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Power Line Safety with Storms

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The region is expected to be battered by high winds tonight and tomorrow, which is why the Jasper County Rural Electric Membership Corporation is offering some safety tips. First and foremost, they ask that you stay away from power lines, and note that as the wind picks up, it could cause trees to be uprooted, or branches could break, causing damage to power lines. They also advocate not touching any trees or limbs that are in contact with power lines, as they could be energized and very dangerous, and remind you to also avoid broken or low power lines.

Jasper County REMC

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Snapped Wire Causes Brush Fire

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burns harbor fd Multiple units responded this morning to a brush fire in Burns Harbor this morning. Marcus Rogola, Safety officer for the Burns Harbor Fire Department, says a wire that powers the South Shore Rail's trains snapped just before 8 this morning, and sparks ignited a grass fire 60 feet long by 25 feet wide, on both sides of the railroad tracks on Route 12, between the ArccelorMittal and NIPSCO buildings. Authorities say they spent about 20 to 25 minutes at the scene.

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Washington Park Closure in Michigan City

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Michigan City, IN – Michigan City Mayor Ron Meer, Park Superintendent Jan Orlich, Fire Chief Ronnie Martin, and Police Chief Mark Swistek announce that access to Washington Park will be blocked off at the Lakeshore Drive entrance beginning Monday evening until Wednesday. The Michigan City Senior Center will also be closed on Tuesday, October 30, 2012. Citizens and visitors of Michigan City are advised to avoid the lakefront area.

With the effects of Hurricane Sandy moving into the area and expected to affect our area for the next 24-48 hours, the Indiana Department of Homeland Security is asking the City of Michigan City to take precautionary measures and close access to the City’s Lakefront in order to ensure public safety and also to monitor infrastructure for possible damage caused by the expected powerful winds and waves. A high wind warning is in effect and wind gusts coming directly down the length of Lake Michigan in excess of 50-60 mph are possible.

With wave heights of 25 feet, rescues will not be possible, please take this situation very seriously and avoid the lakefront, waterfront, and pier at all costs.

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Crown Point Woman Arrested for Murder

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Crown Point PD A Crown Point woman was arrested this morning on 1^st degree murder charges. Crown Point Police say 61 year old Jane Leslie Carpenter, aka Jane Leslie, was arrested on an Arizona warrant stemming from an investigation into the murder of her husband in June of 2002. Authorities report Carpenter returned to Indiana from Prescott, Arizona, shortly after the murder allegedly took place. Police say Carpenter was taken to the LaPorte County Jail, and at last check was awaiting extradition back to Arizona.

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Lake Co. Marine Unit Ready for Wind Waves

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In anticipation of the remnants of Hurricane Sandy, the Lake County Police Department's Marine Unit reports they will be staffed 24 hours a day, due to the high winds and waves on Lake Michigan, and to ensure no boats are on the lake. The Lake County Sheriff says as of noon, waves were approximately eight feet, with the potential to rise as high as 20 feet during the night time hours this evening.

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Mayors Support GIVE Day

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The mayors of Porter County's two largest communities have proclaimed November eighth “Porter County GIVE Day”, an effort . Portage Mayor James Snyder and Valparaiso Mayor Jon Costas both signing proclamations in support of that day, when donations to seventeen local nonprofits will go even further in the fight against homelessness thanks to a match pool from sponsors.

The amount of the match will depend on the number of gifts contributed on November eight, 2012 only. Nonprofit organizations who will receive funds include Alice’s, The Caring Place, Dayspring Women’s Center, Gabriel’s Horn, Habitat for Humanity of Porter County, Harold “Hal” Kelley Respite House, Housing Opportunities, Moraine House, New Creation Business Advocates, Open Arms Shelter for Women, Opportunity Enterprises, Porter County Community Foundation Housing Assistance Fund, Porter-Starke Services, Rebuilding Together Duneland, Rebuilding Together Hebron, Rebuilding Together Valparaiso and Valparaiso Men’s Overnight Shelter.

Donors can give online or drop off checks in-person between 8 am and 5 pm at The Times, 1111 Glendale Blvd, Valparaiso. Only gifts received on November 8, 2012 through GIVE Day, will qualify for matching funds. More info at Region News at our website [lw]

To donate online, visit www.portercountygiveday.org

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Indiana Responds to Hurricane Sandy

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News Release from Indiana Dept of Homeland Security:

INDIANAPOLIS – In response to Hurricane Sandy and the overlapping winter storm expected to affect the East Coast and New England area, several Indiana emergency response assets, including elements with the Indiana Department of Homeland Security (IDHS) District Response Task Forces, have deployed to the region.

