The Press-Dispatch
Issue link: https://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/1471951
T he following time frames are protected times when the use of consumer fireworks are not prohibited by state statute and may not be prohibited by local ordinance: June 29 through July 3 and July 5 through July 9 between 5 p.m. and two hours after sunset. July 4 between 10 a.m. and midnight. Use of Sky Lanterns Sky lanterns are not al- lowed to be released into the sky without having an anchor or being tethered so that they cannot freely lift into the atmo- sphere. See section 308.1.6.3 of the Indiana Fire Code, avail- able at Indiana Administrative Code database (Article 22). Only individuals 18 years of age or older may purchase fireworks. A person 18 years of age or older must be present when anyone younger then 18 is us- ing or possessing fireworks. Fireworks may be used only on the user's property, the property of someone who granted permission for fire- works to be discharged, or a place designated by the Indi- ana State Fire Marshal for the discharge of consumer fire- works. A person who violates this law can be charged with a class "C" infraction. However, if a person recklessly, know- ingly, or intentionally uses fireworks and the violation causes property damage, they can be charged with a class A misdemeanor. If there is bodi- ly injur y it is enhanced to a Level 6 felony, and if there is death, a Level 5 felony. Petersburg Fire Chief Ross Elmore, says, "First and fore- most, always read directions. Use outdoors only. Do not use near grass or other flammable materials. Light one at a time. Spectators need to keep a safe distance. Never point or throw fireworks at people or objects. Always have a bucket of water or a fire extinguisher nearby." "Never attempt to re-light or fix fireworks. When dispos- ing of used fireworks, soak in a bucket or trash can of wa- ter overnight away from the house or garage." A responsible adult should be in charge of the activities. Be mindful of your neighbors and our furr y friends. Many dogs are extremely frightened by fireworks." "Never use fireworks while under the influence of drugs or alcohol." A-2 Wednesday, June 29, 2022 The Press-Dispatch trailer located outside of an RV park or campground for that purpose. Any person in violation of the ordinance will have 24 hours to remove the ve- hicle once notified of the violation. Failure to do so will result in fines and pen- alties. For the ordinance amending the use of of f- road vehicles on town streets, the council voted unanimously to adopt the following inclusion, which requires compliance with State Statute, Registration, definitions, designed areas, restrictions on use, other laws and regulations, dis- turbance of roadway and penalties and enforcement. Of f-road vehicles may be operated on all Town streets and Town parking lots except that they may not be operated on State Road 61 (Main Street) ex- cept if it operated on the public right-of-way adjacent to the traveled par t of the highway if there is suf fi- cient width. Of f-road vehicles may cross a public highway at right angles for the purpose of getting from one area to another when done safely, and it may be operated on a public highway for a special event such as festivals and parades. An individual shall not operate an of f-road vehicle on Town streets without a valid driver's license, at a rate of speed greater than is reasonable and proper, and not under the influ- ence of alcoholic bever- ages, or unlawfully under the influence of a narcotic or other habit forming or dangerous depressant or stimulant dr ug, and other restrictions as stated in the ordinance. A full copy of the ordi- nance and it's restrictions can be obtained at the Winslow Town Hall. Town Council members voted unanimously to in- crease Winslow Town Mar- shall Steve Nelson's pay by $.14 to of fset his rise in in- surance premium. A discussion with resi- dents and the Town Coun- cil arose as to whether to add the question of in- creasing the number of town council seats from three to five on the voting ballot this Fall. Brewster said with the size of Winslow, he did not feel additional council members were necessar y. "I am opposed to this," Brewster said. "Three board members is all you need with the population we have." Lamb said she saw both sides of the issues and that having more town council members would in- crease the involvement in the Town of Winslow. "Do we want to give the town the option to vote it in or turn it down?" Lamb said. "They will still only pick three if it passes and who- ever takes of fice Januar y 1, 2023 would fill the addition- al seats how they choose." Residents made it ver y clear to the council mem- bers that they wanted the option to let the people of Winslow decide whether to add additional coun- cil members. The