Three people were injured in two separate accidents late last night and early this morning in Eagle.

A 40-year-old Whitewater woman was injured when she missed a curve near Highway 67 and LO shortly after 11 p.m. on Dec. 31. Her car rolled over, ending up on its roof. The woman was transferred to Waukesha Memorial Hospital with non-life threatening injuries, according to the Waukesha County Sheriff's Department. Alcohol may have been a factor in the accident.

On Jan. 1 around 2:30 a.m. a Cadillac SUV rolled over and sheered off a power pole at Highway 59 and Oakridge Drive, according to the Sheriff's Department. The 63-year-old male driver and his 52-year-old female passenger were trapped in the vehicle. Eagle and Mukwonago Fire Departments responded to the call and removed the man and woman who were taken by Flight for Lfe to Froedtert Hospital. Alcohol was believed to be a factor in the accident, according to a Sheriff's Department press release.

Waukesha County Public Health Division will hold a free H1N1 vaccination clinic on Thursday, Jan. 7.  The clinic is intended to provide both the intranasal and injectable vaccination to all Waukesha County residents on a first come, first serve basis at the Waukesha County Expo Center, 1000 Northview Road, Waukesha, from 2 to 6 p.m. or until the vaccine runs out.

Consent and medical history forms that can be filled out in advance of the clinics are available on the Waukesha County website www.waukeshacounty.gov/pandemicflu .  It is recommended that those seeking the vaccine download and complete the form in advance of the clinic to expedite the vaccination process.

For more information visit www.waukeshacounty.gov/pandemicflu or call (262) 547-3388.

It's time again for the Mukwonago Chief's annual Five Who Give feature which highlights people who go above and beyond when serving their communities.

We are asking our readers for their nominations of people who have shared their time and talent to make Mukwonago and or the surrounding communities a better place to live.

Whoever your nominee may be, simply send the individual's name, address and phone number, along with a description of why you think that person deserves to be recognized as one of the Chief's Five Who Give, to Mukwonago Publications, P.O. Box 204, Mukwonago, WI 53149, drop it by our office at 111 N. Rochester, or e-mail your nomination to Amy Nixon at anixon@jcpgroup.com.

Nominees must live or work in the Mukwonago, Big Bend, Vernon, East Troy, Eagle, Palmyra or North Prairie area.  Contact information for the person making the nomination must be included.  Anonymous nominations for Five Who Give will not be accepted.

Nomination deadline is Friday, Jan. 22 at 3 p.m.

The five honorees will be selected from nominations received by the Chief staff; and the stories and photos of each will run in an upcoming issue of the Mukwonago Chief.

Two of the top Classic 8 Conference girls basketball programs will compete this evening at Kettle Moraine, when the host Lasers battle Mukwonago, beginning at 7:30 p.m.

For updates on the action as it happens, visit the Preps Alcove on Twitter.

Led by a brilliant performance by their reserves, Arrowhead's No. 1 ranked boys basketball team rolled over visiting Waukesha North Tuesday night in a Classic 8 Conference game, 55-35.

AHS improved to 8-1 overall and a perfect 4-0 in league play. North fell to 5-4 and 2-2.

In one stretch from late into the first period throughout the second, the AHS reserves scored 25 straight points for the winners. AHS made five straight 3-pointers in that surge and connected on 7 of 10 in the second period.

Ryan May, Andrew Reichl, Brandon St. George and Charles Rushman accounted for those 25 bench points for Arrowhead.

Ben Mills finished the game with 10 points for AHS, all of which came in the second half. St. George had 9, Andy Fox and Reichl 8 and Rushman 7.

Pewaukee's varsity boys basketball team improved to 10-0 on the season and 8-0 in Woodland Conference play Tuesday by defeating host Greenfield, 65-37.

The 10-0 start ties the best beginning in school history.

The Pirates, ranked No. 4 in the state in Division 2,  played tough defense all night long, jumping out to a 32-18 edge at halftime.

Jordan Daul scored 11 points to lead the Pirates and Mike Olewinski added 10. Tyler Hanson and Jordan Edgerson had 9 and 8 points respectively.

Arrowhead's varsity girls basketball team rolled to an easy 40-19 Classic 8 Conference victory over host Waukesha North Tuesday night,  40-19.

