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Oneida County Chicken Coop Fire; Heat Lamp Likely Cause Published on 04/24/2025 under News

Backyard chicken owners are reminding to use heating devices safely after a fire in Oneida County on Wednesday.

According to the Pine Lake Fire Department crews were paged to a home on Lake Thompson Road for a report of a chicken coop on fire. The call came in from the owner at around 4:30 yesterday morning.

Crews were able to put out the fire, but the coop sustained extensive damage. Unfortunately, they noted that some of the chickens perished.

They believe the cause of the fire was a heat lamp used to keep the coop warm.
Crews were on the scene for around an hour.

In Other News

Lincoln County Community Baby Shower Returns to Tomahawk Thursday Afternoon

Published on 04/24/2025 under News For first-time parents, bringing a little one in the world can be a learning experience. Here in Lincoln County, a twice-annual event provides information and resources for new and expecting families. The Lincoln County Health Department has taken lead on organizing Community Baby Showers, alternating between Tomahawk and Merrill. The northern version returns this afternoon Lexi Buntrock, Public Health Educator for the Lincoln County Health Department says, "It is a one-stop-shop that connects expecting families, and those with young children, with the education and resources." Parents can pick and choose the topics they wish to learn more about, just a few of the many examples include nutrition, literacy, and childcare. Buntrock added, "We are excited to have returning agencies and groups represented, along with new ones." At past editions, they've asked attendees to fill out a survey about their experience. Buntrock says the response has been unanimous in saying it has been worth their time. The Community Baby Shower is free to attend, and people may even get some giveaways. It's from 3:30 pm to 5:30 pm at St. Mary's Corpus Christi Center.

Published on 04/24/2025 under News Northwoods Counties were the largest beneficiary in the annual County Forest Road Aid from the state. The Department of Transportation announced that assistance this past week. Overall, 24 Wisconsin counties will share in a little more $320,000 to maintain and improve public roads in county forests. While not main thoroughfares, these county roads played a critical role in various sectors including recreation and timber. The qualifying roads meet a number of criteria and cannot be town roads, county or state highways. Statewide, more than 900 miles of roads qualified. Locally, Lincoln County claimed 27 miles, good for about $9,500. Oneida County's 39 miles received a little more than $13,000. Vilas County has around 50 miles which received $17,000. Marinette County, with more than 240 miles of designated roads, received about a quarter of the overall funding. The County Forest Road Aid is separate from the General Transportation Aid.

Published on 04/24/2025 under News While we wait for the eggs to hatch, Wisconsin Public Service and We Energies are getting ready to name the latest brood of peregrine falcons. In the coming weeks, the new chicks will emerge from their shells located within the nesting boxes at power generating facilities. That includes the eggs at the Weston Power Plant. Each year they leave it up to the public to select the names. With the peregrine falcon program around for 30 years now, WPS is looking back at the past for this year's naming nominees. Dubbed the 'Founding Feathers', twenty prolific peregrines have been responsible for almost 300 falcon chicks. That includes Atlanta who produced 41 chicks at the Oak Creek Power Plant in early 2000s and Rosalee who called the Weston Power Plant home for five years and raised 19 chicks. People can visit the WPS website to learn more about the previous generations of birds and cast a vote for their favorite names before May 8. Once the chicks hatch, they'll be named and banded before eventually leaving the nest. And fans can also keep an eye on the nest box cams for signs of hatching eggs.

Published on 04/24/2025 under News The deer hunting season is still a half year away, but planning the season structure is ongoing. Over the next two weeks, County Deer Advisory Councils in each county around the state will meet to form recommendations on antlerless harvest goals, tag availability and season options. These recommendations are reviewed and set each year so they can be adjusted as needed in response to the previous year's deer harvest, winter severity and other factors. There are a few meetings taking place this week including Langlade County, this evening, (Thursday, April 24) at the Langlade County Resource Center in Antigo starting at 6:30pm. As for next week, on Tuesday, both Oneida County and Vilas County will have their meetings at the Woodruff and Boulder Junction Town Halls respectively. Lincoln County's meeting is one week from tonight, Thursday, May 1 at 7pm in the Lincoln County Service Center. We'll offer up a reminder as that date approaches. Once finalized, the recommendations are sent to the Natural Resources Board for final approval.

