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Wet Roads Blamed For Several Accidents Across Kentucky

The domino effect happened across central Kentucky roads Sunday. Overnight rain left drivers with hazardous conditions and that's being blamed for several accidents.

It was a frightening scene at about Noon on Sunday, when two cars collided at the I-64 and I-75 northern split in Lexington.

Officials say the driver of a tan car was taken to the hospital with unknown injuries.

Wet pavement was likely a factor in the crash on I-75 as well as one on Mount Sterling Road in Clark County at about 11:00 a.m. "We were dispatched to a motor vehicle accident with a subject possibly dead on arrival," says Battalion Chief Ernest Barnes with the Clark County Fire Department.

But luckily, when crews arrived, the driver of a demolished blue car was responsive and taken to the hospital. The driver had run off the road and crashed his car into two utility poles. The crash was so violent it cracked the telephone pole in half and bent the power pole. The driver is expected to be okay.

The slick roads may have also contributed to a crash in Lexington Sunday morning at New Circle and Russell Cave Road. The driver of one car was checked out at the hospital after a van slammed into the back of her. The driver is expected to be just fine.

 

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Home Gutted By Fire In Lexington

It was a close call for a Lexington man Sunday.

No smoke alarms sounded, but smoke was a big signal for him to get out of his burning home.

It happened around 1:30 Sunday afternoon near the intersection of Chinoe Road and Cooper Drive.

"He was cooking at the time. But the fire was not in the kitchen," says Major Madden with the Lexington Fire Department. The Lexington man was unaware that part of his home was on fire. "There's a significant amount of damage to the contents of the fire room but smoke damage throughout the house."

That smoke is what neighbors noticed first. "Well my little brother told me to look out the window and there was smoke coming out of the house over there," remembers Aaron Rutter, a neighbor.

Firefighters say the homeowner might have been able to prevent the destruction had there been working smoke detectors."Smoke detectors are always important to have and operating. I asked the occupant and he said he was not alerted by a smoke detector and he said there were none in the house," says Major Madden.

At least for neighbors, it was a good reminder. "It looks like it gutted the whole inside of the house," says Martin Kish, another neighbor. "So it just goes to show you you never know how fast these things spread that's just real scary to think about. You hate to see someone lose all their belongings. You work so hard for things and here in a matter of minutes, it's gone."

 

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Viewers Flock To See Damaged Bridge

AURORA, Ky. (AP) - Nearly 1,800 people have traveled to Land Between the Lakes for a chance to see the gnarled span of a western Kentucky bridge that wrapped around the bow of a cargo ship during a collision on Kentucky Lake.

LBL re-opened the Fenton Recreation Area for four hours on Saturday to give people a chance to see the damage up close. The area had been closed after the Delta Mariner hit the Eggner's Ferry Bridge on Jan. 26, ripping a section away.

A few minutes before the area was closed again, LBL supervisor Bill Lisowsky told The Paducah Sun that 1,772 people had visited (http://bit.ly/yYv8zW).

Meanwhile, salvage workers began on Saturday to remove the 322-foot span of the bridge from the ship's bow.

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Information from: The Paducah Sun, http://www.paducahsun.com

(Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

 

 

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Two Sent To Hospital After Madison County Fire

An elderly couple had to be hospitalized after a fire broke out in their Madison County home on 111 Concord Road.

It happened at around 3 pm. Madison County fire officials say Gene Jones has an oxygen tank for medical reasons, and he was smoking near it. Officials say a spark caught the oxygen on fire, and it quickly spread throughout the home. Family members say Marjorie Jones managed to pull her husband from the home. The couple suffered burn injuries to their faces.

Gene Jones was rushed to UK hospital, where he is listed in serious condition. Family members say Marjorie Jones was taken to the Pattie Clay Medical Center in Richmond to be checked out.

The house is a total loss, and the Jones's beloved puppy, Cooper, and their pet bird died in the blaze.

 

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New Brewgrass Trail Promotes Craft Beer

DANVILLE, Ky. (AP) - A Brewgrass Trail has opened in the Bluegrass.

The newly minted Brewgrass Trail was formed to highlight the state's emerging craft beer industry and includes two microbreweries in Danville, according to The Advocate-Messenger. The initiative seeks to promote the industry in a fashion similar to the way the state has marketed its more familiar bourbon products.

Adam Johnson, who is executive director of the Danville/Boyle County Convention and Visitors, said there's already a website promoting the trail, with links to social media such as Facebook and Twitter.

