Columbus police say a woman suffered a broken leg and other injuries after a crash with a drunk driver Wednesday evening on Indianapolis Road.

The crash happened at about 8:45 p.m. in the 2500 block of North Indianapolis. The driver of an SUV, 47-year-old Jerome E. Collier Jr. had to be cut from the wreckage of his vehicle. Police say he had alcohol on his breath and slurred speech. He refused a DUI test and was taken to Columbus Regional Hospital to have his blood drawn.

The second driver, 25-year-old Madison McCarty was taken to CRH for treatment of a possibly broken leg and then flown to an Indianapolis hospital by medical helicopter for additional treatment.

Collier was arrested on a preliminary charge of operating a vehicle while intoxicated with serious bodily injury with a prior conviction.

The National Weather Service in Indianapolis is warning of high winds today and an elevated risk of fires this afternoon.

According to the agency, you could see wind gusts of up to 50 mph with continuing winds from the southwest of 20 to 30 mph. You can expect to see out door objects blown about, tree limbs knocked down and some power outages.

The winds, combined with low relative humidity levels of 25 to 30 percent, could cause fires to quickly get out of control. Outdoor burning is not recommended today.

A wind advisory is in effect from 10 to 5 today.

Memorial services for Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department police dog Diesel are planned for Saturday in the Fair Oaks Mall parking lot.

The public services will be from 1 to 3 and law enforcement memorial services will be from 3 to 4. Hundreds of police canine officers from around Indiana and the region are expected to attend.

If you are planning to attend, entrance to the services at the mall parking lot will be in the westbound lanes of 25th Street. The exit will be northbound on Central Avenue. Social distancing will be observed during the outdoor event and masks are encouraged.

Diesel died Saturday after being hit be a vehicle while chasing a suspect near Interstate 65.

The sheriff’s department is accepting donations to the Bartholomew County Sheriff K9 Fund for a memorial to the police dog. If you write a check, the sheriff asks that you put “Diesel Memorial” in the subject line.

Photo and map courtesy of Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department

Columbus firefighters were called to clean up a diesel fuel spill at Columbus Regional Health’s Mental Health Services facility on Lincoln Park Drive after an accident during maintenance led to the release of the fuel into a parking lot and storm drain into Haw Creek.

According to the fire department, a fuel treatment and recovery company was performing preventative maintenance and filtration services on emergency generators for the hospital when the spill happened at about 1 yesterday afternoon.

Firefighters set up two hazmat sites, one at the original site of the spill and one downstream. When fuel was recognized in the creek, firefighters deployed an aborbent material to keep the fuel from continuing downstream.

The contractor, Hughes Fuel Recovery, told firefighters that their recovery teams would continue the cleanup. The Indiana Department of Environmental Management and the Bartholomew County Emergency Management Agency were both notified.

No injuries were reported.

Photo courtesy of Columbus Fire Department.

The Bartholomew County Public Library is closing its branches to patrons effective Friday, due to the spike in COVID-19 locally. The change will affect both the main library branch in Columbus and the Hope branch of the library.

Library lending will continue to be available through curbside pickups and returns will be made through the book drop box. If you want to take out library materials, you are being encouraged to use the library website or app. After staff has gathered your materials, you will park in a designated area, call the posted phone number, and your materials will be delivered to your vehicle.

You are also encouraged to take advantage of the library’s digital materials including books, magazines, comics and videos. Those are available through mybcpl.org.

You can also request materials by calling the reference desk at the main library branch at 812-379-1266 or email reference@mybcpl.org. Hope branch users can call 812-546-5310 or email hope@mybcpl.org.

The bookmobile will still be running on an altered schedule and on a case-by-case basis. The service is also available to those quarantining at home, or those at high risk for the virus. You can call 812-379-1278 or email bookmobile@mybcpl.org for more information.

Photo courtesy of Columbus Area Visitors Center

The Indiana State Department of Health is reporting 61 hundred and 43 new cases of COVID-19 in the state as of Wednesday’s update. That is a 7-day positivity rate of just over 12 percent with 60 more deaths across the state.

According to state figures, just under 40 percent of the ICU hospital beds in south central Indiana’s District 8 are available, with almost 35 percent of the beds being used for COVID-19 patients and 25.5 percent being used for other patients.

Bartholomew County reported 85 new cases yesterday, the third highest number since the pandemic started. Bartholomew County has had 62 deaths so far, the most recent on Sunday.

