Author: KMIZ

Mitchell Kaminski

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KMIZ) 

The World Cup may not kick off until Thursday, but the celebration is already underway in Kansas City.

Thousands of fans gathered Tuesday for the opening day of the FIFA Fan Festival, an event designed to give soccer fans a World Cup experience without the high cost of match tickets while helping showcase Kansas City to visitors.

The festival, located at the National World War I Museum and Memorial, serves as the official fan hub for Kansas City’s six World Cup matches and can accommodate up to 25,000 people per day.

For many attendees, the event was about more than soccer.

“I think that something like this is vital for the community. Camaraderie, bringing this city together. This is wonderful,” Kansas City resident Brandon Doherty said.

Visitors were greeted with live music, food trucks, games for children, a World Cup merchandise store and booths featuring some Kansas City brands, including Purina, Hallmark and the Kansas City Royals.

“KC2026 has a human capacity of 25 thousand people per day at any given time. We’re ready to welcome as many people who want to come be a part of this experience,”  Michael Zerman of Purina, told ABC 17 News. 

For local businesses, the event provides an opportunity to reach an international audience expected to grow throughout the tournament.

“I grew up my whole life playing soccer and when I saw the opportunity to be able to be part of the fan fest, to go along with it, it kind of fits perfectly with something I would have loved, been involved with years ago,” said Dan McCall, owner of the Good Part food truck. “We had some French fans come up.” 

The opening day of the fan festival also served as a test of how the city will handle one of the biggest concerns surrounding the tournament: summer heat. This year’s World Cup is already expected to be one of the hottest on record, and Tuesday in Kansas City was no different. 

With temperatures climbing into the 90s, organizers installed four water refilling stations and large cooling fans throughout the festival grounds. Fans are also allowed to bring empty plastic water bottles that can be refilled on site.

Transportation is another area city leaders have emphasized as they prepare to welcome visitors.

Beginning June 11, ConnectKC26 shuttle routes will connect key World Cup destinations, including Kansas City International Airport, Arrowhead Stadium and the Central Bus Mall located two blocks from the Fan Festival site at 27th Street and Grand Boulevard.

Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas encouraged fans across Missouri to make the trip.

“Frankly, if you come to Kansas City you will find a good way to get around on public transit. There’s the free streetcar system, there’s the bus system we have going around so basically if you are sitting in Mid-Missouri asking if this is something you should get an experience in, the answer is absolutely yes,” Lucas told ABC 17 News. 

The FIFA Fan Festival is free, though admission is subject to capacity limits. Organizers are encouraging fans to reserve passes in advance as Kansas City prepares to welcome the world over the coming weeks.

Click here to follow the original article.

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A pair of power outages left 111 electric customers without power in Columbia on Tuesday evening.

Both of the outages occurred in the central part of the city. One that affected 73 customers was reported at 7:24 p.m. near the corner of West Worley Street and Banks Avenue, while a second one affecting 38 consumers was reported at 8:01 p.m. near Fairview Avenue and North Seventh Street.

The outages were resolved around 9 p.m.

Utilities spokesman Jason West told ABC 17 News in an email that a cause for the outages have not been determined yet.

Check back for updates.

Click here to follow the original article.

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Michael Troesser is still the victor in Linn’s mayoral race.

The city had a follow-up election on Tuesday after 40 people allegedly received the wrong ballot during the April 7 election, previous reporting shows.

Osage County Clerk Brooke Dudenhoeffer filed a lawsuit on April 28 to ask the court for a new election. The lawsuit claimed those 40 voters received a ballot that did not include the mayoral race, but they should have received one with that race included.

During Tuesday’s election, the only people who could cast a vote included, “only certain qualified voters located within the City of Linn and that requested ballots and voted in the April 7, 2026 election but that did not receive a ballot style that contained the mayoral candidate race for the City of Linn, Missouri,” according to the final decision in the lawsuit and a notice of election that was shared on May 28.

During the April race, Michael Troesser received 127 votes and Dustin Flamm had 101. Two people on Tuesday voted for Flamm, bringing his total to 103 votes.

June 9 2026 Linn Mayor CertificationDownload

Notice of New ElectionDownload

OrderDownload

Click here to follow the original article.

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The Montgomery County Commission on Monday unanimously approved tax breaks to Google for its $15 billion data center that was announced last month.

Presiding Commissioner Ryan Poston confirmed the 3-0 vote in a text message to ABC 17 News.

The plan was prepared under Missouri’s Chapter 100 law and called for the county to issue taxable industrial revenue bonds.

Previous reporting shows a cost-benefit analysis showed it must also maintain at least 75 high-wage jobs per building to qualify for the benefits.

Data centers nationwide have been met with pushback from residents, with water and electricity usage among the often-cited concerns. Columbia and Camdenton each passed one-year moratoriums in May on the applications and building of data centers.

Montgomery County residents late last year and earlier this year showed out against Amazon’s attempt to build a data center in the county. Residents and property owners also filed a lawsuit in February in an attempt to halt its construction.

Click here to follow the original article.

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The floor replacement at Mizzou Arena will cost the University of Missouri $907,500, according to the contract for the winning bid.

The contract – which was obtained by ABC 17 News on Tuesday through a records request – was awarded to and signed by Reinhardt Construction LLC on Feb. 17, 2026. The final figure came in a bit higher than the athletic department expected, which was $700,000-$785,000, according to previous reporting.

Work could not begin until May 28 because of a series of graduations that took place in the arena, according to the contract.

The contract says work will need to be “substantially completed” by Aug. 23, with final completion occurring on Sept. 4. “Substantial completion” means the court is available for “full practice” and the shot clocks work, per the contract.

CP260131_BID_1_REINHARDT-1Download

Click here to follow the original article.

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Columbia woman who worked for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs pleaded guilty on Tuesday to one count of wire fraud, according to a press release from the Department of Justice.

Lakeysha Day, 45, pleaded guilty to fraudulently obtaining $20,000 from a Paycheck Protection Program loan in 2021. A sentencing hearing has not been set. She faces up to 20 years in prison.

The release says she applied for a PPP loan for a business on March 20, 2021. She claimed she owned a business that had an average monthly payroll of $8,000, the release says.

Day also allegedly submitted documents claiming the business made $114,210 in sales, had $14,685 in business expenses and a profit of $99,525, previous reporting shows. Her tax return in 2019 did not report the income or expenses that were claimed in the loan application, previous reporting shows.

Click here to follow the original article.

Matthew Sanders

U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) forces began launching self-defense strikes against Iran at 5 p.m. ET today at the Commander in Chief’s direction, in response to yesterday’s downing of a U.S. Army Apache helicopter. The mission is a proportional response to unjustified Iranian…

— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) June 9, 2026

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The military’s U.S. Central Command said Tuesday that American forces began launching strikes against Iran in response to the downing of an Apache helicopter the previous day.

“The mission is a proportional response to unjustified Iranian aggression,” the post on X stated.

The two members of the Apache, shot down near Oman, were rescued and were not hurt.

Iran and the United States have been engaged in hostilities for months, with President Donald Trump regularly teasing that a deal to end the war is imminent.

The two sides have been under a fragile ceasefire for two months, though Israel and Iran exchanged strikes to start the week.

Click here to follow the original article.

Ryan Shiner

COLUBMIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Columbia man was sentenced on Monday after he pleaded guilty to multiple felonies in a February 2025 shooting.

Terrell Fields pleaded guilty on Monday to unlawful use of a weapon, first-degree involuntary manslaughter, tampering with evidence and stealing a gun. He was sentenced to 20 years in prison. He had been charged with second-degree murder.

Also on Monday, Fields pleaded guilty in a second case to first-degree tampering with a motor vehicle and resisting arrest by fleeing. His seven-year sentence in that case will run at the same time of his 20-year sentence.

He is accused of shooting and killing Kaidynce Payne in a Super 8 hotel room on Feb. 19, 2025, on Clark Lane. Payne, 18, was pronounced dead at the scene.

A witness allegedly told police that Fields was “playing” with the gun when he fired, court documents in previous reporting say. Fields had initially denied any involvement in the shooting, previous reporting shows.

Click here to follow the original article.

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A woman who is accused of killing a University of Missouri student and burning his body in 2023 is still not mentally fit to stand trial, according court documents filed on Monday.

Emma Adams, 24, of Columbia, is charged with second-degree murder, armed criminal action, tampering with evidence and abandoning a corpse in the death of Samuel Clemons.

Adams has been committed since November 2023, but hurdles occurred at the time for a mental evaluation. An evaluation on Jan. 21, 2025, determined that she was not mentally fit to stand trial, as was an evaluation on Sept. 29, 2025. Multiple continue orders for commitment were filed throughout the case.

A mental evaluation on May 27, 2026, determined she is still not fit to stand trial, which lead to Monday’s extended order. A hearing has been scheduled for 10:30 a.m. Monday, Jan. 25, 2027.

Adams was arrested and charged in January 2023 after an investigation that started at the University of Missouri led to police finding a burned body in a residential area far from campus.

Police initially couldn’t identify Clemons’ body because of its condition. Clemons was 21 years old at the time of his death.

Previous reporting indicates the investigation started when University of Missouri police officers were sent to Hudson Hall at about 5:30 p.m. Jan. 11, 2023, for a welfare check, which led them to the 2400 block of Bentley Court in north Columbia.

Officers found Clemons’ body there and called Columbia police for a homicide investigation. Adams allegedly claimed self-defense in the stabbing and burning.

Click here to follow the original article.

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

One firefighter was treated for heat exhaustion after responding to a house fire early Tuesday in Sunrise Beach, according to a press release from the Sunrise Beach Fire Protection District.

Crews were called to a home in the 100 block of Via Cresta Drive at 3:40 a.m. for a fire that led a home to partially collapse, the release says. The first crews arrive by water, but the boat was sent back to dock after a storm rolled in while more firefighters were at the scene, the release says.

No one was home at the time of the fire and the cause is under investigation. A nearby home had exterior heat damage reported.

The fire was considered under control at 6:11 a.m.

Click here to follow the original article.