Rounds of severe storms hammered southern Indiana and central Kentucky on Friday, July 20, 2018 bringing very large hail, wind damage, heavy rain, and 4 confirmed tornadoes.

The National Weather Service Damage Survey Teams confirmed three tornadoes:

EF-1 Harrison County, IN

EF-1 Hart County, KY

EF-0 Metcalfe County, KY

EF-0 Washington County, IN

This very small, skipping tornado near Salem did its damage primarily on hilltops between Sparks Ferry Road and the intersection of State Road 135 and Lewellen Road.

It was 75 yards at its maximum width and traveled about 1.1 miles, according to the National Weather Service. It had maximum wind speeds of 80mph.

A few tree limbs and a small fence were downed near Sparks Ferry Road before it moved northeast over a large wooded area and open farmland.

The next damage was concentrated about a quarter of a miles south of Water Tower Road, just west of Highway 135.

Here the tornado tore multiple metal roof panels off a barn, blew the southward-facing overhead doors of a garage in, and tore the entrance door off the garage out on the west side.

The attached home sustained considerable siding and room damage. A small play shed on the west side of the home was destroyed, with the debris blown to the west-northwest.

Debris from the barn and home were scattered in a narrow path through row crops up to a third of a mile to the northeast, where a resident witnessed large sheets of roofing and siding fall into a hay field on the north side of Lewellen Road.

A corn field on the south side of Lewellen Road showed cyclonic rotation in a narrow path of flattened corn. 

The National Weather Service in conjunction with Harrison County EMA conducted a storm survey around the New Middletown area where the supercell went through on Friday.

A tornado was confirmed of EF1 scale with a maximum wind speed of 105 mph. The tornado first touched down along Justin`s Trail in the Southwind Estates subdivision.

There was significant tree damage along Pleasure Ridge Road where a large tree fell on a garage. Farther east along Pleasure Ridge Road, several small funnels from the main funnel did extensive damage. A 2 x 8 impaled a concrete grain silo.

At least four big barns received extensive damage, including a turkey barn. Further east, several funnels congealed into one main tornado doing extensive damage to hardwood trees and significant roof damage to several homes.

Along South Pleasant Road, one home had mud spatter on the back east side of the house where several pieces of wood were impaled in the ground.

At that property, a pole barn was completely destroyed and thrown in different directions. A truck and horse trailer was moved and twisted 50 feet. The wind speeds in this area were the strongest at 105mph and the maximum width was 250 yards.

At the end of Sarabeth Way, there was extensive hardwood tree damage which included uprooted, twisted, and mangled trees.

This included several healthy hickory trees which were snapped. Further east on Sinker Road, there was an impressive cyclonic crop damage across a corn field with corn laying in every direction. On Simler Road, there was consistent snapped tree damage and we observed a camper that had been tossed and flipped over and several barns received extensive damage.

During the final stages of the tornado, it struck homes along Peyton Road flipping over single wide trailers, lifting the roof of a barn, and doing extensive tree damage. Parts of the barn, including insulation and sheet metal, were thrown into the trees.

The largest hail report we received was 4 inches in diameter (softball size) in Tompkinsville, KY.

The strongest measured wind gust was 70 mph at the Lexington Bluegrass Airport.

The EF0 tornado reported in Metcalfe County was a short-lived spin-up tornado occurred as a northeast-moving storm interacted with outflow winds from a southeastward-moving storm in eastern Metcalfe County.

The first damage occurred along Subtle Road, where a carport was overturned and a large part of a metal outbuildings roof torn off, in addition to snapping numerous
trees. 

The tornado then moved east-northeast at tree-top level over wooded areas and farm fields, doing its next major damage a mile away, where it pushed a double-wide mobile home to the northwest off its blocks, breaking windows, and ripping off shingles from the roof.

The tornado continued on for another mile, causing occasional tree damage, and dropping debris before lifting near the east end of Groce Road, where it peeled roofing material from a metal out building. 

