Oglesby Police look for vandals

Police need your help in finding whoever vandalized Lehigh Park in Oglesby.  Officers say someone put graffiti on the park shelter and bathroom building overnight.  If you have information, call Oglesby Police or Crime Stoppers.

Davenport man turns himself in for donation jar theft

Stealing a donation jar isn’t a serious crime but it’s definitely low.  A man from Iowa has turned himself in as the donation jar thief in Bureau County.

Police say Andrew Noriega of Davenport was arrested Friday for theft after arriving at the Bureau County Sheriff’s Department.  Police say he was the man seen on a surveillance tape stealing a donation jar from the Casey’s General Store in Sheffield last month.  People were trying to raise money for new playground equipment.

Peru crews called back to Westclox again

Red engines and trucks have become the norm at the old Westclox.  Peru firefighters were paged back to the fire minutes before 12pm Friday because of a flare up.

Firefighters have been called back to the building everyday since the fire was set Saturday night.

Smoke has cancelled two days of classes at LP High School and forced nearby Carus Corporation to close their office Friday.

Record Breaking Year For Starved Rock

Did you visit Starved Rock State Park last year? If you did, you helped to set a record.

The park attracted nearly 2.2 million visitors, beating its seven-year-old record by nearly 3 percent. Starved Rock officials say they beat the previous record by over 58 thousand visitors.

Site Superintendent Tom Levy credits the attendance record to proximity to Chicago, a down economy where travelers are staying closer to home and increased marketing. Bald eagles continue to be a plus with 154 thousand people visiting the park last January, a new record.

Levy also points out that the record was set despite heavy construction in Utica.

Red Cross Has No Takers For Westclox Shelter

Apparently people living around Westclox are willing to ride out the smoke at home.

The Peru chapter of the American Red Cross opened a shelter for neighbors of Westclox in case the smoke was too much to handle. Sarah Stasik of the Red Cross says no one stayed in the shelter so they’ve closed it.

The night of the fire, the Peru Municipal Building was used as a shelter as people were evacuated near the fire scene.

What Went Right And Wrong During Westclox Fire?

With an event as huge as the Westclox fire, there’s bound to be critiques.

Peru Fire Chief Jeff King says when all the dust settles and the smoke stops, they’ll take a look back at what went right and wrong. He says what went right is keeping the fire away from nearby homes, minimizing injuries to firefighters and getting 100 firefighters on scene in about a half hour. What went wrong of course was a La Salle firefighter severely injuring his leg during the first moments of the blaze.

King says the weather has played no favors with the wind kicking up flames and smoke and a few colder days causing water to freeze in streets and on some trucks. Despite what some people may think, King says they’ve never had hydrant problems. The fire just demanded more water than they could get.

Donation Jar Thief Wanted In Bureau County

There’s low and there’s the low of stealing a donation jar.

Investigators are searching for a man who they caught on surveillance stealing a donation jar from the Casey’s General Store in Sheffield.  The jar had donations for new playground equipment at Sheffield’s Veterans Park.  Officials say there was an undetermined amount of money inside.

The thief is said to be in his 30s, dark, bushy hair with a goatee.  He’s around 5’9 and 200 pounds.

If you have information, call the Bureau/Putnam County Crime Stoppers.