Elmwood girls hoops starts strong Elmwood girls hoops starts strong By JEFF LAMPE For The Weekly Post ELMWOOD – With four starters graduated and two players after sitting out last season, it would have made natural if Elmwood’s girls basketball team took time to find its stride. Instead, Elmwood has gelled quickly and ran its record to 4-1 with Monday’s 55-36 home win over Midwest Central. Sophomore Mae Herman scored 11 of her team-high 21 points in the first quarter as Elmwood avenged its lone loss of the season. The Trojans led 13-7 after one quarter, avoiding the slow start that…

By JEFF LAMPE For The Weekly Post FARMINGTON – For the second night in less than a week, a Farmington bar and restaurant was declared a total loss after being engulfed by fire. The latest casualty was Asher’s Bar and Grille at 36 E. Fort St. A fire was reported at 9:19 p.m. Thanksgiving Day and crews from 18 fire departments worked to get the blaze under control later that evening, though not before the structure was badly damaged. “There is some pretty significant structural damage and water damage throughout the whole building,” said Mike Watters, Farmington Fire Chief. “It appears…

By JEFF LAMPE For The Weekly Post Santa Claus is going to be busy this weekend, as the jolly fat man will be making appearances Saturday in Brimfield, Elmwood and Farmington. Yes, it’s Christmas Walk weekend across the area, with business and organizers decking the halls in three local communities. Here’s a look at the particulars for each. • Farmington – The second WinterFest returns with activities from noon to 6 p.m. downtown after being sidelined last winter during the pandemic. The larger event replaces the traditional Santa Parade typically held in one evening. “We’ve tried to turn it into more…

NOTE: Charges are merely an accusation. All suspects are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Stabbing, shooting in rural Farmington FARMINGTON – Two men remain hospitalized after a shooting and stabbing apparently occurred Saturday in a residence south of town. “We are still waiting to do interviews with the people since they are still in the hospital,” Fulton County Sheriff Jeff Standard said Tuesday. “And we’re not releasing any names based on the medical information.” Fulton County Sheriff’s deputies responded to the scene at 1:47 a.m. and found two males, one with a gunshot wound, the other…

NOTE: Charges are merely an accusation. All suspects are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Police reports • BRIMFIELD – Bryan A. Hickman, 29, of Brimfield was held for another agency on Nov. 18 related to a charge of failure to appear, according to a Peoria County Sheriff’s report. • PRINCEVILLE – Adam L. Wasson, 27, of Princeville was charged on Nov. 19 for battery-bodily harm, according to a Peoria County Sheriff’s report. • YATES CITY – Thomas R. Bristol, 22, of Elmwood was charged on Nov. 5 in connection to threats made over the telephone…

NOTE: Charges are merely an accusation. All suspects are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Traffic citations & Ordinance violations 11-15 – Alexandra M. B. Thomas – driving 15-20 mph above limit. 11-15 – Ryan T. Switzer – Driving 15-20 mph above limit. 11-18 – Hunter L. Donovan – Driving 15-20 mph above limit. 11-20 – Mattew Donath Jr. – driving 15-20 mph above limit. 11-20 – Lorenzo Avilez Ramirez – Driving 15-20 mph above limit. Incidents & Accidents Stark County 11-18 – A single-vehicle animal related accident occurred at the rural location of 650E and…

By JEFF LAMPE For The Weekly Post FARMINGTON – Just a few feet away from a new lightpole banner thanking first responders for their work, local firefighters once again battled a major structure fire here. A fire that started Monday night sometime before 9 p.m. in Whiskey Dixie’s Bar at 16 N. Cone St. quickly engulfed the bar and the attached Parkside Deli & Diner. Before the fire was contained by about 11:30 p.m., Farmington Fire Chief Matt Waters said 27 neighboring departments had replied to the call for help, bringing more than 100 firefighters to assist in putting out the blaze on…

By JEFF LAMPE For The Weekly Post The Princeville School District switched to remote learning on Tuesday and has called off all sports until Dec. 7 due to a recent increase in COVID-19 cases. In Elmwood, a promising 7th grade girls basketball postseason came to an abrupt end after two players tested positive for COVID and the 8th grade girls basketball postseason appears to have barely survived becoming a pandemic casualty. No question, COVID is rearing its ugly spiky head locally. At Princeville, Superintendent Shannon Duling said the school district there went from three students out for COVID-related issues during the…

By JOHN A. BALLENTINE For The Weekly Post PEORIA – A jury of 12 people has awarded $7,020,883 to the family of a Wyoming woman whose wrongful death occurred on July 11, 2017, two miles west of Toulon on Route 17. Corina Miller, 41, was headed westbound on Route 17 when at 4:42 a.m. she drove into, underneath and beyond the tanker-trailer of a milk semi-truck driven by 51-year-old Timothy E. Schwenk, of Brimfield. Schwenk had stopped in the eastbound lane of Route 17 in front of Doug Murray’s dairy farm and had backed the trailer across the westbound lane…

Farmington appears poised for big season By JEFF LAMPE For The Weekly Post Three new head coaches will lead local basketball programs this year, though technically there’s nothing “new” about any of the three. Farmington’s Marty Lozier, Brimfield’s Kevin Kreiter and Princeville’s Tait Sennett have all served as assistants in the programs they are taking over, so there’s plenty of familiarity with all three. Lozier and Kreiter inherit more experience than Sennett, who looks to have his work cut out after graduating five starters and seeing other likely candidates hurt during football season. Elsewhere, Bob Anderson is back with high hopes…