The Hart County tornado touched down in a wooded area midway between J Riggs Rd and Copelin Rd north of state highway 728, snapping trees as it moved southeast along a hay field, where it destroyed two 1200 lb hay bales and rolled numerous others up to a tenth of a mile into a soybean field and uphill onto a knoll.

Snapping trees on the land adjacent to the hay and soybean fields, the tornado took a slight right turn, crossing highway 728, and destroying a large barn. 

Large parts of the barn debris were lofted into trees southwest of the structure, snapping their trunks. 

A 20 x 20 section of the barn was blown 500 feet to the south-southeast.  The tornado continued southward for another two-tenths of a mile, downing trees along Campground Rd before lifting. 

Indiana Grown has teamed up with wineries from across the state to bring local enthusiasts the Indiana Grown Wine Trail.

With 30 participating locations, finding the perfect wine is an easy, entertaining and relaxing process.

“This trail provides the opportunity to experience all that Indiana’s winemakers have to offer in a fun and exciting way,” said Lt. Governor Suzanne Crouch, Indiana’s Secretary of Agriculture and Rural Development. “We have some of the best wineries in the country, and I encourage Hoosiers to go find their new favorite wine.”

Despite more than two dozen wineries participating, the trail won’t get old — each location puts its own twist on a variety of wine styles.

Free trail maps are available on the Indiana Grown website or at the participating vineyards. Each time a guest visits a location, a stamp will be added to their map. There isn’t a time limit for completion, but completed maps can be mailed to Indiana Grown for a free wooden wine stopper.

“If you enjoy local wine, this trail is for you,” said Bruce Kettler, Indiana State Department of Agriculture director. “This is an excellent way to support local businesses and meet Indiana winemakers, while enjoying some great Indiana-grown wines.”

The trail is made possible by the following wineries:

• • Mallow Run Winery, Bargersville;

• • Huckleberry Hill Winery, Bloomfield;

• • Butler Winery, Bloomington;

• • Oliver Winery, Bloomington;

• • Huber Winery, Borden;

• • Winzerwald Winery, Bristow;

• • Sugar Creek Winery, Carmel;

• • Running Vines Winery, Chesterton;

• • Turtle Run Winery, Corydon;

• • Rowland Winery, Dillsboro;

• • Best Vineyards, Elizabeth;

• • Satek Winery, Fremont;

• • French Lick Winery, French Lick;

• • Two EE’s Winery, Huntington;

• • Country Heritage Winery, Laotto;

• • Buck Creek Winery, Indianapolis;

• • Chateau de Pique Winery, Indianapolis;

• • Easley Winery, Indianapolis;

• • Madison Vineyard, Madison

• • Madison County Winery, Markleville;

• • Daniel’s Vineyard, McCordsville;

• • Fruitshine Wine, Monticello;

• • Whyte Horse Winery, Monticello;

• • Brown County Winery, Nashville;

• • McClure’s Orchard/ Winery, Peru;

• • Melton Renzulli Winery, Richmond;

• • Schnabeltier, Rochester;

• • Blackhawk Winery, Sheridan;

• • Owen Valley Winery, Spencer; and

• • Hopwood Cellars Winery, Zionsville.

To find out more about the Indiana Grown Wine Trail, click here. Visit www.IndianaGrown.org or learn more about Indiana Grown.

ABOUT INDIANA GROWN
Indiana Grown is administered by the Indiana State Department of Agriculture in partnership with Lieutenant Governor Suzanne Crouch. The initiative educates consumers on the importance of buying Indiana Grown products, helps Indiana farmers and producers sell more products and supports Indiana processors in their effort to process more Indiana Grown products. Indiana Grown members and partners include farmers, producers, processors and artisans, as well as retailers, grocers, hospitals and restaurants. For more information, visit www.IndianaGrown.org.

Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senator Joe Donnelly announced his support today for the bipartisan Improving Access to Maternity Care Act. The legislation seeks to help reduce the shortage of obstetrical services in underserved and rural areas. Currently, 32 Indiana counties lack hospital-based obstetrical services, which can result in Hoosiers being forced to drive long distances or unable to access adequate maternity care.

