News

DULUTH - The Fairmont High School Robotics Team, known as MegaHertz 2847, won the Lake Superior Regional competition, held in Duluth over the weekend. The Fairmont team allied with Tonkabots of Mound-Westonka High School and Ferradermis of Whitewater High School in Wisconsin to form the winning Blue Alliance Team.   The Fairmont students were the Captain of the winning alliance and also won the Autonomous Award at the event, in which 54 teams of high school students from five different states competed.   The Fairmont-led alliance was able to defeat a team from Henry Sibley High School in St. Paul, Westby [...]

Press Release from the Martin County Sheriff   Thursday at approximately 6:14 pm, the Martin County Sheriff's Office responded to a domestic assault in the city of Truman, where an adult female had been shot in the chest with a pistol. The woman was transported to a local hospital. A male suspect has been identified as Kyle Jonathan Liford, age 32. Liford is possibly driving a 2002 Green Chevrolet Tahoe, Minnesota license plate NVU 782. As of Friday morning his location is unknown. A firearm was found and secured at the scene by law enforcement. If anyone has information about the [...]

Mankato East Invitational Team sweepstakes results 1 Fairmont 106 2 Marshall 85 3 Mankato East 65 3 Loyola 65 5 Mankato West 57 6 St. Clair 33 7 Janesville-Waldorf-Pemberton (JWP) 30 8 Waconia 29 Grace Simpson, 1st Place in Dramatic Interpretation Grace Simpson and Oliver Thedens, 4th Place in Duo Interpretation Oliver Thedens 2nd Place in Extemporaneous Reading Dominick Lund-May 1st Place in Extemporaneous Speaking Bel Lutterman 3rd Place in Extemporaneous Speaking Leon Yang 1st Place in Humorous Speaking Bel Lutterman 2nd Place and Alayna Haefner 5th Place in Original Oratory Cooper Gudahl 1st Place, Norah Heille 5th Place, and Allie [...]

University of Minnesota Extension Winter Crops Day and Small Grains Program will be Thursday, February 20, at the 4-H Building, 3048 Broadway Ave., in Slayton.  Check-in will begin at 8:30 a.m., with the program running from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.  Whether you farm or work with farmers, this program is a great opportunity to hear the latest University-based research and information around corn, soybean, and small grain production issues and management strategies.  The morning session will highlight corn and soybean production systems while the afternoon session will focus on small grains.    To ensure adequate program materials and food are available, [...]

MANKATO, Minn. (AP) — Contractors on Wednesday blew up the remnants of a damaged southern Minnesota bridge that almost collapsed last summer after a bout of heavy rain that prompted a federal emergency declaration for the area near Mankato. Explosives were used to destroy the beams of County Road 9 Bridge, Blue Earth County officials said in a Facebook post. Video shows synchronized blasts followed by eruptions of billowing black and beige clouds as huge sections of the bridge crashed into the frozen Blue Earth River below. County commissioners last year voted to replace the bridge and remove the nearby Rapidan Dam, both of which were at risk [...]

Early Monday morning, approximately 4:54 a.m., local agencies responded to a one-vehicle accident on Interstate 90 in Martin County. A 2020 Western Star Semi driven by 52 year-old Scott Joseph Spaulding of Wautoma, Wisconsin, was travelling westbound near mile marker 108 in Pleasant Prairie township. The vehicle left the road, overturned, and ended up in the median ditch. Spaulding was airlifted to St. Mary's Hospital in Rochester with what were termed as non-life threatening injuries in the State Patrol report. Road conditions were dry and Spaulding was not wearing a seat belt. Fairmont Fire, Granada Fire and Ambulance, Mayo Ambulance, Martin [...]

(AP) - Coventry, VT A U.S. Border Patrol agent who was killed in Vermont during a traffic stop near the Canadian border was a military veteran who worked security duty at the Pentagon during the time of the Sept. 11 attacks, his family said. Agent David Christopher Maland, 44, was killed Monday afternoon following a traffic stop, a U.S. Customs and Border Protection spokesperson said in a statement. A German national in the country on what the FBI called a current visa was killed and an injured suspect was taken into custody and is being treated at a local hospital. Maland, who was [...]

The Green Plains Energy plant in Fairmont closed abruptly on Thursday, January 16th. The plant, which according to the Green Plains website had 59 employees, had been in operation since 2014. The plant, which originally opened in 2008, was purchased from BioFuel Energy along with a plant in Wood River, Nebraska in 2012 for $101 million. The company, headquartered in Omaha, also owns facilities in Superior, and Shenandoah, Iowa, along with three other ethanol plants in Nebraska.

United Hospital District (UHD), an independent and award-winning healthcare system based in southern Minnesota, announced today that they are now offering Direct Access Lab Testing services at their Blue Earth location. Direct Access Lab Testing allows patients to order certain selected single and multiple tests quickly and conveniently without the need to see a health care provider. This service was developed to help patients monitor certain ongoing health risks. It is a helpful tool but should not be used as a substitute for visiting a health care provider on a regular basis. All testing is performed in their accredited laboratory. Direct [...]

The annual KSUM Community Kamp For Kids is taking place now. City Of Lakes Media, the Sentinel, and Fairmont Photo Press along with the local Boy Scout troops will be helping to stock the Salvation Army Food Shelf on Saturday. KSUM will be broadcasting live on Saturday morning from 8 to 10 am with the latest updates. Items needed are non-perishable food, toiletries such as diapers and baby wipes, and new toys. Cash donations and checks are also accepted at the Salvation Army headquarters at 3rd and Downtown Plaza in Fairmont. Place the donation bags in front of your front door [...]