Category: kmiz-local-news

Jazsmin Halliburton

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Mizzou football fans will see some changes to their game day experience out at Faurot Field this season with stadium upgrades, concession stand additions and travel impacts on I-70.

The current renovations to the north end zone will continue throughout the season; however, in addition to those changes, Mizzou Athletics has also made some significant improvements to the game day experience.

Enhanced and increased pyro at key moments on game day

New custom-designed LED stadium lights, allowing for choreographed light shows

A new camera placement inside the locker room to get the crowd excited for the team runout

A re-worked in-game script designed to help keep up the energy even during breaks in play

There will also be a Tiger Fans Zone that will open three and a half hours before kickoff on the lawn at Tiger Avenue across from the Tiger Avenue Parking Structure.

Coca-Cola Student Tailgate

Large-screen TV showing games around the country

Food trucks and seating

Beer sales

Tiger Team Store merchandise sales

MU Health Care Kids Zone featuring a video game truck playing EA Sports College Football 26

Concessions

In addition to the enhanced fan experience and to hype up the crowd, Mizzou Athletics will be continuing its fan-friendly concession items and adding new foods. Six concessions locations at Memorial Stadium featuring Fan-Friendly pricing, consisting of $2.99 hot dogs, popcorn, chips, 16 oz fountain sodas and 12 oz Dasani water.

Joshua Moore with Mizzou athletics told ABC 17 News the university is always looking to give fans a better experience and understand that money spent on game days can add up.

“Sometimes we look at the ticket price and say, okay, the ticket price is this, this is what it costs to come to the game,” said Moore. “Well, your kid’s going to want different tots. Your kids are going to want some ice cream, some different food. And so that fan-friendly pricing definitely helps in that sense. And it really helps those families that are coming to games, or anyone can take advantage of it.”

New concession stand items will also be introduced this season around Memorial Stadium.

BBQ Bacon Wrapped Conecuh Sausage Dog (Section 121)

Boulevard Beer Brat (Section 106 and Boulevard Concession Stand at Section 123)

Boulevard Beer Cheeseburger (Boulevard Concession Stand at Section 123)

Boulevard Beer Cheese Fries (Boulevard Concession Stand at Section 123)

Loaded Nachos (Una Vida Concession Stand at Section 118)

Stadium Entry

Once fans arrive at Faurot Field, the athletic department is reminding them to plan out their routes. Everyone should enter the stadium through the gates on the same side as where their tickets are located due to the impacts of the Memorial Stadium Centennial Project.

Fans sitting on the east side (Sections 101-110), students in the student section and fans in the Tiger Deck (Sections 301-315) should enter via Gates 2E-6E

Fans sitting on the west side (Sections 116-125) should enter via Gates 2W-6W

Entrances to the premium Walsworth Family Columns Club, the West Tower and the South End Zone remain unchanged

The tunnel that runs under Stadium Boulevard will be open for foot traffic, but fans are encouraged to use alternate routes since the walkways will be smaller due to construction.

I-70 Travel

Tiger fans are encouraged to allow for more time traveling to Columbia on game days, with the ongoing construction on I-70 for the Improve I-70 project. According to the Missouri Department of Transportation, there will be active work zones on I-70 24 hours a day, six days a week. MoDoT asks that fans driving through the work zones be extra cautious.

There will be active work zones and reduced lanes along eastbound I-70 between mile markers 188 and 193 near Warrenton and ongoing construction on I-70 in Boone County between mile markers 137 and 144.

MoDoT Improve I-70 Statewide Director Eric Kopinski told ABC 17 News that the traffic flow across the state can change from week to week, so they ask drivers to pay attention. “We’re really encouraging anyone to leave a little early and more importantly, if you come to game one and want to come back for KU next week,” said Kopinski. “Please pay attention to our press releases. Please pay attention to the news. We want drivers to be aware when they come to the games, as conditions may change week to week throughout the season.”

MoDoT encourages traveling fans to slow down, put the phone down and drive sober.

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Gabrielle Teiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Moberly woman has been charged after she is accused of leading deputies on a chase and crashing into a deputy.

Jaynee Collins, 28, has been charged with aggravated fleeing a stop or detention.

Court documents state that deputies were told about a stolen car seen south of Morely Street going at a high rate of speed on Tuesday night.

Deputies said the car failed to pull over during a traffic stop and started driving very erratically, speeding and running stop lights while not staying in the correct lane. Documents state that the driver almost caused multiple accidents.

The pursuit was stopped for safety reasons, according to deputies.

The driver was identified as Collins. Documents state she was seen running stop signs and doing donuts in intersections with no law enforcement chasing her.