The Improving Access to Maternity Care Act would create a new maternity care health professional shortage area designation in order to ensure that OB/GYNs participating in the National Health Service Corps (NHSC) are sent to the areas in highest need of maternity care. The NHSC incentivizes healthcare providers to work in underserved areas by awarding scholarships and loan repayment to primary care providers in eligible disciplines. As a result, maternity care resources could be targeted to the areas in greatest need of providers and services, which would help contribute to healthier pregnancies and babies. The companion bill to the Improving Access to Maternity Care Act passed unanimously in the House last year.

Donnelly said, “Hoosier mothers deserve access to quality maternal care, no matter where they live. Unfortunately, too many Indiana communities face a shortage or even lack of maternity care professionals and services altogether, which can have a harmful impact on expectant mothers, families, and ultimately babies. We must improve access to maternity care, and this bill would help address a critical need, particularly in underserved and rural areas across our state.”

Dr. James Turner, Medical Director of the Richard G. Lugar Center for Rural Health, said, “Over 30 counties in Indiana are without hospital-based Obstetrical Services for pregnant women. This is especially true in rural areas of the state. This bill is a first step in helping identify all the areas in our state where it is difficult for women and their families to find the care they need.”

Indiana Department of Transportation maintenance crews will excavate and replace a culvert pipe under State Road 211 in Harrison County north of Elizabeth this Wednesday (JULY 25), weather permitting.   

The highway will be closed between S.R. 11 and S.R. 111 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. while INDOT personnel from the Corydon Unit install a 24-inch drainage pipe measuring 60 feet in length.  

The Indiana Department of Transportation has closed northbound and southbound left lanes of Interstate 65 between Memphis Road and the Sellersburg exit while contracted crews place a special erosion control grid in median areas of the roadway between mile markers 16.0 and 12.0. 

The Flexamat installation—designed to stabilize slopes and channels—is a pre-manufactured system of interlocking concrete blocks affixed to a polypropylene geogrid.  

INDOT officials anticipate this median operation that requires closure of I-65’s inside lanes will continue through next week.  At that time, Indiana’s contractor will resume milling and surfacing paving, focusing on left lanes and inside shoulder areas. 

Milestone is INDOT’s contractor for this $67 million added travel lanes project that has rebuilt I-65—from one mile north of S.R. 60 to 2.8 miles south of S.R. 160—with full-depth asphalt pavement replacement and a short section of concrete.  Work has included bridge widening at Memphis Road, Perry Crossing, Muddy Fork and Old S.R. 311.

Assistant to the Secretary for Rural Development Anne Hazlett Monday announced that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is investing $17.4 million in 41 projects that will provide essential services for rural communities in 22 states.

“Rural America represents a wealth of opportunity – from farms to tourism, forestry, mining and manufacturing,” Hazlett said. “At USDA, our mission is to be a catalyst to bring those opportunities to life – whether building infrastructure, helping communities to attract jobs, accessing additional capital, or improving the quality of life in these towns.”

USDA is making the investments through the Community Facilities Direct Loan Program. The funding helps rural areas purchase, construct or improve essential facilities. An essential community facility is one that provides a necessary service for the orderly development or operation of a rural community, such as schools, libraries, health care facilities, day care centers and infrastructure improvements. In Indiana for example:

• The Loogootee Public Library in Loogootee will use a $1.1 million loan to construct a new public library for the 5,853 residents of Rutherford and Perry townships. The current 600-square-foot library is too small and lacks sufficient space for meeting rooms, research, special projects, or computer connections. The upgraded facility will give schools in the area another resource for their students.
• The City of Union City will use a $181,500 loan and $181,000 grant to purchase a new fire truck. This will provide a greatly-needed service for the city to protect and serve its 3,584 residents in rural Randolph County.
• The Lewis Township Volunteer Fire Company, Inc. in Clay County will use a $688,333 loan to assist the Company with supplying fire protection services to the businesses and the 1,464 residents that live within Lewis Township, Clay County. The current fire department building is insufficient to carry out the mission of the fire department because it is too small and the fire trucks and equipment are not easily accessible; this causes lost time to address the needs of the community. The investment will provide the necessary space to store equipment and to access the trucks more easily. The existing building will remain as a community center for Lewis Township.
• The Hanover Educational Properties, LLC in Hanover will use a $4,290,000 loan to obtain, hold, and retain real estate for Hanover College. In order to meet the strategic goal of increased enrollment, the first-year housing dormitories need to be renovated to stay competitive with other colleges and universities in the region. It was deemed advantageous to establish an LLC and first transfer the ownership of Crow Resident Hall to the LLC. The LLC will utilize Rural Development funding for the transfer. The cost savings with a longer term and lower interest rate will free up cash and financially allow the three freshman resident halls to then be renovated, providing quality and affordable housing options for students.

