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IPA recently announced its 2024 project grant awards to six state park friends groups. IPA is proud to be able to help these organizations and their dedicated members improve the visitor experience at each of their properties.

Falls of the Ohio Foundation-$1,050 for interpretive signage on the Woodland Loop at Falls of the Ohio SP Trail; focused on Shawnee tribe presence
Friends of Brown County SP-$2,080 to rehab the Nature Center West Sitting Area; replant native trees and wildflowers, and purchase site furnishings
Friends of Clifty Falls SP-$1,200 for Wireless Tour Guide System; allows large groups to hear the interpretive naturalist when large crowds/single file lines are on trails
Friends of Hardy Lake-$1,000 to revitalize the Centennial Pollinator Garden
Friends of Spring Mill SP-$2,490 for trail system counters
Friends of Versailles SP-$565 for the purchase of metal bulletin boards to replace bulletin boards in the campground

It’s heating up here in Indiana, and our beaches are the perfect place for you to cool off and enjoy the summer sun!

Here are some things to remember while enjoying the beach:

Bring sun protection!
Picnic off the beach – we have great picnic areas and shelters just for you!
Mind your music – listen to music with headphones, not loudspeakers!
Bring beach towels, beach chairs, sandals, and other creature comforts for the beach.
Supervise your kiddos – Kids aged 12 and under must be supervised by someone 16 or older.
Remember, except for Indiana Dunes State Park beach, our beaches do not have lifeguards.

We have swimming beaches at Brookville, Cagles Mill, Cecil M. Harden, Hardy, Mississinewa, Monroe, Patoka, and Salamonie lakes, and Chain O’Lakes, Indiana Dunes, Lincoln, Ouabache, Pokagon, and Potato Creek state parks, as well as Starve Hollow and Deam Lake state recreation areas. Some beaches offer mobility mats that lead from an accessible sidewalk down to the water.

beach

Photo by Micheall Reed

By: Sgt. Carey Huls, Public Information Officer, Indiana State Police Sellersburg District

Southern Indiana – July 9, 2024: Detectives and crime scene investigators with the Indiana State Police in Sellersburg are conducting a murder investigation after officers responded to a residence on the 800 block of 11^th Street in downtown New Albany and found the homeowner dead from an apparent head injury.

Around 7:30 Tuesday evening, Jeffersonville Police Officers responded to the Meijer parking lot off Allison Lane in Jeffersonville in reference to a possible suicidal female. After locating and speaking with the female, officers determined a welfare check should be conducted at a residence on East 11th Street in New Albany. Jeffersonville Police then contacted the New Albany Police Department to conduct the welfare check. When officers arrived, they located the homeowner, 68-year-old Gary D. Reid, deceased on the floor of his home from an apparent head injury. The female, 26-year-old Tirzah Catherine Linson of Clarksville, Indiana was transported to Norton Clark Hospital in Clarksville for evaluation, and ISP detectives were called to investigate.

ISP detectives and Crime Scene Investigators responded to the hospital and the New Albany residence. They remained at the scene for several hours while investigators conducted interviews and CSI processed the crime scene.

As a result of the information gathered in the initial investigation, Detectives arrested Tirzah Linson for murder. Linson was transported from Norton Clark Hospital to the Floyd County Jail without further incident.

This investigation is ongoing. Jeffersonville Police, New Albany Police, and the Floyd County Coroner’s Office assisted with the investigation. An autopsy is scheduled for later this week.

By: Sgt. Carey Huls, Public Information Officer, Indiana State Police Sellersburg District

Harrison County - Troopers and crash reconstruction investigators from the Indiana State Police Sellersburg Post are investigating a crash that claimed the life of a Daviess County man Wednesday afternoon.

Around 2:30 Wednesday afternoon, police and emergency personnel responded to the report of a two-vehicle crash on I-64 eastbound near the 99.5 mile marker approximately 5 miles west of the Corydon exit. Once on the scene, officers discovered the driver of a black 2023 Tesla T3 collided with the rear of a semi-tractor and trailer. The driver of the Tesla, 50-year-old Suresh Kumar Lohano of Washington, Indiana, was pronounced dead at the scene. The driver of the semi was not injured.

Crash scene reconstruction and motor carrier enforcement officers from the Sellersburg Post responded to investigate and assist officers already at the scene. After the preliminary investigation, officers believe a 2011 Kenworth semi-truck and trailer was eastbound on I-64 near the 99.5 mile marker when the truck experienced a mechanical issue causing the vehicle to lose power. The driver could not steer the semi into the right lane or shoulder due to traffic in the right lane, and the truck quickly slowed and stopped in the left lane of the interstate. The driver of the Kenworth immediately called 911 and successfully placed orange safety triangles out behind the truck. A short time later, the black Tesla T3 approached from the west but failed to merge into the right lane before colliding with the rear of the semi-trailer, killing Mr. Lohano.

The I-64 eastbound lanes remained partially closed until approximately 6:15 pm. The Harrison County Sheriff's Department assisted with the investigation. The Harrison County Coroner's Office made notification to the family of the deceased.

This crash is still under investigation.

BEDFORD, Ind. (June 20, 2024) — At its June meeting, the Radius Indiana Board of Directors unanimously approved MAC Construction’s bid for the first phase of development for the Monon South Trail project. Construction for Phase I of the Trail is set to begin this summer, commencing with a groundbreaking in Borden July 16.

MAC Construction’s bid of $15.3 million is nearly $4 million under the engineer’s estimate for construction of the initial phase of the project, which will complete 20 miles of the nearly 60-mile trail by the Summer of 2025. During this phase, paved and aggregate sections of the trail will be completed through the downtown areas of Borden, New Pekin, Salem, Saltillo, Campbellsburg, Orleans, and Mitchell.

MAC Construction is a family-owned civil engineering and construction company based in New Albany, Indiana. Working in multiple sectors of civil construction, MAC Construction’s projects include the New Albany Riverfront Amphitheater stage, constructing the City of Clarksville Little League Park, and beautifying Main Street in Louisville, Kentucky. Throughout their projects, MAC Construction has focused on improving the Midwest, and the company has won multiple awards for excellence in safety and construction from the Kentucky Association of Highway Contractors (KAHC) as well as Associate Builders and Contractors Inc. (ABC) in 2020.

”We are very pleased that MAC Construction will bring their expertise and experience in recreational project construction to bear on the Monon South Trail. We look upon this project as one that will literally change the recreational and economic landscape of southern Indiana,” remarked Jeff Quyle. “The people who live in these four counties are going to have the opportunity to watch this eyesore rail corridor become an eyecatching asset over the next few months.”

Radius Indiana, the eight-county economic development organization, leads the Monon South effort and administers the funding for the development of the trail from the state’s NextLevel Trails fund, READI, and Radius. Once completed, the trail will increase connectivity and quality of life among communities in southern Indiana and create new opportunities in tourism and economic development for the businesses and towns.

To learn more information about the trail, Community Update Meetings will be held July 17 and 24. For additional updates, visit mononsouth.com and follow us on Facebook.