Strafford

Strafford, Mo--A growing town in Greene County now has a brand new fire station. Firefighters with The Strafford Fire Protection District reveled their new building this weekend. Firefighters say while the building will help them do their job more effectively, this brand new facility will also severe a great purpose to the community.  Firefighters say a station like this needed for an area that's booming. "We were lucky enough that our citizens recognized they needed full time fire protection.   They voted us in as a full time department," said Fire Chief Fred Osbourn.

SPRINGFIELD, -- One Strafford family got a late Christmas gift. Soldier Steven Rear came home to the Ozarks this afternoon. Rear had quite the welcoming surrounded by family and friends at the Springfield airport. He was injured in Afghanistan by a roadside bomb. He lost a finger and half of a thumb. His arm and neck have several scars. Other people in his unit have injures, but fortunately no one died. Rear says he's thankful to be alive and back home in the Ozarks. "No matter what happens, if you feel sorry for yourself, you wake up and the same thing is still going to be in your life.

STRAFFORD, Mo. -- The Greene County Sheriff's Department says Rachel Perkins, 78, died in a house fire.  It started Saturday evening around 5 in the 6500 block of Red Oak Court. Crews from Fair Grove, Logan Rogersville, and Ebenezer helped Strafford firefighters.  Investigators are looking for the cause of the fire.

STRAFFORD, Mo. -- A stranded driver from New Jersey was the pedestrian who was killed on Sunday night on Evergreen Road, the north outer road of Interstate 44.  The Missouri State Highway Patrol says Abdel-aziz Ammar, 27, and another man were walking back to their car after it ran out of gas. Troopers say the men were dressed in dark clothing, walking with the flow of traffic.  A 17-year-old driver from the area hit Ammar about 8:30.  The driver...

SPRINGFIELD, Mo.-- The Greene County Sheriff has honored a 12-year-old boy from Strafford with the first "Junior Deputy Award. " Sheriff Jim Arnott presented the award to Montana Sade in a ceremony last month, in recognition of the student's making a report on drug distribution among minors in the Strafford area. The sheriff's office says Montana told a school resource officer he had received a green leafy substance from someone and was told it was marijuana. "Montana has demonstrated character of the highest caliber by making a good choice to protect his peers," said Sheriff Arnott.

STRAFFORD, Mo. -- TCSI-Transland, a trucking company based here, purchased a Kenworth over-the-road tractor that is painted entirely pink.  The company's wants to bring attention to cancer awareness throughout the nation as the tractor makes truckload freight deliveries over the next four years. Decaled on the tractor is the signature pink ribbon with the phrase "Supporting Cancer Awareness" above the ribbon.  The roof of the sleeper unit is decaled with "Trucking For A Cure.

STRAFFORD, Mo. - A mobile home near Strafford is a total loss after fire ripped through it Monday morning. Fire crews were called out to a mobile home on Georgia Road, just north of Interstate 44. When crews arrived around 2 a.m. Monday, they found the trailer full involved in flames. Other fire crews were called in to help fight the fire. Firefighters say no one was inside at the time, but the blaze destroyed the home. There's no word on a cause yet.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- The Greene County Sheriff's Department sent out a news release on Wednesday afternoon that said it was looking for a 14-year-old girl who might be in danger.  The sheriff didn't said why Abigail Gaunt might be in danger.  Within two hours, the department issued a news release that said she was located and was safe. Abigail disappeared from her home at 6493 E. Harmony Lane in Strafford early Wednesday, just after midnight.  She was located about 6:30 p.m.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - The Glendale Falcons took on the Kickapoo Chiefs in boys basketball on Tueasday night. Though the two schools are rivals, they came together to raise awareness for the prevalence of heart disease. Players, coaches, and fans participated in the "Red Out" by wearing red shirts. In the game, the Falcons beat the Chiefs by a score of 68-60. In Strafford, the Indians hosted the Monett Cubs. The Cubs grabbed a one point lead to end the first half, but the Indians would prevail by a score of 64-56.

STRAFFORD, Mo.-- A Morrisville man has pleaded not guilty to charges tied to a stabbing investigation at a storage unit in Strafford. Jimmy Alsup is accused of assault, armed criminal action and burglary for the incident back in September.     Gregory Baker says he was just trying to get into his storage unit when Alsup stabbed him several times and tried to burglarize him. Alsup's next hearing is set for January.

