Indiana
What we know about the Indiana industrial fire that’s forced residents to evacuate
Michael Conroy/AP
A big industrial hearth in jap Indiana has prompted the evacuation of close by residents, and officers say the blaze may burn for a number of days.
The fireplace broke out at a former manufacturing facility in Richmond, a metropolis of about 35,000 residents 70 miles east of Indianapolis. Richmond sits on the state’s border with Ohio.
Authorities ordered the evacuation of individuals inside a half-mile of the location on Tuesday and advised others close by to shelter in place. The response included native, state and federal companies, together with the U.S. Environmental Safety Company.
Richmond Mayor Dave Snow mentioned the fireplace occurred on the website of a former plastics recycler and retailer that had been ordered to wash up what metropolis officers had deemed an unsafe property.
This is what we all know in regards to the hearth and what comes subsequent:
The well being results on folks impacted by the fireplace are unclear
The EPA was monitoring the air high quality outdoors the half-mile evacuation zone to verify for dangerous particulates and poisonous compounds.
At a Wednesday morning information convention, the EPA’s Jason Sewell mentioned company workers had been checking for unstable natural compounds that may be launched when plastic burns.
“Happily, the poisonous compounds that we’re searching for weren’t seen,” he mentioned.
Michael Conroy/AP
Sewell underscored that any smoke is harmful to breathe.
Officers mentioned earlier that they nonetheless weren’t certain what was burning within the hearth, and famous that their main concern for any associated well being issues can be respiratory points, corresponding to shortness of breath, irritated pores and skin and burning and irritated eyes. Individuals with pre-existing respiratory circumstances needs to be particularly cautious, they warned.
Residents had been additionally warned to not contact any particles they may come throughout from the manufacturing facility. Sewell mentioned that as a result of age of the constructing, among the particles may comprise asbestos, which may trigger lung most cancers and different diseases.
Moreover, companies mentioned they had been working to check the native water provide and decrease runoff water from the fireplace moving into metropolis storm drains and floor water.
A “negligent enterprise proprietor” is answerable for the fireplace, the mayor says
Snow, the mayor, mentioned town’s Unsafe Constructing Fee had beforehand ordered the property proprietor to wash up the location however mentioned that the proprietor ignored the order.
A courtroom later upheld the order, and town took a number of different steps to compel the proprietor to wash up the property, a small a part of which is owned by town, Snow added.
Michael Conroy/AP
“We had been conscious that what was working right here was a hearth hazard, so this was a concern for us and why we have taken so many steps to stop this from taking place,” the mayor mentioned.
Snow mentioned the previous enterprise on the location, My Means Buying and selling, collected plastics and different supplies for recycling and resale.
“Every thing that is ensued right here — the fireplace, the damages, the dangers that our first responders have taken and the dangers that these residents are below — are the duty of that negligent enterprise proprietor,” Snow mentioned.
Some residents stay below an evacuation order, however it’s unclear for a way lengthy
As of Wednesday morning, the evacuation order put in place by the Wayne County Emergency Administration Company a day earlier remained in place.
Officers additionally inspired folks downwind of the fireplace to shelter in place and switch off their HVAC models, preserve their home windows and doorways closed and convey their pets indoors.
“I occurred to look out my window and I seen the smoke rolling and it nearly seemed like a storm was brewing,” Richmond resident Alicia Rhoades advised WRTV.
It was unclear when it might be secure for folks to return to the evacuated space, authorities mentioned, as the fireplace was nonetheless burning they usually had been awaiting extra air high quality testing outcomes.
Richmond Group Faculties had been closed on Wednesday, and trash assortment was suspended after officers closed a close-by landfill to guard employees from smoke publicity.
Authorities mentioned on Tuesday that the fireplace may proceed burning for a number of days — producing smoke, soot and ash — due to the character of the fireplace and the fabric that was burning.
Firefighters contained the blaze and stopped it from spreading to houses
State Hearth Marshal Steve Jones mentioned the fireplace was “fast-growing” as a result of plastics on website and he praised the responding firefighters for preserving the blaze contained.
“They did an awesome job,” Jones mentioned. “They acquired in, surrounded it and minimize it off from the residential neighborhood.”
One firefighter was handled for a minor damage on Tuesday.
Richmond Hearth Chief Tim Brown estimated Wednesday morning that 13.5 acres of the 14-acre property, with each indoor and out of doors areas, had caught hearth.
“Your complete complicated is both burning or has burned,” he mentioned, including that plastic was “piled in all places.”
