Nixa

A half-dozen fire departments save a home in Nixa after it bursts into flames. It happened shortly after 7 p.m. Saturday in the 1700 block of East Pine. Firefighters say the flames were contained to two bedrooms, crews from six nearby departments were called in. The main problem in fighting the fire, no nearby hydrants.  Crews say the closest hydrant was a mile away. Luckily, the family wasn't home at the time, and the damage can be repaired.  No word yet on what sparked the fire.

NIXA, Mo. -- The Extreme Tour will be at Calvary Bible Church on Saturday, June 23, from 5-9 p.m.  There will be skateboard stunts and live bands! There will be hot dogs and drinks as well.  The event is free.  Bands include the following: His Coming Day  www.facebook.com/hiscomingday Chasing Lions   www.facebook.com/CHASEALION Fight like this   www.facebook.com/fightlikethis Reboot the Robot    www.facebook.com/RebootTheRobot Medic   www.facebook.com/WeAreMedic Living Testimony   www.facebook.com/livingtestimony678 and Springfield's very own...Human Anyway ( www.humananyway.com  &  www.facebook.com/humananywayfans )

OZARK, Mo. -- A continuace has been filed in the murder trial ofr a Nixa man, charged with shooting and killing his neighbor. Investigators say Robert Bair, Jr. shot and killed 51-year-old Rex Hites in January 2011 following a heated argument outside of Hites' house.  He's charged with second-degree murder.  Bair maintains that he acted in self-defense. Judge Mark Orr's office says they haven't scheduled a new date for the trial to begin.

NIXA -- A family of four in Nixa is getting help from the Red Cross after a fire destroyed their mobile home. Officials said flames erupted a little after 1 a.m. on Saturday at the home in the 1500 block of south Clinton, in the South Oaks Mobile Home Park.      When crews arrived, the front porch and living room were fully engulfed.  One teenage daughter was home alone at the time; she was able to get out safely. Officials said they don't know how the fire ignited, but they know it started under the front porch and appears to be accidental.

NIXA, Mo. - Kids in Nixa have plenty to say about their day in class Tuesday. Students at Summit Intermediate evacuated the school after an unexpected smoke alarm sounded this afternoon.   Nixa firefighters checked out the building, giving the all-clear shortly after the alarm. School officials believe something triggered the alarm, but apparently not a student.  

SPRINGFIELD, Mo.-- A Nixa man was hurt in a crash just south of Springfield on Highway 160.  45 year old Jason Wiles was southbound on US 160 when his SUV ran off the left side of the road around ten-thirty last night.  The vehicle hit a guardrail and overturned multiple times, ending on it's top.  Wiles was taken to Cox South with serious injuries.

NIXA, Mo. -- Police arrested a man who they say exposed himself inside a Walmart store on Monday morning.  Officers responded to the call at roughly 9:45 a.m. and ended up chasing the man on foot. The man, who police say is a registered sex offender, was caught. Police did not release the man's name.

NIXA, Mo. -- For the first time since a nationwide political uproar over his comments about "legitimate rape," Republican Senate candidate Todd Akin will campaign in the Ozarks on Tuesday. Akin will headline a campaign rally at the headquarters of the Christian Co. Republican Party, 119 Aldersgate in Nixa.  The event is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Akin is running against incumbent Democrat Sen. Claire McCaskill.

NIXA, Mo.-- Police will be patrolling the streets in a cruiser converted to run entirely on propane. It's kind of a guinea pig, so the city can find out how much it saves on gasoline. If it does well, Nixa may convert more vehicles to propane. The conversion work was done by a company in the Kansas City area. The police department says the first test was the trip up and back. It cost about $50 in gasoline to drive the car to Kansas City, while it cost about $28 in propane to drive it back to Nixa.

NIXA, Mo. -- Investigators are trying to find the cause of a house fire in the Pebble Creek subdivision west of Nixa early Friday. The fire started just before 4:30 a.m.in the 1100 block of North Hidden Spring Road, between Landers Road and Pebble Creek Drive.  The flames started in the basement, then spread through the home. A family was inside the home at the time of the fire but they all made it out safely.  Crews from eight departments assisted Nixa with putting out the flames.

