Fairfield Memorial Hospital announces the addition of Deandra Thompson, PA-C, who has joined the Medical Staff of Fairfield Memorial Hospital. Deandra is a Physician Assistant, who will see patients of all ages in Fairfield Memorial Hospital’s Horizon Healthcare Clinics. PA Thompson grew up in Flora, Illinois, and received her Master of Science in Physician Assistant Studies from the University of Evansville in Evansville, Indiana. “Fairfield Memorial Hospital is pleased to welcome yet another gifted and trained professional to our thriving hospital. PA Thompson possesses a caring demeanor and her passion for taking care of patients is a wonderful addition to our excellent team of medical providers.” stated Katherine Bunting-Williams, FMH Chief Executive Officer. PA Thompson will begin seeing patients starting today at Horizon Healthcare’s Fairfield offices. Appointments are now being accepted and can be made by calling 618-842-4617.
Deandra Thompson, PA-C
The Fairfield Police Department is establishing a hiring list and accepting applications for the position of Telecommunicator. The Department operates the Wayne County E911 Public Safety Answering Point and dispatches for 11 local agencies. The position includes an attractive benefit package, including insurance, retirement. Applications are available at the police Department located at 1002 Leininger Road, Fairfield. Applications will be kept on file for 1 year.
The Johnsonville Community Days Truck & Tractor Pull scheduled for Friday, August 5 at 6:30 pm has been cancelled due to the weather and wet conditions. Bingo will still start at 6:30 pm located inside the Ruritan building. The events scheduled for Saturday and Sunday are currently still scheduled as planned.
The Illinois Department of Public Health reported 5,018 new confirmed and probable cases of coronavirus disease in Illinois, and 25 additional deaths. There were 57 new cases of Coronavirus in our area, including 6 new cases in Wayne County. There were 13 new cases in Marion County, 12 in Effingham, 11 in Clay, 9 in Richland, and 11 in Clay County. Currently, IDPH is reporting a total of 3,584,009 cases, including 34,388 deaths, in Illinois. As of Monday night, 1,487 individuals in Illinois were reported to be in the hospital with COVID-19. Of those, 152 patients were in the ICU and 51 patients were on ventilators. A total of 23,030,545 vaccines have been administered in Illinois as of Monday night, 4,692,031 of those have been booster doses. The seven-day rolling average of vaccines administered daily is 10,395 doses. Tuesday 11,622 doses were reportedly administered in Illinois.
Grayville City Council will hold the first of its two monthly meetings on Monday, August 8th at 7 PM at City Hall. An Executive Session will discuss action with the employees of the Administrative Departments, as well as collective negotiation matters between the public body and its employees or their representatives. They will also discuss the setting of a price for sale or lease of property owned by the public body. In old business is the water filtration plant, the ISP Health and Welfare Fund, two zoning requests, an amendment to the Zoning Ordinance, an amendment to the Animal Control Ordinance, rental property policies, LED lighting for the ballfield, and security camera system quotes. New business concerns revolving loan write-offs and ordinance violations. Also on tap is the Consent Agenda, Treasurer’s Report, Purchase Order Approvals, and recognition of visitors; plus, reports from the Police Chief/Utility Manager, City Attorney, Commissioners, and the Mayor. Grayville meets on the second and fourth Mondays of each month.
The Illinois State Fair kicks off next week with new attractions and no admission price increases. Unlike everything else, the cost to get into the fair is not going up this year, says State Fair Manager Rebecca Clark. Clark says new features include the Giant Dinosaurs Exhibit with over 20 huge robotic creatures, Character Brunches, and the Bass Mobile. Carnival, Mega, and Jumbo passes are still available, as are tickets to grandstand shows like Sam Hunt, Demi Lovato, Willie Nelson, and Comedian Trevor Noah. The Illinois State Fair runs August 11th through the 21st in Springfield. More details are available online at www.illinoisstatefair.info
Illinois’ best junior livestock exhibitors will test their skills showing beef, hogs, and sheep next Friday night, August 12th, a week from tomorrow, in the Master Showmanship contest during the 2022 Illinois State Fair. With the top winners in their respective county fairs across the state, the contest will occur simultaneously in two rings, starting at around 7:00, in the Junior Livestock Barn and Open Swine Barn. Competitors are to check in between 3:00 and 5:00 that afternoon. Special “Show Them Who We Are” t-shirts will be available starting August 10th at the IFB tent near the Livestock Barn.
Governor JB Pritzker joined Tyson Foods, Inc. in breaking ground Wednesday for a $180-million expansion of their Caseyville plant in the Metro-East. The expansion will result in 250 new jobs. The new facility is expected to be completed in the summer of 2023. The expansion will help increase production of Hillshire Farm and Jimmy Dean products. The new facility will feature automated warehousing and robotics. Tyson already has over 4,000 current full-time staff in Illinois, including more than 293 at the Caseyville plant.
River stages as of this morning: the Little Wabash east of Fairfield stands at 27.87 feet, above the 17 ft. flood stage. Meanwhile, the Skillet Fork at Wayne City has a reading of 9.76 feet (flood stage is 15 ft.). The Little Wabash below Clay City is at 22.08 feet (flood stage is 18 ft.). Bonpas Creek at Browns reads 18.69 feet, and the Little Wabash at Main Street in Carmi reads 28.55 feet. The Wabash River at Mt. Carmel sits at 9.02 feet.
Today’s crude oil price is $81.54 down $2.12 from yesterday. The September crude oil price is $88.47 up $0.14 from yesterday morning.