DULUTH, Minn. – St. Luke’s announced on its Facebook page Tuesday afternoon that the COVID-19 Vaccine Clinic Hotline has been temporarily suspended. The hospital says they have suspended calls to the hotline due to an overwhelming amount of calls from the community. All other lines at St. Luke’s are still available. “We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause, and…
ST.PAUL, Minn. – On Monday, Gov. Tim Walz sent letters urging the CEOs of US Steel and Cleveland Cliffs to work together to ensure the future success of both Minntac and Hibbing Taconite operations. “I am writing this letter out of concern about the future of two iron ore taconite operations— Minntac and Hibbing Taconite–on Minnesota’s Iron Range and to…
(Scott Takushi/Pioneer Press via AP, Pool) ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Democratic Gov. Tim Walz has raised $1.7 million for his likely 2022 reelection bid since he took office two years ago and finished 2020 with $1.3 million in the bank. While Walz has not formally announced that he’ll seek a second term, his campaign also said Tuesday that he…
DULUTH, Minn. – The city of Duluth saw the highest number of opioid-related overdoses in 2020, according to a Tuesday press release from city officials. 2020 reports state there was a total of 213 overdoses within city limits and preliminary numbers show there were 20 opioid-related deaths, pending toxicology reports. In comparison, the city reported 106 overdoses in 2018 and…
(photo: Facebook/USS Minneapolis Saint Paul Commissioning Team) DULUTH, Minn. (AP) — The U.S. Navy says the commissioning of the USS Minneapolis-St. Paul in Duluth is on hold after a design defect was discovered. The high-speed combat ship was christened at the Marinette, Wisconsin shipyard in 2019. The commissioning ceremony was expected to take place this spring before a problem with…
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The Minneapolis mayor and police chief say officers will no longer be allowed to turn off their body cameras to talk privately when they respond to calls. The move announced Monday is one of several changes that followed the death of George Floyd and was an issue in another widely-publicized Minneapolis police killing. Floyd, who was Black…
DULUTH, Minn- On Tuesday, we’ll find out if we get six more weeks of winter or an early spring on Groundhog Day — and on Monday some kids in Duluth learned more about the tradition. As part of the YMCA’s twice-a-week programming at the Gary New Duluth Rec Center, kids got to learn all about Groundhogs, the history of the…
DULUTH, Minn.- The St. Louis County Depot has transformed its Great Hall into a small-scale vaccination clinic for front-line healthcare workers – meaning it will remain closed to the general public until April, with no plans for shows or exhibits until then. “We feel like it’s very important that we really push forward with this vaccination effort,” said Mary Tennis,…
COOK COUNTY, Minn. – Recent stay-safe restrictions have given many Northlanders more time to tackle projects we couldn’t get done during the busy hustle and bustle of daily lives pre-pandemic. In this week’s Knowing Your Neighbors, you’re invited inside two lodges along the North Shore that are happy to welcome guests into fresh facilities after months of hard work. “There…
DULUTH, Minn. – It was the programs first week back to in-person classes since November giving 5th grade students from Stella Maris Academy and Many Rivers Montessori a chance to get back to the books. “We take the math and science that students learn in their classrooms and kind of turn it on its head and deliver it in a…
DULUTH, Minn.- More opportunities to get tested for COVID-19 for free will be popping up around Duluth, part of St. Louis County Public Health’s plan to make testing more accessible for people who may have trouble getting to the DECC. Public Health Mobile Sites/Trailers will be at the following locations throughout the month: Wednesday, February 3, 10 a.m. to 2…
DULUTH, Minn. – More 65 and older Minnesotans are getting a chance to roll up their sleeves to get a covid-19 vaccine shot. Over 35,000 additional doses of the COVID-19 vaccine is being made available. Governor Tim Walz announced the new vaccine supply will be distributed throughout the state. Minnesota is receiving a greater than 15% increase in the number…
