WISCONSIN - The Wisconsin DNR is investigating multiple deadly crashes that happened on Feb. 8 and 9 throughout Wisconsin.
The five snowmobile incidents occurred in Forest County, Calumet County, Dunn County, Langlade County, Iron County, and Forest County.
A snowmobiler died after a crash in Langlade County on Saturday night. According to the Langlade County Sheriff's Office, the victim was a 41-year-old woman.Emergency crews were called to the scene at Highway 17 and County Road Q in the town of Parrish around 8:20 p.m. A car had crashed into the snowmobile. The woman was pronounced dead at the scene. No one else was hurt in the crash.The Wisconsin State Patrol, Town of Russell EMS, and Oneida Medic 1 ambulance all helped deputies at the scene.The LCSO did not release the victim's name as of Sunday afternoon.
A 43-year-old woman from Hartland crashed Friday afternoon in Iron County.The Iron County Sheriff's Department posted that the woman failed to turn near Pine Lake and crashed head-on with a semi-truck.The operator of the semi-truck was unharmed. Police believe speed is a factor in the crash. She is currently in a hospital in Duluth on life support.
On Saturday around 7:30 p.m., a single snowmobile driver was driving on a trailer in the Township of Colfax when he lost control of his vehicle. The 29-year-old male from Boyceville was ejected from his snowmobile and pronounced dead at the scene. Speed is a possible factor to the crash.
A snowmobile driver was traveling on Lake Winnebago when the snowmobile hit a snowbank or an ice crack. The driver was ejected from the snowmobile seat and the machine landed on top of the driver. Alcohol and speed are possible factors. This happened on Saturday at 4:30 p.m.
At 8:30 p.m. on Saturday, two snowmobiles were traveling on a snowmobile trail on Pickerel Lake when the driver and passenger on the first snowmobile were ejected. The passenger was then hit by the second snowmobile and severely injured. The passenger died prior to a medical flight to the hospital. Alcohol and speed are believed to be possible factors.
SEYMOUR, IND. - A chain-reaction crash in southern Indiana killed a Minocqua couple on Wednesday morning.
Glenn Cardelli and his wife, Kathryn, both 57 years old, were traveling in south an RV near Seymour, Ind., on Interstate 65. The RV was behind a semi and an SUV, both of which slowed due to highway maintenance.
Another semi failed to slow down behind the stalled traffic and crashed into the Cardellis' RV. The crash killed the couple and John Mumma, 67, an Illinois man driving the SUV.
The vehicles caught fire. Interstate 65 was closed for about eleven hours for cleanup and crash investigation.
RHINELANDER - A former contracted janitor accused of sexually assaulting a Rhinelander student appears headed for a trial.
Stavros Iliopoulos appeared in Oneida County Court on Friday afternoon. Attorneys told Judge Michael Bloom they had not reached a plea deal. Bloom decided to schedule one final pre-trial conference for late August before a two-day jury trial was set for Sept. 4 and 5.
In late November, police said Iliopoulos, 65, took a girl into a dark closet and hugged, kissed, and touched her inappropriately at Northwoods Community Elementary School, a public charter school in Harshaw.
Iliopoulos worked for a contracted company, Victory Janitorial, at the time.
WOODRUFF - Shoveling snow can hurt your back. But some may not know that staring at all that snow can hurt your eyes.
The term albedo tells us the amount of light that's either absorbed into the ground or reflected back up. On days like Friday, the snow pack will really make it look brighter out and boost the albedo amount. That's hard on the eyes.
Dr. Kirby Redman is an Optometrist in Woodruff. He says there are simple ways to protect your eyes from the sun's damaging rays.
All sorts of animals are affected by icy conditions. Some Northern Wisconsin owls dive INTO the snow to hunt small rodents. But recent freezing rain has formed an ice crust that owls can't break through. That means owls are beginning to starve.
Amanda Schirmer has been working at the Northwoods Wilderness Center for the past four years. She says that owls may hang around birdfeeders to prey on smaller birds. They may also be seen near roads.
LINCOLN CO. - The Lincoln Co. Sheriff's Office is calling a death east of Merrill on Thursday a homicide.
In a press release on Friday morning, the sheriff's office said a 77-year-old woman was found shot and killed around 8:30 a.m. on Thursday. In the same home, a 78-year-old man was found critically injured from a gunshot wound.
It happened at a home on Range Line Road in the Town of Pine River.
The sheriff's office said it believes the shooting is isolated and the public is not in danger.
The Lincoln Co. Sheriff's Office and Wisconsin Department of Justice Crime Lab worked to process the scene.