AHS is now 4-4 on the season and 2-2 in league play.

The loss was the 89th in a row for the Northstars in conference play.

Jenny Smith led the winners with 12 points.

Pewaukee's varsity girls basketball team, ranked 14th in the state in Division 2, rolled to an easy 72-19 Woodland Conference victory over visiting Greenfield Tuesday night.

PHS improved to 8-1 overall and 7-1 in league play.

Pewaukee led 43-17 at halftime and then held Greenfield without a field goal in the second half. Greenfield scored just 2 points in the last two periods.

Sophomores Natalie Wood and Emily Wirth had 13 points each for the Pirates. Caitlyn Rosenberger and Bre Geipel had 9 and 8 points respectively.

No,. 6 ranked Waukesha scored two goals in the final 2:31 Tuesday night and knocked off  the No. 10 ranked Arrowhead varsity boys hockey team in a Classic 8 Conference game, 4-3 at Eble Park.

Waukesha improved to 11-2 overall and 3-0 in league play. AHS fell to 9-5 overall and 2-1 in conference games.

Arrowhead led 3-2 with 2:31 to play in the third period before Waukesha tied the game with a power-play goal. They then stunned the Warhawks by scoring a shorthanded goal with 29 seconds to play.

An additional candidate has announced her intent to run for the Mukwonago School Board since the Mukwonago Chief went to press yesterday.  In addition to Curt Wiebelhaus, Joanne M. Olson-Newberry has turned in her nomination papers to run for the West Seat.

The Mukwonago Area Chamber of Commerce and Tourism has just announced that April Reszka has been selected as the new Executive Director. 

April has over fifteen years of sales and business experience, most recently working as Senior Account Executive for Premiere Global Services. April has also served as President of the Mukwonago Area Chamber of Commerce as well as serving on the Board of Directors for the Wisconsin Telecommunications Association and Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Milwaukee County. 

April begins her new position January 11.

For the latest in flight information from Mitchell International click here.

For the latest in school and business closings, click here.

Waukesha County Sheriff's Department has confirmed that a  vehicle rolled over on Interstate 43 near Hi-Lo Drive, near Mukwonago, at about 8:05 this morning.  At this time, it is unknown if anyone was injured in that accident.

Oh the weather outside is frightful....but a picture is so delightful.

We want to see your winter storm photos.  Send Lake Country photos to lakenews@jcpgroup.com and send Mukwonago Area photos to mukpubs@jcpgroup.com.  We'll post them on our site as they come in.

Detective Steve Pederson with the Waukesha County Sheriff's Department reported that the rollover accident on I-43 near Hi-Lo Drive in Mukwonago was not serious and resulted in no injuries.

A couple more low impact crashes have occurred in the same area, Pederson said.  The accidents were all minor and no one was injured.

Oconomowoc Area Schools - As for now, after school activites have not been cancelled, according to Oconomowoc High School.

The athletic/activities department has advised that they will post an update on the school's Website, on the athletic department page at 2 p.m. this afternoon.

The Big Bend/Vernon Fire Department is responding to I-43 and Oakdale Drive where a vehicle reportedly slid into the bridge at the overpass just south of Oakdale Drive traveling at 60 mph. 

The vehicle then spun out in the median, heading northbound on I-43.

According to dispatch, the driver of that vehicle reported that he was not injured.

Winter weather has compelled the postponement of evening athletics events at least one local high school. Those events:

• Oconomowoc boys basketball vs. Wisconsin Lutheran, moved to Feb. 2
• Oconomowoc wrestling at West Bend East, moved to Feb. 2
• Hamilton swimming and wrestling postponed (no makeup date announced)
• Mukwonago sports events are all canceled for Thursday evening.

After school activities have been canceled for St. James Grade School in Mukwonago.

Because of the persistent snow , travel conditions throughout the entire Lake Country area are getting worse by the hour in most communities.

At 1 p.m, a trip from the Waukesha Airport to Hartland took almost 25 mintues, more10 minutes slower than normal On Highway 16 the right lane was clear but slippery in some spots and the passing lane was snowcovered both east and west-bound. There were two cars on the ditches just outside of Pewaukee in the west-bound lane.  Traffic was going  30 to 35 miles per hour.