DULUTH, Minn. – It was quite a year for home sales in the Northland and it could be much of the same in 2021. After the sale of homes and their prices hit records, local realtors expect sales to remain constant. There is still a lack of inventory, which is creating a seller’s market. If you are looking to buy…
DULUTH, Minn. – The NAACP Duluth Chapter now has a new president. Duluth native Classie Dudley is taking over the role. She previously won the seat in an election six years ago, but a technicality regarding her membership took away the victory. She says that set back provided a learning opportunity when it came to running a second time. “I…
CLOQUET, Minn. – A Cloquet man charged with the fatal shooting of a 16-year-old last month in Brevator Township pleaded not guilty to second-degree manslaughter in court on Monday. According to reports, Joseph James Fohrenkam, 18, allegedly shot and killed Joseph James Peterson, 16, on the night of December 28 while drinking in his truck with friends and “waving a…
MINNEAPOLIS – The Minnesota Court of Appeals has upheld a former Minneapolis police officer’s murder conviction in the 2017 shooting death of an unarmed woman who had dialed 911. Mohamed Noor is serving 12 1/2 years in the death of Justine Ruszczyk Damond, whom he shot once in the stomach when she approached his patrol car in the alley behind…
DULUTH, Minn. – A skywalk linking Essentia’s Duluth Clinic to a city parking ramp officially opened on Monday. The skywalk will allow patients and staff easier access to Essentia Clinic’s first street building. The temporary skywalk will make it safe to travel through the Vision Northland construction site. Patients and staff must be screened for Covid-19 in the clinics main…
ST. PAUL, Minn. – Minnesota health officials reported 727 new cases of COVID-19 in Minnesota on Monday morning bringing the total confirmed COVID cases to 462,528 in the state. Health officials also reported 2 news deaths bringing the death total to 6,202 in Minnesota. According to the Minnesota Department of Health website, 6,597,842 tests have been completed to date. There…
DULUTH, Minn. – Chester Bowl is back open for business this winter and many families are taking advantage of all the activities the park has to offer. “The season has just been wonderful. People are excited to be out doing something active and social,” said Dave Schaeffer, Executive Director of Chester Bowl. Chester Bowl offers ski and snowboard lessons every…
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Minnesota health officials are expected Monday to announce “significantly more” coronavirus vaccine will be allotted to people 65 and older. The state has run a two-week pilot of community vaccination clinics since the federal government lowered the recommended age for vaccinations to 65 and up. But getting appointments has been difficult since states are getting far less…
FINLAND, Minn. – The John Beargrease Half Marathon officially has a winner. The mushers arrived at the Trestle Inn in Finland, Minnesota just before 6:30 a.m. Monday morning. Erin Schouweiler crossed the finish line first followed by Michael Bestgen in a close second. Rita Wehseler came in third. So far, ten total mushers have crossed the 120 finish line. Schouweiler…
DULUTH, Minn.-With a different starting line, warmer weather, and no spectators, the 37th John Beargrease Sled Dog Marathon looked different. But to mushers and their dogs, the trail experience looks to be the same. “Having this race happen is huge not only for the mushers and the fans but for the dogs,” said returning champ Ryan Redington. “You hear how…
DULUTH, Minn. – A Duluth woman is using her background as a former U.S. government studies teacher to not only educate her large Instagram following, but to do some good as well. Sharon McMahon spent years teaching U.S. government studies in different corners of the country and now runs a photography business in Duluth. This past fall, her passion for…
DULUTH, Minn.- While mushers, handlers and the dog teams get blinded by excitement before they start on the trail, the Beargrease veterinarians were busy making sure the dogs were in race-shape Sunday. At Saturday’s final official vet check, mushers could get extra dogs checked and cleared, just in case one of them gets injured overnight or at the starting line….