Collins started to drive away while speeding when she hit a marked patrol car. This disabled both vehicles, according to deputies.

She was hurt in the crash. A Missouri State Highway Patrol crash report states the crash happened at the intersection of S. William Street and Wightman Street.

The woman was taken to University Hospital by Randolph County EMS with serious injuries. The deputy was not hurt, according to the report.

Court documents state that her criminal history shows she has a revoked driving status and a history of substance abuse.

She was booked into the Randolph County Jail at 5:12 a.m. on Wednesday. She is being held without bond

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Mitchell Kaminski

HARRISBURG, Mo. (KMIZ)

A town hall crowd that packed the Harrisburg Lions Club was sharply critical of U.S. Rep. Mark Alford (R-Raytown), his congressional votes, and his support of President Donald Trump and his policies.

Alford, whose district includes about half of Boone County, held the event Wednesday night as part of his town hall tour, which features 15 stops in four days. A stop in Fayette is on the Thursday schedule for the final day of the tour. 

“I think a lot of lawmakers, not just Republicans, but Democrats as well, don’t really want to get out because it’s gotten so heated and so hectic,” Alford told ABC 17 News. 

Earlier this year, the National Republican Congressional Committee advised it’s members to avoid town halls. Since the August recess, less than 20% of the 219 House Republicans have hosted any type of town hall. 

“Two ladies said in this town hall tour ‘It takes a lot of courage to do this’, No it doesn’t this is our job,” Alford said. “This is a heavily Republican district. They sent me to Washington.  But I point out to everyone, when you get into this office, it’s not just about representing the people that you sent there. I represent everyone in this district, and I’m not going to agree with everyone, but I still want to hear your viewpoint.” 

Over 100 people packed the Lions Club in Harrisburg to speak with Alford, in an event that grew contentious at times. The line of people wanting to speak was so long that Alfrod stayed an extra hour after the event was set to end to answer questions. 

Many attendees urged Alford to host a town hall in Columbia, something Alford said he would consider next year. 

Key topics discussed during the Harrisburg event included the ‘Big Beautiful Bills’ impacts on healthcare and President Donald Trump’s move to send the national guard into cities to fight crime.

“He really did not answer those questions. You know, he said ‘I don’t like tariffs’, but yet he voted for it.  People brought up health care, but he didn’t answer those questions,” Alice Turner said after the event. 

On rural healthcare, Alford highlighted a $50 billion transfer fund he says will help communities. But town hall attendees noted the bill also cuts $880 billion from Medicaid, the largest health care cut in U.S. history.

“The future is very dim and I hope Mr. Alford is listening tonight to this opposition,” Turner said. 

Alford said he supported Trump’s decision to send in the National Guard to Los Angeles, saying it was necessary to protect the lives of ICE officers. He also pointed to the success federal troops have had in Washington D.C, saying that carjackings were down 87% since they arrived. 

However, some constituents in Harrisburg pushed back, saying that Trump claimed to care about “law and order” but did nothing when an angry mob stormed the U.S Capitol on January 6, and even pardoned people who attacked police officers. 

“I’ve seen a lot of things on my time on earth but I have never seen the things we are witnessing now in this country,”  one man told Alfrod at the town hall. “It’s no longer the Republican party that you’re in, you’re now in the Trump party.” 

However, Alford told ABC 17 News that he would still be open to the National Guard being sent to Missouri in cities like Kansas City and St. Louis where crime is “out of control”. 

“I think if Mike Kehoe, the governor who campaigned on law and order, who campaigned on having a secure and safe Missouri, would want the president to come in ahead of FIFA and the World Cup, where we’re going to have millions of people here in Missouri that don’t normally live here from all over the world. I think that’s a good idea,” Alford said. 

Kehoe has spoken with the Trump administration about possible redistricting. While it could give Republicans another House seat in the Kansas City area, it might also make Alford’s district more competitive. Alfrod told ABC 17 that he is staying out of the redistricting fight. 

“This is between President Trump, Governor Kehoe, and the state lawmakers,” Alford said. “I truly believe that every district should represent the will of the people in that district. And if the state legislature redraws the boundary line, no matter where that ends up for the fourth Congressional District, Missouri,  I promise to fight hard for those people in that district. “

Watch a replay of the event live stream here.

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Madison Stuerman

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice has been suspended for the first six games of the 2025 season.

According to ESPN, the NFL said on Wednesday that Rice accepted a six-game suspension for violating the personal conduct policy after he pleaded guilty to a 2024 Dallas crash. The suspension is without pay.

This means he will be eligible to return ahead of the game against the Las Vegas Raiders on October 19th in Week 7.

Rice was sentenced to 30 days in jail and five years’ probation for his involvement in a crash that left multiple people hurt.

Rice will not appeal the suspension, according to ESPN. This will also cancel a hearing set for Sept. 30 at the NFL’s headquarters in New York.

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Madison Stuerman

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The Missouri State Highway Patrol’s Division of Drug and Crime Control is investigating a road rage incident that led to a shooting and crash on Interstate 70 in Saline County.

Troop A said on social media, the suspect fled the scene and has not been located as of 3:30 p.m. Wednesday.

No one was hurt in the shooting or the crash, according to the report. The post stated that there is no threat to the public.

🚨Highway Shooting – Saline County 🚨

The Missouri State Highway Patrol’s @MSHPTrooperDDCC is investigating a road rage incident which led to a shooting & crash on WB I-70 near US-65. No injuries occurred in the shooting or crash, & there is no ongoing threat to the public. pic.twitter.com/xU9iY2uPhD

— MSHP Troop A (@MSHPTrooperA) August 27, 2025

This is a developing story.

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Nia Hinson

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

In less than 24 hours, Memorial Stadium will be jam-packed with black and gold, as the Tigers kick off the 2025-26 season against Central Arkansas.

Downtown is never a scarce scene in Columbia on game days, but with many students left unable to claim tickets after Mizzou Athletics rolled out a new claims process, some think downtown on Thursday could draw even larger crowds.

“We’ve already expected for people to be coming to the bar more, just seeing how quickly they’re sold out,” Assistant General Manager at Harpos Ben Yanak said. “It’s something where for this first game, we’ll just kind of have to go with the flow and just prepare for the future.”

Yanak said the bar can sometimes see 5,000 people come through its doors at night. The bar has recently implemented extra safety precautions, working to ensure people are safe.

“We’ve been in contact with getting some private security for roaming around outside, making sure that all of our customers and everyone on the street is safe,” Yanak said.

Yanak said the bar implemented the outside security at the end of the previous semester. The security works by patrolling the nearby streets and back alleys near the bar. He said it’s something they’re now heavily focused on and are working to collaborate with other businesses downtown on the effort.

People heading into the bar can also expect to be checked with hand-held metal detectors, something the bar has done in previous years as well. The bar also has roughly 70 security personnel working on game days, according to Yanak.

Down the street, MyHouse Sports Bar and Nightclub sits as the official watch party for Mizzou Athletics.

The large crowds don’t come as a surprise to employees, but the bar has also ramped up security heading into the new year and football season.

“As a constantly expanding bar and brand name, we always want to provide the best experience we can to our customers, ” Assistant General Manager for MyHouse Sports Bar and Nightclub Cooper Bridgess said. “We did go out and hire a decent amount more of door guys and whatever positional stuff we needed.”

Bridges said the increased security is to have more faces around the bar. MyHouse will also continue with its practice of using a hand-held metal detector that pats people down when entering the bar to ensure they aren’t bringing in weapons.

Adam Mordica is one of the owners of 9th bar downtown. He said half of the battle of dealing with busy crowds on game day is mental.

“Obviously, all hands on deck. Keep your head on a swivel. We also do our best to keep the atmosphere the way we want it,” Mordica said.

Caroline Ordway is a second-year master’s student at the University of Missouri. Ordway thinks the city of Columbia has done a good job keeping people safe in the downtown area, and is thankful for the changes bars have implemented.

“I remember being here in undergrad and I feel like you could just walk in and out. Purses are checked, people are wanded, I think they’re making definite improvements,” Ordway said.

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Alison Patton

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Two students are dead and 14 are injured after a deadly school shooting at a Minneapolis Catholic school on Wednesday.

This comes after several colleges across the country received fake reports of active shooters, according to a previous ABC 17 report.

Chief Operating Officer for the Missouri School Board’s Association Center for Education Safety, John McDonald, said school safety experts are trying to figure out why there’s a desire to hurt.

“We’ve never figured out that core reason behind that,” McDonald said. “It’s a desire to hurt, and that is most concerning to me because that’s a behavioral issue.”

He said schools need to prepare for “low probability, but incredibly high impact events,” like an active shooter situation.

McDonald said building a community is one of the first steps.

“When a student has relationships that are positive, they’re not shooting anybody. And then every student deserves a kind, caring, trusted adult in their life,” McDonald said.

One of the ways schools can prevent this is by monitoring student behavior.

“We’ve stopped a lot of school shootings by conducting a really good threat assessment on students engaging in behavior that is threatening,” McDonald said.

