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The Index guides young voters through Missouri ballot issues
The women’s soccer team advances in the GLVC Championship
French professor Audrey Viguier gets knighted
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THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 2016
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Kirksville Fire Department purchases new SCBAs as part of 5-year plan By Emily Merkle Staff Writer
The Kirksville Fire Department recently purchased 10 new self-contained breathing apparatuses. Kirksville Fire Chief Tom Collins said the new SCBAs will have Personal Alert Safety Systems attached to the packs instead of requiring detached PASS. Collins said PASS sounds an alert after a firefighter doesn’t move for 30 to 45 seconds. He said after a few more seconds, if the firefighter doesn’t move, the PASS sounds an alarm to lead other firefighters to the firefighter in trouble. Collins said the new SCBAs have Pak Tracker, which works like “hot and cold,” beeping to lead in the direction of a firefighter who needs help. Collins said the purchase was part of a five-year plan to replace all SCBAs the department owns with newer models. Collins said the department has 25 SCBAs. Collins said the current units are three different generation models and are becoming costly to repair. Collins said each SCBAs costs about $6,000. He said the department implemented a budget plan to buy five new units each year for five years. Collins said these new units will be in service for 15-20 years. Collins said the department applied for the Assistance to Firefighters federal grant to help afford the units. Collins said because the department had already developed a budget, it did not receive the grant. He said the department had already saved money for year one of the plan but did not spend the money because it was waiting to know whether or not it received the grant. Collins said because the department had the money set aside, this year, it had two years’
worth of the budget to spend which the department spent on ten SCBAs and ten refill bottles. Collins said SCBAs are used in atmospheres immediately dangerous to life and health, such as fires or hazardous material situations. He said the SCBAs are full of compressed air. Collins said the new units will be 5500 PSI and will give firefighters 45 minutes of breathing time, while being the same size as the old 30-minute packs. “I’m really excited about the new packs,” Collins said. “We are at a turning point in the technology. Instead of just buying the newest version of the same pack, we are buying the newest, best air pack out there.” Collins said the new SCBAs have snap-change bottles whereas the old units had screw-in bottles. He said the snap-change bottles are quicker to change out and provide a sure lock to prevent air leaks. Collins said the new SCBAs will have Emergency Breathing Safety Systems, which allow firefighters to share air with each other. Collins said this allows firefighters to get out more safely if their air gets low. “We’re going forward,” Collins said. “We’re going with the best stuff we can.” Collins said the department received federal financial aid to get a new compressor. Collins said the compressor fills the SCBAs bottles. He said because the new bottles have a higher pressure, the department needed a new compressor to be able to fill the bottles. Collins said when the new SCBAs arrive, the first step will be to program them. Collins said then everyone will get trained on the new units before they get put on the trucks. Collins said the department is scheduled to get more SCBAs in three years.
City of Kirksville applies for sidewalk grant By Nick TeleP Staff Writer
The City of Kirksville is applying for a grant from the Missouri Department of Transportation to install sidewalks on N. Baltimore St. The grant, from the state-run Transportation Alternative Program — TAP — would be an 80/20 agreement, meaning MODOT would pay for 80 percent of the project and the city would pay for the remaining 20 percent. If the application is accepted, a sidewalk will be built over grassy space on the east side of N. Baltimore, extending from Rosewood Drive to the entrance of Walmart’s parking lot. The entire process, from application to finishing construction, could take two years. The new sidewalks are part of Kirksville’s master hike-bike trail plan. The deadline for the application was Nov. 1, and MODOT will inform the city of a decision in January. Sarah Halstead, Administrative Services Coordinator for the City
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of Kirksville, said the N. Baltimore project was chosen from a group of “dream projects” the city needs but cannot fund. Halstead said Kirksville already has a TAP-funded project in the works, a sidewalk construction project on Florence and Halliburton Streets near LaHarpe St., so the city has experience with this process. The city chose Baltimore to do the project on because Halstead said, it is the most dangerous section for pedestrians and cyclists in the city. “We call it multi-modal because cyclists and wheelchairs and pedestrians, anything that is non-vehicular, can travel on this sidewalk,” Halstead said. However, the project might take a while to get off the ground. Halstead said the grant for the project must be awarded, then the final plans must be approved by MODOT. Halstead said after that, the contract will be awarded to a bidder and the bidding process could take up to six months. See SIDEWALK, Page 3
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Photo by Hannah Conner/TMN The Kirksville Fire Department purchased ten new self-contained breathing apparatuses. The new SCBAss will have personal alert safety systems that let other firefighters known when one of them is in trouble.
Kirksville gears up for voting on Nov. 8 Kayla Perkins
Staff Writer
The polls will open Nov. 8 and while national and state elections have commandeered a lot of attention, local elections are also taking place here in Kirksville. Half of elected county official positions are up for election this year. In two years, the other half of the positions will be voted on. This is to keep elected officials from being replaced all at once. Adair County Clerk, Sandy Collop, stressed the importance of knowing the roles of the positions up for election and knowing the stances of the people running before going to the polls Nov. 8. She encouraged voters to vote, especially for local positions. “Local elections have the biggest impact on you and your community,” Collop said. Collop said there are sure to be elections at the local level in every district Missouri voters are registered to vote. Collop said in Adair County, positions up for election are county commissioner,
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sheriff, assessor, public administrator, coroner and surveyor. On Tuesday, Nov. 8, voters will go to their determined poll locations and present a form of identification. Poll workers look the voter up in the system to make sure they are registered to vote. Voters then sign the poll book and a ballot, which they fill in and enter. The voting machines have a card in the back that will tally the votes. Because of Missouri’s Second Chance Voting law, there is also a paper trail. Collop is not the only person encouraging people to get out and vote in local elections. Rita Williams has been a poll worker for six years. Williams will report to her polling location at 5 a.m. to set up the equipment, take an oath of office and get ready for the role she will have that day. She said she continues to be a poll worker because she believes in the freedom and obligation that comes with the right to vote. See VOTING, Page 3
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