A recent surge in COVID-19 cases at the LaSalle Veterans’ Home has prompted the state to declare it an outbreak.. 12 staff members and 13 residents have tested positive, all exhibiting mild symptoms without requiring hospitalization. The response includes measures such as encouraging veterans to stay in their rooms, implementing mask-wearing in direct care areas, and intensifying cleaning protocols. Communal dining has been restricted, and family members have been informed, suggesting rescheduling of visitations.
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The La Salle County Committee on Appointment and Legislation and Rules is set to review the migrant resolution at 11 a.m. today. Following discussions on January 18, the Insurance Trust Committee found no concerns with the resolution, which aims to provide humanitarian assistance to migrants. The La Salle County Board initiated talks on January 11 regarding a contingency plan if buses en route to Chicago were to abandon migrants within the county, a situation observed in Chicago suburbs recently. A resolution, mirroring Grundy County’s approach, was sent to the Committee on Appointment, Legislation, and Rules, which, on January 16, referred it to the Insurance Trust Committee to address liability considerations. While the committee can provide recommendations, the full County Board is expected to vote on the resolution in an upcoming meeting for implementation. The meeting venue is Room 250 at the La Salle County Governmental Complex, 707 E. Etna Road, Ottawa, and can be viewed live on YouTube. (The link is in this news story at 1430wcmy.com and on Facebook) The arrival of migrants in northern Illinois cities is attributed to a trend observed over the past year, where the Texas administration transports groups from the U.S.-Mexico border to Democratic-led cities like Chicago. Chicago city leaders have imposed penalties on unscheduled bus drop-offs, leading to buses leaving migrants in Chicago suburbs, including those connected to the city through Interstate 80 and an Amtrak railroad line. https://www.youtube.com/@lasallecountyboard3315
LaSalle County Board This page will be streaming all live LaSalle County Board and Committee meetings. www.youtube.com
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Streator mayor Tara Bedei is optimistic that the reconstruction project for the Iowa Avenue truck route might secure federal budget earmarks. 16th District Congressman Darin LaHood was in Streator to discuss infrastructure upgrades and economic development, emphasizing Community Project Funding Grants that could allocate around $750,000 for the road-resurfacing initiative. The project aims to install curbs and gutters along Iowa Avenue, addressing concerns about truck routes in Streator. LaHood’s visit also involved discussions about environmental cleanup assistance for the city-owned Smith-Douglass property and highlighted the significance of Medicaid funding for Streator Unlimited, which supports individuals with disabilities.
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Joshua Muntean of Sterling is facing charges in La Salle County Circuit Court for aggravated DUI and operating a commercial motor vehicle under the influence. The charges stem from a crash last summer on Interstate 80, where Muntean, allegedly driving a Mack truck under the influence of drugs, collided with vehicles, resulting in the death of Joyce A. Riskedal, a 54-year-old woman from Leland. If convicted, Muntean could face up to 14 years in prison for aggravated DUI and an additional one to three years for operating a commercial vehicle under the influence. The court appearance is scheduled for February 5th before Judge Cynthia M. Raccuglia. Muntean, as of now, has not been detained, and no attorney has entered an appearance on his behalf.
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Two Spring Valley men, Carlos Gonzalez Fernandez and Enderson Ruben Guzman, face charges of retail theft following a complaint from Peru Walmart. They received notices to appear in an Ottawa courtroom. Additionally, a retail theft complaint at the same Walmart resulted in charges against Heather Delara of La Salle, who was given a notice to appear. In a separate incident, Brandon Sanders, a homeless Peru man, is scheduled for a court appearance after being charged with criminal trespass on the property of Eakas Corporation in Peru just after midnight on Saturday.
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Dezzan Phillips, a 32-year-old resident of Streator previously incarcerated for involuntary manslaughter in a fatal La Salle bar fight in 2017, has now been found guilty of new felony charges. The jury deliberated for less than two hours on Wednesday, delivering guilty verdicts for robbery and domestic battery offenses that occurred in Ottawa in October. Phillips, known for his prior convictions including aggravated battery, drug dealing, and firearm possession, is scheduled for sentencing on March 21st. Having been paroled in 2021, Phillips faces legal consequences for his involvement in the recent criminal activities.
