CSi Weather…

REST OF TODAY… Clearing in the afternoon.

Highs in the mid 60s. South winds 20 to 25 mph with gusts to

around 40 mph.

.TONIGHT…Partly cloudy. Lows in the lower 40s. South winds 5 to

15 mph. Gusts up to 30 mph in the evening.

.SATURDAY…Mostly sunny. Highs in the upper 60s. Northwest winds

10 to 15 mph.

.SATURDAY NIGHT…Mostly cloudy. Lows in the lower 40s. West

winds around 5 mph.

.SUNDAY…Partly sunny with a 30 percent chance of rain showers.

Highs in the upper 50s. Northeast winds 5 to 15 mph. Gusts up to

30 mph in the afternoon.

.SUNDAY NIGHT AND MONDAY…Mostly cloudy with a 30 percent chance

of rain showers and snow showers. Lows in the lower 30s. Highs in

the mid 40s to upper 50s.

.MONDAY NIGHT…Decreasing clouds. Lows in the mid 20s.

.TUESDAY AND TUESDAY NIGHT…Partly cloudy. Highs in the lower

50s. Lows in the mid 20s to lower 30s.

.WEDNESDAY…Partly sunny. Slight chance of rain showers and snow

showers in the morning, then chance of rain showers in the

afternoon. Highs in the mid 50s. Chance of precipitation

40 percent.

.WEDNESDAY NIGHT…Mostly cloudy with a 40 percent chance of rain

showers. Lows in the upper 30s.

.THURSDAY…Mostly sunny. Highs in the upper 50s.

 

Strong southerly winds will combine with low relative humidities to produce near critical fire weather conditions Friday afternoon in eastern North Dakota.

 

Jamestown (CSI) The James River Humane Society has set spring projects, and announces a new memorial fundraiser.

On Friday’s Wayne Byers Show on CSi Cable 2, board member Jay Nitchke said, volunteers and donations are welcome to support the projects consisting of kennel repairs, painting, and ground leveling including the pet cemetery.

The new memorial program offers the opportunity to honor a person past or present, who has shown a love for animals, or may it be the name of a pet who has passed away, as a loving tribute.

The names will be placed on either a dog or cat kennel, of the donors choice.

The donation is a minimum of $100, and the memorial will be in place for a year.

For more information contact board member Chris Meidinger, or go to the shelters website:  http://www.jamesriverhumanesociety.org/links, or on Facebook, htmlhttp://www.facebook.com/JRHSnd

The dog kennels will get the memorials first and in about a month the cat kennels.

Jay said the James River Humane Society currently has 15 dogs and 20 cats available for adoption.

For more information contact the shelter at 701-252-0747, located at the I-94 Bloom Exit.

Open every day from 9-a.m., to noon and 3:30-p.m., to 6:30-p.m., or by appointment.

Local animals available for adoption can be found on line at petfinder.com

 

Valley City (CSi)  CHI Mercy Health Foundation is accepting applications for scholarships. Stephanie Mayfield says, each year, two nursing scholarships are given out to recipients that are enrolled in an accredited nursing program. One of the scholarships is provided by funds contributed by CHI Mercy Health’s Nursing Department which is matched by the foundation.

The second nursing scholarship comes from a fund set up to honor LaVonne Reidman. The family of LaVonne Reidman established this scholarship in 2005 in memory of Lavonne and her dedication to the nursing profession.  LaVonne was a wonderful, caring nurse for many years at Mercy Hospital in Valley City.  CHI Mercy Health Foundation is managing this scholarship for the Reidman Family.

Finally, there will be two more scholarships offered that are open to anyone pursuing a general medical career, including technician programs. One of these scholarships is provided by nursing staff fundraisers and the other through the LaVonne Reidman family.

For more information contact Stephanie Mayfield in the CHI Mercy Health Foundation office (direct #845-6557 or stephaniemayfield@catholichealth.net) to get an application or go online:  www.mercyhospitalvalleycity.org under the scholarships tab. The deadline to apply is May 15, 2017.

 

 

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — State School Superintendent Kirsten Baesler says she’s approved new math and English standards for North Dakota schools.

The standards are not based on the federally backed Common Core, which has been criticized as a federal takeover of education. They’re the work of two committees comprising more than 70 math and language experts, with the help of public comment.

The committees began working on the standards last June. They’ll be in place for the 2017-18 school year.

 

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — A statement by Democratic U.S. Sen. Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota indicates she is generally supportive of missile strikes in Syria, but she’s asking President Donald Trump to outline his long-term plan.

Heitkamp says the chemical weapons attack by Bashar al-Assad that killed innocent men, women and children cannot be tolerated and “deserve a response.” She says any use of military force is a serious act and the U.S. should be careful whenever escalating military involvement overseas.

The senator says it’s up to Trump to tell Congress his strategy and how he plans to coordinate with allies to implement the plan. She says the situation in Syria remains “volatile and complex” and the U.S. must weigh the best options for advancing its interests.