Published on 04/24/2025 under Sports Tomahawk's golf squad had a productive day at their first major invite in Barron Wednesday, placing sixth out of 14 teams. The Hatchets were third through 12 holes before having a few problems chipping and putting around the greens. As a team, the Hatchets a team score of 324. Sawyer Hanna had his second first-place finish in as many invites with a score of 72. Freshman Jake Albert finished with an 80. The other two qualified scores were Oliver Childers with an 83 and Caiden Reichelt with an 89. The Hatchets will have their first Great Northern Conference Meet of the season next Thursday, hosted by Mosinee.

Published on 04/24/2025 under Sports The Hatchet baseball squad suffered their second consecutive defeat, this time at the hands of Great Northern Conference foe Rhinelander, 10-3. The loss drops Tomahawk to 2-3 on the season and 1-2 in Great Northern Conference play. The Hatchets are right back in action tonight for Conference Showdown at Antigo.

Published on 04/24/2025 under News Three Nicolet students have advanced in Shark Tank-style business competition. The goal of the NEW Ideas Pitch Contest serves is to serve as an educational experience intended to help student entrepreneurs improve their skills organizing and presenting their business ideas. The first-place pitch came from Allysa Scheuermann and April Stine, enrolled in the Nicolet culinary management program. Their idea was a special handled, sippy cup designed for elderly adults. Another Nicolet student placed second. Karina Slizewski pitched a flight simulator business to advance pilot training and education in northern Wisconsin. She is enrolled in the business management program. In addition to cash prizes, the three students advanced to a regional competition where they'll be compared to students and ideas from other Wisconsin tech schools. And the Nicolet students will have home field advantage as the event will be held on campus in the Nicolet Theater. The event on May 1 is also open to the public for those that would like to see what it's about.

Published on 04/23/2025 under News There are a number of resources available to for those who served, but one challenge is connecting veterans with these services. Coming up this afternoon, Northwoods veterans will be able to learn about many of these programs, all in one location. The Northwoods Veterans Post in Merrill will host the Tri-County Heroes Event, It is a collaborative effort between the Tomah VA Medical Center and the Veteran Service Offices of Taylor, Price and Lincoln Counties. Noting the process of navigating benefits and services can often be complex or challenging, organizers are hoping to provide both convenience and assistance. They've arranged to have around two dozen organizations that each special in different areas of support, offering veterans a one-stop-shop to learn more. Just a few examples include Patriot K9s, a service dog program; the Department of Workforce Development for work assistance; and programs focused on recovery. Another key area is veteran health benefits. In addition to vets themselves, the Expo may also be useful for families or caregivers of veterans. The Tri-County Heroes Event runs from 1pm to 5pm at the Northwoods Veterans Post in Merrill.

Published on 04/23/2025 under News It won't be long before road construction barrels are out on area roads. Officials are reminding motorists to make it a safe summer for everyone to share the road. It is Work Zone Awareness week, a time to promote cautious driving in work zones and respecting road construction crews. We've heard from both local law enforcement and the Department of Transportation in this messaging. The theme of this year's campaign is 'Respect the Zone, So We All Get Home." DOT Secretary Kristina Boardman, "This year's work zone safety theme should resonate with all of us; we all want to get home to our loved ones after a workday." Boardman also recognized the two construction workers and eight motorists who tragically died in work zone accidents. In 2024, DoT data showed more than 2,100 work zone crashes. Common factors include speeding, tailgating, and distracted driving, with cell phone use in particular. The Lincoln County Sheriff's Office offered up a similar warning. It came after a a deputy was approached by a highway worker who reported motorists were not appropriately slowing down in a work zone. They wrote, "Please remember those are real people out there just trying to make our roads safer, and as such they deserve to work in as safe of an environment that they can."

Published on 04/23/2025 under News Summer roadwork will be ramping up in the coming weeks, and Lincoln County Highway Commissioner Jason Lemmer offered a preview of the local construction calendar. According to the announcement, they are planning resurfacing projects on segments of five county highways, 13 miles in all. This work is currently scheduled between April 30 and July 3. •CTH A – Erickson Road to Willow Road (1.54 Miles) •CTH C – CTH JJ to CTH K (1.5 Miles) •CTH CC – STH 8 to Somo Dam Road •CTH E – US 86 South to Spirit River Bridge (1.48 Miles) •CTH U – US 8 to CTH A (2.11 Miles)Around 9 miles of County D will have chip-sealing treatment in early August. And August is also set aside for some culvert replacements including County W. During work, roads will be limited to local traffic and lengthy delays can be expected at times. As these projects get underway, we'll provide details and construction updates as we receive them.

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