Sixth heat-related death reported in St. Louis City this year
Earline Walker is the sixth person in St. Louis to die of heat-related causes this year.
90-year-old Walker was found last week by her family at her residence in the 3000 block of Semple. She had window air conditioner units, but they were blowing hot air.
City officials are urging residents to check on their elderly relatives and neighbors and to encourage anyone without an air conditioner to go to coolingcenters during the day. Residents who do not have an air conditioner or who need help paying their cooling bills should call the UnitedWay at 1-800-427-4646.
Search for Mo. state trooper now underway
The search for the body of a missing Missouri Water Patrol trooper has resumed in the northwest part of the state.
Rescue workers are searching for Trooper Fred Guthrie Jr. and his dog, Reed, near Big Lake, about 10 miles southwest of Mound City. They were helping with flood duties in Holt County Monday when they apparently were swept away by flood waters.
The 46-year-old Guthrie served in the Water Patrol Division within Troop A in Platte County. In 2007, he was honored for rescuing a woman who had been thrown from her boat in Smithville Lake during a thunderstorm. Reed was a five-year patrol veteran.
State to pick up Joplin’s tab in tornado cleanup
The city of Joplin won’t have to pay the bill for the first couple of months of debris removal following the devastating tornado on May 22.
Mo. Gov. Jay Nixon said Monday that the state will pick up the 10 percent share not covered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency under the expedited debris removal program that runs through next Sunday. Nixon said about two-thirds of the properties have been cleared so far in the hard-hit area designated for FEMA’s enhanced cleanup payments. The federal government is going to pay 90 percent of the cost in that area, instead of the typical 75 percent.
Nixon said the state is covering Joplin’s share because the tornado caused the city to lose tax revenues.