Bartholomew, Johnson, Shelby, Jennings and Jackson counties are all showing high spread of the virus according to the state. Brown County is joining Decatur County in the severe spread category.

A former Seymour teacher has been arrested, accused of seducing and having a baby with a girl who was a student.

Seymour Police and Seymour Community Schools resource officers began the investigation in September after getting word of the relationship when the former student gave birth. Police obtained search warrants for DNA from the teacher, student and baby, which was collected and forwarded to the Indiana State Police lab for paternity testing.

The test results came back on Friday and on Tuesday, police arrested 50-year-old Todd A. Weaver of Waldron on one count of felony child seduction. The alleged incident happened while Weaver was still a teacher and the victim was a student.

Police say that the schools acted quickly on the accusations, placing Weaver on administrative leave when the investigation started. He later resigned from his teaching position and as the Seymour High School wrestling coach.

Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department police dog Diesel was struck and killed by a vehicle, according to results from a necropsy performed earlier this week. The sheriff’s department says that the Purdue University Animal Disease and Diagnostic Lab performed the exam on Tuesday.

The dog’s body was escorted yesterday afternoon by dozens of police vehicles past the Bartholomew County Jail and to a facility for its cremation. A public drive-through memorial service is set for Saturday at Fair Oaks Mall and hundreds of canine police officers are expected to attend from around the state and region, said Columbus Mayor Jim Lienhoop. That service will be from 1 to 4 on Saturday, the mayor said.

Diesel died while chasing a suspect on Saturday afternoon on Interstate 65. The incident remains under investigation and investigators would still like to talk to the driver or drivers involved. The sheriff’s department says that they believe the dog was hit by accident and they are not expecting any charges against the driver, but they are seeking to get a better idea of how the incident occurred.

If you have any information about the incident, which happened between 4 and 5 Saturday afternoon near the 62-mile-marker on Interstate 65, you are asked to call Detective Chad Swank at 812-565-5925 or you can call the sheriff’s department tip line at 812-379-1712.

The Columbus Municipal Airport is on track to have a new airport hangar after approval of a just over $779,000 proposal last night by City Council.

The new hangar would add seven additional hanger spaces, would have upgraded electricity and light and would include restrooms, unlike older hangers at the airport.

Airport director Brian Payne said that there is a great demand for hangar space at the airport and a long waiting list already. He said the airport board is still trying to figure out how to award contracts for the space in the new hangar when it is completed. He also said that the rentals on the hangars would raise more than 3 percent return on investment, compared to about 1 percent expected return on the current airport certificate of deposit over the next five years.

Payne said that the existing T-hangars at the airport are 52 years old.

Councilwoman Elaine Hilber said that there have been concerns from constituents about the cost of the hangar and the need for a more complex hangar than the existing hangars at the airport. There were also concerns about disruptions to access on the airport property after the construction.

The airport is self-funded and the majority of the funds would come from the aviation fund reserves, said city finance director Jamie Brinegar. The airport would also dip into funds raised from the airport tax increment financing district.

The council voted unanimously to give its second and final approval to the proposal.

The Indiana State Department of Health is reporting 5,541 new cases of COVID-19 in the state as of Tuesday afternoon’s update.

The number of new cases is down from weekend heights but still substantially higher than any day before early November. That is a 7-day positivity rate of 12 percent with 84 more deaths across the state.

According to state figures, just under 46 percent of the ICU hospital beds in south central Indiana’s District 8 are available, with almost 29 percent of the beds being used for COVID-19 patients and 25.5 percent being used for other patients. According to The Republic newspaper, Columbus Regional Hospital is at about 85 percent of its capacity and Schneck Medical Center in Seymour has run out of ICU beds.

Bartholomew County reported 45 new cases on Tuesday and 1 new death from COVID-19, which happened on Sunday.

Bartholomew, Brown, Johnson, Shelby, Jennings and Jackson counties are all showing high spread of the virus according to the state. Decatur County remains in the severe spread category. Local officials expect that Bartholomew County will also be moved into the red, or severe category, when the state next updates is color-coded map.

The Indiana Governor’s office yesterday said the governor and his wife are quarantining after a few members of their security detail tested positive for the coronavirus. Governor Eric Holcomb and First Lady Janet Holcomb are considered close contacts and will be tested for the virus this week. Typically, a coronavirus quarantine lasts two weeks. The governor is expected to join today’s COVID briefing by phone.