Local News

Indiana State Police Superintendent Douglas G. Carter announced on Friday that the recipient of the 2021 Indiana State Police Trooper of the Year is Trooper Andrew D. Rasala Jr.  Rasala is the first trooper assigned to the Lowell Post to receive this accolade. He is also the 2021 Trooper of the District for the Lowell Post. During 2021, Rasala was assigned to the day shift at the Lowell Post, specializing as a member of the All Crimes Policing (ACP) Team. Rasala is a Field Training Officer (FTO), a member of the Mobile Field Force (MFF), and background investigator. In 2021,

The Portage Police announced that the southbound lane of Willowdale Road will be closed intermittently between 7:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. from Monday, June 27 through Friday, July 1, weather permitting. The closure is for the installation of new driveway aprons in front of Myers Elementary School. A detour route will be marked.

The La Porte Police Department is reminding the public of the city’s fireworks ordinance. Police said, “A friendly reminder to all that the following dates and times residents are allowed to fire fireworks is June 28th through July 9th from 5pm until 11pm. The exception is on the 4th of July the hours are from 10 a.m. until midnight.” A violation of the ordinance is a $300 fine. Police went on to say “Please remember to use caution when using fireworks as they can be dangerous. Also keep in mind that all fireworks must be contained to your property unless

Horizon bank announced a recent grant award to The Boys and Girls Club of Greater Northwest Indiana. The Boys and Girls Club is a safe place for children and teens to spend their time after school and during the summer. In a typical year, they serve over 900 members. The grant money will be used towards the Valpo Capital Campaign. The previous club operated in a school building constructed in 1899. Due to the building's age and layout, it no longer fits programming nor is it ADA compliant. The new building is a 35,000 square foot club that sits over

The City of Portage announced that the southbound lane of Willowcreek Road between Portage Avenue and Houston Avenue will be closed from Monday, June 27 through Wednesday, June 29. The project is for asphalt paving work. A detour route will be marked.

The Town of Porter Police Department is seeking the public’s help in identifying someone who ripped off a Pride flag from a residence. A resident in the 200 Block of Beam Street recently reported to the department that someone had ripped their Pride flag off of their residence. The act was caught on video. The video can be seen on the Town of Porter Police Department Facebook page. Police are asking for the public’s assistance in helping to identify the people on the moped in the included video. If you recognize the people involved, call the Porter Police Department at

In an effort to accommodate an expected increase in ridership for the Chicago Pride Parade, the South Shore Line will offer additional capacity and extra passenger trains on Sunday, June 26. Alcohol is prohibited on all trains on June 26. Glass bottles are prohibited at all times. The South Shore Line also will have to have 18th Street Station stops Saturday for the Kenny Chesney concert. For the concert taking place at 5 p.m. June 25, at Soldier Field, the South Shore Line plans to stop select trains at Metra’s 18th Street Station, which connects passengers directly to the Soldier

A Michigan City man was arrested Wednesday for possession of child pornography, according to the Indiana State Police. Members of the Indiana State Police Cyber Crimes Unit served a search warrant in the 2700 block of Wozniak Rd. Police say the warrant service was the result of an extensive investigation conducted by detectives from the Indiana State Police Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force. The investigation began when a tip was received from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) regarding activities on a social media account associated with 50-year-old Scott A. Dailey. Dailey was taken into

A Schererville man is facing multiple charges after police found him in a Portage motel with juveniles and then injured police while resisting arrest. On Tuesday at around 2:11 a.m. an officer with the Portage Police Department observed two juvenile females stumbling barefoot along U.S. Highway 20 near Willowcreek Road. The officer stopped to check the welfare of the juveniles and found them to be under the influence of unknown substances. The two females reported they had lied to their parents about their whereabouts and were given a ride to the local motel by an adult female, who rented the

The Franciscan Health cancer programs in Michigan City, Crown Point and Olympia Fields have earned three-year accreditation from the Commission on Cancer (CoC), a quality program of the American College of Surgeons (ACS). To earn voluntary CoC accreditation, a cancer program must meet 34 CoC quality care standards, be evaluated every three years through a survey process, and maintain levels of excellence in the delivery of comprehensive patient-centered care. Franciscan Health says their CoC-accredited cancer centers take a multidisciplinary approach to treating cancer as a complex group of diseases that requires consultation among surgeons, medical and radiation oncologists, diagnostic radiologists,

Liberty Township Volunteer Fire Department provided an update to a garage fire that took place Tuesday night in Porter County. Preliminary investigations revealed the fire was caused from an active electrical appliance malfunction in the workshop area that ignited fuel sources causing the fire to spread rapidly before emergency services could be called. All citizens and firefighters were reported safe from the late-night fire that sent multiple fire departments responding from a First Alarm and Tanker plan, according to Lieutenant James Alexander. Approximately 20,000 gallons of water was used during fire operations and into overhaul operations. Tankers shuttled water from

