Category: kmiz-local-news

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Gov. Mike Kehoe declared a state of emergency for the state on Friday because of recent storms and flooding.

Kehoe announced on his social media that he signed Executive Order 26-16. Severe weather went through Mid-Missouri on Thursday and continued into Friday morning, with more storms expected to enter the area in the evening, according to the ABC 17 Stormtrack Weather Team.

“Over the past 24 hours, intense storms have created dangerous flash flooding across several regions of Missouri, resulting in multiple swift-water rescues,” Kehoe wrote online. “With additional heavy rain expected through the weekend, the threat is not over. If you’re camping, floating, or spending time near rivers and streams, move to higher ground and stay aware of weather conditions.”

Thousands of people near the Lake of the Ozarks were without power early Friday and it continued into the afternoon. Missouri Task Force 1 was activated and sent to Sikestone to assist with the flood response.

The executive order activates the state’s emergency operations plan. It is set to expire Aug. 10.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Representatives of the State of Missouri filed an appeal on Friday to the state’s high court over a recent ruling involving abortion rights

Jackson County Judge Jerri Zhang last month in their 20-page ruling struck down a number of restrictions that were in place that were determined to be in violation of 2024’s Amendment 3, a voter-approved measure that enshrined abortion rights within the Missouri Constitution.

Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway and Republican Gov. Mike Kehoea opposed the ruling, while groups like the ACLU and “No on 3, Stop the Ban” were in support of it.

Among those restrictions struck down included the restrictions on medical abortions and specific licensing requirements at facilities that provide abortions.

Medical provider Planned Parenthood began taking medical abortion appointments at the end of last month.

State lawmakers are asking voters again to give their insight on abortion rights this fall with the new Amendment 3. Its passage would increase restrictions.

Friday’s notice of appeal to the Supreme Court questions “the validity of a statute or provision of the Constitution of Missouri.”

Check back for updates.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A swatting call led to a large police response Friday morning in Rolla, the Rolla Police Department wrote on its social media.

Police wrote that it responded to “to a report of a domestic disturbance involving a firearm” on Vichy Road. Officers quickly learned the home was vacant and “no disturbance had occurred.”

“Our investigation has determined that this call was the result of a swatting incident,” police wrote. “Swatting is the intentional act of making a false emergency report to law enforcement in an effort to prompt a large police response to a specific location. These incidents unnecessarily place first responders and the public at risk while diverting emergency resources from legitimate calls for service.”

Police are continuing to investigate the incident.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The City of Columbia announced in a Friday press release that it is expanding its parking enforcement devices.

The city will start using “wheel immobilization devices,” beginning on Monday. This is in additional to the parking barnacles the city started using last year.

The release says it will be used for people with four or more outstanding parking tickets and will not be used for first-time offenders.  The release says vehicles fitting that criteria will first get a green warning notice.

“Wheel immobilization devices function similarly to the Barnacle by preventing a vehicle from being driven until outstanding citations have been addressed,” the release says. “Once the required fines are paid or other arrangements are made through the Municipal Court process, Parking Enforcement staff remove the device, allowing the driver to immediately continue on their way.”

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Alison Patton

ROLLA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The National Weather Service Office in Springfield confirmed on Friday afternoon that an EF-0 tornado traveled through Rolla for about a minute on Thursday night.

The maximum width of the tornado was 200 yards and it traveled more than a half mile from 10:02-03 p.m., the NWS shared on social media. Winds peaked between 80-85 miles per hour.

The tornado began along Homelife Plaza and went south before “lifting near” Soest Road, the :NWS says. “However it could not be determined as tornadic from that point on due to the lack of convergent damage,” the post says.

Damage was caused to trees and several businesses, including Dollar General and a smoke shop.

The Phelps County Central Communications said in a Thursday night social media post that it set off tornado sirens after residents had reported a tornado, even though a tornado warning wasn’t issued.

“We had a citizens report of a tornado on the ground and that is why we set off the tornado sirens,” the post says.

