With normal graduation celebrations on hold this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, communities around southwest Michigan are saluting their grads in new ways. That’s what happened on Friday night in South Haven as a “2020 Dream
(Lansing, MI – AP) – Governor Gretchen Whitmer is hinting she will soon reopen more regions of Michigan, expressing optimism as long as the rate of new coronavirus cases continues downward and testing increases. She didn’t specify
The Paliades nuclear power plant has a new resident inspector. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission says Courtney St. Peters is now on the job along with Senior Resident Inspector Paul LaFlamme. The two are responsible for monitoring the
Governor Whitmer will be testifying before a U.S. House panel next week. She will be joining Democratic Governor Jared Polis of Colorado and Republican Governor Asa Hutchinson of Arkansas for a remote hearing on individual state efforts
COVID-19 cases in Michigan are up by 607 on Friday to a total of 56,621 with 34 new deaths as that figure has risen to 5,406. Southwest Michigan’s cases are up slightly. Berrien County has seven new
Holland’s Tulip time Festival is in dire financial straits and needs to come up with $1 million in order to return in 2021. Executive director Gwen Auerda says they had to refund $400,000 in tickets after this
The numbers of new cases of COVID-19 are slowing down in Berrien County, and county Health Department Health Officer Nicki Britten says there has been a flattening and almost a decrease in hospital admissions for coronavirus patients.
The St. Joseph City Commission will hold a rare Sunday meeting this weekend. The reason for the meeting is to review and vote on changes to the dredging plan by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The
With the pandemic going on, the need for foster families in Michigan continues to exist. Michigan Department of Health and Human Services spokesperson Bob Wheaton tells WSJM News the state always has thousands of kids waiting for
SHOUT for South Haven has indefinitely postponed the planting of flowers set for Friday along the Dyckman Avenue bridge due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It says it’s been told by its supplier the flowers are not ready
Faith leaders around Michigan have joined the 2020 Census Be Counted campaign. Pastor Rodney Gulley with New Covenant Community Baptist Church in Benton Harbor tells WSJM News he’s part of the effort because he knows the census
Governor Gretchen Whitmer announced this week essential workers can now be tested for COVID-19 even without a doctor’s note. Berrien County Health Department spokesperson Gillian Conrad tells WSJM News that’s mostly true here in our area. It
(Lansing, MI – AP) — Michigan Secretary of State branch offices will reopen Monday by appointment only for essential transactions not available online. An announcement Thursday said that beginning next week, all 131 branch offices in Michigan
It looks like the Stay at Home orders because of coronavirus have had an impact on the roads in Michigan. “When we compared the first four months of 2019 to the first four months of 2020, there’s
Rural America could be in line for a big boost with more broadband internet being made available. Congressman Fred Upton is joining with House Majority Whip James Clyburn of South Carolina to sponsor the “Rural Broadband Acceleration
Calling it a 50-state problem in need of federal help for the solution, Governor Gretchen Whitmer is urging the U.S. Senate and President Trump to act to help states fill massive budget holes created by COVID-19. Whitmer
A resurfacing project on M-40 in Van Buren and Allegan counties will start next week. The Michigan Department of Transportation says it’s investing about $1.6 million in more than seven and a half miles of the road
Southwestern Michigan College is issuing refunds to students who paid for living quarters on campus. SMC has released the following statement: In a goodwill gesture this month, Southwestern Michigan College is refunding $800 of spring 2020 housing
Michigan is reporting 406 additional cases of COVID-19 for Thursday. The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services says the total number of coronavirus cases in the state since the start of the pandemic is now 56,014.
The Michigan National Guard has been in Berrien County this week to help with mass COVID-19 testing. The Berrien County Health Department has released the following statement: In support of the statewide efforts to increase testing for
Technical problems forced the Berrien County Board of Commissioners to cancel its Thursday morning meeting this week. The body was all set to meet over Zoom as it has been during the COVID-19 pandemic, but the tech
For the first time since World War Two, there will not be a Van Buren Youth Fair this summer. It had been scheduled for July 20-25. The fair’s board of directors says they’ve had to make the
A new $150,000 fund has been created by the United Way of Southwest Michigan to help schools during the pandemic. CEO Anna Murphy tells WSJM News school districts are going to take a hit because of a
The Michigan Department of Technology, Management, and Budget has announced a grant to expand broadband access in parts of Berrien and Cass counties. State Representative Brad Paquette says Mercury Wireless has been approved for a proposed project
Residents of Benton Harbor will be seeing Michigan State Police troopers and officers of the Benton Harbor Department of Public Safety zipping down the street on bicycles this summer. Michigan State Police Lieutenant Jeremy Carlisle tells WSJM
The Twin Cities Area Transportation Authority in Benton Harbor and St. Joseph is receiving a $2.4 million federal grant. The office of Senator Gary Peters announced this week the funds from the Federal Transit Administration will help
There are 504 new cases of COVID-19 recorded in the state as of Wednesday, with 68 new deaths as a result of the illness. The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services says those 68 include 14
If you thought you heard emergency sirens Wednesday morning in Berrien County, your ears were not playing tricks on you. Berrien County’s Emergency Siren System went off inadvertently for 10 to 15 seconds during what was supposed
The Allegan County Sheriff’s Department is investigating a stabbing in Lee Township, northeast of South Haven. Deputies were called to a home around 10 p.m. Tuesday by a man in his 50s who said he’d been stabbed
The United Way of Southwest Michigan has announced the creation of a $150,000 fund for schools hurting due to the COVID-10 pandemic. The United Way of Southwest Michigan has released the following statement: United Way of Southwest
