Month: January 2024

With winter weather in the forecast, many school districts have called off classes on Tuesday, including Springfield Public Schools.

The R-12 district issued this statement on social media:

Springfield Public Schools will be closed Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2024, due to winter weather and the forecast for slick roads, especially during the afternoon commute. District offices will remain open. Both seated classes and live virtual instruction have been canceled. Information about activity and athletic cancellations will be shared via the district’s Facebook and Twitter accounts. For more information, visit the district’s website at sps.org.

Please note the following work expectations for SPS employees on Jan. 9:

District offices will remain open and office staff will work remotely.

Operations and custodial staff will receive direction from their supervisors.

All nine-month staff who do not typically report on inclement weather days will be paid for the day (although they are not expected to report and are not able to work remotely).

Questions should be referred to your direct supervisor or to Human Resources.

Here’s the list of southwest Missouri public schools not in session Tuesday:

Ash Grove

Aurora

Ava

Billings (AMI Day #1)

Bolivar

Bradleyville (AMI Day #1)

Cabool

Camdenton

Cassville (AMI Day #1)

Chadwick

Clever

Climax Springs (AMI Day #1)

Cole Camp

Crane (AMI Day #1)

Crocker

Dadeville

Dallas County R-1 (AMI Day #1)

Dent-Phelps

Dixon

El Dorado Springs

Eminence

Everton (AMI Day #1)

Exeter

Fair Grove (AMI Day #1)

Fair Play

Fordland

Galena

Gasconade C-4 (AMI Day #1)

Golden City

Green Forest (MO) R-2

Greenfield

Halfway

Hartville

Hermitage

Hickory County R-1 (Skyline)

Houston (Closed due to weather and illness)

Humansville (AMI Day #1)

Hurley (AMI Day)

Iberia

Laclede County (Joel E. Barber)

Laclede County R-1 Conway (AMI Day)

Lakeland R-3 (Deepwater) (AMI Day)

Laquey

Lebanon (AMI Day for students)

Licking

Lockwood

Logan-Rogersville (AMI Day #1)

Lutie (AMI Day #2)

Macks Creek

Manes (AMI Day #1)

Mansfield (NO AMI)

Marion C. Early (Morrisville) (AMI Day #1)

Marionville

Marshfield

Miller

Monett (AMI Day #1)

Mountain Grove

Mt. Vernon

Newburg

Niangua

Nixa (Virtual Learning Tuesday)

North Wood R-4

Norwood (AMI Day #1)

Oak Hill R-1

Ozark

Phelps County R-3

Pierce City

Plainview

Plato

Purdy

Pleasant Hope

Raymondville R-7

Reeds Spring (AMI Day)

Republic (AMI Day)

Richland

Roscoe

Salem, MO

School of the Osage (Virtual Learning Tuesday)

Seymour

Shell Knob

Skyline R-2 (Norwood)

Southwest Barry County R-5 (AMI Day #1)

Sparta

Spokane (AMI Day #1)

Springfield Catholic Schools

Springfield Lutheran School

Springfield R-12 Schools

Stockton

Stoutland

Strafford (AMY Day #1)

Success

Summersville (AMI Day #1)

Swedeborg

Thornfield

Verona (AMI Day)

Walnut Grove (AMI Day #1)

Warsaw (AMI Day #1)

Waynesville

Weableau (AMI Weather Day #1)

Wheatland (AMI Day #1)

Willard

Willow Springs

Winona

Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft says he and his family are safe are his home was “swatted”

“Swatting” is an ongoing trend of criminal pranks involving faking an emergency in order to have notable people’s homes swarmed by authorities.

Ashcroft says officers arrived at his home at around 10:00 p.m. Sunday night, joining four other GOP lawmakers who’s homes have been swatted in the past month.

In a statement released Sunday night, the Secretary of State said, “my home was just swatted. My family and I are safe. I am grateful to Jefferson City Law Enforcement for the professionalism with which they handled the situation.”

Republicans are making plans to pass legislation that will make it easier for law enforcement to arrest and prosecute people who make fake 911 calls.

The National Weather Service has issued a Winter Weather Advisory for much of the Ozarks, including the Springfield Metro Area, from 6am-6pm Tuesday.

Forecasters say total snow accumulations up to two inches are expected, with winds gusting as high as 40 miles per hour. Plan on slippery road conditions, and the hazardous conditions could impact the Tuesday morning and evening commutes.

Parts of the Ozarks have already have had a mix of rain, sleet and snow Monday as temps decrease and strong winds filter into southwest Missouri.

Get updated road conditions in southwest Missouri and across the state here with the MoDOT Traveler Information Map.

Emergency managers and fire and rescue personnel reported sleet around 10:00 a.m. in the Indian Point area, with a sleet-rain mix in Branson, moderate rain with a snow mix east of Joplin in Duenweg, sleet southeast of Marshfield, and even trees down from high winds in the Brighton area. Law enforcement reported snow at Ozark Correctional Center in Fordland.

Webster County Emergency Management had reports of a snow/rain mix with big flakes in Marshfield around 11:30 a.m., while emergency managers in Hickory County reported a rain/snow mix and 37 degrees east of Preston just before noon, with strong wind gusts.

The National Weather Service says a Wind Advisory remains in effect for much of southwest Missouri until 4:00 p.m. Monday, with winds out of the southeast at 20 to 30 miles per hour. Some gusts could be up to 45 miles per hour.

