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Michigan’s confirmed COVID-19 deaths have surpassed 6,000, the state health department said Tuesday. The state said there have been 6,005 deaths and another 246 that are probable. Michigan reported 30 new deaths Tuesday, although 20 were confirmed through a records review and could have occurred weeks ago. Wayne, Oakland and Macomb counties and Detroit account for 75% of Michigan’s deaths. …

Members of the St. Joseph County Fair Board voted Monday to cancel the 2020 fair due to concerns about COVID-19. Board president Tom Miller called Monday’s action the most difficult vote any fair board in St. Joseph County has ever had to make. Regarding 4-H participants, fair officials plan to meet with St. Joseph County Extension Office 4-H Program Coordinator …

A Schoolcraft resident was injured in a motorcycle accident over the weekend in Cass County’s Calvin Township. Sheriff Richard Behnke said deputies were called shortly after 1:30 p.m. Sunday to Brownsville Street, at a location east of Crooked Creek Road. Behnke said 50-year-old Michael Bell was driving his motorcycle westbound on Brownsville Street when the vehicle hit loose gravel. As a result, …

An Eaton County man drowned over the weekend in a Colon Township lake. Sheriff Mark Lillywhite said deputies were called shortly before 4 p.m. Saturday to Leidy Lake Campground. Investigators said 24-year-old David Burns Jr. was walking in Leidy Lake when he entered deep water. Burns did not know how to swim and he subsequently drowned. He was not breathing …

Hundreds of people spent the holiday in swimsuits but no masks at a lake in southwestern Michigan, a turnout that disappointed authorities who warn that the coronavirus remains a threat. The virus “doesn’t discriminate,” said Danielle Persky of the Van Buren/Cass District Health Department. “The goal right now is to mitigate the spread of COVID-19, and when we’re not doing …

A man was fatally struck by a boat while swimming in a western Michigan lake over the weekend, police said. The man was hit Sunday afternoon on Gull Lake near Kalamazoo. The man was brought to shore for lifesaving measures but was pronounced dead from his injuries at the scene, according to the Kalamazoo County Sheriff’s Office. The boat operator …

A three-month road-surfacing project in the village of Centreville gets underway this week. According to Michigan Department of Transportation, eight-tenths of a mile of Main Street will be resurfaced. The work begins Tuesday at Nottawa Street intersection and continues west to the village limits. The $385,000 project involves asphalt resurfacing, sidewalk ramp upgrades, new signs and pavement markings. MDOT says …

Officials from the Branch County Fair have announced the 2020 fair has been canceled. Jan Murphy, fair manager, said cancellation was done in the best interest of the health and safety of everyone. The Coldwater-based event had been set for Aug. 9-15. Waiting any longer to make the decision would be potentially more damaging to youth summer projects and fair …

A storage shed was recently donated to St. Joseph County Animal Control. Through the fundraising efforts of the county’s Animal Control Advisory Board, a 20-by-30-foot shed was recently presented to the agency. It will be used to store food and supplies necessary for daily operations. It will also store overflow of additional transport kennels for neglect and hoarding cases. Sheriff …

Last week I bragged a little about the state of Michigan. If you are thinking about taking the family on a short vacation, Michigan has a lot to offer. Day trips are easy to find, or if you’d like to stretch that time away into a week or two, that’s also possible, and you don’t have to leave the state. …