DULUTH, Minn. – If you didn’t know already, the Beargrease has a rich history that dates back to the 1800s when John Beargrease himself was a U.S. Postal Service mail carrier up the North Shore. John Beargrease would travel between Two Harbors and Grand Marais with only four dogs pulling his toboggan. John became well-known for his efforts to get…
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – Some Minnesotans enrolled in the state’s pilot COVID-19 vaccination program got multiple emails and texts that wrongly told them their appointments were canceled. State health officials say nearly everyone who got the erroneous message has been notified that their appointments are indeed confirmed. The messages came Saturday from the state’s vendor, Primary Bio, and were intended for…
Minnesota health officials are confirming 996 new COVID-19 cases and 13 new deaths to due complications from the coronavirus. The update released Sunday increased the total number of positive tests to 461,807 and cumulative deaths to 6,200 since the start of the pandemic. The COVID Tracking Project reports that Minnesota 48th in the country for new cases per capita in…
SAGINAW, Minn.- According to the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension the man who died Friday during an officer-involved shooting incident in Saginaw died of a self-inflicted gunshot, not a gunshot by authorities, as the St. Louis County Sheriff’s Office previously reported. A spokesperson with the BCA said the Midwest Medical Examiner’s Office has identified the man as Scott Michael…
DULUTH, Minn. – The Second Harvest Food Bank has seen a jump in the need for food assistance across the region this year. Second Harvest officials say this year about 8% more people throughout Northeast Minnesota and Northwest Wisconsin needed help feeding their families. That’s an estimated additional 13,500 people for the year. Also, 20% of the people using the…
DULUTH, Minn. – Duluth Police are continuing to see an uptick in car thefts during the winter months. Authorities say certain habits during the winter can make people’s cars a target for car thieves. It believed people are leaving their keys in the car or leaving it running to warm up during chilly days. DPD says there are a few…
TWO HARBORS, Minn. – Some of the top beer makers in Minnesota are hoping to bring a change to restrictions preventing the sale of growlers. “We are actually the only five in the entire country. Over 8,000 breweries in the country, we are the only five restricted from selling beer to-go to the consumer. That’s crazy we need to make…
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A large Minnesota school district has been forced to return to distance learning after an outbreak of COVID-19 among its transportation workers. Bloomington Public Schools brought back preschoolers through second graders on Jan. 19 and had planned to bring back third to fifth graders on Monday. But the district informed parents Thursday evening that the plan is…
ST. PAUL, Minn. – Minnesota health officials reported 1,145 new cases of COVID-19 in Minnesota on Friday morning bringing the total confirmed COVID cases to 459,747 in the state. Health officials also reported 28 news deaths bringing the death total to 6,168 in Minnesota. According to the Minnesota Department of Health website, 6,513,797 tests have been completed to date. There…
TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (AP) – Michigan’s environmental agency is approving the construction of an underground tunnel to house a replacement for a controversial oil pipeline in the Great Lakes. State officials have awarded permits to Enbridge for the $500 million tunnel project. The company is resisting Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s order to shut down Enbridge’s Line 5 in the Straits…
(from left, Derek Chauvin, Tuo Thao, Thomas Lane, and J. Alexander Kueng) MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Prosecutors in Minnesota have appealed a judge’s ruling that split the trials of four Minneapolis police officers charged in George Floyd’s death and kept the first trial scheduled to start in March. Hennepin County Judge Peter Cahill ruled earlier in January that Derek Chauvin, the…
DULUTH, Minn. – Glensheen is now offering free snowshoe rental to guests with the purchase of a tour every Saturday and Sunday through March. Management says it’s exciting to be able to explore the grounds with the snow cover. “It’s awesome for people to go inside the cozy mansion but really the estate in the winter season is absolutely beautiful,”…
DULUTH, Minn – The Lake Superior Ice Festival at Barker’s Island starts on Friday and some preps have already underway. Crews have already started to clear snow around the area. Blue boxes have also been placed around town in preparation for the arrival of more than two dozen ice sculptures. An organizer told us it’s difficult to plan an event…
