Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
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By RICHARD JENKINS [email protected] HURLEY — Iron County Sheriff Paul Samardich indicated his department won’t be forcing people to wear masks in a clarification he issued Friday regarding Gov. Tony Evers’ Thursday order mandating the wearing of masks or face coverings when in indoor public places. “In order to provide some clarification, please be advised the Iron County Sheriff’s Office will not be responding to complaints of individuals violating the governor’s mandate, nor will it be taking any direct law enforcement action as i...
CHANNING, Mich. - John "Jack" Carey, 91, of Channing, passed away Tuesday, July 27, 2020, at his home surrounded by his family. Jack was born June 20, 1929, in Sagola, son of the late Lester and Mildred (Hunting) Carey. He was a lifelong resident of the area and attended Channing High School. He proudly served in the U.S. Army. Jack married the love of his life, Joanne Helgren on Dec. 2, 1950, and enjoyed 65 years of marriage. Joanne preceded him in death on Jan. 8, 2016. Jack was a Michigan...
By TOM LAVENTURE [email protected] HURLEY - Dozens of automobiles were already in line Thursday morning when an all-day COVID-19 testing event started at the Hurley K-12 school parking lots. The event was organized by Team 22, Detachment Delta of the Wisconsin Army National Guard's special COVID-19 testing support unit that went into effect under a federal order after Gov. Tony Evers declared a public health emergency on March 12, according to a spokesperson for the 24-member team...
WAKEFIELD - COVID-19 testing was conducted by the Upper Great Lakes Family Health Center in conjunction with the Western Upper Peninsula Health Department at the Wakefield Post of the Michigan State Police on Thursday. "One of our goals is to bring COVID-19 testing to areas where it wouldn't ordinarily be easy to access, or it allows more easy access to it, and we also want to identify cases in counties where testing has historically been low; so we know if there is COVID-19 in those...
IRONWOOD TOWNSHIP — The body of a missing Wisconsin woman has been recovered, ending a multi-day search after local authorities received reports she went over Rainbow Falls near Black River Harbor. Deputies with the Gogebic County Sheriff’s Department recovered the body of Stephanie Narvaez, 22, of Watertown, at approximately 4:40 a.m. at the base of Rainbow Falls, Gogebic County Sheriff Pete Matonich said in a Tuesday news release. Narvaez had attempted to cross the Black River above the falls while hiking with Karl Nelson, 22, of Mil...
IRONWOOD TOWNSHIP — The search continued on Monday for a missing Wisconsin visitor who reportedly fell into the Black River and was swept over Rainbow Falls on Saturday, according to a press release from Gogebic County Sheriff's Office. Stephanie Narvaez, 22, of Watertown, Wisconsin, and her companion, Karl Nelson, 22, of Milwaukee, were hiking in the area of Rainbow Falls on Saturday evening, according to the press release. Narvaez was attempting to cross the Black River just above the waterfall when she lost her footing, slipped into the r...
By CHARITY SMITH [email protected] WAKEFIELD — The Michigan State Police Wakefield Post will be the site of a COVID-19 testing station on Thursday. The testing will be provided through a coordinated effort of the Upper Great Lakes Family Health Center and the Western Upper Peninsula Health Department, and is available to all. Those who wish to be tested must pre-register in advance and schedule an appointment between 9:15 a.m. and 1 p.m. Registration and appointments are on a first-come first-served basis. The process of pre-registering...
By TOM LAVENTURE [email protected] HURLEY — As of Tuesday, the Hurley City Hall building was again closed to general entry until further notice. The announcement Monday on the social media pages of the Hurley Chamber of Commerce and Mayor Jay Aijala, was to “ensure the safety of our employees.” If entry into the building is necessary, it will be on an appointment basis and a face mask is required. The city of Hurley buildings were in a similar status throughout the early part of the coronavirus pandemic and reopened in May with...
By TOM LAVENTURE [email protected] IRONWOOD — Area law enforcement and fire departments were awarded grants to assist with equipment purchases and training from Enbridge. This first round of the biannual grant has resulted in $7,500 awards to the Michigan State Police, the Wakefield Fire Department, the Iron County Sheriff’s Department and Iron County Emergency Management and 911, according to Brian Trekas, the pipeline supervisor for Enbridge at the Ironwood office. Ambulance services and law enforcement organizations are also welc...
ONTONAGON, Mich. - Ronald Jay Powelson, age 75, of Ontonagon, Michigan, passed away at his home on June 16, 2020, surrounded by his loving family. He was born in Detroit, Michigan, on Jan. 15, 1945, to Donald and Faye (Davis) Powelson. He graduated from Ontonagon High School in 1963. He then entered the U.S. Army where he proudly serviced his country during the Vietnam War. Following his enlistment in the U.S. Army, he worked for the Ontonagon Sheriffs Department serving as county deputy. Soon...
PORT WASHINGTON, Wis. - On Father's Day, June 21, 2020, Joseph "Joe" Reynold Rondeau (age 89), loving father of eleven children passed away peacefully in his home in Port Washington with his wife Ann and family by his side. Joe was born April 19, 1931 in Ironwood, Michigan to Clement and Beatrice (Johnson) Rondeau. As a young man he was passionate about sports; in high school he played halfback for the Red Devils and enjoyed pitching for the baseball and softball teams. After high school he...
By TOM LAVENTURE [email protected] IRONWOOD - The Ironwood Walmart store was evacuated briefly on Tuesday afternoon after maintenance work resulted in a clipped natural gas line behind the store. Ironwood Public Safety Department was dispatched at 1:10 p.m. as the contracted fire department for Walmart, according to IPSD Sgt. Matt Sterbenz. The first officers to arrive at 1:20 p.m., Andrew DiGiorgio, IPSD director, and Lt. Adam Clemens, determined that for safety reasons the store w...