On Saturday, October 27, Indiana began receiving requests for resources to aid with evacuation and response for Hurricane Sandy on the East Coast. IDHS immediately increased staffing at the State of Indiana Emergency Operations Center to reach out to partners within the state to evaluate resources that could be deployed to assist.

A total of 107 personnel and 44 vehicles, including 24 ambulances, have been deployed. Teams will assist however they are needed, but some anticipated actions include evacuation of hospitals and nursing homes. They also will stand by to provide response assistance as directed.

“We believe Indiana was one of the first, if not the first, state to respond to the request for aid from the east coast,” said Joe Wainscott, director of the Indiana Department of Homeland Security. “We are constantly planning, training and preparing our emergency response resources so they can be readily available to assist our citizens in Indiana and others in their time of need.”

As of this morning, Indiana has deployed the state Incident Management Assistance Team (IMAT), two All Hazards Incident Management Teams (AHIMT) and five Emergency Medical Services Teams (or EMS Strike Teams). There are no further requests at this time.

Incident Management Team deployment

A 15-person Incident Management Assistance Team (IMAT) has been deployed to Maryland. They left Indiana at 6 a.m. Sunday and arrived in Maryland at 10 a.m. The team includes public safety professionals from the Indiana Department of Homeland Security, Indiana University, Indiana Department of Correction, Integrated Public Safety Commission, Indiana Office of Technology, Montgomery County, the City of Lafayette, Indiana State Police and the Family and Social Services Administration.

An All Hazards Incident Management Team (AHIMT) from District 2 has also been deployed to Maryland to assist in the response. Additionally, District 7 AHIMT is going to New York.

All incident management teams will be deployed until November 11, unless their assignment is extended.

Other than the state IMAT, the AHIMTs and ambulance strike teams are local responders who volunteer to be part of the task forces and whose employers support their participation.

Medical Strike Team deployment

Ambulance strike teams from Districts 1, 2, 4, 6, and 7have been deployed. Each of the five districts staffed a strike team.

On Sunday, units and personnel from Districts 2, 4, and 7 were deployed to New Jersey before noon. There are 15 ambulances total and 27 personnel. Each district had 5 ambulances.

Last night, 9 more ambulances were deployed to New Jersey from District 6 and District 1. There are 27 personnel. District 1 has 4 ambulances. District 6 has 5 ambulances.

Both teams will assist however they are needed, but some anticipated actions are evacuation of hospitals and nursing homes. They also will stand by to provide response assistance (such as accidents, injuries, illness) as directed. Unless extended, they will return to Indiana on November 1.

Background information on IDHS DRTFs

The State of Indiana is organized into ten districts, each with its own District Response Task Force (DRTF). Each task force is ready to be deployed anywhere in the state within a few hours of notice. They are also prepared to deploy to assist other states. Please see attached map for the district designations.

Indiana practices for disasters and emergencies regularly, so there are teams across the state which are ready to rapidly respond to all types of incidents. IDHS led full scale exercises in April and September of this year that included many of the components that are being deployed to the east coast, and some of the same staff were used in response to the disaster in Southern Indiana in March of this year....

Wind Ban for Indiana Toll Road

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intollrd

The Indiana Toll Road Concession Company has issued a Wind Ban for the entire length of the Indiana Toll Road today [Monday, October 29, 2012] beginning at one-'o'clock this afternoon Central Time continuing through tomorrow, Tuesday, October 30, 1 pm... and officials say the ban will be reevaluated at 9am Central Time Tuesday to possibly extend it. The ban is in effect for all triple, long double and high profile oversize permit loads (excluding low profile steel haulers).

Here's the full news release: https://www.ezpassin.com/pdf/Windban%2010%2029%2012.pdf

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Minor Injury Reported I65 Accident

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Indiana State Police say minor injuries were reported in a four-vehicle accident, where the vehicles rear-ended each other in the construction zone on southbound I-65 south of the State Road 10 DeMotte/Roselawn exit Sunday afternoon around 3:30 pm.

Police say the accident scene may have looked more serious due to the fact that four ambulances, who were on their way to assist in Hurricane Sandy relief on the east coast through a Homeland Security effort, happened to be driving through the area when the crash happened, and the ambulances stopped on scene.

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Brush Fire Reportedly Struck in BH

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Multiple units responded this morning to a brush fire in Burns Harbor this morning. We're told commuter rail traffic was stopped through the area temporarily as a standard precaution.

