State Road 11 between downtown Columbus and Garden City will be closing down for a month starting early Monday morning.

The Indiana Department of Transportation reports that the highway will be closing just south of the State Road 46/Jonathan Moore Pike intersection for 30 days while crews replace the pavement and install drainage structures.

This is part of the $30 million dollar project to install an overpass into downtown Columbus, allowing traffic to bypass the railroad tracks.

The agency expects the road to shut down at midnight on June 1st, meaning it will be closed during Monday morning’s commute. The official detour will follow Interstate 65 from Columbus to Exit 55 at Jonesville.

Those needing access to the veterinary office within the closure area will be able to reach the facility from the south while the road is closed.

Milestone Contractors is doing the work on the project.

INDOT says that drivers should slow down, use extra caution and avoid distractions while in workzones.

The schedule is dependent on the weather.

Two people were arrested on drug charges early Wednesday morning after a traffic stop in eastern Columbus.

Shortly before 2 a.m., Columbus Police stopped a vehicle for a minor traffic violation near 10th Street and McClure Road. While officers spoke with the driver, 25 year old Alison Overfelt, of Columbus they noticed that her passenger, 57-year-old Stephen B. Wyatt of Elizabethtown, was acting nervous. A police dog alerted to the odor of narcotics coming from the vehicle.

Inside the vehicle, officers reportedly found methamphetamine, Suboxone pills, marijuana, multiple syringes, along with drug paraphernalia including a pipe, scales, and corner cut baggies.

Both Overfelt and Wyatt were arrested.

Wyatt is facing charges of possession of a legend drug injection device, methamphetamine, a legend drug, a controlled substance, marijuana and drug paraphernalia.

Overfelt is being accused of possessing methamphetamine, a legend drug injection device and drug paraphernalia.

Columbus Regional Health is reporting that it has treated 40 COVID-19 patients with plasma donated by those who have already recovered from the disease, and so far the hospital is seeing good results.

The hospital announced last month that it was taking part in a partnership with the Mayo Clinic and blood research institute Versiti to use the donated plasma on patients with severe symptoms.

Over half of the patients treated with the donated plasma have been discharged and sent home or continue to improve their condition.

Anyone who has had a positive test for COVID-19 antibodies may donate plasma. CRH is offering antibody testing and anyone can have the testing done who thinks they may have been COVID-19 positive, whether or not that was ever confirmed by a lab test.

Potential donors who are eligible for the program will be able to donate at a Versiti Blood Bank location in Indianapolis or the mobile unit that visits Columbus weekly. To donate you must be at least 18 years old, weigh at least 110 pounds and you must be symptom free for 14 days before being eligible to donate.

You can get more information at CRH.org/plasma.

The United Way of Bartholomew County says that its COVID-19 relief fund has now passed half a million dollars.

Magen Pillar, spokeswoman for the agency, highlighted a recent $5,000 donation by Horizon Bank to the fund which is working with those hit hard by the pandemic.

Pillar says that donations to the fund are being sent to local agencies that work closely with those most in need. Of the more than $555,783 raised so far, United Way has allocated money to nine local agencies which have helped about 2,500 people in need in the community

Horizon Bank Inc. is an independent, commercial bank holding company serving Indiana and Michigan

Columbus Scottish Festival organizers are calling off this year’s event due to concerns over COVID-19. The announcement was made this weekend that the 29th annual event will be postponed until 2021.

Organizers said that while they love to share Scottish culture in Columbus with southern Indiana, the risk of endangering the health of participants meant holding the event was not an option.

The event would have been held September 12th and 13th.

The Scottish Festival will have an online component through social media and the organizing committee is looking for ways to commemorate the missing festival. You can get more information on facebook at facebook.com/ColumbusScottishFestival. or at their website at scottishfestival.org.

A Clifford man is under arrest on child molesting charges after a nearly year and a half long investigation, according to the Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department.

