With heavy rain comes high water, which has lead to the closure of many roads across the Hoosier State due to flooding during the New Year’s Holiday. The Indiana Department of Transportation strongly urges the motoring public to use caution over the holiday and turn around upon encountering a flooded roadway.

Floodwaters have the capability of damaging and destroying roadways. Those potential hazards may not be visible during times of high water. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration it only takes about six inches of water to make a vehicle begin to float and stall out. When all of those factors combine, it could lead to vehicles being swept away.

INDOT urges the motoring public to be aware of roads that are prone to flooding during and after heavy rains. Information about road closures can be found on Facebook at www.facebook.com/INDOTVincennesDistrict and Twitter at www.twitter.com/INDOTSouthwest. For a complete listing of closures, including high water and construction related updates, you can access INDOT’s TrafficWise website at http://indot.carsprogram.org. Travelers can also get information by calling 1-800-261-ROAD (7623) or dialing 511 from a mobile phone.

Subscribe to receive INDOT news and information by text message or email athttps://public.govdelivery.com/accounts/INDOT/subscriber/new.

Find customer service contact information for your regional INDOT district athttps://entapps.indot.in.gov/dotmaps/districtmaps/ also call 511.

Drive sober

Drivers attending holiday gathering should avoid substances that impair reaction times. When on the roads, drive defensively and be aware for other inattentive or impaired drivers.

If too impaired to drive, make plans to designate a sober driver, stay overnight or take a cab home. Remember that driving while drowsy or distracted is similar to “buzzed” driving.

A Fort Knox, KY resident faces reckless driving charges after a trip along I-69 through Daviess County.

Dec. 24 at 1:19 P.M., Senior Trooper Jarrod Lents observed a silver 2005 Pontiac G6 traveling northbound on Interstate 69 at the 74.5 mile marker (12 miles north of Washington) at what appeared to be a high rate of speed.

Trooper Lents activated his radar, determining that the Pontiac was traveling 116 miles per hour.

Trooper Lents turned around and followed the Pontiac for nearly four miles at speeds between 110 and 116 miles per hour before the vehicle pulled over.

The driver, Sean M. Bronaugh, 18, Fort Knox, KY, was charged with Reckless Driving, a class B Misdemeanor.

Across Indiana on this Christmas Eve, several crashes have occurred that have resulted in serious injuries or death, and have been the direct result of excessive speed or driver inattention. When behind the wheel, use good judgment and practice safe driving. The Indiana State Police considers safety on our highways a priority; we want everyone to make it home for the holidays.

As part of its continued commitment to security, AEG Facilities’ KFC Yum! Center will implement additional security measures at all of its events beginning Thursday, January 14.

Through collaborations between AEG Facilities, the Louisville Arena Authority and the University of Louisville, the arena will install walk-through metal detectors at each of its entrances.

The arena will open doors 90 minutes prior to most events and fans are encouraged to arrive early to allow extra time for these procedures.

In alignment with the policies at several sports venues around the U.S., including all NBA arenas, the KFC Yum! Center will also require that purses be no larger than 14”x14”x6”. Backpacks and briefcases remain prohibited.

What’s changing for our fans?

• All patrons will be required to pass through metal detectors upon entry to the building
• Purses can be no larger than 14” x 14” x 6”
• As usual, doors will open one hour prior to women’s basketball games and 90 minutes prior to men’s basketball games and other events. Fans may wish to allow extra time for building entry.
• The KFC Yum! Center respects the privacy of its guests and the enhanced security measures will only be used to prevent hazardous and prohibited items from entering the venue.

“The safety of each guest who enters the KFC Yum! Center is our top priority at all of our events and we believe that these additional security measures will help us maintain a safe atmosphere for our fans and

downtown Louisville as a whole,” said KFC Yum! Center General Manager Dennis Petrullo. “These procedures are just one part of our larger security planning efforts that includes constant collaboration with the Louisville Metro Police Department and various other entities.”

For more information, and a complete list of prohibited items, please visit www.kfcyumcenter.com.

Today Secretary of State Connie Lawson released the annual list of top investor threats and urged investors to use caution when approached with unsolicited investments, especially those involving promissory notes, oil and gas deals and real estate investment opportunities, including non-traded real estate investment trusts.

“Education and information are an investor’s best defense against investment fraud,” Secretary Lawson said.

The top threats to investors were determined by surveying members of the North American Securities Administrators Association, of which the Secretary of State’s office is a member, to identify the five most problematic products, practices or schemes. The following were cited most often:

1. Unregistered Products/Unlicensed Salesmen: The offer of securities by an individual without a valid securities license should be a red alert for investors. Con artists also try to bypass stringent state registration requirements to pitch unregistered investments with a promise of “limited or no risk” and high returns.
2. Promissory Notes: In an environment of low interest rates, the promise of high-interest-bearing promissory notes may be tempting to investors, especially seniors and others living on a fixed income. Promissory notes generally are used by companies to raise capital. Legitimate promissory notes are marketed almost exclusively to sophisticated or corporate investors with the resources to research thoroughly the companies issuing the notes and to determine whether the issuers have the capacity to pay the promised interest and principal. Most promissory notes must be registered as securities with the SEC and the states in which they are sold. Average investors should be cautious about offers of promissory notes with a duration of nine months or less, which in some circumstances do not require registration.  Short-term notes that appear to be exempt from securities registration have been the source of most – but not all – of the fraudulent activity involving promissory notes identified by regulators.
3. Oil/Gas Investments: Many oil and gas investment opportunities, while involving varying degrees of risks to the investor, are legitimate in their marketing and responsible in their operations. However, as in many other investment opportunities, it is not unusual for unscrupulous promoters to attempt to take advantage of investors by engaging in fraudulent practices. Fraudulent oil and gas deals frequently are structured with the limited partnership (or other legal entity) in one state, the operation and physical presence of the field in a second state, and the offerings made to prospective investors in states other than the initial two states. As a result, there is less chance of an investor dropping by a well site or a nonexistent company headquarters. Such a structure also makes it difficult for authorities and victims to identify and expose the fraud.
4. Real estate-related Investments: Troublesome real estate-related investments identified by securities regulators included non-traded real estate investment trusts (REITs), timeshare resales, and brokered mortgage notes. These types of products often carry higher risk. For example, non-traded REITs are sold directly to investors and are not traded on exchanges (as are conventional REITs). Non-traded REITS can be risky and have limited liquidity, which may make them unsuitable for certain investors.
5. Ponzi Schemes: The premise is simple: pay early investors with money raised from later investors. The only people certain to make money are the promoters who set the Ponzi in motion.

“Investors should always be wary of unsolicited financial advice or investment opportunities,” Indiana Securities Commissioner Alex Glass said.

Before making any decisions with your money, ask questions, make sure you understand the risks, and contact the Secretary of State’s office for detailed background information about those who sell securities or give investment advice, as well as about the products being offered.

The Secretary of State’s office can be reached at 317-232-6682 or through its website at in.gov/sos.