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Kyleigh Cleveland-Singleton, 21, the girlfriend of Romeo Nance, 23, the suspect in a mass shooting that claimed the lives of seven family members and resulted in two additional random shootings, has been charged with obstructing justice. Joliet police took her into custody at 8:09 p.m. on Wednesday. Cleveland-Singleton, who is also the mother of Nance’s child, was located with the child in Plainfield on Monday. Following voluntary questioning, detectives concluded that she made statements to impede the suspect’s apprehension and obstruct the investigation. The Will County State’s Attorney’s Office approved the charge. Cleveland-Singleton, previously identified as Kyleigh Cleveland, had posted bail for Nance in an unrelated shooting case last year. She is scheduled to appear in court at 9 a.m. today at the Will County Courthouse.
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One year after the suspension of operations at Illinois Valley Community Hospital in Peru, which is now under the ownership of OSF HealthCare, the reopening process is gradually progressing. Dawn Trompeter, President of OSF St. Elizabeth in Ottawa and OSF St. Paul in Mendota, notes that while the hospital is moving closer to reopening each day, there is still substantial work to be done in preparing the facility. Over the next few months, tasks such as testing equipment, cleaning, restocking, and implementing new medical records and billing systems will be undertaken to integrate with the OSF network. The OSF St. Elizabeth Peru campus will undergo a Life Safety survey by the Illinois Department of Public Health, followed by a Phase I opening, offering limited emergency room services, in-patient medical beds, and related support services. Subsequent phases involve accreditation surveys, with the ultimate goal of fully restoring the hospital’s services and specialties in the Illinois Valley.
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Illinois Valley Community College is hosting its first blood drive of the new year amidst challenging weather conditions that affected collection activities in Illinois and 27 other states. Lynn Keyt, President of IVCC Red Cross Club, highlighted that hundreds of drives were canceled, leading to thousands of uncollected donations. The adverse weather, along with early site closures and low donor turnout, posed challenges to blood collection efforts. Despite these obstacles, IVCC’s blood drive is scheduled for January 31st from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. in the gymnasium. Appointments for donation can be scheduled by employees, students, and the general public through RedCrossBlood.org.
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Illinois Valley bakers Anthony Graham of Ottawa and Anna Harmon of La Salle successfully qualified as quarterfinalists in the Greatest Baker competition, showcasing their baking skills on a national platform. Despite not advancing to the next round, both bakers expressed gratitude for the experience. Graham, having obtained his cake-decorating certification, plans to utilize his cottage license to sell baked goods, while Harmon, a baking and pastry arts graduate, serves as the head baker at Millstone in downtown La Salle. Residents can enjoy Harmon’s creations at Millstone Bakery on specified days. Thursday through Saturday and from 8 a.m. to noon on Sundays at 821 First St. in downtown La Salle.
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The Champaign County Coroner is providing more details about the 18-year-old University of Illinois student found dead this past weekend in Urbana. Akul Dhawan was discovered Saturday morning on the back porch of a building in the 12-hundred block of West Nevada Street after his roommate reported him missing. No foul play is suspected. The coroner says there was no evidence of significant trauma and there were skin changes that suggest hypothermia. The teen’s death remains under investigation.
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WEATHER:
…DENSE FOG ADVISORY NOW IN EFFECT UNTIL 6 PM THIS EVENING…
* WHAT…Periods of visibility of one-quarter mile or less due to
dense fog is expected.
* IMPACTS…Hazardous driving conditions due to low visibility.
* ADDITIONAL DETAILS…Visibility may periodically improve and
get worse as well as vary over short distances through the
duration of and area covered by the Dense Fog Advisory
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Thursday
Rain, mainly after 4 pm. Widespread dense fog, mainly before 4 pm. High near 39. East-northeast wind around 5 mph, with gusts as high as 10 mph. The chance of precipitation is 90%. New precipitation amounts to less than a tenth of an inch possible.
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Thursday Night
Rain, mainly before 3 am. Patchy fog. Low around 35. North-northeast winds around 5 mph becoming west-northwest after midnight. Winds could gust as high as 10 mph. The chance of precipitation is 100%. New precipitation amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible.
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OBITUARIES:
Gary Russell Rinker, 79, of The Villages, FL, born in Ottawa passed away on Thursday, January 18th, at his home. Funeral services will be at 2 p.m. on Friday, January 26th, at the Mueller Funeral Home Ottawa. Burial will follow at St. Columba Cemetery. A Celebration of Life will be held from 4 to 7 p.m. on Friday, at the Knights of Columbus.
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William F. (Bill) Kasten, 90, of Kansas City, Missouri born in Ottawa. Passed away on Friday, December 22nd, at St. Anthony’s Senior Living in Kansas City, Missouri. Visitation will take place on Saturday, January 27th at St. Patrick’s Church in Seneca from 10:00 a.m. until the time of service, with a Mass of Christian Burial to follow at 11:00 a.m. Interment will take place at the Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery in Elwood, Illinois at a later date. Ottawa Funeral Home is handling arrangements.
