News, weather, sports, music and a bunch of other stuff.
Grab a cup of coffee and tune in.

11-Oct-2024

Brainerd School Threat

Brainerd’s Garfield Elementary School was put into lockdown on Thursday after staff received a threatening voicemail, and a 13-year-old who is not a student in the district was arrested for allegedly making the threat. A press release from the Brainerd Police Department, a message had been left on the school’s voicemail that contained a threat of violence. Investigators determined the call came from outside of the Brainerd School District. At approximately 10:30 a.m. that day, investigators were able to identify a 13-year-old male that made the telephone threat, and the caller was taken into custody and transported to a juvenile detention center. Investigators are attempting to identify the motive for making the threat, which includes the possibility that the intent was to prank the school. Authorities say initial details of this incident shared similarities to illegal pranks commonly referred to as “swatting.” The Brainerd Police Department hasn’t identified any credible threats to the Brainerd School District’s facilities, students, or staff. The incident is still an active investigation.

11-Oct-2024

Fentanyl Bust

One person was arrested and more than 1,700 fentanyl pills were seized during a drug bust in Duluth Wednesday. At around 4:45 p.m., Duluth Police Department officers, members of the Lake Superior Violent Offenders Task Force and other officials executed a search warrant on a home on the 100 block of East 3rd Street. There, officials seized 1,741 M30 fentanyl pills, including 1,434 on the person of a 29-year-old suspect. Another 307 pills were found in the home. The suspect was taken to the St. Louis County Jail on a pending charge of 1st-degree sale of fentanyl.  Fentanyl is a powerful synthetic opioid, the use of which has grown significantly over the past decade, and is now responsible for the majority of overdose deaths in Minnesota. Earlier this year, the U.S. Attorney for Minnesota charged eight members of a Chicago-based fentanyl and meth trafficking scheme that targeted people with known substance use disorders in the Duluth area.

11-Oct-2024

School Threats

The Polk County Sheriff’s Office received a report Thursday regarding threats of school violence at the Fertile-Beltrami School. They tell us a juvenile student was arrested. They say there is no immediate threat at this time. The investigation is ongoing, and the Polk County Sheriff’s Office is working closely with the Fertile-Beltrami School Administration. No further information is being released at this time.

10-Oct-2024

Grant Money For Broadband

Four area companies have received grant money to help expand broadband across the state. Governor Tim Walz announced $52-million in broadband grants to increase access to 7,700 homes and businesses in Minnesota. Meeker Cooperative Light & Power received almost $2.9 million to help expand access in Stearns, Kandiyohi, and Wright Counties, and  Runestone Telecom Association received over $1.5 million and Arvig over $700,000 for work in Stearns County. Benton Cooperative Telephone Company received over $1.2 million for expanding service in Morrison County. Governor Walz says by connecting thousands of Minnesotans to businesses, education, and health care through broadband, we're making Minnesota the best place to work, live, and do business. The grant funds come from two Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) programs, $25-million from the Border-to-Border Broadband Program and $27-million from the Low Population Density Program.

 

 

 

 

 

10-Oct-2024

Minnesota National Guard Helping In Hurricane Relief

Additional airmen from the Minnesota National Guard are on their way to help with hurricane disaster relief. Governor Tim Walz says 13 airmen from the Minnesota National Guard's 148th Fighter Wing are en route to Florida and are expected to arrive Today "Thursday" Last week 11 soldiers and two helicopters based in St. Cloud were deployed to North Carolina. Over the last two days, they have supported seven missions transporting 30,600 pounds of cargo, including water, food, medicine, cold weather gear, tools, and other relief items. Besides the Minnesota National Guard, the St. Louis County Command Post, and the Minnesota All Hazard Incident Management Team are also on site in North Carolina and South Carolina helping with recovery efforts in the wake of Hurricane Helene.

 

 

 

 

04-Oct-2024

Carbon-free electricity Law

Environmental groups in Minnesota are considering their nest steps on the heels of a regulatory decision they say weakens the state's landmark carbon-free electricity law.  Late last week, the Public Utilities Commission clarified which technologies should be in the mix, as energy providers try to meet the requirement of 100 percent carbon-free electricity by 2040.  The commission opened the door to allowing biomass - namely the burning of wood - and trash incineration to count as clean sources.  Barbara Freese is with the Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy.  She says it's troubling the commission didn't rule these options out.  But utilities like Minnesota Power prioritizes biomass as a form of renewable energy, with supporters arguing it's better to burn wood scraps from the logging industry than let it decompose. They say that creates other carbon dioxide issues, and the a cabon-neutral approack helps carry out the mission of the law.  The commission decided more analysis is needed to get a clearer picture of the eligibility of these sources.

30-Sep-2024

Aitkin Girl Hurt In Rollover

A 17-year-old girl from Aitkin, MN is hurt after roller her car Sunday Night. Minnesota State Patrol says the teen was driving westbound on HWY 47 near Spencer Township around 6:30 p.m. September 29, when her car left the road and hit a road approach before rolling into a ditch. The girl was taken to a local hospital with non-life threatening injuries.