  The projects will help improve the quality of life for more than 220,000 rural residents in Alabama, Arizona, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, North Carolina, North Dakota, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Virginia and Washington.

More than 100 types of projects are eligible for USDA Community Facilities funding. Eligible applicants include municipalities, public bodies, nonprofit organizations and federally and state-recognized Native American tribes. Applicants and projects must be in rural areas with a population of 20,000 or less. Loan amounts have ranged from $10,000 to $165 million.

The Fiscal Year (FY) 2018 Omnibus spending bill increased the budget for the Community Facilities Direct Loan and Grant program to $2.8 billion, up $200 million from FY 2017.

In April 2017, President Donald J. Trump established the Interagency Task Force on Agriculture and Rural Prosperity to identify legislative, regulatory and policy changes that could promote agriculture and prosperity in rural communities. In January 2018, Secretary Perdue presented the Task Force’s findings to President Trump. These findings included 31 recommendations to align the federal government with state, local and tribal governments to take advantage of opportunities that exist in rural America. Increasing investments in rural infrastructure is a key recommendation of the task force.

To view the report in its entirety, please view the Report to the President of the United States from the Task Force on Agriculture and Rural Prosperity (PDF, 5.4 MB). In addition, to view the categories of the recommendations, please view the Rural Prosperity infographic (PDF, 190 KB).

USDA Rural Development provides loans and grants to help expand economic opportunities and create jobs in rural areas. This assistance supports infrastructure improvements; business development; housing; community services such as schools, public safety and health care; and high-speed internet access in rural areas. For more information, visit www.rd.usda.gov.

Regional Opportunity Initiatives (ROI) is pleased to announce that eleven school districts in the Indiana Uplands have received Ready Schools grants totaling $2,325,091.

“Between six school districts receiving development grants, and five receiving implementation grants, we are thrilled to share that ROI’s signature education and workforce initiative will impact more than half of the region’s 52,000 K-12 students,” said CEO Tina Peterson.

The Ready Schools Initiative is a design-thinking framework to support school districts in re-aligning their P-12 curricular and programmatic offerings to educational and workforce needs within the Indiana Uplands, an 11-county region that encompasses Brown, Crawford, Daviess, Dubois, Greene, Lawrence, Martin, Monroe, Orange, Owen and Washington counties.

Bloomfield School District, Monroe County Community School Corporation, Spencer- Owen Community Schools, and a collaboration of Mitchell, Orleans, and Shoals Community Schools have been selected for participation in the second cohort of the Ready Schools Initiative. Each will receive a development grant to support an in-depth design process over the next ten months.

Six school districts from the first cohort have also recently completed the 10-month Ready Schools development process. Loogootee Community Schools, and a collaboration of the four school districts in Dubois County: Greater Jasper Consolidated Schools, Northeast Dubois County School Corporation, Southwest Dubois County School Corporation and Southeast Dubois County School Corporation were awarded implementation grants to begin executing alignment strategies. Brown County Schools is in the process of completing its Ready Schools implementation grant proposal.

