Whitney Jones

The German company Kemmerich Metal Engineering will build its U.S. headquarters in Murray. The automotive parts supplier plans to add 120 jobs to the community in the next five years. Murray Calloway Economic Development Corporation Executive Director Mark Manning says Kemmerich is the first business to locate in Murray's new northern industrial park.

One of the reasons this company is coming here is because everything had been pre-prepared. All the utilities were in place, the ground was cleared and compacted, so it will speed up construction by months.

Some southern Hopkins County residents are complaining about blasts from an explosives company that they say are shaking and damaging their homes. Donovan Commercial Industries manufactures explosives and disposes of them for the military. Judge-executive Donnie Carroll says even though the homes are far from the plant, he has received calls about residents’ photos falling off their walls as result of the blasts.

Past and present Kentucky School Board Insurance Trust members need to pay an assessment to fix a $60-million deficit in its worker’s compensation and property and liability pools. KSBIT protects school districts from incidents ranging from employee injuries to school bus accidents.

This weekend’s rainfall has briefly alleviated dropping water levels on the Mississippi River, but it didn't put a dent in persisting drought conditions in the area. National Weather Service meteorologist Robin Smith says most places in western Kentucky got 4 to 5 inches but they are still up to 20 inches below average rainfall. The Mississippi River levels are between 12 and 13 feet but Smith expects those levels to drop back to 5 feet in just a few weeks.

UPDATED: 3 p.m.

A portion of the Pennyrile Parkway was closed this afternoon after the cab of a tanker truck carrying hydrochloric acid caught fire this morning. Both north and southbound lanes from the 49 to 54 mile markers are now open. However, only the left southbound lane is open, so expect some traffic as crews continue some environmental remediation work.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says Kentucky has spent five weeks at its highest level of flu, which is far more than last year. That means more than half of the state’s regions have reported an increased number of cases. 

The Paducah Planning Commission tabled its discussion earlier this week on a plan to improve the downtown area. The Renaissance Area Master Plan has been in front of the commission for about eight months. Paducah Riverfront Development Authority director Steve Doolittle says the commission tabled the plan to sort out some outstanding issues such as riverfront properties that currently serve as parking lots.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers hosts a public meeting tonight in Grand Rivers to discuss and answer questions about water restrictions around dams on the Cumberland River and its tributaries. The Corps announced in December that it would restrict all water access above or below 10 dams including one on Lake Barkley because the areas are dangerous.

The Cadiz City Council appointed Sgt. Chad Grace as the city's police chief this week. City Clerk Lisa Rogers says Grace was sworn in Tuesday. Grace fills the open position left by new Trigg County Judge Executive Hollis Alexander. The Governor appointed Alexander to fill the open seat left by now 1st District State Sen. Stan Humphries.

A new poll shows more than half of Kentuckians interviewed last fall support a state law to ban smoking in indoor public places. The poll from the Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky and the Health Foundation of Greater Cincinnati finds about 6 out of 10 would support such a ban. That’s up from fewer than half of those polled in 2010.  However, the measure isn’t getting much political support because so much of the region depends on tobacco farming.