The National Weather Service has confirmed a small tornado touched down in an area of southern Dallas County Monday afternoon.
The EF-0 twister hit near Fair Grove around 4:45 pm.
It had 77 mph winds and was on the ground long enough to cross U-S 65.
The storm damaged a house and broke over some trees.
A Greene County judge accepted a not guilty plea by reason of insanity from the man accused of intentionally ramming his car into a Springfield Police officer in 2020.
Jon Routh faced assault charges and armed criminal action charges for injuring Officer Mark Priebe in June of 2020.
Officer Priebe’s family accepted his plea during the court appearance Tuesday.
Routh was driving in circles in the parking lot of police department headquarters when Officer Priebe confronted him.
Routh ran into Officer Priebe dragging him until the car struck a barrier.
A manhunt is under way after a suspect lead law enforcement on a pursuit through three counties.
A perimeter has been set up near Saddlebrook and a search is underway for a suspect wanted on warrants from Arkansas.
Sgt. Mike McClure of the Highway Patrol says the pursuit started in Branson, went through Stone County and into Christian County before the suspect abandoned his car near Saddlebrook, between Branson and Ozark, and hid in a wooded area.
Officers from Branson, Taney, Stone and Christian County, along with US Marshals and Highway Patrol Troop D are involved in the manhunt.
We will keep up to date as this story develops.
Springfield Police are issuing a warrant are issuing a warrant for a local man on charges of rape and molestation.
19-year-old Sebastian Mayhew is wanted on three counts of first-degree rape and only count of child molestation, both with a victim under the age of 12.
Investigators say the victim came forward to her mother in October of last year that Mayhew had sexually assaulted and abused them for five years, from age 4 to age 9.
Forensic evidence indicated sodomy and penetration of the child, which the victim corroborated in a sworn statement.
Officers interview Mayhew, who admitted to the prolonged abuse, calling it an “urge”.
The victim also said Mayhew threatened them for years in order to prevent them from coming forward about the repeated assault.
Police filed the original report in January, but the charges against Mayhew were not filed until yesterday.
As of the time of this writing, Mayhew is not in custody and is considered at large.
A man from Springfield part of a local rap group is facing decades in prison after pleading guilty to weapons charges.
19-year-old Jardell Williams pleaded guilty in Western District of Missouri court to two counts of using a controlled substance while in possession of a firearm.
Williams admitted to being in possession of two handguns, a .40-caliber Glock and a 5.56-caliber pistol when the car he was riding in was pulled over in February of 2022.
Investigators believe the 5.56 was used in three separate shooting incidents in the Kansas City area in the past several years.
Williams also admitted to regularly smoking up to a gram of marijuana per day since he was in high school.
While marijuana is now legal in Missouri, it is still considered a controlled substance under federal law when in possession of a firearm. Williams is also not 21, which is the legal age for marijuana use in the state.
He faces a maximum sentence of up to 25 years in federal prison, without the possibility of parole.
A bill that would require workers in marijuana facilities to be fingerprinted and undergo criminal background checks is awaiting Governor Parson’s signature.
So far, only the owners of marijuana facilities have been required to submit their fingerprints to Highway Patrol.
Currently, workers have to have an agent ID badge, which can be obtained in a few days. Adding fingerprinting and background checks would extend the time between when an employee is hired and actually can begin work.
The Ozark Fire Protection District has bought a new boat for water rescues.
Assistant Chief Aaron Heaton says now the swift water rescue team won’t have to wait for a boat from the regional rescue team, so response times will be faster.
He says his department has five people trained in swift water rescue, and plans to add seven more people this year.
The Missouri State Highway Patrol is for the public’s help in identifying a “Jane Doe” with a sketch created using facial approximation technology.
The woman’s body was found along U.S. 60 near Winona in Shannon County in January of 2022.
If you have any information on the identity of the woman, you are asked to contact Troop G at 417-469-3121 and ask for Corporal Even Tyrrell.
A teacher at Glendale is being fired after being caught on video using a racial slur during class last week.
SPS officials say the teacher, who is also the school’s cross country coach, used the derogatory term while teaching a math class last week.
He was placed on administrative leave after the video surfaced, and was subsequently fired on Monday.
The teacher’s use of the word was caught on video by a student in the class, Mary Walton, who was subsequently suspended by the district for violating the policy on use of electronic devices.
Walton says the coach used the racial slur six times, and only caught two of them on video.
An attorney from Missouri, Natalie Hull, was made aware of the students suspension and plans to issue a letter demanding her suspension be lifted.
The teacher/coach’s identity has yet to be released.
A full statement from Stephen Hall, the CCO for Springfield Public Schools, issued this statement to KOLR-10:
“The teacher who was initially placed on administrative leave following the situation at Glendale High School is no longer employed by Springfield Public Schools. Furthermore, much speculation has occurred regarding student discipline related to a video recording of the unacceptable classroom incident. Student discipline is confidential, per federal law, and Springfield Public Schools cannot disclose specifics related to actions taken. The student handbook is clear, however, on consequences for inappropriate use of electronic devices. Any consequences applied per the scope and sequence would also consider if minors are identifiable in the recording and what, if any, hardships are endured by other students due to a violation of privacy with the dissemination of the video in question. SPS is confident that the district appropriately and promptly handled all matters related to what occurred at Glendale. We want our schools to be safe and welcoming learning environments. When students have concerns, they should follow the appropriate steps for reporting.”
Showers and thunderstorms developing and moving across the Ozarks Monday afternoon and evening will bring both a severe and flash flood potential to the area.
The National Weather Service says scattered strong to severe storms are possible, although most storms should remain sub-severe across the area.
Forecasters say given the warm air aloft, thunderstorms with damaging winds to 60 mile per hour will be the most likely hazard, with hail confined to one inch or less.
The tornado threat is not zero, but the weather service says it’s very low overall.
There’s also a concern for flash flooding, with storms likely producing heavy rainfall rates of one to two inches per hour.
A corridor of one to three inches of rain is expected to occur near and along Interstate 44, with some localized amounts up to four inches.
A Flood Watch is in effect for all of southwest Missouri until 10 p.m. Monday.
The Storm Prediction Center says as of early Monday afternoon, the probability of issuing a Severe Thunderstorm Watch is only about 20%.