Ready Schools Cohort 1 Implementation Grants

• Loogootee Community Schools
• Dubois County Collaboration:
• Greater Jasper Consolidated Schools
• Northeast Dubois County School Corporation
• Southwest Dubois County School Corporation
• Southeast Dubois County School Corporation
• Brown County Schools (pending)

Ready Schools Cohort 2 Development Grants

• Bloomfield School District
• Monroe County Community School Corporation
• Spencer-Owen Community Schools
• Mitchell/Orleans/Shoals Collaboration:
• Mitchell Community Schools
• Orleans Community Schools
• Shoals Community School Corporation

“Our region is home to amazing cultural and economic assets; however, we continue to see a need for qualified employees in our key industry sectors,” added Peterson. “The Ready Schools initiative is a concerted effort to begin addressing this issue by helping schools, industry, and communities work collaboratively to develop both short- and long-term strategies that prepare young people for career opportunities right here in our region as we develop the pipeline of talent necessary to ensure employers and communities thrive.”

Ready Schools Implementation Grants for Cohort 1

Cohort 1 implementation grants will fund programming that contribute to a systemic alignment between schools, community and workforce. Grants will support approaches including career awareness and work-based learning, project-based learning, employability and soft skills development, professional development for teachers, STEM materials and curricula, and pathways aligned to careers in the Indiana Uplands. The four school districts in Dubois County collectively were awarded $1 million in grant funds for implementation. Loogootee Community Schools was awarded $495,091 in grant funding.

“The implementation proposals we received from the Dubois and Loogootee Ready School teams were well crafted and reflect a strong commitment to long-term collaborations between schools and industry,” said ROI Director of Education and Workforce Todd Hurst. “Each of the Ready School teams took the time to work together with schools, community leaders and stakeholders, and local industry to identify and design locally driven solutions. The teams developed strategies that offer students a variety of post-secondary options, including certifications, 2-year degrees, 4-year degrees, and beyond.”

In Dubois County, a county-level career and innovation hub will be developed on the campus of Vincennes University Jasper Campus (VUJC) to serve as a central location for the collaboration and alignment of industry and the four school districts. Vincennes University is supplying in-kind space to house this hub. Called Hub 19 (Dubois County was the 19th incorporated county in Indiana.), this facility will also coordinate teacher training and become the county’s location to explore innovative teaching models and curricula.

“This has been an incredible experience,” said Bill Hochgesang, superintendent of Northeast Dubois County School Corporation. “Ready Schools has enabled our four school districts and local industry to work together for the first time on a significant initiative. This work will create many more opportunities for students for years to come, and we hope that our collaborative approach will serve as a model for other communities. We invite other schools and workforce partners to visit Dubois County and see how we put our Ready Schools work into practice during the implementation phase.”

Also in partnership with Vincennes University, an Advanced Manufacturing Academy will also be housed at VUJC to create opportunities for students from all four school districts and the Patoka Valley Career CTE Co-op. Here students will be able to take coursework and earn credentials to prepare them for employment in manufacturing across the Indiana Uplands region.

“We at Vincennes University are especially excited by the work being done by all four school corporations in Dubois County in concert with the Patoka Valley Career Cooperative and VU Jasper,” said ROI Board Member and President of Vincennes University Chuck Johnson. “The new Advanced Manufacturing Academy will be a groundbreaking partnership that aligns with Dubois County’s greatest workforce needs.”

“This is important work,” added Johnson. “It will have a generational impact, and it requires all of us to think of our communities and schools as part of a larger system. As an ROI board member, I have been pleased and impressed by the impact the Ready Schools process has already been having. I am eager to see it spread to other communities in our region.”

With its implementation grant, Loogootee Community Schools will establish a focused, district-wide approach to STEM education and project-based learning at all grade levels. The school district will develop curricula and training plans to achieve STEM certification by the Indiana Department of Education. Loogootee also strives to be one of the first rural districts of its size to be a Project Lead The Way (PTLW) distinguished school district. To receive the designation, a school district must have 20 percent or more of the K-12 students in each grade participate in a PLTW program during the previous school year.

“With the changing landscape of careers in our region, it is important for our students to develop STEM and project-based learning skills to prepare them for 21st-century jobs,” said Superintendent Chip Mehaffey. “We think this commitment to district-wide STEM certification and PLTW will put our students on a path to success and allow Loogootee to stand out among rural communities as a leading and innovative school district.”