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Hearing on ADA Compliance

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Public Service Announcement from NIRPC:

Public Hearing on ADA Compliance of Transportation Services Provided by Public Transit Operators

The Northwestern Indiana Regional Planning Commission [NIRPC] will hold a public hearing at two locations for the purpose of taking comments on how public transit operators are complying with the American with Disabilities Act (ADA).

The public hearing will be held on Thursday, November 1, 2012 from 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm at both the Purdue Calumet in the Student Union Library Building, Hammond, and the offices of TransPorte, 102 L Street, La Porte. The hearing will also be streamed live on the internet through the NIRPC web site at http://www.nirpc.org . Comments may also be sent to NIRPC from now until December 1 to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

More information is available on the NIRPC web site at www.nirpc.org or contact Allen Hammond at NIRPC at 219-763-6060, ext. 141, or use Relay Indiana at 711.

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Ribbon-Cutting for EC Dredging

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The US Army Corps of Engineers and other officials have scheduled a ribbon cutting ceremony this morning [10 am] to mark the completion of a confined disposal facility and the start of dredging at the Indiana Harbor and Ship Canal in East Chicago. The US Army Corps of Engineers will be removing millions of cubic yards of polluted sediment from the waterway. Authorities say the Indiana Harbor and Canal have not been dredged since 1972 because a disposal site has not been available until now.

For more info: http://www.lrc.usace.army.mil/Missions/CivilWorksProjects/IndianaHarbor.aspx

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20-25 Feet Waves Likely Locally

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The National Weather Service says a Lakeshore Flood Warning remains in effect from 1 am Tuesday to 4 pm CDT Wednesday. Forecasters say "the remnants of Hurricane Sandy are forecast to move across the eastern Great Lakes from Monday night through Wednesday. due to the large size of this storm system...strong northerly winds of 50 to 60 mph will occur on Lake Michigan for a prolonged period from late Monday through Tuesday evening. as a result...waves across the southern end of the lake are expected to build significantly...with wave heights of 20 to 25 ft likely by Tuesday along the Lake and Porter County shores".

For the forecast click here: http://www.crh.noaa.gov/lot/

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Local Emergency Responders Head East

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Local Emergency Responders Head East

[Photo Provided/Indiana DHS District 1. Photo shows Task Force personnel and equipment at staging area in Crown Point before heading to Indianapolis]

News release courtesy Micah Bell, Engineer/EMT, South Haven Fire Department, Public Information Officer, IDHS District 1:

Ambulances and nine personnel from Northwest Indiana are enroute to the east coast to provide assistance should Hurricane Sandy overwhelm local responders. The ambulances are deploying as part of the Indiana Department of Homeland Security District 1 Task Force.

Four ambulances, each with 2 EMS personnel as well as a Strike Team Leader will travel to Indianapolis to meet up with another team from the Indiana DHS District 6 Task Force of East Central Indiana. Ambulances from Crown Point Fire-Rescue, Lakes of the Four Seasons Fire Force, St John Fire Department and Superior Ambulance make up the team. The ambulance strike teams are deploying from Indiana to New Jersey as part of a state-to-state Emergency Management Assistance Compact (EMAC) request. EMAC requests allow for states to request public safety assistance from other states in case of natural disaster or other emergency.

The Indiana contingent is expected to assistance evacuations of medical facilities and to provide emergency medical services support to augment local responders in preparation for Hurricane Sandy reaching landfall along New Jersey’s coastline.

The State of Indiana is made of 10 Homeland Security Districts, with each district supporting a team of both paid and volunteer professionals trained to respond within their own district, across the State of Indiana and to other states as needed to provide emergency response, management and mitigation assistance. The Indiana District 1 task force is made up of over 200 responders from Lake, Porter, LaPorte, Jasper, and Newton counties. The Task Force was previously deployed was to the March, 2012 southern Indiana tornadoes in Clark and Washington Counties.

For more information on Indiana Department of Homeland Security District Task Forces and how to prepare for a disaster, go to www.in.gov/dhs .

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Hurricane Sandy Impact on Region

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As the East Coast braces for Hurricane Sandy, here in the Region, meteorologists with the National Weather Service in Chicago are anticipating the primary local impact to be powerful northerly winds over and near Lake Michigan that will increase tonight through the middle of next week "around the outer influence of Sandy and its remnants. Gale force winds will occur, with even storm force winds possible over the water. For more, see the NWS Great Lakes Portal and the latest Lake Michigan Forecast. Wind to similar magnitude could be seen into Lake and Porter Counties, IN, and possibly Cook County, IL. A High Wind Watch has been issued for these counties. With the forecast winds as well as waves at or in excess of 20 ft near the shore, a Lakeshore Flood Warning has been issued. Impacts may be similar to the September 30-October 1, 2011 storm."