council members then decided to go ahead and file to have it added to ballot in a 3-0 vote. Lamb then spoke to the residents in attendance that she had made a seri- ous mistake in judgment and she was going to own up to it. "The last meeting was a circus," Lamb said. "I let it get out of hand. The public is invited to these meetings, but it is not a public meeting." "All purchases by the Street Depar tment were approved by Josh (Popp), myself or Dick (Brewster), except for some minor pur- chases. The $912 that was questioned was a simple restocking of signs. We ordered some to keep in stock. This all could have been cleared up with a phone call and it was un- necessar y drama." At the last Winslow Town Council meeting, Winslow Clerk-Treasurer, Corbin Dixon accused the Streets Depar tment of spending more than $7,000 in un- authorized purchases at the hardware store since the beginning of the year. Lamb made sure to let residents know that was not tr ue. Dixon was not in attendance at the Monday meeting due to being on vacation. A brief discussion was held regarding the Winslow Fall Festival in Septem- ber. Residents voiced their concern over the lack of things to do at the festival and many said they would volunteer, to make the Fall Festival "bigger and better" than ever. Lamb passed a paper around for people to write their names and phone numbers if they were interested in volun- teering with the planning of the event. The next Winslow Town Council meeting will be 6 p.m. Monday, July 11, at the Winslow Town Hall. The public is encouraged to attend these meetings. Highway 56 and 241 to have closures Highways 56 and 241 are scheduled to be closed fol- lowing July 4. The Indiana Department of Transportation said State Road 56 near Hazleton will be closed about a week be- ginning on or around Tues- day July 5. This closure will take place two miles east of Hazleton. During the closure crews will be replacing a culvert. Replacement is expected to be completed within the week, depending on weather conditions. The official detour for mo- torists is US 41 to State Road 168 to State Road 57 to SR 56. Local traffic will have access up to the point of closure. INDOT said a closure of State Road 241 near Deck- er will begin on or around Wednesday, July 6 for culvert replacement. This closure will take place between US 41 and Second St. near Deck- er. Work is expected to take a day to complete, depending on weather conditions. The official detour for mo- torists is US 41 to US 50. Lo- cal traffic will have access up to the point of closure. Petersburg Fire Chief Ross Elmore By Sherri Sebella News Editor sherri@pressdispatch.net Ross Elmore, Petersburg Fire Chief and City Ser vices Manager, dedicates his life to ser ving the community of Pe- tersburg. Elmore has been a Fire Chief since 2017 and City Ser vices Manager since 2018. Prior to that, Elmore spent 34 years working for the Pike Central School Corporation. Elmore can be seen all over town overseeing crews and is heavily involved in all the current projects going on throughout Petersburg, but the minute a pager goes off for the fire department, Elmore is often seen right along side his firefighters ser ving as Fire Chief. Ser ving as the liaison be- tween the City of Petersburg and what is going on in the field with the city's engineer- ing firm is what keeps Elmore most busy. "We currently have seven projects going on at the same time," Elmore said. "We have the water relocation on Main Street that is part of the Streetscape project. That's two different projects that have to run at the same time. I'm hoping that will be done in September. There's Phase 1 of the wastewater treatment project. There is Phase 1 of the new water plant, which is something we are just start- ing. We've also added two wells at the well field for raw water, so we have five wells now to supply water. We are doing rehab of the water tower on the nor th end of town. There's a new water tower on State Road 61. We are ahead of schedule on that project. Then we're working on a new booster station go- ing in on State Road 61 that will pump water to the tower. We haven't star ted that one yet." At the end of his busy days, Elmore tries to leave ever y- thing at the office, that is, un- til his phone starts ringing at night. "I had plenty of calls af- ter the recent storm that came through Petersburg," Elmore said. In his spare time, Elmore enjoys tinkering with antique tractors. "I collect them and fix them," Elmore said. "I do a little bit of ever ything. I re- stored an old John Deere last winter that was a 1952 Model G." Elmore is par t of the Pike County Tractor Club that began putting rides on a cou- ple of times a year following COVID. "We star ted during COVID with a shor t ride be- cause we could still socialize but keep a safe distance with the