Local News

(AP) — Authorities in central Missouri are finished searching a section of river for the remains of a Chinese woman who’s been missing for more than a year. Columbia police say they found no evidence related to Mengqi Ji during a search of part of the Lamine River outside Boonville. …

(MissouriNet) — The investigation into COVID deaths at Missouri veterans homes has found a failure on the part of the Missouri Veterans Commission (MVC) headquarters to recognize the outbreak, and a failure to respond to the outbreak. Armstrong Teasdale’s report says MVC heaquarters “was lulled into a false sense of …

Mandatory mask orders are now in place for Columbia, Boone County and the city of Fulton. Is Cole County next? Presiding Commissioner Sam Bushman doesn’t think a mask ordinance would be enforceable especially out in the rural areas of the county …      Bushman says the Commission might consider a mask …

Governor Parson announces a plan to help Missouri hospitals with staffing challenges during the pandemic. He said yesterday (wed) the state is partnering with national health care company Vizient to get more medical staffers in hospitals. The 12-week partnership will bring up to 760 more medical workers into the state. …

(MissouriNet) — Governor Parson has asked the Legislature to wait until next session to work on legislation that would protect Missouri businesses and other organizations from COVID-19 liability lawsuits. News of the request surfaced as a Missouri Senate committee held a hearing Tuesday about a bill to deal with such …

A chase and standoff near Midway Travel Plaza are apparently connected to several arrests on insurance fraud charges. The sheriff’s department says no one was hurt during the standoff at a home in Trails West Subdivision yesterday (tue) morning. Federal prosecutors announced 19 arrests on insurance fraud conspiracy charges yesterday …

Several mid-Missouri counties report COVID-19 deaths yesterday (tue). Cole County confirmed another 22 deaths from the illness, for a total of 53. Callaway County reported four more deaths. That’s now 16 total. Boone County officials said yesterday (tue) a patient in his or her early 70s died. Boone is up …

If you catch coronasvirus at a business you shopped at, should you be able to sue the owner? O’Fallon State Rep. Tony Lovasco supports the idea of protecting those folks …      Senators are back at the Capitol working on the supplemental budget bill. Lovasco says he’s against providing $75 million …

Missourians in the state run veterans homes continue to die from coronavirus. As of mid – November nearly 100 veterans died from the virus in the state’s seven homes. Lt. Governor Mike Kehoe is the veteran’s ombudsman. He knows the homes have had a hard time keeping the patients safe …

A Fulton man who allegedly drove away from the cops in a stolen car last week has been caught. Police arrested Turner Murrell early yesterday (mon) at the Amerihost Inn and Suites off Highway 54. Investigators say Murrell stole a car from the Fastlane gas station near that hotel last …