Proofs for the 2022 Wayne County Plat Book may be viewed at the Wayne County Extension Office on February 15th, 16th, 22nd, or 23rd from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. The listed dates are the only times they will be available for viewing; people may inspect the proofs during these times, and any possible changes will be recorded for further investigation. Anyone with questions can call 599-6510. . New plat books will come this spring and will be sold for $35 each.
36-year-old Fairfield resident Matthew L. Rusler was sentenced to prison Thursday in Wayne County Circuit Court. He pleaded guilty to a Class 4 felony count of obstructing justice and was sentenced to one year in prison, and the sentence will run concurrently with one from Jefferson County. He was credited with 25 days served in jail, and Rusler was also ordered to pay $445 in fines and court costs.
Wayne County deputies arrested 29-year-old Cody R. McKinney last night after a traffic stop. Deputies knew he has suspended driving privileges, and, after stopping him, they found a smoking device, which tested positive for methamphetamine, and a .22 caliber rifle uncased with a magazine. McKinney was charged with possession of meth and taken to the Wayne County Jail, pending the setting of bond. He was also cited for numerous offenses, and the rifle was seized as evidence. Additional charges are pending in the investigation.
The Grayville City Council will meet tonight at 7 at City Hall. The council is scheduled to discuss the sale and purchase of property in executive session, as well as action regarding employees of the police department. In old business, members will discuss the water filtration plant, for which the City has considered partnering with Albion in recent weeks.
Illinois Senator Dick Durbin is pushing President Joe Biden to act quickly in finding a replacement for the retiring Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer. When he retires, the president is anticipated to select a replacement to maintain the current 6-3 split between conservative and liberal justices.
Frontier Community College will hold a Student/Parent Information Night, or SPIN event, this Wednesday night. SPIN will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. in the Workforce Development Center. Students and parents will learn firsthand about FCC’s programs and degrees, per Coordinator of Recruitment Carrie Halbert. Students who do plan to attend should RSVP via a Google Form, which may be obtained from school guidance offices. People can also call Halbert at 847-9267 or email halbertc@iecc.edu for a link.
The Fairfield Community High School Junior Varsity Scholastic Team placed third in the Mattoon Junior Varsity tournament Saturday. FCHS went 6-2 on the day; sophomore Chase Cline was the second-overall scorer for the tournament with 49 answered toss-ups and was named to the All-Tournament Team.
From left: Gabriel Barbre, Maveryck Lyons, Madalynn Edwards, Chase Cline (All-Tournament Team), Kiera Freeman, and Sarah Ruhl
95-year-old former Wayne City resident J. Conrad Allen died on Friday. Born in Fairfield, Allen graduated from Wayne City High School and spend decades working there as a teacher, coach, principal, and superintendent. He went on to start the state’s longest-running small school basketball tournament, which held its 67th annual contest in December.
According to the CDC over the weekend, 6,299 people in Wayne County were fully vaccinated against COVID-19, or 38.8 percent of its population, including 48 percent of people over 18 and 68.3 percent of people over 65. 43.5 percent of fully vaccinated people had been boosted. 39.6 percent of Edwards County residents were fully vaccinated, including 49.1 percent of those over 18 and 74.6 percent of those over 65. 42.8 percent of vaccinated people had been boosted. Again per the CDC, Wayne County had 82 new COVID cases and six hospitalizations in the last week, and its seven-day positivity rate was 16.5 percent. Edwards County had 22 new cases and no hospitalizations, and its positivity rate was 14.81 percent.
River stages as of early this morning: the Little Wabash east of Fairfield stands at 19.14 feet, above the 17 ft. flood stage. Meanwhile, the Skillet Fork at Wayne City has a reading of 7.05 feet (flood stage is 15 ft.). The Little Wabash below Clay City is at 17.30 feet (flood stage is 18 ft.). Bonpas Creek at Browns reads 5.77 feet, and the Little Wabash at Main Street in Carmi reads 17.27 feet. The Wabash River at Mt. Carmel sits at 11.42 feet.
Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul has filed a motion asking the Illinois Supreme Court to impose a sentence in a sexual assault case. Western Illinois Judge Robert Adrian threw out the conviction of 18-year-old Drew S. Clinton after a three-day bench trial in Adams County. Clinton is accused of sexually assaulting a 16-year-old girl at a graduation party, and Judge Adrian found him guilty, then threw out the conviction.
Illinois Farm Bureau Director of Business and Regulatory Affairs Bill Bodine has an update on carbon capture and storage projects impacting Illinois. He says several projects have been proposed, but the one with the most traction is the Heartland Greenway. Early designs show the pipeline entering Illinois near Hancock County and traveling north and east.
157 schools have entered the inaugural IHSA State Tournament Series in e-sports, according to the organization’s Kurt Gibson. He says about 17 schools will be in each sectional, exceeding their projected goal for entrants. For the first year, the state will have eight sectional sites. The first IHSA e-sports state champion will be crowned April 30th, and sectionals are April 23rd.
River stages as of this morning: the Little Wabash east of Fairfield stands at 19.15 feet, above the 17 ft. flood stage. Meanwhile, the Skillet Fork at Wayne City has a reading of 6.89 feet (flood stage is 15 ft.). The Little Wabash below Clay City is at 17.08 feet (flood stage is 18 ft.). Bonpas Creek at Browns reads 4.81 feet, and the Little Wabash at Main Street in Carmi reads 16.90 feet. The Wabash River at Mt. Carmel sits at 11.59 feet.
Today’s crude oil price is $86.00, up $3.00 from Friday. The March crude oil price is $93.24, up $2.96 from Friday morning.