According to police reports, 55-year-old Bret A. Caldwell was arrested last week on preliminary charges of child molesting, sexual misconduct with a minor, sexual battery and contributing to the delinquency of a minor.

Few details of the case have been released yet, but the sheriff’s department reports that the investigation began in January 2019. he was arrested on a Bartholomew County warrant at about 8:30 p.m. Wednesday night.

Caldwell is being held on a $1 million bond.

Tuesday is the first day for in-person early voting in Bartholomew County. Unlike recent election years, there will be only one early voting location — at Donner Center from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., today through Saturday, and again on Monday from 8 a..m. to noon at Donner Center.

Because of social distancing requirements in the Bartholomew County Courthouse, there will not be in-person absentee voting at the courthouse this election.

Bartholomew County Clerk Jay Phelps says that it has already been a record setting year for vote by mail in the county. As of last Thursday, the deadline to request a mail-in ballot, there had been 8,802 absentee ballots sent out and and the voter registration office had already received in 5,071 voted ballots.

Election Day is Tuesday, June 2nd and because of poll worker shortages in Bartholomew County, and a reduction in the number of locations willing to host poll stations, you will see only eight vote center locations on election day. Those will be at Flintwood Wesleyan Church, Donner Center, Terrace Lake Church, Elizabethtown Fire Station, Ogilville United Methodist Church, Hope Moravian Church, German Township Fire Station and St. John’s Masonic Lodge.

Bartholomew County Democrats have one contested race on the ballot, for the statehouse seat that represents most of the county and Columbus. Dale Nowlin and Cinde Wirth are running to challenge incumbent State Rep. Ryan Lauer in November.

On the Republican ballot, voters will be choosing between four candidates for Superior Court judge with Scott Andrews, Dominic Glover, Joe Meek and Jon Rohde; Three candidates for County Commissioner District 3 seat, Dan Arnholt, Jo Flohr and Tony London. And seven candidates running for the three at-large seats on the Bartholomew County Council: Andrew Brunni, Laura DeDomenic, Will Lentz, Matt Miller, Derick Olson, Evelyn Pence and Bill Read.

County Commissioner Larry Kleinhenz, Coroner Clayton Nolting and Surveyor E.R. Gray are all running unopposed on the Bartholomew County Republican ballot.

All Bartholomew County voters in the Bartholomew Consolidated Schools district will be deciding on a tax referendum for BCSC.

Applications are now open for families who will need help with school supplies in the coming school year.

The Bartholomew County School Supply Assistance Program has now opened registration for the annual supply drive. Children must be registered in a Bartholomew County school in kindergarten through 12th grade to be eligible for assistance. That includes BCSC, Flat Rock-Hawcreek and private schools in the county. Those who request help by July 17th will be given priority.

Last year, about 2,000 students received free basic school supplies through this program. All supplies are provided through community contributions.

To register you children for assistance call (812) 375-2216 or 812-375-9370 for help in Spanish.

To donate financially, you can go through the United Way’s website at www.uwbarthco.org/bcssap. Tax-deductible cash, check or money order donations can be made payable and sent to BCSSAP, 1531 13th Street, Suite 1100, Columbus, IN 47201

Gyms, pools, rec sports leagues, and a lot more places across most of Indiana can reopen today.

Governor Eric Holcomb said everywhere but Lake, Marion, and Cass counties will move to Stage Three as of today.

In addition to the new openings, Stage Three means bars and restaurants can open to more customers.

Social distancing and common courtesy are still in effect when it comes to hand washing and wearing masks.

Indianapolis and the rest of Marion County are set to jump to Stage Three on June 1st.

More Hoosiers are out of work because of the Coronavirus.

30,311 people filed for unemployment in Indiana last week, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.

That’s up from the adjusted total of 29,668 from the previous week, a change of 643.

About 670,000 Hoosiers have filed for unemployment over the last nine weeks.

The Dept. of Labor says 2.4 million people across the U.S. filed for unemployment last week.