Brown mentioned firefighters had been going to make use of excavators to entry areas of the location that had been nonetheless ablaze.
Indiana
Indiana man arrested on child pornography charge following cyber tip, police say
INDIANA – An Indiana man was arrested after authorities found him in possession of child pornography during an investigation that started with a cyber tip last May.
Cyber Tip Leads to Arrest
What we know:
Indiana State Police received a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children in May 2024 about three videos containing child sexual abuse material.
Authorities determined the suspect accessed the videos from Michigan City, Ind.
During the investigation, officers uncovered additional videos and obtained a search warrant earlier this month.
On Jan. 17, officers executed the search warrant at a home in the 3100 block of Springland Avenue in Michigan City and identified the suspect as 29-year-old Stephen Julius Terrell Morrow II.
29-year-old Stephen Julius Terrell Morrow II
Morrow was taken to the La Porte County Jail on a charge of possession of child pornography, a Level 5 felony.
What’s next:
Final charges against Morrow will be determined by the La Porte County prosecutor, authorities said.
Indiana
Five takeaways from Indiana's win at Ohio State
Indiana bounced back from losses to Iowa and Illinois with a 77-76 overtime win against Ohio State on Friday night at Value City Arena. The win improved the Hoosiers to 14-5 overall and 5-3 in Big Ten play.
Here are five takeaways from the win against the Buckeyes:
Indiana responded after embarrassing performances against Iowa and Illinois
After back-to-back 25-point losses to Iowa and Illinois, how Indiana would respond Friday night in Columbus was an open question entering the game.
Would the Hoosiers falter again and allow a third-straight blowout loss? Or would IU regroup as Luke Goode suggested in the aftermath of the Illinois loss?
Indiana regrouped and from the opening tip, the energy was different. The Hoosiers competed for most of the 45 minutes against the Buckeyes. Even when shots weren’t falling in the first half, Indiana never let the game get out of reach.
As the second half began and perimeter shots began to fall, the Hoosiers made a move. By the 5:12 mark of the second half, Indiana led 68-58 and it appeared that a comfortable win was within reach.
However, Indiana faltered down the stretch as Ohio State went on a 13-3 run to close out regulation and force overtime. After falling behind to start the extra period, Goode’s 3-pointer with 1:07 remaining and Anthony Leal’s block with one second left lifted IU to a much-needed victory.
Luke Goode had a career night and IU needed every shot to win
Goode entered the starting lineup on Dec. 29 against Winthrop and has found his shooting stroke in the new year.
Friday marked Goode’s best performance of the season as he poured in a career-high 23 points on 7-for-14 shooting from the field.
Goode was 4-for-7 on 3s. Through eight Big Ten games, Goode is 19-for-41 on 3s (46.3 percent). He’s scored in double figures in four of the last five games.
Nearly every Goode 3-pointer came at a key point in the game for Indiana. His first 3-pointer got the Hoosiers within three at 39-36 with 17:51 to play.
His second triple gave IU the lead at 43-41 at the 15:08 mark and his third stretched the lead to four at 50-46 with 12:50 remaining.
And in overtime, Goode’s 3-pointer with just over a minute to play lifted Indiana to its second conference road win. Goode played every minute of the second half and overtime.
Oumar Ballo dominates Ohio State in the post
Oumar Ballo finished with a double-double Friday night for the fifth time in six games.
The 7-foot, 265-pound big man has taken on a bigger scoring load in the absence of Malik Reneau. Against Ohio State, Ballo had 21 points on 8-for-14 shooting and a 5-for-7 performance from the free throw line.
Ballo also grabbed 15 rebounds with eight of those on the offensive end. He played 40 minutes and added three assists, two blocked shots and a steal.
In Big Ten games, Ballo is averaging 17.3 points, 11.8 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.5 blocked shots in 32.1 minutes while shooting 66.3 percent from the field.
While there have been moments where Ballo’s effort has waned inside games, he’s playing the most minutes of his career. In Friday’s win, his hustle kept several possessions alive and his size was too much for the Buckeyes to handle at the rim.
Kanaan Carlyle provides a significant lift off the bench
For the first time since Dec. 9, sophomore guard Kanaan Carlyle reached double figures in scoring against Ohio State.
The Atlanta native has struggled with his shooting all season but came alive on Friday night. With Myles Rice benched for most of the game with foul issues, Carlyle played a season-high 36 minutes and delivered his best overall game this season.
