TUESDAY October 29, 2013
Toboggan Time Page A2 Pokagon’s attraction getting an upgrade
Boston one win away Page B1 Lester stymies Cards in 3-1 win
Weather Chance of showers today. High 54. Low tonight 40 Chance of rain Wednesday. High 60. Page A5
The
Serving DeKalb County since 1871
Auburn, Indiana
GOOD MORNING Storm kills 13 in Britain, Europe LONDON (AP) — A savage coastal storm powered by hurricaneforce gusts slashed its way through Britain and western Europe on Monday, felling trees, flooding lowlands and snarling traffic in the air, at sea and on land. At least 13 people were reported killed. It was one of the worst storms to hit the region in years. The deadly tempest had no formal name — and wasn’t officially classified as a hurricane due to a meteorological standard — but it was dubbed the St. Jude storm (after the patron saint of lost causes) and stormageddon on social networks. Gusts of 99 miles per hour were reported on the Isle of Wight in southern England, while gusts up to 80 mph hit the British mainland. Later in the day, the Danish capital of Copenhagen saw record gusts up of to 120 mph and an autobahn in central Germany was shut down by gusts up to 62 mph.
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EMS proposes combined station By Aaron Organ aorgan@kpcmedia.com AUBURN — County officials are considering an early proposal to consolidate the Garrett and Auburn EMS hubs into a single site at a new building west of Interstate 69. EMS head Randy Fox approached the DeKalb County Council on Monday to pitch a plan to build a new EMS building between Auburn and Garrett, likely near S.R. 8. The 12,000-square-foot building would include six garage bays, room to sleep four people, a training room and offices.
COUNTY OFFICIALS coping with fuel spill. SEE PAGE A5.
It would merge Auburn and Garrett EMS stations into one unit, a plan that has been discussed by county officials for nearly five years. There is now a sense of urgency, however. Within a year, DeKalb Health hospital has planned a major renovation of space around the current building that houses Auburn’s EMS station. Miller’s Merry Manor, which houses
Council hears airport complaints AUBURN — The DeKalb County Council passed the county’s 2014 budget on third and final reading Monday. It includes an $8.27 million general fund and a $2 million highway fund. The council met Monday, rather than on the first Monday of the month as regularly scheduled, to meet the state’s deadline for passing a budget. It will not meet in November.
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Index
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Classifieds.................................B6-B8 Life..................................................... A3 Obituaries......................................... A4 Opinion .............................................B4 Sports.........................................B1-B3 Weather............................................ A5 TV/Comics .......................................B5 Vol. 101 No. 298
Little Bit of Everything
SEE COUNCIL, PAGE A5
SEE EMS, PAGE A5
Farm bill on table
Europe considering sanctions over spying BERLIN (AP) — The United States could lose access to an important law enforcement tool used to track terrorist money flows, German officials said Monday, as Europe weighs a response to allegations that the Americans spied on their closest European allies. Spain became the latest U.S. ally to demand answers after a Spanish newspaper reported that the National Security Agency monitored more than 60 million phone calls in that country during one month alone. The report Monday in the daily El Mundo came on the heels of allegations of massive NSA spying in France and Germany, including Chancellor Angela Merkel’s own cellphone.
The council also approved a $310,000 appropriation for the county assessor’s office into a new reassessment fund to cover the final six months of the year. The county’s old reassessment fund had just over $56,000 in it, but when the new reassessment fund started July 1, 2013, the county had to replenish the appropriations. Residents reportedly mistook
BRIAN GLICK
Historic steam locomotive No. 765 made two round trips between Fort Wayne and Lafayette last weekend, hauling more than 1,400 passengers and retracing the route of the famous Wabash Cannonball passenger train. The rear
cars on the train came from the New York Central Railroad’s 20th Century Limited, which operated through DeKalb County as one of the nation’s premier passenger trains.
Steam train revives history FORT WAYNE (AP) — Hundreds of people from around the country have experienced what country singer Roy Acuff called “the jingle, the rumble and the roar” of a Wabash Cannonball. More than 1,400 people turned out over the weekend to ride the train built in 1944 from Fort Wayne to West Lafayette. The locomotive is one of only a handful in the United States still in working condition. It was
restored by the Fort Wayne Historical Railroad Museum. The train carried 22 tons of coal and 2,200 gallons of water for the round trip to West Lafayette. Museum communication manager Kelley Lynch says the weekend trip marked the first passenger train to depart Fort Wayne in 20 years. The trip retraced the route of the famous Wabash Cannonball passenger train.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The fight over renewing the nation’s farm bill has centered on cuts to the $80 billion-a-year food stamp program. But there could be unintended consequences if no agreement is reached: higher milk prices. Members of the House and Senate are scheduled to begin long-awaited negotiations on the five-year, roughly $500 billion bill this week. If they don’t finish it, dairy supports could expire at the end of the year and send the price of a gallon of milk skyward. There could be political ramifications, too. The House and Senate are far apart on the sensitive issue of how much money to cut from food stamps, and lawmakers are hoping to resolve that debate before election-year politics set in. Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar, a Democrat who is one of the negotiators on the bill, says the legislation could also be a rare opportunity for the two chambers to show they can get along. “In the middle of the chaos of the last month comes opportunity,” Klobuchar says of the farm legislation. “This will really be a test of the House of whether they are willing to work with us.” The farm bill, which sets policy for farm subsidies, the food stamps SEE FARM BILL, PAGE A5
Democrats meet for Jefferson-Jackson Dinner BY SUE CARPENTER scarpenter@kpcmedia.com
GARRETT — Outnumbered and outfinanced, Democrat contender Glenda Ritz said she ran a grassroots campaign to defeat incumbent Dr. Tony Bennett in the 2012 election for state superintendent of public instruction. When funds ran out for printed signs, teachers fashioned homemade signs for her campaign, she said. “It wasn’t about fancy mailers or television ads,” Ritz told DeKalb County Democrats at Saturday’s Jefferson-Jackson Dinner at Garrett Country Club. “It’s who shows up at the polls.” Ritz described how she has organized a large group of educators to ensure elected people keep education moving in the right direction. She aims to provide equity in education, with focused, student-centered programs. Ritz
also shared her outreach program for school improvement with 13 coordinators thoughout the state to know every school in Indiana. “Education, to me, is the cornerstone of being a Democrat. It’s our entire public education system,” she said. But as one of only a few Democrats in the state government, she has found moving her programs forward has been a challenge. “It would be nice to have some friends over there in the Statehouse,” Ritz said. “I knew what I was signing up for, and I will tell you, it’s a good fit for me.” She listed a number of education policy committees on which she has served, statewide and nationally. “You have to stay involved. You need to make your voice be heard,” Ritz said. SEE DEMOCRATS, PAGE A5
SUE CARPENTER
Democratic candidate for Congress Justin Kuhnle, Third District Democratic Chairwoman Carmen Darland and Indiana House District 52 candidate Charlie Odier gather at Saturday’s Jefferson-Jackson Dinner in Garrett
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