In partnership with local industry, Loogootee Community Schools will also establish a student-run business to apply hands-on, real-world learning opportunities for high school students in their applied engineering pathway.

“Among the Loogootee Education and Workforce Advisory Team, there is a lot of excitement about the creation of a student-run business,” said Pam Loughmiller of Loughmiller Machine and Tool. “This is such a great opportunity to allow students to apply real-world experiences to their learning. From business planning, budgeting, product development, and customer service, this will be an incredible opportunity to prepare students for real-world careers. We are thrilled to be partnering with the Loogootee School Corporation.”

Ready Schools Development Grants for Cohort 2

A total of $830,000 in development grants has been awarded to schools selected for the second cohort of Ready Schools. Bloomfield School District, Monroe County Community School Corporation, Spencer-Owen Community Schools, and a collaboration of Mitchell Community Schools, Orleans Community Schools, and Shoals Community School Corporation will begin the first phase of the Ready Schools process in August. A District Readiness Coordinator will guide locally developed advisory and design teams through the year-long design thinking process. A coach from ROI will work side by side with the District Readiness Coordinator through the year-long process.

“The ROI Ready Schools Initiative Grant will enable Mitchell, Orleans, and Shoals to meaningfully collaborate with industry and community stakeholders while creating sustainable career-oriented initiatives,” said Shoals Superintendent Dr. Candace Roush. “By pooling our resources and coming together to examine new career pathways, create programming, and tweak existing models, we can provide more opportunities for student and community success.”

“The Monroe County Community School Corporation is honored to be selected as a 2018 ROI Ready Schools grant recipient,” said Superintendent Dr. Judith DeMuth. “We will focus on P-12 preparation for careers to ensure students have the skills, knowledge, flexibility, and confidence to pursue their educational and workforce goals. With many career possibilities in our area, we are excited to begin this collaborative process that will impact student success and the continued growth of our prosperous and vibrant region.”

The Ready Schools Design Process
The goal of the Ready Schools development process is to enable school districts to
engage business leaders, community stakeholders, parents and students in meaningful dialogue about what school success means and to develop a plan to obtain that success. The result is a collaborative approach designed to support students in achieving academic and career goals aligned with workforce, with a particular focus on the region’s key industry sectors: advanced manufacturing, life sciences, and national security and defense.

For a description of activities at each Ready Schools phase: go to https://swcindiana.org/details-of-the-ready-schools-initiative/

In 2017, ROI released its Occupational Needs Assessment to highlight the education and workforce needs of the advanced manufacturing, life sciences and national security and defense sectors in the counties of Indiana Uplands. The Assessment emphasizes that employers struggle to find talent for all levels of jobs, ranging from entry-level positions requiring only a high-school diploma to highly technical jobs requiring advanced degrees and training. All of the employers interviewed noted the significant role that the region’s P-12 districts play in addressing these workforce challenges.

The six core principles that guide cohort work through the Ready Schools process build upon the results of the Occupational Needs Assessment and include:

• Every student is engaged in a relevant path to success;
• Students graduate high school ready for post-secondary and career success;
• Meaningful and ongoing collaboration occurs among schools, industry, and community;
• Teaching and learning are grounded in relevancy;
• K-12 schools are aligned around a common vision of student success; and
• Schools embrace the significant role they play in achieving regional prosperity

About Regional Opportunity Initiatives, Inc.:

The mission of Regional Opportunity Initiatives, Inc. (ROI) is to support economic and community prosperity in the 11 counties of the Indiana Uplands (Brown, Crawford, Daviess, Dubois, Greene, Lawrence, Martin, Monroe, Orange, Owen and Washington counties). ROI is implementing education and workforce initiatives and regional engagement initiatives for quality of place development. More information can be found at https://swcindiana.org/

The Indiana Division of Fish and Wildlife is advising residents not to dump their goldfish into ponds and lakes.

State officials say goldfish can grow to a large size when not in a pet store.

The breed can become an invasive species when put into the wild.

Officials suggest giving the fish away, donating it to a school, or trading it with another fish owner instead.