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Fire damaged or destroyed at least five homes in Kalamazoo, including one where an 84-year-old woman had lived for more than four decades, authorities said Wednesday. The woman was not injured, the Department of Public Safety said. The other properties were vacant. The fires were reported around 11:30 p.m. Tuesday. Kalamazoo, which was under a 7 p.m. curfew, has been …

Three more local communities have pulled the plug on their 2020 festivals, making St. Joseph County festival-free this summer. Mendon Riverfest organizers agreed last week to put the brakes on what would have been the 34th festival. Committee president Spencer Howe said lingering concerns about COVID-19 as well as an especially tough year for soliciting financial donations from traditional sponsors …

The Branch-Hillsdale-St. Joseph Community Health Agency and Covered Bridge Healthcare are postponing the planned COVID-19 testing event that was scheduled for Friday. It will instead take place 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. June 12 at 570 Marshall Road, Coldwater. Individuals with symptoms can receive testing sooner than June 12 by contacting Covered Bridge Healthcare to arrange to be tested at …

A 21-year-old Dowagiac man died in a single-vehicle accident last weekend in Cass County’s Volinia Township. Sheriff Richard Behnke said deputies were called at 6:18 a.m. Saturday to Church Street, east of Lawrence Road. Authorities said Michael Mortimore was a passenger in a pickup driven by Austin Price, 21, also of Dowagiac. The vehicle was heading east on Church Street …

Police officers in Kalamazoo were outnumbered 50-to-1 before using tear gas and chemical spray in the wee hours Tuesday to get rid of protesters and stop damage at downtown businesses, authorities said. “It was not our community’s finest hour,” said Karianne Thomas, chief of public safety. She said peaceful protests Monday over the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis turned …

The Sturgis Area Chamber of Commerce announced Friday the 2020 Sturgis Fest is canceled. Cathi Abbs, executive director of the chamber, said it was not an easy choice but organizers believe it is the responsible decision. She said canceling Sturgis Fest deeply impacts the community, its businesses and visitors. However, Abbs said the festival committee finds it is not able …

Westside Landfill Recycling Center is tentatively planning to continue with its quarterly Styrofoam recycling collection next week. Fabius Township Supervisor John Kroggel, who has helped organize and oversee the collections, said he is prepared to go ahead with the scheduled June 13 collection. The only contingency, he noted, is as long as Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has lifted restrictions allowing the …

After careful consideration and consultation with state and local officials, the Magic City Egg Fest will be postponed until August 15 due to the COVID-19 crisis, event organizers announced last week. The culinary grilling competition made its debut in Colon last June and was originally scheduled to take place again later this month. Participants use the Big Green Egg, a …

The St. Joseph County Intermediate School District has issued a media release indicating an impending vacancy on its board of education. Member Sarah Vollmer recently notified the board she will be moving out of St. Joseph County next week and, at that point, will no longer be eligible to serve on the board. As a result, the ISD is accepting …

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer lifted Michigan’s nearly 10-week coronavirus stay-at-home order Monday, letting restaurants reopen to dine-in customers next week and immediately easing limits on outdoor gatherings while keeping social-distancing rules intact. The governor moved regions comprising 93% of the state’s population to phase 4 — “improving” — two weeks after she announced that northern Michigan could advance to that stage. …