Country roads around Hartland toward Merton and North Lake were also snowcovered.

The snowfall has not adversely affected life in Lake Country throughout the day, but most weather experts advise getting home safe and staying there as it will likely get worse later this evening affecting Friday’s drive in to work and school.

 In the last few hours only one accident has been reported. Waukesha County dispatch called for help from authorities in Big Bend and Vernon after a truck rolled over multiple times. The driver was able to safely get out of the vehicle unharmed reports disclosed. The Hartland Police Department reported its scanner has been quiet all day, other reports indicated Highways 74 and 83 are staying plowed with steady traffic flow.

The state Department of Transportation offers this link,

http://www.511wi.gov/web/map.aspx?region=winterroads&show=1

to check current road conditions before you head out. At the time of this post, 2 p.m., all major state highways and interstates were reportedly snow covered, with slippery stretches reported on I-43 and I-41 south out of Milwaukee and West Allis.

According to Web site, weatherunderground.com, forecasts for the greater Waukesha area call for snow through late evening with a chance of snow after midnight for four to six hours.  Forecasts predict a total snow accumulation of 4 to 8 inches with lows around 15 degrees, north winds 10 to 20 miles per hour.

No school closings in the Lake Country area have been reported as of 2 p.m. Thursday.

 Rusty Kapella, chief meteorologist at the Sullivan weather office stated that counties in the southeast portion of Wisconsin will remain under a Winter Weather Warning until 6 a.m. Friday. Counties in the east central region and south west region are under a Winter Weather Advisory. Some Lake Superior snow belt counties are under a Lake Effect Snow Warning.

Kapella said that southeastern Wisconsin counties can expect between 8 and 10 inches of snow before the current storm ends sometime after 9 p.m. today. Counties further north and west can expect 6 to 8 inches of snow. Counties still further north and west can expect between 5 and 6 inches of snow to fall and some counties in the Lake Superior snow belt may receive up to 10 inches of snow.

This afternoon and evening, Kapella said, winds are expected to increase to 15 to 30 miles per hour causing blowing and drifting of snow and, in some open areas, visibility may be reduced to between 1/2 to 1/4 mile. Temperatures should be in the teens in the northern part of Wisconsin and in the 20s in the southern portions of the state today falling into the single numbers overnight tonight. Some areas in northwestern Wisconsin may fall below zero overnight.

Waukesha County Dispatchers called for mutual aid for a blue SUV that went off I-94 westbound on Pewaukee Road resulting in a rollover on the south side of Pewaukee Road.

The vehicle landed on its roof by the Peterbuilt sign directly under Jungbluth bridge. Authorities reported both occupants were ok and out of the vehicle, no other information was available at the time of this posting.

After-school activities in the Mukwonago Area School District have been cancelled for Thursday, according to District Superintendent Paul Strobel.

Zac Sanders cleans up the day's snow on Chestnut Ridge Road in Hartland Thursday afternoon. Forecasts call for up to 8 inches more through the night.

Oconomowoc Memorial Hospital has not handled any weather related injuries or accidents as a result of today's snowfall.

"People must be heeding the warnings," about using caution with snowblowers, taking needed breaks when shoveling, and dressing appropriately for the weather, said hospital spokesperson Sandra Peterson.

More snow and stronger winds are expected this evening.

As the area prepares to head home for the evening, you can check for updates on the state Department of Transportation's Web site,

http://www.511wi.gov/web/map.aspx?region=winterroads&show=1

If you check cameras in the right column, you can see the latest road conditions on area roads. As of this posting, roads are clear for the most part, but conditions are wet and snowy.

Another rollover was reported around 3:48 p.m. Dispatchers called for all Pewaukee units to respond to  a black SUV that had rolled over on Highway 16 east three-quarters of a mile west of Ryan Road on the south side of the road.

The Sullivan weather station issued a winter storm warning through tomorrow.

The site said, "A vigorous low pressure system moving through the area will bring continued periods of moderate to heavy snow to portions of southern Wisconsin into this evening. The snow will begin to taper off in the west later this evening but continue into the overnight in the east particularly near the lake," the warning reads.

Eight to 10 inches are expected east of a line stretching from Sheboygan to Jefferson to Janesville. Brisk northerly winds moving into the west will spread this evening and continue overnight resulting in snow drifts.

 

School and business closings

DOT

Doppler

Mitchell International: Arrivals and Departures

Pewaukee's varsity wrestling team rolled to two more easy Woodland Conference wins last Wednesday night by defeating Greendale (70-6) and host Brown Deer (58-12). PHS improved to 6-0 in league matches this season and have an impressive 28-0 record since joining the league in 2006.

Senior Mitch Teeters won both of his matches by pins.

PHS wrestlers remaining undefeated in conference events are Max Nonnamaker, Teeters, Chris Czech, Mike Dusel, Jordan Porter and Kent Girmscheid.

Visiting Waukesha South jumped out to a 9-0 lead after the first quarter Friday night and defeated Arrowhead's varsity girls basketball team in a Classic 8 Conference game, 42-37.

AHS fell to 2-3 in league play and 4-5 overall.

It marked the third time this season the AHS girls got shutout in the first period. They also failed to score in the opening quarter against Oak Creek and Milwaukee Pius.

Sophomore Jenny Smith had 10 points to lead the Warhawks.

South got 16 points each from junior Katy Allen and sophomore Eileen Van Horn.

Host Whitnall handed Pewaukee's varsity boys basketball team its first loss of the season Friday night, scoring a 57-35 win over the Pirates. Pewaukee is now 10-1 on the season and 8-1 in Woodland Conference play.

The Pirates, ranked fourth in the state in Division 2, got 7 points from guard Tyler Hanson.

William Pelkofer of Whitnall, the leading scorer in the conference, led the winners with 21 points.

The loss snapped Pewaukee's 18-game conference winning streak.

Pewaukee's varsity girls basketball team continued its winning ways Friday night, scoring a 51-38 win over visiting Whitnall in a Woodland Conference game.

Pewaukee, ranked 14th in the state in Division 2, improved to 9-1 overall and 8-1 in league play.

The Pirates improved to 85-15 in its last 100 games.

Emily Wirth led the Pirates with 13 points. Shannon Kalamarz added 11, Jordyn Swan 10 and Hannah Frett 8 for the winners.

Arrowhead's varsity boys basketball team played outstanding defense Friday night and stopped host Waukesha South in a Classic 8 Conference game, 53-31.

The Warhawks improved to 5-0 in league play and 9-1 overall. It was their eighth conference win in a row covering the last two years.

Senior center Ben Mills, headed to Boise State next year, had a monster game for the No. 1 ranked Warhawks. The 7-foot-1 senior center had 25 points and 12 rebounds. Russ Finco added 9 points and Charles Rushman 8 for the winners, who won despite shooting a season-low 32% from the field.

Arrowhead's defense held South to just 23% shooting from the field.  Tim Woodford led South with 10 tallies

Kettle Moraine's varsity girls basketball team defeated Waukesha West Friday night in a Classic 8 Conference game, 41-36.

KM improved to 9-2 on the season and 4-1 in league play.

Becki Martin had 14 points to lead the Lasers. Anna Luterbach added 10 and Sam Pfeifer 9 for the winners.  Abby Jelacic and Brittany Wright scored 11 and 10 points respectively for West.

The City of Oconomowoc Fire Dept. has been called to a building on Wisconsin Avenue in the downtown area for a complaint of natural gas odor.

Firefighters responded to the building and detected a strong odor on the second floor.

Town of Oconomowoc - Two snowmobilers were involved in a crash on Okauchee Lake Sunday night  at approximately 7:30 p.m., and were transported to Oconomowoc Memorial Hospital for treatment.

Authorities are investigating the accident.

Watch video from CBS 58 here.

Village of Pewaukee – There will be a race for trustee in April as one familiar face has thrown his hat into the political rings once more.

Former village president and trustee John Laimon filed nomination papers along with Steve Ebling. They will be running against incumbents Randy Demmitt and Joseph Zompa for three seats.

The deadline for nomination papers was extended from Jan. 5 to Jan. 8 because current trustee David Gohlke did not file his non-candidacy papers until Jan. 5, well after the deadline of Dec. 28.

Laimon was village president from 1993-99 and trustee from 2000-04 and 2006-08. Laimon ran for president in last April and was defeated by Jeff Knutson. Ebling ran for trustee in 2008, but was defeated.
 