Forecasters say by late afternoon and early evening Monday, the wintry mix will likely remain confined to central Missouri, with up to one inch of accumulation across Benton, Morgan and Miller Counties.

Some of the rain Monday will be heavy at times, with 1/2 to 3/4 of an inch possible during the daytime hours.

Drizzle looks likely overnight across most of the Ozarks as the low moves in, and temps look to remain above freezing.

Meteorologists say on Tuesday, the low will life northeast out of the area, and colder air will wrap around the low, with rain transitioning to snow during the morning in the western Ozarks and into the remainder of the area during the afternoon.

Models continue to keep the majority of heavy snow to the north of the Ozarks, with accumulations ranging from a trace up to two inches in much of southwest Missouri.

The weather service says areas of central Missouri will have better chances of seeing amounts higher than two inches on Tuesday, but will likely remain at four inches or less.

Here’s the latest situation report on the winter weather from the National Weather Service office in Springfield.

We’ll have the latest weather updates on 93-3 and A-M 560, KWTO.

One man is in the hospital, and a suspect is in custody following a stabbing at a mobile home park in Springfield.

Investigators say the incident started with a verbal argument at the Homestead Acres Mobile Home Park along West Chestnut.

When police arrived, they found the man with a stab wound in the back. He was transported to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

While at the scene, officers discovered the suspect walking away from the scene and arrested them.

Authorities believe the suspect and victim knew each other.

The National Weather Service has issued a Winter Weather Advisory until 8 AM Saturday for areas southeast of Springfield.

The Weather Service says to expect a mix of drizzle and snow with a possible one-inch snow accumulation and glaze of ice.

The precipitation will likely end before sunrise, but roads may remain slick through Saturday morning. Use caution while traveling.

Officers in Springfield are gathering information after a bank was robbed on West Kearney.

Investigators say the robbery happened Friday morning at the Guaranty Bank near the North Elizabeth intersection.

According reports, a male assailant walked into the business with a firearm and demanded money.

He was able to escape with an unknown amount of money and fled into a dark gray sedan.

The car the suspect escaped the scene in did not have a license plate.

As the city of Ozark continues to grow, so to is the Ozark School District.

School officials announced the purchase of the Dolby Laboratories facility on Friday, saying the deal was made on December 29, 2023.

The property, located West Jackson near the OC, will give the district approximately 161,000 square feet to work with.

The ultimate use for the location will be up to the Long Range Planning Committee and the Ozark School Board.

The plan is to sell off smaller buildings and land pieces around the facility in order to offset costs.

This agreement comes five years after the district purchased the nearby Fasco Building, which is now the Ozark Innovation Center.

Multiple slide-offs have been reported in areas south of Springfield as a band of light to moderate snow moved through areas generally south of I-44 Friday morning.

Branson Fire and Rescue reported around 9:30 a.m. vehicles off the road along Highway 376 near Shepherd of the Hills, Shepherd of the Hills Expressway and Expressway Lane, and Main Street between Business 65 and Highway 65.

Get updated road conditions from across the state here with the MoDOT Traveler Information Map.

By 10:15 a.m., the fire department reported road conditions improving quickly in the Branson area.

The snow continued to spread east late in the morning along Highway 60 toward Fordland.

Rain changing over to snow is expected in the Ozarks Monday and Tuesday, and although the track of the storm is still in question, there is the possibility of accumulating snow impacting, heavy at times, impacting parts of southwest Missouri.

Here’s the latest situation report from the National Weather Service on next week’s storm:

A man from Springfield is appearing in court Thursday after allegedly assaulting a woman and keeping her locked in a shed.

Investigators say 42-year-old Micah Robinson attacked the woman on December 10, 2023 after she drove to his home to have her car repaired.

When she arrived, the victim said Robinson attacked her, then took her into the shed and raped her.

Following the rape, he locked her inside the shed.

911 dispatchers received a call from the woman that night after Robinson had fallen asleep.

Authorities say they responded to the scene and found the victim inside the building, which was locked. Inside was a bed, with padded walls and straps hanging from the bed.

She was transported to an area hospital, then returned to the home for her car and her cat. She said the car was gone and her cat was found dead at the residence.

Robinson was arrested on December 21, 2023 on rape charges.

It’s a glorious time of year for basketball fans in the Ozarks, as the Bass Pro Tournament of Champions will begin a week from today.

At a breakfast event Wednesday morning, Springfield Public Schools Athletic Director Josh Scott released the names of the eight teams competing, which include:

• Edmond North (Oklahoma)
• Rainier Beach (Washington)
• St. John Bosco (California)
• Paul VI (Virginia)
• McEachern (Georgia)
• Vashon (St. Louis, Missouri)
• Springfield Central
• Springfield Glendale

First round games of the tournament will begin Thursday, January 11, at 4:30 p.m.

Second and third round games will be played Friday and Saturday, January 12-13.

All games will be played at Great Southern Bank Arena on the Missouri State University campus.

Ticket prices include:

• $50 for a 3-day reserved ticket
• $10 for a single day student GA ticket
• $13 for a single day adult GA ticket Thursday and Friday, $14 for Saturday
• $16 for a single day reserved ticket for Thursday, $17 for Friday and Saturday

The complete bracket for the tournament can be found here: