A Seymour man was arrested after a Thursday morning police chase. Indiana State Police say the incident began at approximately 10 a.m. when Sgt. Brian Wilson responded to a two-vehicle crash on northbound I-65, near the 54 mile marker in Bartholomew County.

ISP say that the initial caller reported that one of the vehicles, a Jeep, left the scene of the crash and exited onto State Road 11. Sgt. Wilson

soon located the vehicle, driven by Joel M. Hankins, age 30, heading north on State Route 11 near County Road 450 South. As Wilson attempted to stop the vehicle, he reports that the Jeep fled, traveling west on Southern Crossing and State Route 58, before heading south into Jackson County.

State Police say that the 30-minute chase came to an end at County Road 400 West and County Road 900 North in Jackson County after Sgt. Wilson initiated a pursuit intervention technique which disabled Hankins’ vehicle. Hankins was taken into custody without further incident.

Authorities say that Hankins is facing preliminary charges of Leaving the Scene of a Crash, Reckless Driving, and Resisting Law Enforcement. ISP say that he was booked into the Bartholomew County Jail.

Indiana State Police are thanking the Jackson County Sheriff’s Department and the Columbus Police Department for their help in this incident.

During Columbus Mayor Jim Lienhoop’s first State of the City address, he outlined the four “pillars” of his administration. They are public safety, economic development, education and making the city an “employer of choice.” Mary Ferdon, the director of Community Development, says that helping to maintain and grow area businesses is key to the financial well-being of Columbus…

Mayor Lienhoop made the move earlier this year to increase city funding to the Columbus Economic Development Board, stating the need to grow and diversify Columbus’ employer base. He noted that many employers provide jobs in the automotive industry, whose business is cyclical.

Jamie Brinegar, the city’s director of finance, talks about education investment through BCSC…

Brinegar also talks about what it means for the city to be an employer of choice…

In addition to the cost of living adjustment, Brinegar noted the city’s healthcare plan…

Up next, budget wise, is the first reading of an ordinance to set the pay for elected officials and city employees. That is scheduled to take place during Tuesday night’s meeting of the Columbus City Council. That meeting begins at 6 p.m. at City Hall and you are invited.

A police standoff with an armed and suicidal man ended peacefully after more than four hours yesterday in North Vernon.

North Vernon police report that they were called to the 300 block of Gilbert Street at about 5 p.m. Wednesday afternoon to check on the welfare of a man believed to be lying in bed holding a gun and considering suicide.

After police couldn’t get the man to respond by knocking on windows and doors, officers entered the home where they found the man in the bed with a gun pointed at his chest and his finger on the trigger.

Officers moved to a safer spot in the home and began negotiating with the man. North Vernon police were assisted in negotiations by the Jennings County Sheriff’s Department and the Indiana State Police. At about 9:30 p.m., the man surrendered to officers.

The man is being held on a preliminary charge of resisting law enforcement and is awaiting transportation to a mental health facility for an evaluation, police report.

The town of Hope would pay more to fund the annual Hope Heritage Days event under a proposal being considered by the town government.

A town committee that oversees economic development income tax funds is recommending giving Hope Heritage Days organizers $20,000 to pay for entertainment and fireworks.

That’s an increase of about $5,000 from last year’s funding, said Town Council President Clyde Compton, who also sits on the EDIT committee.

Michael Dean, head of Heritage of Hope Inc., says that the costs for the event continue to increase, while fees for vendors and advertising have remained the same.

Both the committee members and the organizers agreed that the event is an economic boost for the community. Dean said that the Flat Rock and Hawcreek township not-for-profit groups that sell all of the food on the Hope Town Square make more that $100,000 from sales at the annual event.

The committee forwarded the request to the Town Council, recommending approval.

The event is the last full weekend in September.

Update: The administrative lines are now working again.

Bartholomew County’s Emergency Operations Center is still recovering after being struck by lightning yesterday afternoon.

Ed Reuter, director of the center says lightning hit the center at 3:36 p.m. yesterday, knocking out communications. 911 calls were temporarily routed to Johnson County during the outage while technicians came in to get the center back online.

Additional phone lines were added and dispatchers had to switch from phone headsets to radios to send out emergency workers, Reuter said. Dispatch functions were fully restored by about 7 a.m. this morning, Reuter said.

During Columbus Mayor Jim Lienhoop’s first State of the City address, he outlined the four “pillars” of his administration. They are public safety, economic development, education and making the city an “employer of choice.” Jamie Brinegar, the city’s director of finance, says that these pillars will shape the 2017 Columbus city budget. He talks about public safety…

The budget will have a direct effect on city policing, says Brinegar…

Brinegar talks about the budget’s effect on the city’s fire department…

The parking lot of Station 1 was refurbished this year. Brinegar says that with this spending, the hope is for Station 1 to be “like new” by the end of 2017. He says that other stations will see improvements in 2018 and beyond.

Brinegar adds that additional improvements are planned for the training grounds near Columbus Municipal Airport…

By being a regional training ground, Brinegar explains that the city can recoup some expenses through the federal government, drastically lowering city expenses for the improvements needed.

Up next, budget wise, is the first reading of an ordinance to set the pay for elected officials and city employees. That is scheduled to take place during Tuesday night’s meeting of the Columbus City Council. That meeting begins at 6 p.m. at City Hall and you are invited.

Authorities in Jennings County recovered a body from the Brush Creek Reservoir on Wednesday.

The Indiana Department of Natural Resources says that conservation officers, along with the Jennings County Sheriff’s Deputies EMS searched the reservoir after a report of a missing 88-year-old man was filed. The search began at approximately 8 a.m. Authorities say that the body of George F. Yeager, of Butlerville, was recovered from the water at 12:25 p.m. The DNR says that Yeager’s body was found in water just over seven-feet-deep, about 30 feet from the bank.

No foul play is suspected.

While the details on what led Yeager to the water were not released, Indiana Conservation Officers are taking this opportunity to strongly encourage you to use extreme caution when around waterways.

Johnson County deputies are investigating an unusual theft from Monday night — 20 cows were reported stolen from the Johnson County Pavilion and Amity Sale Barn.

According to police reports, a resident purchased 20 heifers in Kentucky and locked them into a gated pen in Johnson County Monday evening. When a worker returned on Tuesday morning, the cows were gone.

The 20 were worth an estimated $21,000 and there are no permanent identifying marks such as brands or tattoos on the cattle.

A two semi crash on Interstate 65 last night tied up southbound traffic for more than six hours between the Columbus and Walesboro exits.

According to police reports from the Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department, a semi driven by 26-year-old Austin Pounds of Odessa, Texas, struck the rear of another tractor-trailer driven by 51-year-old Lee Moore of College Park, Georgia at about 7:04 p.m. near the 61 mile marker.

Traffic was shut down to one lane for about three hours and then completely closed from 10 p.m. to almost 1 a.m. to remove the wreckage and debris.

No one was injured.

Replacement of a small drainage structure under State Road 11 at Dudleytown, just north of State Road 250 in Jackson County, has been rescheduled for this weekend. The Indiana Department of Transportation says the work was delayed by about a week due to a delay in getting the needed materials.

Temple & Temple, the state’s contractor, plans to remove an existing drainage pipe and replace it with a larger arched pipe measuring. They say that the work will require a closure of State Road 11 from 6 p.m. Friday through 6 a.m. Monday.

A state highway detour reroutes motorists via State Road 250, Interstate 65 and U.S. Highway 50.

INDOT adds that this $137,000 project also requires single-lane restrictions early next week. The is scheduled to be finished by August 31.