ride. Now we do it twice a year. The next antique trac- tor ride is set for September 24." With all the current proj- ects under way in the City of Petersburg and ser ving as the Fire Chief for Petersburg, Elmore doesn't have a lot of spare time with work. Elmore has lived in Peters- burg his whole life. He is mar- ried to his wife Leslie and they have two children, Joe Faulk and Carly Tegmeyer, along with five grandchildren. "I like the small town atmo- sphere," Elmore said. "That is the best par t of living in Petersburg. When people hear my name, I don't want any fame or glor y. With the fire depar tment, I just do it to help your neighbor when they need it the most. That's the core of why I do what I do." Elmore's children are proud of their dad. "Our Pop is not only a great father and best friend, but he is a pillar of the community and he will do any- thing to help someone," both Tegmeyer and Faulk said. "From facing burning build- ings to fixing water leaks, his braver y and determination has encourage us to always do our best. We love you, Pop." Ross Elmore is someone you should know. WINSLOW Continued from page 1 SAFETY Continued from page 1 Ross Elmore, Petersburg Fire Chief and City Ser vices Manager, dedicates his life to ser ving the community of Petersburg. Elmore has been a Fire Chief since 2017 and City Ser vices Manager since 2018. Prior to that, Elmore spent 34 years working for the Pike Central School Corporation. Elmore's children are proud of their dad. "Our Pop is not only a great father and best friend, but he is a pillar of the communi- ty and he will do anything to help someone," both Carly Tegmeyer and Joe Faulk, El- more's children, said. Front row left to right include Joe Faulk, Melody Faulk, Trace Faulk, Cassidy Brothers, Addie Faulk, Lar yn Faulk, Owen Tegmeyer, Patty Tegmey- er, Mark Tegmeyer Back row includes Leslie Elmore, Ross Elmore, Evan Tegmeyer, Carly Tegmeyer, and dog Ajax. Indiana State Police investigating officer-involved shooting incident By Sherri Sebella News Editor sherri@pressdispatch.net Indiana State Police Detec- tives have begun an investiga- tion into the death of a Chan- dler man after a multiple-day fugitive search. The situation initially began on the evening of Tuesday, June 21, when Warrick Coun- ty Deputies began a vehicle pursuit of a suspect who had active warrants for the arrest of Michael White. During the pursuit, they reported that White shot at them, exited the vehicle, and then fled on foot through a wooded area. Over the next few days, law enforcement officers from multiple agencies and the In- diana State Police Aviation Section began searching the area, attempting to locate White, who was then believed to be north of L ynnville. On Thursday, June 23, 2022, Officers from the US Mar- shal's Multi-Agency Taskforce located White near the L ynn- ville area and an exchange of gunfire occurred before the suspect retreated into a near- by barn. All efforts to communicate with him were unsuccessful and the Indiana State Police SWAT found the suspect to be unresponsive. Officers provided medical care until EMS arrived. Warrick EMS discovered that White had succumbed to his injuries. No officers were injured during the exchange of gun- fire. Pike County Sheriff's De- partment worked the pe- rimeter of the situation on Wednesday and Thursday and were set up 500 yards north of where police found the victim. The investigation is ongo- ing. After the completion of their findings, the case will be presented to the Warrick County Prosecutor's Office for review. No other information has been released and no time frame was given to provide further information. Someone You Should Know Dr. Renee Ramsey would like to inform her patients that her long standing optometry practice in Petersburg is coming to an end. Since 1995, Dr. Ramsey has enjoyed serving the Pike, Knox, Daviess, and Gibson County community's optometric needs. In order to continue the quality of care that Dr. Ramsey's Vision Center has pro- vided over the years, your eye care is being transferred to Oakland City Eyecare. Oakland City Eyecare is prepared to provide excellent optometric care close to home. Dr. Ramsey thanks you for a great twenty-seven years of practice and appreciates the confidence you have afforded her for your vision care needs. Oakland City Eyecare can be reached at 812-749-3700 or at oaklandcityeyecare.com FINANCING PLANS AVAILABLE Maintain your comfort year-round with HVAC sales and service from your local Bryant ® dealer. We offer energy-efficient hea ng and air condi oning systems. Whatever It Takes ® whatever T H E T E M P E R AT U R E O U T S I D E . M A I N TA I N I N G Y O U R C O M F O R T UP TO $50 REBATE for Heat Pump Check from WIN Energy UP TO $25 REBATE for Gas Furnace Check from CenterPoint Energy 905 Vincennes Ave., Petersburg