"Marketing to the growing 'beer tourist' segment has shown great promise and is seen in the exploding growth of breweries, specialty shops, and craft beer bars across the Bluegrass," he said. "Our hope is to make things easier for the culinary traveler to find these uniquely Kentucky beer spots with this website and social networking campaign."

So far, there are seven microbreweries listed on the website.

Those include The Beer Engine and Lore Brewing Co. in Danville as well as Country Boy Brewing in Lexington and Against The Grain Brewery and Smokehouse in Louisville.

Danville brewery owners said the city is already known for craft beer.

"The numbers seem to indicate that Danville now has more breweries per capita than any other city in the country," said Lore owner Lee Rossman. "People come from all over the country to visit Danville and stop at the breweries."

Beer Engine owner Brian Holton said, "The world of beer has been vast and complex for hundreds of years, and now the world of Kentucky beer is widening.

"The craft beer market has continued to grow through the recession, and people are becoming more educated about good beer. We know that in Danville we have become a beer destination."

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Information from: The Advocate-Messenger, http://www.amnews.com

(Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

 

 

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W. Ky. Better Prepared To Handle Disaster

PADUCAH, Ky. (AP) - It's been three years since an ice storm paralyzed the western Kentucky region and emergency service coordinators say they're better prepared in the event of another major disaster.

Kentucky Transportation Cabinet spokesman Keith Todd told The Paducah Sun that a major ice storm today wouldn't affect the region as dramatically as the one that hit on Jan. 27, 2009 (http://bit.ly/vZPnMZ).

For example, he says crews have removed many trees that used to sit near roads. He says does more than just remove the risk of a tree falling and blocking the road.

"With the cleared right-of-ways, more sunshine is reaching the pavement and that keeps the roads warm and helps the salt do the work of melting snow and ice," Todd said.

McCracken County Emergency Management Director Paul Carter says he thinks the entire community is better prepared.

"Since the ice storm, I've seen more awareness about emergency situations and planning from both citizens and leaders," Carter said. "The state has developed a greater ability to provide emergency management and coordinate volunteer efforts."

He said the area has more generators, home emergency kits and food reserves.

"We're more in a mindset to help our neighbors and have better preparation for worse situations, like an earthquake," Carter said.

He said his service also has a new headquarters, which means it is better equipped to handle major events. He said the previous building was leaky and aid workers that used the facility during the ice storm had to deal with knee-deep water in places.

"We've moved the emergency management office to a new building where we have bunk rooms, showers, and a large area to run operations and training. We've also upgraded communications to communicate with our people, Frankfort and the National Guard," Carter said.

The brutal ice storm caused 36 deaths and left 769,000 customers without power. Downed trees and utility lines immobilized the western half of the state. The storm caused an estimated $616 million in damages.

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Information from: The Paducah Sun, http://www.paducahsun.com

(Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

 

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Tea Party Setting Sights On State Legislature

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) - Nearly a dozen tea party candidates, including one of Kentucky's most recognizable fiscal conservatives, have set their sights on state legislative seats up for election this year.

Louisville businessman Phil Moffett, who finished second in the GOP's three-way gubernatorial primary last year, delivered candidacy papers last week to run for a House seat, hoping to bolster the tea party's foothold in the state Capitol.

Such a move has been slower in coming to Kentucky than other states.

Kentucky tea party activists have been so focused on federal issues in the past, Moffett said, that they're only now beginning to flex their muscle at the state level.

"I'm happy to see it," he said. "A lot of the problems we have at the federal level are mirrored at the state and local level."

The goal is to press elected leaders to cut spending, reduce the size of government, chip away at the state debt, and slash taxes. Moffett said tea party lawmakers, if elected, could collectively push the General Assembly in that direction.

The tea party has won victories and suffered defeats in Kentucky over the past couple of years. The movement was the muscle behind U.S. Sen. Rand Paul's election in 2010. Paul was transformed in little more than a year from being a little-known Bowling Green eye doctor to political heavyweight in a little more than a year thanks to a groundswell of support for his small government message.

Moffett, then a newcomer to politics, tried to capitalize on that same message last year in his race for governor, but was unable to get past establishment Republican David Williams, the longtime state Senate president.

The legislative runs will be the Kentucky tea party's next challenge. Victories could signal that the movement that helped propel Republicans into control of the U.S. House of Representatives remains alive and well in Kentucky.

