By USDA SPRINGFIELD – There were 5.5 days suitable for field work during the week ending September 26, 2021. Statewide, the average temperature was 64.0 degrees, 2.7 above normal. Precipitation averaged 1.21 inches, 0.38 inches above normal. Topsoil moisture supply was rated 11 percent very short, 29 percent short, 58 percent adequate, and 2 percent…… MORE
By Neil Doyle NORMAL – Normal Police are probing a shots fired incident that happened Monday night about three miles from the Illinois State University campus. ISU police issued a campus crime advisory after police were called around 5 p.m. to an apartment complex located at 710 W. Orlando Ave. The shots were also reported…… MORE
By HOI ABC BLOOMINGTON – The Bloomington City Council is holding off on making direct financial payments to residents whose property was devastated by historic flooding in late June. Instead, the council encouraged property owners to apply for state and federal assistance programs, and when that money is exhausted, the council will again consider a…… MORE
By HOI ABC BLOOMINGTON – Bloomington Police say a woman was wounded in a shooting Monday evening on the city’s east side. Police said they were called about 7:30 p.m. to a report of several shots fired in the 1300 block of North Hershey Road, near Clearwater Avenue. The woman suffered non-life threatening injuries, according…… MORE
Many Americans rolled up their sleeves for the third time on Monday to receive a booster shot of the COVID-19 vaccine.… MORE
A Peoria man shot multiple times on Sept. 19 in the area of 19 Traders Circle has died from his injuries.… MORE
Illinois lawmakers have yet to draw up the every-ten-years redistricting map for congressional seats. Until they do, U.S. Rep. Rodney Davis (R-Taylorville) will be waiting.… MORE
Another McLean County resident has died from COVID-19, as health officials report 124 new virus cases since Friday.… MORE
By Neil Doyle BLOOMINGTON – Gas prices in Illinois dropped about six cents over the past week, averaging $3.26 a gallon. According to GasBuddy price reports, the cheapest station in Illinois is priced at $2.85 while the most expensive is $3.84. Gas prices in Illinois are almost three cents lower than a month ago but…… MORE
By Dave Dahl SPRINGFIELD – Gov. JB Pritzker Friday again signed a redistricting bill, and Republicans again said he’s a promise-breaker. That’s because lawmakers, rather than, for example, an independent commission, are the mapmakers. State Rep. Tim Butler (R-Springfield), minority spokesman on the House Redistricting Committee, says one result is that many Republicans in the…… MORE
By Mike Matejka Because of COVID, there is no Labor Day Parade this year. It’s always a great event for our everyday workers to march proudly down the street and enjoys the festive crowd. If there had been a parade, this year’s Labor Day theme was to be “150 years of struggle: your right to vote.” …
By Mike Matejka As President Donald Trump threatens to send federal marshals into Chicago, over the objections of Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker, recall another Illinois Governor who protested the incursion of armed federal personnel into the city. Those federal troops, rather than calming, escalated the situation, leading to deaths and violence. Illinois poet Vachel Lindsay…
By Mike Matejka Our nation is at a unique watershed in human relations. African-Americans have been killed too many times in the past before George Floyd, but the response to this man’s death is international and all-encompassing. I was a grade-schooler during the Civil Rights 1960s. I watched Birmingham demonstrators hosed and the Selma – Montgomery…
Looking around our community, when we say employer, most will respond to State Farm, Country, or Illinois State University. We too often forget those who are building our roads, serving our food, or our public employees. COVID-19 has made us more aware of the risk. Going to work every day for some people means…