STRAFFORD, Mo. -- One person died and another is seriously hurt after a vehicle flipped several times near Strafford on Farm Road 132 near Missouri 125. Troopers say a westbound 2012 Kia Rio driven by Matthew Hogue, 20, of Springfield, crested at the top of a hill and lost control, flipping several times. The crash was about 1:30 a.m. Monday. Kendi Highland, 29, of Springfield, died at the scene.  Another passenger was taken by ambulance to a hospital in Springfield with serious injuries.  Hogue also was taken to a hospital; his injuries are described as minor.

SPRINGFIELD -- Several hundred motorcycle riders on Sunday hit the streets for the sixth annual Motorcycle Safety Awareness ride.      The 75-mile journey left from southwest Springfield to tour several surrounding towns including Republic, Strafford, and Nixa.      The month of May is Motorcycle Safety Month.     As the weather warms up, more motorcycle riders are on the streets; hey want to make sure that other drivers are aware of their presence. Motorcycles may look farther away than they really are because of their smaller size, according to the Missouri State Highway Patrol.

OZARK, Mo. -- After interviewing seven people, the Ozark mayor and aldermen hired Sharon Mickey to be the new city clerk.   Mickey is the Strafford city clerk but lives in Christian County.  She has more than 14 years of experience as a city clerk. A city news release says aldermen and the mayor interviewed five external candidates and two internal candidates before deciding to hire Mickey.  She plans to start working for Ozark in early May. City leaders suspended 19-year City Clerk Lana Wilson on Feb. 25 and fired her in early March.  They were displeased because of two mistakes involving city elections in April.  In the first, Wilson didn't put an alderman's unexpired term on the ballot.  In the second, a proposed election for a Transportation Sales Tax got left off the ballot.

NEAR FAIR GROVE, Mo. - A lightning strike caused a fire that quickly destroyed a small structure on a property just outside Fair Grove at 8 a.m. Tuesday morning. Firefighters from Fair Grove, Strafford, Ebenezer and Willard were called to fight the fire near the intersection of Farm Road 203 and Langtry Lane, a private drive. Crews arrived to see the building, reported as a 15-foot by 20-foot structure, completely engulfed in flames. No one was hurt. A neighbor called 911 after hearing the lightning strike.

STRAFFORD, Mo --   It's a small school district with a big wish list. On Tuesday, Strafford voters will decide on a $15 million school bond issue. If approved, educators plan to build a new elementary school that would hold 700 students.  It's all part of the Keep Improving District Schools, or KIDS, proposition. "The growth here in Strafford has been pretty steady over the last few years.  We are just starting to run out of the room," said Strafford School District Superintendent, John Collins.

STRAFFORD, Mo. - A mobile home near Strafford is a total loss after fire ripped through it Monday morning. Fire crews were called out to a mobile home on Georgia Road, just north of Interstate 44. When crews arrived around 2 a.m. Monday, they found the trailer full involved in flames. Other fire crews were called in to help fight the fire. Firefighters say no one was inside at the time, but the blaze destroyed the home. There's no word on a cause yet.

STRAFFORD, Mo. - The funeral for Patrick Goddard, who was shot and killed in Strafford a week ago, will take place today. The service is scheduled for 11 a.m. at the First Assembly of God on Old Route 66 in Strafford. Graveside services are set for 2 p.m. at Greenlawn North Cemetery. Witnesses say the shooting that killed Goddard was an accident. No one has been charged in his death.

STRAFFORD, Mo.-- A Morrisville man has pleaded not guilty to charges tied to a stabbing investigation at a storage unit in Strafford. Jimmy Alsup is accused of assault, armed criminal action and burglary for the incident back in September.     Gregory Baker says he was just trying to get into his storage unit when Alsup stabbed him several times and tried to burglarize him. Alsup's next hearing is set for January.

STRAFFORD -- A man from Morrisville has pleaded not guilty to charges connected to a case involving stabbing at a storage unit in Strafford.      Jimmy Alsup is charged of assault, armed criminal action, and burglary for the incident back in September. Gregory Baker said he was just trying to get into his storage unit when Alsup stabbed him several times and tried to steal from him.      Alsup's next hearing is set for January.

STRAFFORD, Mo. - A crash involving at least two vehicles just east of Strafford caused the closure of westbound Interstate 44 for a time this morning. The Missouri State Highway Patrol detoured westbound traffic at the Northview exit as a crash involving a tractor-trailer blocked both lanes at the 91 mile marker. Injuries were reported in the crash, according to Ozarks Traffic.info; however, it is not known how many people are involved in the wreck at this time. As of 6:33 a.m., crews are still on scene but have moved the tractor-trailer to the shoulder and are allowing traffic through.