Chris Hightower of Auburn, a former campaign aide to Paul, is running for a seat in the Kentucky House. Hightower was Paul's spokesman who resigned early in the campaign because someone had posted a racial slur on his MySpace page that he had failed to delete.

Hightower said he's hopeful more tea party candidates will file in coming week.

"I'm surprised there's not more grassroots citizens filing for these seats," he said.

The tally of tea party candidates is small considering 100 House seats and 19 Senate seats are up for election.

Tea party state Rep. Mike Harmon, R-Danville, who ran unsuccessfully for lieutenant governor on a ticket with Moffett last year, predicted a political climate in Kentucky that would favor tea party candidates.

"I think it's obviously a good year for conservatives," Harmon said. "President Obama lost Kentucky last time and he still has a lot of negatives here that could cause more conservatives to come out and vote."

House Republican Floor Leader Jeff Hoover said political newcomers have jumped into legislative races because they're tired of contentious partisan politics that most recently was reflected in a redistricting battle that has spilled over into the court system.

"We think we have a really good chance of picking up a significant number of seats," Hoover said. "People are frustrated with the process, and they're interested in getting involved to improve the process. Quite honestly, I believe the actions in this redistricting and the abuse of power has gotten some people fired up about getting involved in the process."

Tea party activist David Adams, campaign manager for Moffett's gubernatorial bid and for Paul's Republican primary race, said the movement remains alive and well in Kentucky.

"With candidates like Phil Moffett in Louisville, David Glauber in Shepherdsville and Tiffany Nash in Richmond leading the way, the class of 2013 in the House will wear the old guard out," Adams said. "Tea party candidates will be serious about ending special perks for the political class. They aren't interested in building little kingdoms for themselves and don't want a seat on the government gravy train. That's a very powerful message, and I think the political establishment should consider themselves very fortunate to have been able to carry on unimpeded for so long."

(Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

 

 

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LEX 18 News At 11:00 - Saturday, February 4, 2012

Did you miss LEX 18 News at 11:00? Get caught up here.

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Coming Up on LEX 18 News at 11:00 - Saturday, February 4, 2012

Coming up tonight on LEX 18 News at 11:00 - Neighbors search for answers as police search for clues in a Bourbon County murder case.

A crash turns fatal on Paris Pike in Lexington. We'll tell you what happened.

Plus, it was a clean sweet for one presidential hopeful in Nevada. We'll tell you who.

And the Cats stomp the Gamecocks in South Carolina.

We hope you'll join us at 11:00!

 

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Rep. Tilley Calls For Task Force To Look At Code

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) - State Rep. John Tilley would like to establish a task force to study Kentucky's juvenile code.

Tilley helped lead the overhaul of the state's criminal code last year and sees the need for change to protect the state's children.

"We could see something that ranges from a tune-up to an overhaul of laws that effect our children," Tilley told the Lexington Herald-Leader(http://bit.ly/ym3oY7).

He's introduced a resolution that would open a study into establishing an age of criminal responsibility and whether to modify how certain offenses and offenders are treated.

Under the juvenile code some "status offenders" who aren't guilty of a crime but may be runaways, truants or out of the control of their parents or school officials can be locked up in juvenile detention. Top state juvenile justice and court officials have said that too many children younger than 11 are brought before judges in court.

About 18 percent of all juvenile detentions - or 1,541 - are status offenders.

Some representatives have introduced bills that would deal with some of the problems in the juvenile system. Tilley, a Democrat from Hopkinsville, said he introduced the resolution not to stall those efforts, but to ensure that something's done for the state's children if they fail.

If the task force is created, it would file a report by Nov. 1 and the lawmakers could tackle changes next year.

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Information from: Lexington Herald-Leader, http://www.kentucky.com

(Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

 

 

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Kentucky Sailor Laid To Rest

A Kentucky sailor killed in a training accident was laid to rest Saturday.

The day was appropriately rainy and dreary, matching the mood of those who came to remember Petty Officer Second Class Taylor Gallant.

Gallant died in a dive training exercise off the coast of North Carolina. He was part of an elite unit that would dispose of explosive devices.

The 2008 graduate of George Rogers Clark High School was known as highly motivated and very smart. "Just an exceptional young man," says Beth Smith of Winchester. "I don't know him personally but I do hear great things about him." Smith works in the technology department for the same school system Gallant graduated from. "Any young men or young women who graduate from GRC I feel like are one of my own." She says that despite the rain Smith wanted to watch the funeral. "I brought my little boy out with me just because I thought it was really important that he learn that these people make a great sacrifice for our country."

