Cottonwood County Sheriff’s Office reported 48 calls in the week of September 24th to the 30th. Deputies conducted 7 Civil Processes, had 2 Animal Calls, had 3 Juvenile Related Calls, handled 2 Civil Disputes, and conducted 8 traffic stops. A full listing of all calls in the Cottonwood County Sheriff’s Office Weekly Citizens Report click link below.
Weekly Citizen Report September 24th to 30th
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The Windom Police Department reported that they had 9 accidents in the month of September with 2 total injuries.
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As a reminder, coming up today, is the monthly test of the Emergency Warning Siren System. The City of Windom has an outdoor warning system, and it is tested the first Wednesday of each month. If you would like to learn more about this, go to www.windommn.com
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The Mountain Lake City Council met on Monday. The Council approved the request from the Street Department to purchase a snow pusher for approximately $20,302. Discussion was held with an update on building costs and estimates from local developers for the Fire and Ambulance Hall. The council provided direction to keep moving forward on a solution. The city administrator will continue to research on building materials, costs and financing options. There was a first reading for Ordinance # 4-23 Electric Service Regulations. The ordinance would be amended by adding an E in City Code Section 3.40 Subdivision 3 Electrical installations to read as follows: The City shall require a new meter socket for any new construction or service upgrades to be a minimum of 200 AMP lever type meter bypass. The council and city attorney discussed various items and strategies to solve various nuisances. There was a third reading for regulating the use of cannabis and cannabis derived products in public places. According to the City Administrator, The ordinance was tabled until Cottonwood County passes their ordinance, to confirm our ordinances will be uniform throughout the County. There will be a Senate Capital Investment Committee meeting at Mt Lake City Hall on Wednesday, October 4th to request funding in the 2024 bonding bill for the street improvement project.
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Drought conditions improved across Minnesota over the past week, due to widespread heavy precipitation, and some watersheds in the state have improved one drought monitor category. No areas of the state are currently experiencing exceptional drought. The Minnesota DNR is taking a number of actions (described below), consistent with the Statewide Drought Plan and statutory water use priorities. We are also coordinating closely with other agencies and water users and communicating broadly about the importance of water conservation.
Key Points:
- Two watersheds (Upper-Mississippi-Iowa-Skunk-Wapsipinicon and Upper-Minnesota-Maquoketa-Plum) have moved from the Drought Emergency Phase to the Drought Restrictive Phase, for a total of three watersheds in Drought Restrictive Phase.
- Five watersheds remain in the Drought Warning Phase.
- One watershed (Western Lake Superior) has moved from the Drought Warning Phase to the Drought Watch Phase, for a total of four watersheds in the Drought Watch Phase.
- Implementation of the Mississippi Low Flow Management Plan for dam operation continues for its ninth week.
- Surface water appropriation permit suspensions are still in place in some watersheds. Recent increases in streamflow are being monitored to determine when suspensions can be lifted (described in Streamflow Information below).
The weekly U.S. Drought Monitor map released Thursday, Sept. 28 shows that nearly all of Minnesota is experiencing some degree of drought, with most of Minnesota experiencing severe or extreme drought.
- 17% of Minnesota is experiencing abnormally dry conditions.
- 36% of the state is in moderate drought, increased from 31% last week.
- 39% of Minnesota is in severe drought, increased from 38% last week.
- 8% of the state is in extreme drought, decreased from 23% last week.
- 0% of Minnesota is in exceptional drought, decreased from 3% last week (see special note below).
- The aforementioned increase in the amounts of moderate and severe drought are actually a reflection of improvement from decreasing coverage of extreme drought.
Special Note regarding Exceptional Drought and the Drought Emergency Phase
The far southeastern watersheds that had recently experienced exceptional drought are now in extreme drought. In usual circumstances, the DNR recommends two weeks of changes in the drought category before making a change to Drought Phase in a watershed. However, because of the seasonal timing and the current lack of water shortages, the two watersheds that were in Drought Emergency Phase have moved to Drought Restrictive Phase this week.
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The Jackson County Library System will be sponsoring a presentation on “Planning Ahead” with LaCanne Celebration of Life Center conducting the presentation on October 11th. Times will be Noon at the Jackson Library, 2pm at Lakefield Library and 5:30pm at Heron Lake Library. This Adult program is Free to anyone that would like to participate.
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The Windom Early Childhood Family Education’s Fall Festival is set for Tuesday October 10th from 5-7pm at the Highland Early Learning Center. Families with children Birth to 5 years old are welcome to join the fun with fall games and crafts. A light supper will be included in the cost of $2 per person.
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