DULUTH, Minn. – A University of Minnesota Duluth program is helping adults 50 and older continue the journey of lifelong learning. University for Seniors is a program at UMD that offers intellectual and cultural development to promote learning among the older population. The program is a peer-led learning program. It is run in a study group format and volunteers like…
DULUTH, Minn. – The Greater Minnesota Regional Parks and Trails Commission has started a new initiative to encourage people to get outdoors. Commission members visited the Hartley Nature Center in Duluth to promote a new campaign called “Mask Out Minnesota.” The campaign wants to motivate people to try out state parks and trails, which have gotten more popular during the…
(photo courtesy: Essentia Health) DULUTH, Minn. – Esssentia Health debuted its first mobile COVID-19 vaccine unit on Thursday that will be used to administer vaccines to groups in need of on-site vaccinations in the community. The mobile unit stopped at The Hills Youth and Family Services on Thursday where 45 staff members were vaccinated as part of the Phase 1A…
ST. PAUL, Minn. – Minnesota health officials reported 1,335 new cases of COVID-19 in Minnesota on Thursday morning bringing the total confirmed COVID cases to 458,633 in the state. Health officials also reported 16 news deaths bringing the death total to 6,140 in Minnesota. According to the Minnesota Department of Health website, 6,467,868 tests have been completed to date. There…
DULUTH, Minn. – Phil Pumphrey has left his position as the Duluth Transit Authority General Manager. The Duluth Transit Authority announced in a Thursday morning press release that while Pumphrey has left his role at the DTA he will remain with First Transit, the company currently under contract to staff a General Manager for the agency. DTA Assistant General Manager,…
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The fight has heated up over whether Minnesota should tighten its election laws or make voting easier. A key Senate panel Wednesday backed a Republican proposal to require voters to present photo identification. Sen. Scott Newman framed it as aimed more at increasing voter confidence in election results than at preventing fraud. But Democratic Secretary of State…
ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Minn. – The St. Louis County Sheriff’s Office is sending a warning about a recent uptick in scam phone calls and email impacting northland residents. A handful of complaints have recently been made to the sheriff’s about the attempted scamming. Law enforcement believe the increase in calls and emails may be a result of stimulus money being…
LAKE COUNTY, Minn. – The distribution of COVID-19 vaccines continues throughout the Northland and now some more rural residents will soon be getting in on the action. Lake County Health and Human Services is working to get vaccines out to residents as quickly as possible. One way is by offering pop-up vaccine clinics, which gives the county the ability to…
DULUTH, Minn. — The condemned Kozy building in downtown Duluth is saved again from demolition by the city — at least for now. St. Louis County Judge Eric Hylden has ordered the city of Duluth and the Duluth Economic Development Authority (DEDA) to immediately install braces against the walls of the building damaged by fire last November. After that, the…
HERMANTOWN, Minn. – Green houses in the area are already thinking Spring. The Lilac Hill greenhouse in Hermantown first began prepping some geranium plants in early January. The greenhouse will receive even more plants in the coming weeks. “We start out twelve in hanging baskets which is our petunias and the large big baskets you see that we have available…
(FOX 9) – Minnesotans with driver’s licenses or ID cards that expire as COVID-19 extensions come to an end are urged to renew online or in-person in the coming weeks. According to a release from the Department of Public Safety, there are approximately 300,000 Minnesota driver’s license and ID cards that would have expired between March 13, 2020, and Feb. 28, 2021….
DULUTH, Minn. – On Wednesday, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Minnesota Pollution Control Agency signed a $16 million project agreement to clean up contaminated sediment in the “ponds behind Erie Pier” in Duluth. “EPA’s partnership with Minnesota continues to produce results in the St. Louis River Area of Concern,” said acting EPA Regional Administrator Cheryl Newton. “This sediment cleanup…
ST. PAUL, Minn. – Minnesota health officials reported 851 new cases of COVID-19 in Minnesota on Wednesday morning bringing the total confirmed COVID cases to 457,317 in the state. Health officials also reported 18 news deaths bringing the death total to 6,124 in Minnesota. According to the Minnesota Department of Health website, 6,420,268 tests have been completed to date. There…
