Tecumseh mess: Except for a few months last spring, the Tecumseh access has been barricaded to vehicle traffic for nearly two years. The US Army Corps of Engineers says work should begin soon to repair the access, which was heavily damaged during the record April 2017 flood. The Corps said the project, which includes rebuilding the road, parking lot and boat ramp, should be completed in May if there are no complications from high water or winter weather. Times photo/Jessi Dreckman

Honored by the Governor: Shawn Shipley, right, supervisor of the Missouri Department of Transportation maintenance shed in Dora, was part of the MoDOT bridge replacement team that was honored last week by Missouri Gov. Mike Parson with the Governor’s Award for Quality and Productivity. The award recognized the MoDOT employees involved with replacing two major Ozark County bridges within six months of their collapse during the historic 2017 floods here. A press release announcing the award said such projects usually take three years to complete.

Ciara Watts, 11, received a flux-welder and welding helmet as birthday gifts from her parents after she learned to weld during Bakersfield’s vocational-based summer school program last summer. Her parents say Ciara has used her own money to purchase all the other materials she’s needed to pursue the hobby. Ciara says she likes welding so much she’s considering it as a future career.

County Road 830 near Thornfield: Several Ozark County Roads, including County Road 830, shown here, were impacted by high winds and heavy rain in Friday night’s storm as it swept through the area. Ozark County Western Commissioner Greg Donley posted this photo on Facebook Saturday, advising residents to avoid side roads if possible. By Monday afternoon, most, but not all, county roads had been reopened.

Robin Colbert, left, of Bakersfield, recently donated a copy of her first book, Not Forsaken, to the Bakersfield School library, where it was accepted by school librarian Lisa Lester. Not Forsaken was released in March 2019 and is available through online retailers and at Century Bank of the Ozarks locations in Bakersfield and Gainesville.

MDC staff tested more than 27,000 tissue samples for CWD during the 2019 hunting season. Twenty-four new cases of CWD were identified, bringing the total number of CWD cases in the state to 140. MDC has tested about 130,000 deer since the first cases of CWD were found in Missouri free-ranging deer in 2012.