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Brendin H. Miskell, 39, of Ottawa, passed away unexpectedly on Sunday, January 21st, A celebration of life will be held on Saturday, February 3rd, from 1:00 pm until 5:00 pm at the American Legion in Ottawa. Cremation rites have been entrusted to Ottawa Funeral Home.
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Candy Dubach, 55, of Ottawa, passed away Friday, January 19th.
A visitation will be held on Wednesday, January 31st, from 4:00 pm until 6:00 pm at Ottawa Funeral Home. A funeral service will follow at 6:00 pm at the funeral home.
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LOCAL SPORTS:
Join us tonight for more great Marquette boys basketball. As the Crusaders take on the Woodland Warriors at the 97th annual TCC Boys Tourney Championship in Granville. 7 pm tip-off with Bryer Lehr and David Bergeson on the call.
Boys basketball
Woodland 51, Roanoke-Benson 46: No. 3-seeded Warriors slipped past the No. 6 Rockets on Wednesday to advance to the semifinals of the 97th Tri-County Conference Tournament. Woodland (14-7) — which will play No. 2 Marquette at 7 p.m. Thursday
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Ottawa 47, Marmion 39: In nonconference action Wednesday in Kingman Gym the Pirates came away with a victory.
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Serena 53, Plano 37: At Serena, the Huskers win over the Reapers.
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Earlville 77, Leland 37: Earlville got a Little Ten Conference win. The Red Raiders improved to 20-1 overall and 6-0 in the conference. Earlville last won 20 games in 1955-56 when the Red Raiders finished 24-5.
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Girls basketball
LP 57, Marquette 46: LP Lady Cavs held off the pesky Cru for a 57-46 nonconference victory at Bader Gymnasium.
Rochelle 54, Ottawa 42: At Rochelle, the Pirates (12-10, 4-3) dropped the Interstate 8 Conference contest to the Hubs.
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Coal City 47, Streator 17: At Pops Dale Gymnasium, the Bulldogs fell to the Coalers in the Illinois Central Eight Conference game.
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GIRLS BOWLING
La Salle-Peru 3,357, Rochelle 2,606: the Cavaliers earned an Interstate 8 Conference match on the road.
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Rock Island 2,793, St. Bede 2,782: the Bruins fell just short at Backyard Bowl in Rock Island.
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Ottawa 2,640, Streator 2,236: At the Streator Elks Club, the Bulldogs fell to the rival Pirates.
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Boys bowling
Ottawa places 5th at I-8 meet: At the Illinois Valley Super Bowl in Peru, the Pirates posted a six-game team series of 5,851 to finish fifth at the Interstate 8 Conference meet.
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WRESTLING
Streator 60, Mendota 24: The Trojans dropped a dual in Mendota.
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Middle School Boys’ basketball
Shepherd: 7th grade lost to Yorkville in the first round of regionals by a score of 35 to 19. 7th grade finishes their season with a 12-10 record.
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PRO & COLLEGE SPORTS:
The Blackhawks are on a two-game losing streak after a 6-2 loss against the Seattle Kraken. The Hawks are in last place in the Central Division with 30 points and a 14-32-and-2 record. Chicago visits Edmonton tonight.
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The Bulls will try to get back in the win column when they visit the Los Angeles Lakers at Crypto-dot-Com Arena tonight. Tonight’s game tips off at 9:30 PM.
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The Northwestern Wildcats knocked off number-11 Illinois in a 96-91 overtime win at Welsh-Ryan Arena. Northwestern improved to 14-and-5 overall and 5-and-3 in the Big Ten. The Wildcats host Ohio State on Saturday. The Illini slipped to 14-and-5 overall and 5-and-3 in the Big Ten, and they host Indiana on Saturday.
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The Notre Dame Fighting Irish faded down the stretch of their 73-61 loss against Miami at Joyce Center. The Irish host Boston College on Saturday.
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Cubs legend Sammy Sosa is returning to the Chicago area. He will attend the autograph signing show called Chicago Sports Spectacular this spring in Rosemont. Sosa a former Major League MVP and was one of baseball’s most powerful sluggers in the 1990s. The convention will be held on March 17th and 18th at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center.
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NASCAR is sweetening the deal with the city for this year’s Chicago Street Race. They have promised to increase their payment to the city by two million dollars. NASCAR officials also plan to reduce the setup time for the race by six days with the intent of keeping downtown streets open as long as possible. The road competition this year is scheduled for July 6th and 7th.