 

Washington (CSi)  Senator John Hoeven Friday issued the following statement regarding U.S.-launched missile strikes in Syria:

“Last night’s military strike, which was limited and calculated, sent a clear message to the Syrian regime that the use of chemical weapons will not be tolerated. It is important that the world knows that we mean what we say, and that we will stand with our allies and stand up to our adversaries. Russia and Syria failed to uphold the diplomatic arrangements intended to eliminate the threat of Syrian chemical weapons so President Trump acted decisively to deter the Assad regime from using them again. We stand with our men and women in uniform who carried out this difficult mission with dedication and skill. We need to continue working with our allies in the region and other countries to defeat ISIS and stabilize Syria so that its people have an opportunity to chart their own future.”

 

 

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — Republican North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum has signed a bill that relaxes rules for reporting oil field spills.

Burgum signed the bill Friday that lifts the requirement for companies to report spills of 10 barrels or less that are contained at a well site. A barrel is 42 gallons.

Companies are still required to report spills that escape from a well site, and they must clean up all spills.

Some ranchers, farmers and property owners opposed the bill, saying all spills should be reported.

State data show there were more than 1,250 spills contained to well sites last year, and more than half of them were less than 10 barrels.

 

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum has signed legislation that creates a new state agency aimed at environmental protection.

Burgum signed the bill Friday that separates at no cost the Environmental Health Section of the state Department of Health into a new cabinet-level agency called the Department of Environmental Quality.

Burgum says the new agency will continue to administer and enforce the same environmental protection programs as the existing Environmental Health Section.

The agency will be overseen by a new 13-member board and its director will report directly to the governor.

 

 

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — A Bismarck hospital has announced another round of layoffs.

CHI St. Alexius laid off 25 workers on Thursday, bringing the total to 119 in the past year.

President Kurt Schley said the hospital needs to “better align and match staffing resources to patient volumes.”

The hospital laid off 19 people in March 2016, 52 in January and 19 in February.

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — A Standing Rock Sioux tribal leader has been convicted of sexually abusing a girl.The Bismarck Tribune reports that a jury deliberated four hours Thursday before finding 54-year-old Cannon Ball District Chairman Robert Fool Bear guilty on four counts related to sexual abuse of a child. He was found not guilty of physically assaulting the girl.

Authorities say Fool Bear repeatedly raped the girl over the course of four years. He maintained that the girl made up the story.

Fool Bear faces a minimum of 30 years in prison when he’s sentenced Aug. 23.
BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — A Plains farm aid nonprofit that has steadily grown since being launched in North Dakota a dozen years ago is expanding into its sixth state.

Farm Rescue will provide free haying and hay-hauling help to Nebraska farmers in need this year, as it continues providing services to farmers in both Dakotas, Montana, Minnesota and Iowa.

In those states, the organization has provided crop planting and harvesting assistance and hay help for more than 400 farm families since 2005.

Farm Rescue doesn’t dole out cash. It has about 1,100 volunteers from around the country who do the actual physical work for farmers who have suffered a major injury, illness or natural disaster. The organization is currently taking applications for spring assistance in all of the states in which it works.

 

In sports…

Jamestown  (CSi)  A Hunter Safety Class is being started in Ypsilanti by Dale Marks.

He says, starting Tuesday April 11, 2017, from 6-p.m., to 8-p.m., the classes will continue April 17, 18, 20, 25, 27 and 28, with the classes to be held at the Ypsilanti Elevator, meeting room.

There is no charge to attend.

Anyone interested may call Dale Marks.

 

 

In world and national news…

PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — The United States is looking into whether Russia participated in the Syrian chemical weapons attack that provoked President Donald Trump’s airstrikes against the Assad government, a revelation that could have dramatic implications for relations between Washington and Moscow. On Friday, senior U.S. military officials said a drone belonging to either Russia or Syria was seen hovering over the site of the chemical weapons attack after the assault earlier this week.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Pentagon says 59 cruise missiles hit their targets on a Syrian air base Thursday night. Senior U.S. military officials say one missile failed. Earlier, U.S. officials had said 58 missiles had struck their targets.

STOCKHOLM (AP) — Swedish police have launched a nation-wide manhunt for the person or persons who drove a stolen beer truck down a pedestrian street in Stockholm and crashed it into a department store. Police released photos of a man wearing a greenish hood at the top of an escalator, believed to be somehow “connected to the event.” Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Lofven described the crash as a terror attack and said two people were killed.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House is praising Neil Gorsuch following his confirmation as the next Supreme Court justice. President Donald Trump says in a statement that Gorsuch’s “judicial temperament, exceptional intellect, unparalleled integrity, and record of independence” will make him “the perfect choice” to serve on the court.

PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — First lady Melania Trump and Peng Liyuan (puhng LEE’-yoo-en), the wife of the Chinese president, are visiting a seventh-grade civics class at a Florida middle school. They toured Bak Middle School of the Arts in West Palm Beach and mingled with students as they made posters about international conflicts, including the Cuban missile crisis, the Korean War and World War II. Trump is meeting with the Chinese president at his private estate in Florida.