Are you a Town of Vernon resident wondering what the Big Bend/Vernon Fire Department split will mean for your insurance rates? Are you concerned about what kind of protection you and your family will receive?

If you have questions you'd like answered, plan on attending tonight's Special Town Board Meeting.  McGrath Consulting, Inc. will be making a presentation that should answer your questions.

The meeting will take place at 7 p.m. tonight at Town Hall.

Thanks to some respectable foul shooting in the fourth quarter, Pewaukee's 16th ranked varsity girls basketball team defeated visiting St. Francis Tuesday in a key Woodland Cofnerence Blue Division game, 59-54.

The win vaulted the Pirates to 10-1 overall and 9-1 in league play. The Pirates now lead St. Francis by two games in conference play.

Pewaukee led 25-22 at halftime and remained in front throughout the second half.

Hannah Frett fired in 14 points to lead the Pirates. Shannon Kalamarz added 12 to that total and Emily Wirth and Jordyn Swan had 11 each.

The Mukwonago girls basketball team took a lead as large as 20 points in the second half and held off one of the area's elite teams in Muskego on Tuesday, 67-56.

Emily Romdenne and Shannon Perez each scored 17 points for MHS (10-2), which has three straight wins after back-to-back losses over the Christmas break. Muskego fell to 8-2 and saw the end of its eight-game winning streak.

The Indians jumped out to a 13-4 start and held a 40-20 lead in the second half at the conclusion of a 13-0 run, but Muskego battled back within 11 by the end of the third quarter and as close as 7 points in the fourth. MHS hit 27 of 33 from the free-throw line.

Arrowhead's varsity boys basketball team, ranked  No. 2 in the state in this week's AP Poll, shot an amazing 78% (18 of 23) in the first half and eventually rolled over visiting Brookfield Central in a non conference game,  78-54.

The Warhawks improved to 10-1 overall. Friday they will host rival Waukesha Catholic Memorial in a huge Classic 8 Conference game at 7:30 p.m. Both teams are 5-0 in league play.

Senior center Ben Mills fired in 20 points to lead the Warhawks. Senior Russ Finco added 12 to that  total and Andy Fox and Charlie Fischer chipped in with 10 tallies apiece.

AHS finished the night shooting 61% from the floor, including 8 of 10 shots from the 3-point arc.

Pewaukee's varsity boys basketball team, ranked No.5 in the state in Division 2 in this week's AP Poll, rolled over host St. Francis Tuesday night in a Woodland Conference game, 64-35.

The Pirates improved to 11-1 overall and 9-1 in the conference. Pewaukee will play at West Allis Hale on Thursday (7:30 p.m.) and at home Saturday at 7 p.m. against East Troy.

Against St. Francis, Tyler Hanson led the way with 11 points. Mike Olewinski added 10 to that total and Brad Kaatz had 7 rebounds.

Arrowhead's varsity girls basketball team improved to 5-5 on the season Tuesday night by scoring a 49-40 non-conference victory over host Hartford.

AHS led from start to finish, taking a 26-15 lead at halftime. Hartford cut that deficit to four after three quarters but the Warhawks inched away from the Orioles in the  final stanza.

Sophomore center Jenny Smith fired in 17 points to lead the Warhawks. Amanda Bauer chipped in with 8 points.

Hartford fell to 2-7 with the loss.

In a battle of unbeaten conference powers, the Arrowhead and Catholic Memorial boys basketball teams will meet at 7:30 p.m. Friday at AHS. Check out the live blog at the Preps Alcove and sign up for an email reminder.

The man accused of stabbing  39-year-old Kim Smith  of Oconomowoc to death Oct. 1, has escaped from custody at a rest stop in Arkansas about 2:45 a.m. this morning.

Justin Patrick Welch, 26,  was being transported from California to Wisconsin along with four other prisoners, when he allegedly overcame a guard, stabbed him in the hand and beat him in the head. Welch stole the officer’s weapon and shot at a second guard before taking off in the white, 2007 Dodge transport van with the words ‘North Atlantic Extradition’ on both sides.

 According to Lt. Brent Grill, of the Van Buren, Arkansas Police Department,. the first guard was treated and released; the second was uninjured. The gun Welch now has in his possession has 10 rounds of ammunition in it.

