to the governor’s office, state and local officials examined 1,650 primary homes, of which 953 had been destroyed or sustained major damage. The assessments also showed that 125 of 251 businesses examined had been destroyed or sustained major damage from storms since April 29^th.

The governor’s office is requesting individual assistance for 41 Missouri counties which would allow residents to seek federal assistance with temporary housing, housing repairs, replacement of damaged belongings, vehicles, and other qualifying expenses as a result of the flooding and storms. Those counties are Adair, Andrew, Atchison, Barton, Boone, Buchanan, Callaway, Carroll, Chariton, Christian, Clark, Cole, Cooper, Dallas, Douglas, Gasconade, Greene, Grundy, Harrison, Hickory, Holt, Howard, Jackson, Jasper, Jefferson, Laclede, Lafayette, Lewis, Lincoln, Livingston, Macon, Miller, Osage, Pike, Platte, Polk, Pulaski, Saline, St. Charles, St. Louis, and Ste. Genevieve.

Seven teams began conducting joint damage assessments today for federal public assistance, which would allow local governments and nonprofit agencies to offset some of the cost of disaster response as well as help repair damaged roads, bridges, and other infrastructure.

The governor’s office says the state expects to request public assistance once joint Preliminary Damage Assessments are completed in 64 counties. Those counties are Adair, Andrew, Atchison, Barry, Barton, Bates, Bollinger, Buchanan, Caldwell, Camden, Carroll, Cedar, Chariton, Clark, Cole, Dade, Dallas, Daviess, Douglas, Dunklin, Gentry, Grundy, Harrison, Henry, Hickory, Holt, Jasper, Knox, Laclede, Lafayette, Lewis, Linn, Livingston, Macon, Maries, Marion, Mercer, Miller, Mississippi, Monroe, New Madrid, Nodaway, Ozark, Pemiscot, Perry, Pike, Pulaski, Putnam, Ralls, Ray, St. Clair, Ste. Genevieve, Saline, Schuyler, Scotland, Shannon, Shelby, Stoddard, Sullivan, Taney, Texas, Vernon, Webster, and Wright.

Additional joint damage assessments for public assistance may be conducted in more Missouri counties as additional information is gathered locally when floodwaters recede.

To assist families impacted by flooding and severe storms, several Multi-Agency Resource Centers are being organized across the state.

Three MARCs will take place this week, in Independence, Brunswick, and Boonville:

Tuesday, June 25

Silverstein Eye Centers Arena

19100 E. Valley Pkwy | Independence, MO 64055

11 a.m. – 7 p.m.

Wednesday, June 26

Brunswick R-2 High School

1008 County Road | Brunswick, MO 65236

11 a.m. – 7 p.m.

Friday, June 28

Open Bible Praise Center

16991 Hwy 87 | Boonville, MO 65233

11 a.m. – 7 p.m.

Individuals with unmet needs should continue to contact United Way 211. Call 2-1-1 for assistance or visit http://211helps.org. Find more information as it becomes available about disaster resources, including additional MARC locations at http://recovery.mo.gov.

President Trump issued a disaster declaration May 20^th for local governments and nonprofit agencies in Andrew, Atchison, Buchanan, Carroll, Chariton, Holt, Mississippi, New Madrid, Pemiscot, Perry, Platte, Ray, and Ste. Genevieve Counties to help in recovery from the initial round of flooding, which began March 11^th.

The declaration made federal assistance available for the repair of damaged roads, bridges, and other public infrastructure, along with emergency response costs associated with the storms and flooding; an estimated $25 million in damage.

Gov. Parson declared a state of emergency in Missouri May 21^st as a round of severe weather, including a tornado that struck the state’s Capital City.

 

By BRENT MARTIN

St. Joseph Post

New regulations go only so far as St. Joseph city officials work to reduce the risk of lead poisoning for the community’s youngest members.

The Environmental Protection Agency has announced stricter lead standards.

EPA Region 7 Administrator Jim Gulliford says his office is working with St. Joseph health officials to warn parents and others about the dangers of lead poisoning in pre-1978 construction.

“The importance of pre-78 housing is that after 1978 lead was prohibited in paints used in homes and housing,” Gulliford says during a St. Joseph news conference. “So, we particularly look at pre-78 housing as places where there may be lead exposures for children.”

Gulliford says the standard was changed after studies emerged that raised continued concerns about the exposure to lead by very young children, leading the EPA to lower acceptable dust-lead hazard standards for floors from 40 micrograms of lead per square foot to 10 and for window sills dropping it from 250 to 100. It is the first change in the standards since 2001.

St. Joseph Health Director Debra Bradley says her office is running educational campaigns aimed especially at parents and child care providers about new, tighter EPA dust-lead standards for floors and window sills.

“Lead is a heavy metal that occurs naturally in rock and when previously it was added to paint it would enhance color and durability, but lead is an element and it doesn’t go away, which is why once lead is discovered in a home, following EPA guidelines for safety is imperative,” Bradley says.

Bradley says lead poisoning can go undetected, but she says parents need to know there is a simple blood test children can take.

“Children with elevated blood levels can experience serious health effects,” according to Bradley. “If you know your child has lead poisoning, talk to your pediatrician or the city of St. Joseph Health Department about what you can do.”

Bradley says the city will work with parents, no matter how receptive they are to the message.

“It’s kind of a mixed response,” Bradley says of the city’s work with parents on the issue. “There are some parents who are extremely protective and want to do everything they can for their kiddos and then there are others who are a little apprehensive of government involvement and so they’re a little cautious. But, we try to develop that rapport with them, so that they can understand that we’re here to help them and their family and that we just want to make it better for their kids.”