More info here at the National Weather Service Chicago website: http://www.crh.noaa.gov/news/display_cmsstory.php?wfo=lot&storyid=88755&source=0

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Early Sat. Morning Crash I-80/94

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Lake County-A woman who was out celebrating her birthday did not end in the way she would have liked, early this Saturday morning, when she ran into the rear of a semi, had to be extricated, was taken to the hospital with injuries and traffic charges are now against her.

Preliminary investigation revealed that, at approximately 2:40 a.m., Trooper Brian Rubesha responded to a crash west bound on I-80 at the 11.5 mile marker (this is approximately 1 ½ miles west of Central Avenue). A 2010 Chevrolet Cobalt, driven by Natasha M. Garza, 34 of Hammond, was going west in the right middle lane (four lanes of traffic) when the Cobalt hit the rear of a semi in front of it.

Juan G. Palafox, 53 of Romeoville, Illinois, driving a 2010 Mack semi pulling a box trailer, was going west in the right middle lane when it was hit in the rear by the Cobalt. Palafox didn’t know his semi had been hit at first and drove over a mile with the Cobalt wedged partially underneath the box trailer before stopping on the outer shoulder.

Garza had to be extricated by the Gary Fire Department. She was transported to NorthLake Methodist Hospital with arm and ankle injuries that are considered non-life threatening. Garza’s birthday was Friday, October 26th and her blood alcohol level tested over 2 ½ times (.21% BAC) over the legal limit of .08%.

Garza is charged with Operating While Intoxicated, Driving While Suspended Prior and Following too Closely. Her Cobalt was a total loss.

Palafox, whose semi was owned by PAGG Trucking out of Chicago, was hauling 42,000 pounds of rice. There was no load loss. He was cited for a logbook violation and Load Securement. He was not injured.

The right lane was blocked until approximately 4:00 a.m. for extrication, and removal of the injured, towing of the vehicle and investigation of the crash. Assisting: Indiana State Police Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Division Sergeant Wanda Clay and Trooper Tim Grayson, Gary Fire and EMS Department and Purkey’s Towing.

(By: Sgt. Ann Wojas, Indiana State Police)

Sat Morning crash

(photo provided by ISP)

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Student Arrested for Bringing Gun to School

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A 14 year old boy was arrested and a 12 year old boy was expelled earlier this week, both for reportedly bringing guns to school. The Portage Police Department says the 14 year old, who was expelled earlier in the week for possession of marijuana, was arrested on Wednesday and taken to the Juvenile Detention Center, for allegedly bringing a stolen handgun to Willow Creek Middle School and for being actively involved with the Gangster Disciples. The 12 year old boy was expelled for bringing a B-B gun to school, that reportedly looked very realistic, according to police. Porter Police Chief Troy Williams commended the actions taken by both school resource officers for their efforts for taking these weapons off the streets.

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Gun Found in Donated Book

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Sometimes you may find someone's old bookmark in a used book, but earlier this week an area library employee opened a donated book and found a gun. The Times reports an employee of the Valparaiso branch of the Porter County Public Library made the find in the book entitled, “Outerbridge Reach”, which was hollowed out and contained a gun, described by police as gold, with a wooden handle, .31 caliber, single-shot, black powder gun, A.S.M brand. Published reports say records are not kept for donated books, so there is no way of finding out who brought it in.

gun in book

(Photo courtesy of the Times)

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Woman Pleads Guilty to Neglect of Dependent

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A 34 year old woman pleaded guilty on Friday in Lake Criminal Court to felony neglect of a dependent, regarding the death of her boyfriend's son. The Times reports Rochell Johnson, as part of her plea agreement, admitted to doing nothing to prevent 30 year old Leon Burns from continuously beating his 5 year old son the day he died. Published reports say the child had been living with Burns and Johnson in Gary, while the mother was in a drug treatment facility.

leon walker

(Photo courtesy of the Times)

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Gregg to Visit the Region Today

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One of the three Indiana Gubernatorial candidates will be in the region this afternoon. Democrat John Gregg will be making campaign stops in Michigan City this afternoon at 4:30, at Ryan's Irish Pub and Bed Race; in Porter at 5:30, at Quaker Steak and Lube; and in Merrillville this evening at 7, at the national Baptist Layman's Midwest Workshop.

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