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WJFW News

Forest County Storm Damage Causes Widespread Power Outages Submitted: 07/03/2012

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FOREST COUNTY - Severe weather, including high winds and over four inches of rain, hit parts of the Northwoods hard Tuesday night.

Several Forest County communities were working through flooded yards and down trees Wednesday.

Wind speeds exceeded 55 miles per hour in Laona, leaving trees down throughout the community.

The Murray family of Laona had several trees snap in the middle of the trunk, ripping others from the ground.

This morning, seventh-grader McKenna Murray couldn't believe what she saw.

"I was surprised because we didn't hear them over top of the air conditioners, and the dog didn't bark," she said.

In Wabeno, the the north branch of the Oconto River was overflowing. Some people awoke to find the river rushing through their back yard.

"In the Laona, Crandon areas, Wabeno areas, we saw a lot of wires down, a couple broken poles," said Leah Van Zile of the Wisconsin Public Service. "I know there were reports of hail, so it was quite a big storm cell that went through."

Damage extends to Boulder Junction, where county highways were closed from trees on the roads.

Wisconsin Public Service is still working to restore power to the 13,000 customers in the Northwoods who lost electricity.

WPS says downed trees account for most of the outages, including about 3,600 in Wabeno, 2,300 in Eagle River, and more than 1,400 in Rhinelander.

Van Zile says WPS crews will keep working to restore power throughout the day and possibly into Wednesday morning.

"We're keeping our crews hydrated. We have our summer kids out delievering Gatorade and food to keep them hydrated and nourished during this hot weather," she said. "We are hoping to have most customers restored by this evening, however in some of the heavily affected areas over in the Forest County area, some of those customers may be out until tomorrow morning."

Story By: Ben Meyer

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WI Not Likely to Go the Way of Other States on Gay Marriage Submitted: 05/18/2013

MADISON - Wisconsin's neighbor Minnesota may have become the 12th state in the country to legalize same-sex unions on Tuesday.

But gay marriage is not on the legislative agenda in Wisconsin, and that's not expected to change in the near future.

University of Wisconsin-La Crosse political scientist Joe Heim tells Post-Crescent Media national public opinion seems to lean toward gay marriage but he doesn't see Wisconsin joining that group soon.

Wisconsin's constitution, unlike Minnesota's, bans same-sex marriage.

In November 2006, nearly 60 percent of Wisconsin voters supported an amendment banning gay marriage.

Before Wisconsin lawmakers could consider a bill to allow gay marriage, voters would have to pass an amendment undoing the 2006 amendment language. But before that the Legislature would have to pass the amendment in two consecutive sessions.

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Community Celebrates Longtime Business By Planting Liberty Elm Trees Submitted: 05/18/2013

RHINELANDER - Trees can be found just about everywhere in the northwoods.

But there's one tree that hasn't been in Rhinelander for a while.

Carlson Funeral Service celebrated its 100 year anniversary as part of the Rhinelander community.

Today more than 100 people joined them in planting 100 young Liberty Elm Trees.

After planting the tree, they put a white wrap around them to prevent animals from getting to them.

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Boy Killed in Skid Loader Accident Submitted: 05/18/2013

BLANCHARDVILLE - The Lafayette County sheriff's office has identified the 8-year-old boy run over by a skid steer loader.

The sheriff's department says Melvin Jarrett, Jr., was killed when he was accidentally struck by a skid loader being operated by Melvin Jarrett Sr.

Authorities say Jarrett Sr. was backing up when the boy was struck at about 4:40 p.m. Friday. Sheriff's officials say the machine was being used to help develop a small campground.

The boy is from Blanchardville and the man is from Mineral Point.

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Deadline for No-Call List Nears Again Submitted: 05/18/2013

MADISON - The quarterly deadline to place a telephone number on Wisconsin's no-call list is approaching.

The deadline to be added to the list is May 31. Any number put on the list then will be protected from unwanted phone solicitations and text messages starting July 1.

Registrations are good for two years, and people can re-register their numbers at any time.

The list is updated four times a year.

Anyone who misses the May 31 deadline won't be able to get their number added to the list until Oct. 1.

Numbers can be added to the list at http://nocall.wisconsin.gov or by calling 1-866-966-2255.

Political calls, calls from nonprofit organizations and calls made in response to a written or verbal request or permission are not covered.

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Twelve County Burglary Bust Submitted: 05/18/2013

MADISON - Burglars accused of hitting 12 Wisconsin counties will answer for their crimes. Two men are charged after an investigation that took years to complete.

Twenty eight-year-old Robert Miles and 37-year-old Daniel Frausto are formally charged in three of those counties, including Oconto and Outagamie.

Frausto also faces burglary, robbery and false imprisonment charges in Waupaca County.

Wisconsin Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen said some of the other counties the ring operated in are Shawano, Portage, and Oneida counties.

Charges are expected to be filed in some of those other counties as well.

Van Hollen says they'll also charge other suspects.

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Landlord and Tenant's Rights Could Change Submitted: 05/17/2013

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STATEWIDE - When renters don't pay their bills, landlords have a right to evict them.

So shouldn't landlords also have a right to evict their stuff?

Actually, that's against the law, but the Wisconsin Assemby might change that.

The current law says that a landlord can't throw away a tenant's belongings even if they evict them.

The only exception is if the landlord writes in the lease that a tenant's abandoned things belong to the landlord.

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Wisconsin History on Display at Heritage Days Submitted: 05/17/2013

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PHILLIPS - Fourth graders read about Native American wigwams, pioneer blacksmiths, and ethnic folk music.

All those things form Wisconsin history.

On Friday, every fourth grader in Price County experienced them at Heritage Days.

They traded their textbooks for the chance to see, hear, and feel Wisconsin history.

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