NIXA, Mo. -- Searchers found a brother and sister who decided not to go to school on Thursday morning.  Members of the Nixa Fire Department found them about 10 a.m. walking towards Ozark. The district said Dustin Reynolds, 14, and Renee Reynolds, 11, left their home about 6:40 a.m. to walk to their bus stop.  Police said Dustin is in the 7th grade.  Renee is in the 5th grade. Zac Rantz, a spokesman for the Nixa School District, said the school resource officer activated the alert system and started the search for the children about 9 a.m. after their mother reported them missing.  Rantz said they were last seen running away from their bus stop.

NIXA, Mo. -- Searchers found a brother and sister who decided not to go to school on Thursday morning.  Members of the Nixa Fire Department found them about 10 a.m. walking towards Ozark. The district said Dustin Reynolds, 14, and Renee Reynolds, 11, left their home about 6:40 a.m. to walk to their bus stop.  Police said Dustin is in the 7th grade.  Renee is in the 5th grade. Zac Rantz, a spokesman for the Nixa School District, said the school resource officer activated the alert system and started the search for the children about 9 a.m. after their mother reported them missing.  Rantz said they were last seen running away from their bus stop.

OZARK, Mo. - A Sparta man charged with manslaughter in a crash that killed his 3-year-old son will be in court today. State troopers say John Clark crossed the center line on Missouri Route 14 near Nixa and hit a sport utility vehicle last November. Clark's son Kohen was killed in the wreck; Clark and four others went to the hospital. According to court documents, Clark's blood alcohol content was above the legal limit when tested at a hospital.

NIXA, Mo. -- President Barack Obama outlined his plans for high school seniors.  In his State of the Union address on Tuesday night, he said he wants students to be either college bound or job ready. Hannah Lumley wants to be a welder.  She's getting a head start thanks to the vocational programs offered at Nixa High School. "I feel like we have something that we could go and get training on and have a little background on it.   I feel like we know what we are doing," said Lumley.

Educators are preparing to do more with less. State estimates show public schools are under-funded by nearly $700 million dollars. Missouri comes in near the bottom nationwide. "A shortfall of $700 million dollars statewide puts chills down my back," said Nixa Schools Superintendent, Stephen Kleinsmith. It's the unknown educators fear. Nixa schools could be short more than four million dollars next year. "I'm very hesitant in being progressive and start new projects because it's so uncertain," he said.

NIXA, Mo. -- A registered sex offender is charged with exposing himself at the Wal-Mart store here on Monday.  Christian County prosecutors filed several felony charges against Robert Estep, including stealing, resisting arrest, possession of a controlled substance, and second-degree sexual misconduct by a prior offender.  Authorities ended up chasing the man on foot out of the store. Online court records list Estep as a homeless man from Ozark who was born in 1986.      

NIXA, Mo. -- Police arrested a man who they say exposed himself inside a Walmart store on Monday morning.  Officers responded to the call at roughly 9:45 a.m. and ended up chasing the man on foot. The man, who police say is a registered sex offender, was caught. Police did not release the man's name.

NIXA, Mo.-- A Nixa man is fortunate he's alive after his home caught fire, leaving him unconscious inside.  Crews were dispatched to the home Saturday night around 10:00, at the intersection of Texas and South streets, after a neighbor saw flames and smoke coming from the home.  Fire crews arrived on scene to find Nixa police pulling the unconscious man from the burning home. "Because of the quick phone call and the quick response by Nixa Fire District, we arrived in four minutes.  So we were able to get a good handle on the fire," said Battalion Chief Adam Neff.

NIXA, Mo. --  He always wanted to help others. So after 15 years in the construction business, Jason Fleetwood changed his path in life to became Officer Fleetwood with the Nixa Police Department. As a rookie cop, with not even a year on the job, Fleetwood's dream of making a difference came true. On Saturday night, Fleetwood and another officer were the first ones on the scene of a house fire. A neighbor who called 911 told the two that at a man was trapped inside the burning home.

OZARK, Mo. -- A man from Nixa died after the car that he was driving crashed into a tree on Tuesday night.  Derek Freeman, 45, was driving on Elk Valley Road, a mile south of Ozark, when he ran off the road and struck a tree at roughly 10:10 p.m., the Missouri State Highway Patrol reported.  His 2010 Ford Fusion was totaled. An ambulance took Freeman to a hospital in Springfield but doctors could not save him.  Freeman's death is the fourth reported traffic accident fatality this year in Troop D, which covers southwest Missouri