By RICHARD JENKINS [email protected] IRONWOOD — The Ironwood Area Schools continues to improve its bus fleet after the board of education approved purchasing two new buses and other equipment Monday. Along with the buses, the board approved purchasing a new radio repeater and three radios to help improve the district’s ability to communicate with its bus fleet. “The repeater, I’m really excited about,” Ironwood Superintendent Travis Powell said after the meeting. The district’s previous radio repeater died in 2007, according t...
By RICHARD JENKINS [email protected] HURLEY — Iron County is receiving over $92,000 in grant funding to pay for upgrades to the county's 911 system. The county was one of 24 projects the state’s Office of Emergency Communications selected to receive a share of $2.1 million in federal funds for 911 upgrades. Iron County's $92,967 grant will go towards a pair of projects, according to Stacy Ofstad, the county's emergency management director and 911 coordinator. “Our current system is roughly five years old and it runs off Windows 7. We...
WAKEFIELD — A COVID-19 drive thru test site will be available that will allow the community to be tested from the convenience of their own vehicle, according to a Michigan State Police Wakefield Post press release on Wednesday. The Upper Great Lakes Family Health Center and the Western Upper Peninsula Health Department have coordinated efforts to provide the drive-thru testing from 9:45 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. (CDT) on Tuesday, June 23 at the MSP Wakefield Post, 100 Sunday Lake St. Drive-thru testing will be scheduled on a first-come, first-served b...
MARENISCO — At a Monday evening meeting of the Marenisco Board of Trustees, Supervisor Richard Bouvette announced that the pending retirement of Police Chief Bruce Mahler begs the question of whether to replace him. “Yeah!” answered Trustee Kelly Dunbar without hesitation. “Maybe,” said Trustee Dave Hagen, who added later that he would prefer the position to be part time. “What other options do we have?” asked Treasurer Diane Dean. Bouvette, who also chairs the board, said members can hire a replacement for Mahler or can contract services thro...
ONTONAGON — The head of the union for the Ontonagon County Sheriff’s Department told the Ontonagon County Board Tuesday that union members have “serious concerns regarding the safety of our officers and inmates.” Ken Waldrop, union president, said the board at its last meeting voted to rescind the approval of hiring a correctional officer due to financial issues. Waldrop outlined the previous decision of the board to send two desk deputies to the academy for training and certification. He said, that while they were in training the board w...
By TOM LAVENTURE [email protected] BESSEMER — The Gogebic County Board of Commissioners on Wednesday approved the rate request for the biannual property tax levy for municipalities, school districts and other taxing units. The board action allows local units to start billing for the summer property tax levy for the cities and school districts, while the townships have the property tax levy in the winter, said Kathy Jo Koval, director of the Gogebic County Equalization Department. Koval said Tuesday that the normal county o...
BESSEMER - One person is dead following a house fire in Bessemer on Tuesday evening, according to the Michigan State Police. Troopers from the Wakefield Post were dispatched to a structure fire at 213 Sellar St. in the city of Bessemer at approximately 9 p.m., according to an MSP press release. Upon arrival the house was fully engulfed in flames. Troopers attempted to enter the residence to locate anyone inside but were unable to due to the intense flames and smoke, according to the press...
HURLEY — The Hurley City Council on Monday unanimously approved a resolution for its wastewater treatment report that received a perfect score. The resolution accepted the compliance maintenance annual report for the city’s wastewater collection system and will accompany the results to be reviewed by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, the permitting entity, said Gary Laguna, city water manager. After a two month review the WDNR will respond to the report and the resolution. The city received a “Grade A” for both the financi...
By TOM LAVENTURE [email protected] IRONWOOD — The Ironwood City Commission on Monday approved its fiscal budget and property tax levy for 2020-2011. The commission 4-1 adopted a resolution to approve millage rates for city services and to authorize the collection of a 1% tax administration fee and fee schedule. Commissioner Joseph Cayer went against the action with concern over a 2.5% water and sewer rate increase. Cayer questioned the commission’s decision to include the Consumer Price Index adjustment to keep up with costs for...
IRONWOOD - Protests continue to be held in front of the Memorial Building in support of the Black Lives Matter movement and for an end to police brutality. Bill and Jodi Buergey said they have attended protests for more than 50 years for various issues. They came Sunday to support anti-racism and call for an end to systemic racism. They were compelled again by the state of the nation since the killing of George Floyd, an African-American man who died while handcuffed and laying on the ground wit...
By CHARITY SMITH [email protected] HURLEY - Many area Catholics were able to attend church services for the first time since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, as public Mass services resumed this past weekend at St. Mary of the Seven Dolors Catholic Church in Hurley. "It is good to be back," one woman was overheard exclaiming as she entered the church. "It was heartbreaking not to be able to come to church." Attendance was limited to 25% of the church's total occupancy, which limited...
TOM LAVENTURE [email protected] IRONWOOD — Downtown Ironwood bars and restaurants may soon use more outdoor room for customers amidst the ongoing COVID-19 restrictions. During its virtual meeting Thursday the city of Ironwood Planning Commission 5-0 recommended that the city commission approve an outdoor seating policy for businesses. Members Nancy Korpela and Mark Silver were not present. City commissioner Joseph Cayer was present as a non-voting ex-officio member. “As businesses open up again we are trying to create some flexibili...
IRONWOOD - Area community members who attended a Tuesday protest at the Memorial Building said they were compelled to add their voices to the worldwide outrage against racism and brutality in police departments. After watching the social media video of George Floyd, an African-American man who died while handcuffed and laying on the ground with the knee of a white Minneapolis police officer on his neck on May 25, Heidi Amsley said she was moved to attend the Ironwood event. "It was a really visc...