Schools can also teach students about what to do in the event of an active shooter.

McDonald also said keeping outside doors locked to prevent outsiders from coming into the school is also crucial.

When a school shooting happens, it leaves the community shocked.

John Nicoletti is a police psychologist, and he’s been on about 15 active school shooter cases in Colorado. He primarily talks to first responders affected by the traumatic event after, and sometimes before, it happens.

“A lot of stuff we work on afterwards is: these events never leave the people, you know, if you’ve gone through one, it stays with you forever,” Nicoletti said.

He said it affects the police officers going into the school; the students, teachers and staff in the building; and the parents.

“Then the other thing we try and do with people who survived it, irrespective of where they’re at, is give them a heads up on here are the things that are going to set your children off. Here are the things that are going to set you off. Here are some things to do from that standpoint,” Nicoletti.

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Madison Stuerman

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A new steel fabrication company will bring more than 30 jobs to Audrain County.

TechFab Structural Steel announced it will be opening an advanced steel fabrication facility in Vandalia.

The company will be investing six million dollars and creating 34 new jobs.

The facility will be 126,000 square feet and fully climate-controlled. A release states the facility will be used for machining and fabricating raw steel products into usable building assemblies.

The new employees at TechFab Structural Steel will make an average wage above the county average. According to Missouri data, the average wage for all industries in 2024 was $48,098 annually or $23.12 per hour.

“I’m very excited to be part of bringing high-tech, high-paying jobs to my hometown of Vandalia,” David Kurz, Operations Manager for TechFab Structural Steel, said in the release.

TechFab Structural Steel will use the Missouri Works program to help expand and retain workers.

“We’re proud to see a new employer investing and creating jobs in Vandalia while strengthening our state’s vibrant manufacturing industry,” Governor Mike Kehoe said in the release.

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Madison Stuerman

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Jefferson City’s man attorney has resigned as of Wednesday.

Jefferson City spokesperson said in a release that Ryan Moehlman has resigned from his role as the City Attorney.

Moehlman has been with the city since September 2016, providing legal counsel and support to the council, mayor and other departments.

“His steady guidance, integrity, and deep knowledge of municipal law havegreatly benefited Jefferson City,” Mayor Ron Fitzwater said in the statement.

The release states that Moehlman will be continuing his career with the Missouri Bar.

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Erika McGuire

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The Columbia Regional Airport is taking steps to prevent vehicles from being left in airport parking lots for extended periods, a problem that has limited available spaces for legitimate travelers.

 “We’ve had vehicles with flat tires and vehicles that have been sitting out there for long periods of time that we’ve observed,” Michael Parks, Columbia Regional Airport Manager, said.

According to Parks, an increase in travelers at COU is one of the main reasons the parking issue has grown.

Airport staff have been doing regular vehicle counts to monitor which cars are actively used by travelers — and which ones may be sitting idle for too long, Parks said.

The ordinance, proposed to the City of Columbia, would require travelers who plan to leave their vehicles at the airport for 30 days or more to complete a form prior to traveling.

The form would include the vehicle’s make and model, where it will be parked, and the expected time the traveler plans to be gone.

Airport officials say this will help them monitor long-term parking and ensure vehicles parked at the COU airport are associated with travelers and travelers only.

“We want to make sure that spaces are available. We’ve seen vehicles stored out here in the past, and really this ordinance change is going to allow us some mechanism to watch for those vehicles that are not associated with customers that are flying in and out of the airport and have that ability to have those vehicles removed from the area,” Parks said.

“If a traveler plans on staying a longer period of time, this ordinance really doesn’t prohibit that. It really is just going to create the ability for us to track those vehicles,” He added.

According to the Columbia City Council memo, parking at the airport for more than 24 hours is prohibited unless they are flying out of the airport.

Traveler Cynthia Bentzen-Mercer is a frequent traveler and relies on COU. She says the ordinance is a step in the right direction.

“It’s so much better for people to fill out a form and have to be fined for them to start charging for parking, which might be the alternative,” Bentz-Mercer said. ‘I think that’s really taking advantage of a great thing, we have this great little regional airport, we can park for free. It’s such a benefit, but if people are leaving their cars here, that’s frustrating.”

The parking lot at COU holds 1,100 parking spaces and is free for travelers.

Travelers who leave a vehicle for more than 30 days without submitting the required form could face daily fines, Parks said.

The Columbia City Council is set to take up the proposed ordinance at its meeting Tuesday evening.

United Airlines is joining COU with three additional flights, after a four-year hiatus. The airline will offer two flights to Chicago and one flight to Denver. The first flight will take off on Sept. 25th.

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