February 22, 2012

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Some Joplin residents outraged at ‘tornado tourism’ efforts (AUDIO)

January 16, 2012 By

Tornado tourists and gawkers in Joplin have filtered through the city since the May 22 storm … and now a bus tour is proposed. That’s raised the ire of some locals, who say it’s insensitive.

The Joplin Convention and Visitors Bureau is giving out tornado maps, with a description of the storm and rescue effort on the back, and the best routes through the zone on the front. It’s led to outrage from some residents, but CVB Director Patrick Tuttle says they don’t have all the facts.

Tuttle says he was part of the documentation team that tracked damage and progress immediately following the storm; he says it’s a living history of the city.

Convention and Visitors Bureau Director Patrick Tuttle says it’s not about making money, but about reacting to the interest from the public.

There has been a proposal to offer bus tours, but Tuttle says that idea did not come from the CVB.

AUDIO: Darrin Wright, KZRG, reports. (1 min.)

Filed Under: Fires/Accidents/Disasters, News, Travel, Weather

2011 Missouri traffic fatalities the lowest in 62 years

January 3, 2012 By

A trend since 2005 has continued, as fewer people died on Missouri’s highways last year than in 2010.

The Highway Patrol reports 773 traffic fatalities in 2011. That is 5 percent down from 2010, when 821 people died. It is also the first year since 1949 that fewer than 800 people deaths occurred from auto accidents.

Captain Tim Hull says the patrol would prefer that number be zero, but it did have a goal in mind for reduction. “We were working for less than 800 by the end of 2012…we’re well ahead of where we’re trying to be at, and that’s always a good sign.”

Hull credits four factors with the continuing decline, that he calls the “Four ‘E’s:” education, enforcement, engineering and emergency medical services.

“Stepped up enforcement programs and education programs are working in conjunction with each others. The engineering of the highways, the engineering of vehicles…there are much safer cars now than we used to have…and then of course emergency medical services have come a long way with being able to transport people involved in traffic crashes much more quickly, and then we’ve got more trauma centers than we used to have so they’ll be able to get them to a trauma center much more quickly.”

Of the accidents that are still happening, Hull says the number one cause remains the same. “Driver inattention still continues to be the number one contributing circumstance to all traffic crashes.”

In the first three days of the new year, seven people have died on Missouri highways.

Filed Under: Law Enforcement, News, Travel

Patrol says New Year’s fatalities same as last year; accidents, injuries, arrests are up

January 3, 2012 By

The Missouri State Highway Patrol reports five people were killed on Missouri roads during the New Year’s holiday counting period, which runs from 6 p.m., Friday, Dec. 30, to 11:59 p.m., Monday, Jan. 2.

Troopers investigated 163 traffic crashes with 75 injuries and 5 fatalities. In addition, troopers made 114 arrests for driving while intoxicated.

During last year’s New Year’s holiday counting period, troopers investigated 157 traffic crashes with 70 injuries. Statewide, there were five fatalities during the 2011 New Year’s holiday. Troopers made 90 arrests for driving while intoxicated during the 2010 New Year’s weekend.

Two fatalities occurred in the Troop F, Jefferson City area, one fatality each occurred in the Troop A, Lee’s Summit area, the Troop B, Macon area, and the Troop I, Rolla area.

Robert D. Theissen, 23, of Morrison, died when the vehicle he was driving failed to negotiate a curve and travelled off the left side of the road. The vehicle then struck a ditch, overturned and struck a tree. Theissen was not wearing a seatbelt and was ejected. He was pronounced dead at the scene. The crash occurred on Missouri Highway 100 just west of County Road 203 in Gasconade County.

Kameron C. Gwin, 19, of Columbia, died when the vehicle he was driving travelled off the right side of the roadway and struck a tree. Gwin was not wearing a seatbelt. Officials pronounced Gwin dead at the scene. A passenger in the vehicle who was wearing a seat belt was seriously injured. The crash occurred on Missouri Route Z just north of St. Charles Road in Boone County.

Joann Vice, 37, of Greentop, died when the vehicle she was riding in failed to stop at a stop sign and drove into the side of another vehicle. Vice was not wearing a seatbelt at the time of the crash. She died at the Northeast Regional Medical Center. The driver of the vehicle Vice was riding in, who was not wearing a seat belt, received moderate injuries in the crash, which happened on U.S. Highway 63 at Missouri Route W in Schuyler County.

Virginia F. Bruce, 40, of Kansas City, was killed when the vehicle she was driving was struck in the rear as it was disabled and stationary on the right shoulder of Interstate 470. Bruce was wearing a seatbelt. She was pronouced dead at the scene. A passenger received minor injuries.

Wayne C. Taylor, 44, of Steelville, died when the vehicle he was driving crossed the centerline and struck another vehicle head-on. Taylor was not wearing a seatbelt. The Crawford County Coroner pronounced Taylor dead at the scene. The driver of the other vehicle received serious injuries. The crash occurred on Missouri Highway 19 near Missouri Route O in Crawford County.

Filed Under: News, Transportation, Travel

Three people die in car accidents over holiday weekend

December 27, 2011 By

Three people have died in crashes over the Christmas holiday counting period on Missouri roads.

A man died in a Springfield hospital after he was hit by a car Friday on High Street in Springfield.

A woman was killed Sunday morning near Fort Leonardwood just south of Richland, after running off the road and hitting an embankment. Another woman died Christmas day northeast of Camdenton at the Lake of the Ozarks when she lost control of her vehicle and hit another car head-on.

The Highway Patrol says in 2010, two people died during the Christmas holiday traffic period.

Filed Under: Briefs, Transportation, Travel

Storm could bring slick roads to northern Missouri

December 19, 2011 By

A winter storm passing through the Midwest over the next 48 hours could bring three to five inches of snow to far northwest Missouri. National Weather Service meteorologist Mark O’Malley says further east and south, snowfall amounts will range from as little as a dusting to around two inches.

This image shows the National Weather Service's prediction as of Monday afternoon. Find the latest information on its website, listed with this story.

On Tuesday morning and afternoon, areas with temperatures around 31 or 32 degrees could see a period of freezing rain or drizzle. That is expected to occur along the Highway 36 cooridor and could produce some slick driving conditions, though he notes the outlook is not as bad as it would be if the temperature were just a few degrees colder.

The system will end with a final band of snow Tuesday night and into Wednesday morning along the I-70 coordor from Kansas City to Jefferson City, then northwest toward Davenport, Iowa and Springfield, Illinois. O’Malley says that final band may include a burst of snowfall lasting around an hour, leaving a strip of one to one-and-a-half inches of snow.

The brunt of the system will effect areas south and west of Missouri. O’Malley says those planning to drive to those regions should alter plans as possible. “Anyone trying to head down toward the Dodge City area, or anywhere basically west of Wichita and then into the Oklahoma and Texas Panhandle for tomorrow is going to run into probably a lot of closed roadways. There will be blizzard conditions down in southwest Kansas, southeast Colorado and northwest Oklahoma and travel is not recommended in that area.” O’Malley recommends delaying travel to those areas until Wednesday at the earliest.

Follow the latest information from the Pleasant Hill office of the National Weather Service by clicking here.

Filed Under: News, Travel, Weather
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