Communications Chief Stacey Smith said that typically, the storm sirens aren’t set off for a thunderstorm warning, but Thursday’s storms were an exception.

“In an event like that, where we feel like the public needs to take cover, we can activate those storm sirens. It doesn’t happen very often because the National Weather Service typically is able to see this stuff before it gets to us,” Smith said.

She said there were other funnel cloud sightings in the county too.

“We did have several first responders last night report rotation in other areas, at least two others, but that never touched down. Sounds like we got lucky,” Smith said.

The National Weather Service did not issue a tornado watch or warning for Phelps County, but it did issue a thunderstorm watch and warning, along with a flash flood warning.

Kristina Fryer, a Rolla resident who sent ABC 17 News a video of the storm, said it seemed similar to the EF-2 tornado that hit the city in March 2025.

“I was waiting for the tornado sirens because with the way things were looking, it was very similar to the storm we had last year in March when the tornado did come through,” Fryer said.

Another resident who also sent a video in, Isaiah Campbell, said he saw a funnel cloud, but it didn’t seem like it was strong.

“This one wasn’t that bad. It hit a small area this time. I don’t think it was really on the ground that long but it did, it caused some damage over there,” Campbell said.

According to a Facebook post, Rolla Public Schools observed debris from trees, with one tree on a fence, but minor damage overall. No buses or buildings were damaged.

There were 80 Intercounty Electric Cooperative Association members without power as of 11 a.m.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Missouri Task Force 1 has been activated and will be deployed to Sikeston for a flood response, the Boone County Fire Protection District wrote in a Friday morning social media post.

BCFPD said it was activated by SEMA to head to the Scott County town “as a Type III Task Force with embedded swift water rescue capabilities to assist with the ongoing catastrophic flooding in southeast Missouri.”

BCFPD expected to arrive at 10 a.m.

“Additionally, MO-TF1 is deploying a Disaster Situation Awareness and Reconnaissance (DSAR) Mission Ready Package. The DSAR team provides real-time aerial reconnaissance, disaster mapping, and situational awareness using Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (sUAS) and Geographic Information System (GIS) technology. This capability provides incident commanders with critical intelligence to support operational decision-making and resource deployment,” the release says.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The D.C. Rogers Recreation Area in Fayette has reopened, according to a Thursday social media post from the City of Fayette.

D.C. Rogers Lake closed on June 4 after significant rainfall affected the area. Peters Lake closed days before and will remain closed.

Previous reporting shows D.C. Rogers Lake need to be lowered by 5-7 inches. The road leading to the lake needed to be closed as a result.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Thousands of people were without power in Morgan County and surrounding counties on Friday morning.

There are 4,912 electricity customers without power in Morgan County between Co-Mo Electric Cooperative (2,780) and Ameren (2,132) users.

Additionally, 895 Ameren customers in Miller County were without power on Friday morning. Benton County saw 269 Co-Mo Electric Cooperative users without power.

Outages persisted in other parts of Mid-Missouri as well, with Phelps County seeing 193 Intercounty Electric Cooperative members without power.

Storms entered Mid-Missouri early Friday and the ABC 17 Stormtrack Weather Team had declared the day a Weather Alert Day.

Check back for updates.

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Matthew Sanders

The City of Columbia had its first in a series of forums over its proposal for a public safety sales tax that would pay for a new Columbia Police Department headquarters at a building formerly owned by IBM.

The plan would spend $35 million to convert the building.

Do you like the idea? Let us know by voting in the poll.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

No injuries were reported Thursday after a home in the 300 block of Union Street caught fire, according to a press release from the Jefferson City Fire Department.

Firefighters were called at 6:37 p.m. by multiple people and had the fire under control fewer than 20 minutes after arrives.

The home’s only occupant and one pet were able to get out safely before first responders arrived, the release says. The resident was displaced, however, and the American Red Cross was contacted for assistance, the release says.

JCFD and the Missouri State Fire Marshal’s Office are working to determine the cause of the fire.

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