Officials say a fire at a recycling plant for byproducts of cereal making in Battle Creek caused more than $275,000 in damage. The Battle Creek Enquirer reports the fire started Monday night at ReConserve Inc. when an end loader with a fuel leak caught fire at an entrance to the building. No one was injured. Firefighters responded and quickly extinguished …

Officials say Michigan traffic deaths rose 10 percent last year as alcohol-involved, bicyclist, teen and motorcyclist traffic deaths increased. The Michigan Office of Highway Safety Planning says Monday the number of deaths rose from 876 in 2014 to 963 in 2015 according to numbers from the Michigan State Police Criminal Justice Information Center. The state says the increase was most …

Crews are making annual springtime repairs to the Mackinac Bridge as traffic starts to pick up ahead of Michigan’s summer tourism season. The Mackinac Bridge Authority says steeplejacks, who climb out onto the bridge’s cables and beams, are inspecting the bridge for any winter damage. They’re looking for steel grating that needs reinforcement and deck joints that have been damaged …

A longtime Glen Oaks Community College professor with a strong dedication to military veterans was named the 2016 E.J. Shaheen Teaching Excellence Award winner. The honor recognizing Bill Furr was announced during the college’s 48th graduation ceremony Friday. A Detroit native and Sturgis resident, Furr has been a Glen Oaks business professor full-time since 2003 and is credited with establishing …

The St. Joseph County Road Commission can start budgeting for some major roadwork set to take place this summer. Agency manager Chris Minger said Michigan Department of Transportation over the weekend awarded its bids statewide for summer projects, including three in St. Joseph County. The three routes are: Silver Street in Mendon Township, Lovers Lane in Lockport Township and Colon …

Two people were arrested on drug-related offenses last week as part of a compliance check for people on parole or probation. Investigators from the St. Joseph County Area Narcotics unit teamed with parole agents from the Michigan Department of Corrections on the various checks Thursday. At a location in the 31000 block of Kelly Road in Burr Oak Township, several …

Members of the Three Rivers Downtown Development Authority/Michigan Main Street Board last week approved offering a contract to a California man to serve as executive director of the agency. David Vago is a farm technician at East Bay Regional Park District in Oakland. Board members during a meeting Friday agreed to offer a $42,000 salary for the full-time position. Vago …

THREE RIVERS, MI – Three Rivers Health held their Service Awards Ceremony on Friday, May 6th. Many employees reached significant milestones in 2016 and were honored for their dedication and commitment to the organization. Three Rivers Health recent Service Award Recipients are left to right, front row: Yvonne Williams, 5 years; Patricia Saviano, 10 years; Pansy Lam, 5 years; Deb …

Ramona Lou Thaxton, age 86, of Colon, passed away Saturday, May 7, 2016, at her home. Ramona was born Aug. 20, 1929, in Elbow Lake, MN, a daughter to the late Glenn and Nanna (Johnson) Davis. She graduated from high school in 1946 in Minneapolis, MN and attended Asbury College in Kentucky. While there she met her late husband Charles …

Nursing homes are increasingly evicting their most challenging residents, testing protections for some of society’s most vulnerable, advocates for the aged and disabled say. Those targeted for eviction are frequently poor and suffering from dementia, with families unsure of what to do, according to residents’ allies. Removing them allows an often stretched-thin staff to avoid the demands of labor-intensive patients …