The Gallant family asked that no cameras be present at the burial. The Navy has suspended dive training operations until an investigation of Gallant's death is complete.

 

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Police Search For Armed Robbers

Police in Danville are looking for four men accused of robbing a man at gunpoint.

It happened just before 1:00 Saturday morning at Harlan Nights Club on South Second Street.

Police say the man in an apartment above the club had been pistol whipped and robbed. The four men also stole the victim's car.

Police are looking for Jauqua Beasley, Marcus Beasley and Shaun Faulkner of Danville. The fourth person involved is unknown.

Police say they are in an older model white Maxima with front-bumper damage.

These men are considered armed and dangerous.

 

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Police Searching For Bank Robber

Authorities are asking for the public's help in finding a man who they say robbed a US Bank on Dixie Highway.

Police say the man walked into the bank in Louisville on Friday and demanded cash. They say he claimed to have a gun but did not show it to the teller.

No one was hurt and police aren't releasing how much money was taken.

If you have any information, contact police.

 

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Bourbon County Man Charged In Duplex Murder

Police have charged a man with murder after a body was found in a Bourbon County duplex.

Investigators told LEX 18, Ernest Waugh died from blunt force trauma Saturday morning inside his home on Connelly Alley, near West 8th Street in Paris.

"I'm sick to my stomach," said Alpha Herrington, Waugh's neighbor and friend. "I'm just sad that he's gone... I just hate it that it's happened and I hate it for his family."

Police said Waugh and another person were involved in a fight with Herbert Jones Jr, leading Jones to assault both people. Waugh died and the other person was injured.

Jones was quickly arrested and charged with murder.

"What was he thinking to harm somebody in the way that he did?" said Melissa White, Waugh's neighbor. "I don't think [Waugh would] harm anybody. He was an old man."

"Hearing about that, it just breaks my heart," said Adrian Compton, who knew the victim. "Good lord. He's up there with the good Lord."

Investigators have not said what they believe the three were fighting over.

They have also not released the name of the third person involved or how badly that person was hurt.

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Employee Arrested For Stealing From UPS

A UPS employee is in hot water after police say he stole from his employer.

40-year-old David Connelly is charged with theft after authorities say he stole three laptops at UPS worth more than $3,000 dollars.

The laptops were recovered at Connelly's home.

 

 

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Car Hydroplanes On New Circle Road

A woman and her daughter said they thought they were going to fall off an overpass when their minivan was struck by a hydro-planing car.

The wreck happened on New Circle Road and forced emergency crews to close all lanes on the inner loop for about an hour.

"In the blink of an eye, I had no idea how it even happened. It just happened so fast," says Lisa Murray, the driver.

No one, not even the dog was hurt in the crash.

 

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Search Continues For Missing Teenager

Police are searching for a missing Hart County teenager.

19-year-old Brandon Crain disappeared a week ago from his apartment on Center Street.

Officials say Crain vanished in the middle of the night and did not take anything with him.

 

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Victim of Paris Pike Accident Dies

A man involved in an accident on Paris Pike Saturday afternoon has died.

The victim was taken to UK Hospital with life-threatening injuries after police say he driver likely hydro-planed into rocks on the side of the road. He was pronounced dead at the hospital.

It happened on the inbound lanes of Paris Pike in Fayette County.

Police say the victim was not wearing a seatbelt and was ejected from the vehicle.

The victim's name has not yet been released.

The inbound lane of Paris Pike was shut down but has since reopened.

 

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Coming Up On LEX 18 News At 6:00 - Saturday, February 4, 2012

Coming up on LEX 18 News at 6:00 - A body is found in Bourbon County and now a man has been charged with murder. We've got the latest on the investigation.

Plus, there were numerous crashes throughout central Kentucky today, mostly due to the slick roads.

And the Cats versus the Gamecocks, who will come out on top?

Also, we'll show you how family and friends are saying goodbye to a Kentucky sailor.

We hope you'll join us at 6:00!

 

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Three People Arrested For Making Meth

Three people are behind bars for making meth.

Officials in Bath County made the arrests Friday night on US 60. They say six one-step meth labs were found in a home.

Now, Alonzo Martin, Stephanie Sandy and Joe Jackson have been charged with manufacturing methamphetamines along with other drug related charges.

 

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