Carlyle finished with 13 points on 5-for-12 shooting. He made IU’s only 3-pointer of the first half and didn’t turn the ball over.
While he did struggle at the free throw line – he shot 2-for-5 – Carlyle’s energy on both ends was a major reason the Hoosiers escaped with a win.
Ten of Carlyle’s 13 points came in the second half and overtime, as his aggressive attack on the rim resulted in three layups.
Hoosiers add second Quad 1 win
As ugly as IU’s losses to Iowa and Illinois were, the reality is the Hoosiers still have plenty of opportunities to record NCAA tournament resume-worthy wins.
Friday night was one of those and IU took advantage.
The win against the Buckeyes was the second in Quad 1 of the season for the Hoosiers. The Buckeyes are No. 37 in the NCAA’s NET rankings.
Now 2-5 in Quad 1 games, the Hoosiers still have numerous opportunities to build a case for March Madness. Of Indiana’s remaining 12 regular season games, all 12 are Quad 2 or higher and eight of them are projected to be Quad 1.
With the win against Ohio State, Indiana currently sits at No. 61 in the NET rankings.
Filed to: Kanaan Carlyle, Luke Goode, Ohio State Buckeyes, Oumar Ballo
Indiana
Indiana pizza delivery driver tipped $2 after hiking through snowstorm in ‘affluent’ neighborhood — then police officer steps in to help
A dedicated Indiana pizza delivery driver walked half a mile through a dangerous snowstorm in a “very affluent” neighborhood before he was met with a $2 tip.
Connor Stephanoff, an employee at Rock Star Pizza, was seen walking in the treacherous conditions in Brownsburg, Ind. as multiple plows filled the street to clear the snow last week, according to footage posted by Avon Police Department Lieutenant Richard Craig.
Stephanoff initially drove to complete the order, but a school bus crash blocked the road.
That’s when Stephanoff decided to complete the journey on foot – wearing a sweatpants, sweater, a beanie and sneakers.
Craig was outside helping residents navigate the dangerous road conditions when he noticed Stephanoff trekking through the snow-covered street and told him to get out of the street and onto the sidewalk.
Stephanoff revealed that he had to walk in the snow to complete the $40 pizza delivery.
“Did you get a good tip?” Craig asked.
“Two dollars,” Stephanoff replied.
Stephanoff looked at the receipt again and corrected the number to $2.15.
The officer was stunned.
“Two dollars?” Craig exclaimed. “Are you kidding me? Cold-blooded! Two dollars. Look at this man. This man walked through hell and high water to deliver a pizza.”
Craig was impressed by Stephanoff’s work ethic and dedication but was disgusted that a customer in a wealthy neighborhood would tip him so little during the terrible conditions.
“The delivery was about 1/4 mile past where the bus was blocking the street,” Craig captioned under his video. “This young man did not allow this to discourage him. He didn’t call his manager to complain, he didn’t call the customer and tell them their $40 pizza order could not be delivered. Oh no. THIS MAN IS BUILT DIFFERENT.”
Craig gave Stephanoff $15 bucks but set up a GoFundMe page with the goal of raising $500.
The fundraiser has raised over $16,000 as of Saturday morning.
“I think what makes this story resonate is that at one time or another, any of us who has worked in a customer service position, has been Connor,” Rockstar Pizza wrote in a Facebook post. “We’ve gone over & above what anyone could ever ask of us, and the effort wasn’t appreciated. If not for Officer Craig, this would have just been another delivery shift for Connor.”
The restaurant added that they gave workers the option to stay home during the storm if they didn’t feel safe.
Stephanoff decided to work.
“He’s a great kid who works hard & we’re so happy to have him,” the restaurant added.
“Any condition, anytime, anywhere. You will get your pizza,” Stephanoff told WRTV.
-
Technology1 week ago
Meta is highlighting a splintering global approach to online speech
-
Science1 week ago
Metro will offer free rides in L.A. through Sunday due to fires
-
Technology1 week ago
Amazon Prime will shut down its clothing try-on program
-
News1 week ago
Mapping the Damage From the Palisades Fire
-
Technology7 days ago
L’Oréal’s new skincare gadget told me I should try retinol
-
Technology3 days ago
Super Bowl LIX will stream for free on Tubi
-
Business5 days ago
Why TikTok Users Are Downloading ‘Red Note,’ the Chinese App
-
Technology1 day ago
Nintendo omits original Donkey Kong Country Returns team from the remaster’s credits