La Porte County Sheriff’s deputies are continuing to investigate a fatal crash that occurred on State Road 39 Wednesday morning. At 9:57 a.m., deputies were called to State Road 39 for a motor vehicle crash. Emergency personnel located the crash scene in the 3000 south block of State Road 39 in rural Scipio Township. The initial on scene crash investigation determined that a Nissan Maxima, being driven by 32 year-old Ricquelle M. Wren of Michigan City, was traveling northbound on State Road 39 when a Mack tri axle dump truck was traveling southbound on State Road 39. For an unknown

Bridge work will continue on I-94 over Willow Creek and the CSX Railroad in Lake County with a new traffic configuration beginning on or after Friday, July 1. I-94 will have three travel lanes open in each direction between the State Road 249 and State Road 51/U.S. 6 exits, but traffic will be shifted to the left using the inside shoulder as a third lane. The right lane and shoulder will be closed in each direction. Motorists should be prepared for changing traffic patterns in the area. This phase of the preventative maintenance work will be ongoing for approximately four

Governor Eric Holcomb signed a proclamation Wednesday, calling a special session for the General Assembly to convene on July 6 to take action on his plan to return more than $1 billion of state reserves to Hoosier taxpayers. “This is the fastest, fairest and most efficient way to return taxpayers' hard-earned money during a time of economic strain,” said Gov. Holcomb. “Indiana’s economy is growing and with more than $1 billion of revenue over current projections, Hoosier taxpayers deserve to have their money responsibly returned. I’m happy to be able to take this first step and look forward to signing

The traffic pattern has changed on I-80/94 westbound between the Illinois State Line and State Road 912 in Lake County. Westbound I-80/94 will continue to have four travel lanes during daytime hours with lane shifts in place. The left inside lane is directed down a counter flow lane, and the second lane from the left will be directed down a chute lane. These two left lanes do not have access to the following exits: Exit 5 (Cline Ave/State Road 912), Exit 3 (Kennedy Ave), Exit 2 (Indianapolis Blvd/U.S. 41 southbound), and Exit 1 (Calumet Ave/U.S. 41 northbound). Motorists going westbound

Franciscan Health Infusion Center in Munster is now a brass bell for patients to ring on the day of their final cancer treatments. The bell was purchased using donations to the Franciscan Health Foundation. Patient Jacqueline Frabotta became the first patient to ring the bell on her final day of chemotherapy. She and her family expressed thanks to the staff for the care she received. “Everyone was emotional. We are so thankful that she was our first patient to ring the new bell,” said Gail Blackburn, director of outpatient services. Blackburn said patients had been requesting a bell to celebrate

NIPSCO is accepting applications for a grant to support local nonprofit organizations who provide public safety education and training across northern Indiana. Grants are available in amounts ranging from $500 to $5,000. Applications are being accepted now through August 5, 2022, with grant awards announced during the week of August 22. Grant opportunities will include, but are not limited to, community and youth public safety education programming and training for first responders, police and fire department fire and carbon monoxide safety programs, education, and training in the prevention of damage to underground natural gas lines, and child-related safety education. Grant

The Michigan City Police Department is reminding the public of the city’s fireworks ordinance. The department is reminding everyone that fireworks can only be discharged by persons 18+ years old and only during set dates and times outlined in city ordinance 54-231. Inside of the corporate limits of Michigan City, fireworks can only be discharged on the following dates and times: ▪️June 29th-July 3rd from 5:00 p.m. until 2 hours after sunset ▪️July 4th from 10:00 a.m. until midnight ▪️July 5th-9th from 5:00 p.m. until 2 hours after sunset ▪️10:00 AM on December 31st until 1:00 AM on January 1st

The following is an update from NICTD on the South Shore Line (NICTD) Double Track NWI Project construction that is ongoing: GARY- MILLER STATION AREA All buildings have been demolished for the construction of the station and parking lots in Miller. New sewer work is underway in both the west and east parking lots. Parking is available but temporarily restricted while work near Miller Station progresses. Vehicular and pedestrian access from Melton Road (US 20) will be closed, the driveway from Old US 12/Dunes Hwy will remain open with some lane restrictions. Construction activities may occur on the shoulder of Old

Unity Foundation of La Porte County is inviting Michigan City area educators to apply for grants to make learning and teaching more fun and impactful. Unity Foundation manages three grant programs established by caring donors who believed in teachers as the critical factor for learning. Together the programs have invested in more than 1,000 educators at Michigan City public and private schools for projects of their own design since the mid-1990s. Unity Foundation says the grants of $400- $500 each aim to support teachers as they find innovative ways to make learning possible for students. Teachers are invited to complete