July 10, 2000 -
July 11, 2000 - The president of Minnesota Brewing says newly installed equipment has reduced the odor from ethanol production at the Saint Paul plant ... and further steps may eliminate the odor complaints that have plauged the West Seventh neighborhood for the last two months. But residents attending a community meeting last (Mon) night insisted the stench remains a problem. Some say the smell is causing health problems and they hope to stop ehtanol production at the plant. Minnesota Public Radio's William Wilcoxen has more...
July 11, 2000 - MPR’s Erin Galbally reports on record breaking floods that have divided downtown Austin, Minnesota. Heavy rains caused the Cedar River, Dobbins Creek and Turtle Creek to overflow into basements and roadways. Some in community find themselves without a home or belongings.
July 12, 2000 - The public and the press will be excluded from some proceedings in the Donald Blom kidnapping and murder trial. The jury is due to hear opening statements today. Minnesota Public Radio's Stephanie Hemphill reports. { Judge Gary Pagliacetti ruled Tuesday that he will close the trial to the public during certain arguments when the jury is not present. That unusual move was opposed by three newspapers and a television station. Mark Wernick, president of the Minnesota Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, says it's a move to ensure a fair trial, specifically so the jury will base its verdict solely on evidence presented in court and not what they may hear, even inadvertently, in the media or from friends. .
July 12, 2000 - The lasting heat and humidity is making some electricity providers sweat. Power company officials are on the look-out for so-called "peak alerts" when the demand for power exceeds what's readily available. Some places around the country expect short blackouts at times of high demand. In Rochester, the municipal utility company is sending a more potent message. It's warning residents that their electric bills could spike from a normal of three dollars a day to as much as 100 dollars if they don't conserve energy. Minnesota Public Radio's Art Hughes explains.
July 20, 2000 - An expert in forensic dentistry says the single tooth and parts of a jawbone found in Donald Blom's firepit are those of Katie Poirier. Blom is charged with abducting and killing Poirier last May. The prosecution is trying to build its case against Blom hampered by the fact it has very little physical evidence. Minnesota Public Radio's Stephanie Hemphill reports. { Testimony in the trial this week is focusing on the tiny bits of evidence found in the firepit on Donald Blom's property just outside Moose Lake. Forensic odontologist Dr. Anne Norlander told the court she believes "to a reasonable degree of medical certainty" the bone fragments and tooth found there belong to Katie Poirier.
July 27, 2000 - The Granite Falls tornado highlighted the need for people to have ample warning before severe weather strikes. The national weather serivce provides a warning network for homes or businesses that will automatically turn on radios when severe weather strikes. But not everyone in Minnesota is covered by the service. WCCO meterologist Paul Dougas says the service is centered in big cities, but the coverage gap is about to close. A bill that passed in the last Legislative session provides money to build 13 transmitters to make sure the entire state is covered. George Wilcox is a public affairs officer with the National Oceanic and Atmostpheric Administration or NOAA -- the organization that oversees the National Weather Service. He says NOAH weather radios operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
August 2, 2000 - Local officials from northeastern Minnesota sat down with Governor Ventura's staff today and shared ideas about how to grow the region's economy. It was the first time the Governor's cabinet has met outside St. Paul, and state officials say this trip was so successful, similar meetings around the state could become a regular feature of the Ventura Administration. Minnesota Public Radio's Stephanie Hemphill reports. { During the election campaign Jesse Ventura didn't know what I-triple R B stood for, and he stumbled on the Tonight show with Jay Leno when asked to describe taconite. But no more. Ventura and the heads of twenty-four state agencies learned about mining and a lot more on a two-day tour of the Iron Range. Yesterday they toured Minntac, the state's largest iron ore mine and taconite plant. Today they heard from local officials about efforts to diversity the Range economy.
August 3, 2000 - Mainstreet Radio's Cara Hetland reports that farmers in Day County in northeastern South Dakota have spent the past eight years watching their farm fields become lakes. Day County is in an area known as the “prairie pot hole.” There's no drainage system for the sloughs now filled with water. Landowners who once grazed hundreds of head of cattle now see a new sight on their pastureland…fishing boats.
August 4, 2000 - Jurors in an Iron Range Courtroom heard a tape of Donald Blom confessing to abducting and killing Katie Poirier Thursday. The taped confession which Blom has since recanted, was a long-awaited and painful part of the prosecution's case. Minnesota Public Radio's Stephanie Hemphill reports. { The Virginia courtroom was more crowded than usual, and Katie Poirier's friends and family wiped their eyes and gave each other supportive hugs as they heard Blom's voice describe taking the teenager from the convenience store where she was working alone late at night, driving to his nearby property, and strangling her. The tape was actually dominated by the voice of BCA investigator Paul Wagner, who conducted the interview. Blom said he'd been drinking that night and his memory of what happened hazy. Wagner had to lead him repeatedly through various episodes, trying to corroborate evidence provided by witnesses, or just trying to get Blom to recall exactly what happened.