Arkansas police have not yet received any calls of sightings of the stolen van.

The Village of North Prairie’s Clerk-Treasurer, Judith Beranek is retiring after 35 years of service. Beranek was hired in 1974 as treasurer and appointed clerk/treasurer several years later. 

The Village is hosting a farewell reception at the Village Hall, 130 N. Harrison Street, on January 14 from 4  to 6 p.m. in Beranek's honor. Everyone is welcome to stop in and wish her well on the next chapter of her life and share a story or two. 

A television station in Texas is reporting that there has been a confirmed sighting of accused murderer Justin Patrick Welch, who escaped from custody this morning and is the subject of a nationwide manhunt.

A spokesperson for the Texas Department of Public Safety, however,  could not verify that report.

"I don't know where that came from. I can't confirm that," Tom Vinger said, adding that the department is monitoring the situation.

KCBD -TV reported Welch was seen in Amarillo a few hours after overpowering a guard, stabbing him and taking his gun. Welch then shot twice at a second, unarmed, guard and took off in the white transport van.

One of the two guards entrusted with transporting suspected murderer Justin Patrick Welch  back to Wisconsin was asleep in the van while his colleague was attacked and disarmed during a rest stop in Arkansas Wednesday morning.

Marian Pullian, 35, of North Atlantic Extradition, was sleeping in the transport van when it pulled over in Van Buren, Arkansas to make a bathroom stop for the five inmates in their custody. Guard Michael Nowland, 29, took the prisoners into the restroom by himself. Police could not comment on the transport company's policy, but noted "Common sense tells you that's probably a policy violation. It's safe to say they should not have done that," Lt. Brent Grill of the Van Buren Police Dept. offered.

Welch, who is accused of murdering Kim Smith of Oconomowoc, then stabbed Nowland in the hand with a tool resembling a screw driver, and took his gun. He stole a jacket from a civilian in the bathroom, took keys from the guard, removed his leg irons and fled outside.

 The guard told investigators he was asleep when Welch entered the driver’s side of the van, and was not even aware they had make the stop. Welch pointed the gun at the guard who exited the vehicle before being shot at twice by Welch.

Authorities said this morning that the van has not been recovered and that there have been no confirmed sightings of Welch, despite a television report of him in the Amarillo area.

Justin Patrick Welch's escape friom custody Wednesday morning was aided by the carelessness of the two guards who were hired to bring the accused murdered back to Wisconsin, according to law-enfocement officials.

It allowed the fugitive to escape with a vehicle, a gun, money, a cell phone, a change of clothes and documentation that provided his positive identification, allowing for a certain ease in evading officers.

After stopping at a highway rest stop,  in violation of procedure, a lone guard escorted the five inmates into the bathroom, while his colleague remained asleep inside the vehicle.  Welch used the opportunity to stab and beat the guard, steal his gun, wallet and cell phone, and then  shoot at the unarmed guard in the van.

Police are unsure how Welch attained the weapon used to stab the guard, a scredriver-type instrument, but said he might have found it at the rest stop.

Lt. Brent Grill said that when law enforcement arrived at the scene, transport officers could not provide Welch's date of birth, Social Security number of point of pickup because that paperwork was inside the van when it was stolen. Other inmates in the van when Welch was picked up provided authorities with the information that he was turned over in San Diego.

The van contained two uniforms and civilian clothing. Police said one of the guards was similar in build to Welch, possibly providing him with a change of clothing to discard the green inmate jumpsuit he was wearig.

Welch also stole a black jacket from a civilian who was inside the bathroom at the time of the incident.

Police have captured and arrested Justin Patrick Welch in Oklahoma.

The 26-year-old man who is accused of murdering Kim Smith in her Oconomowoc home Oct. 1,  escaped from custody yesterday morning in Arkansas on his way back to Wisconsin.

Welch was apprehended in a stolen semi-truck that had been pulled over by police. No other details were available at this time.

"We're so relieved. There are a lot of happy faces here," said City of Oconomowoc Police Chief Dave Beguhn.

Beguhn said District Attorney Brad Schimel will have to work out the details of the next steps related to getting Welch back to Wisconsin, including the additional charges related to the escape and the second stolen vehicle.