Dexter, Missouri - Dexter Police ticketed 2 motorists for not wearing seat belts during the April 14th Click It or Ticket mobilization. Law enforcement agencies throughout Missouri participated in this statewide effort to get more motorists to buckle up — and save more lives. 

During the enforcement effort, officers issued a total of 7 traffic citations including: 2 seat belt tickets and 5 other traffic violations.  Officers also conducted a safety checkpoint where seatbelt pamphlets were passed out to motorists reminding them of the importance of seatbelts.

Despite evidence proving the benefits of wearing a seat belt, nearly one in five Missouri motorists are still not making it click. Even more concerning, six out of ten Missourians killed in traffic crashes are unbuckled.

“Seat belts are your single best defense in a crash,” stated Lt. Joshua Benton of the Dexter Police Dept.  “We will continue to encourage drivers to make a simple, smart choice to buckle up and Arrive Alive.” For more information on Missouri’s seat belt use, visit ww.saveMOlives.com. Buckle Up and Arrive Alive

Missouri - Missourians from every corner of the state are asked to do spring cleaning outdoors and help fight litter through the state's annual No MOre Trash! Bash April 15 to May 15. The Trash Bash is sponsored by the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) and MoDOT as part of their ongoing No MOre Trash! statewide anti-litter campaign.

The annual Trash Bash encourages people to clean up litter across Missouri from roadsides, parks, neighborhoods, rivers, streams, trails and other places. Trash Bash activities in April also include educational efforts in schools, community events and Earth Day celebrations.

Each year, MoDOT alone spends about $6 million to remove litter from more than 385,000 acres of roadsides along 34,000 state highway miles. Annual volunteer efforts to pick up litter along Missouri highways are valued at $1 million.

Last year, more than 60,000 bags of litter and several truckloads of debris were picked up during the one month Trash Bash. People also attended numerous educational events stressing the importance of not littering. Volunteers participated through Adopt-A-Highway and Stream Team litter cleanup events. Missouri Stream Team Program volunteers removed 581 tons of litter from waterways and dedicated over $1.8 million worth of volunteer time to annual statewide litter removal.

Littering isn't just ugly, it also hurts wildlife and Missouri outdoors.

Volunteers are needed across the state to participate in litter cleanup activities. Participants can report their cleanup efforts and will receive a thank you No MOre Trash! pin.

For more information and to learn how to participate, visit www.nomoretrash.org or call 1-888-ASK-MODOT (1-888-275-6636).

Stone County, Missouri - The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) reports James Wright of Cape Fair became the most recent record-setting angler in Missouri when he hooked a white bass on Table Rock Lake on a trotline. The new “alternative method” record white bass caught by Wright on April 6 weighed 3-pounds, 4-ounces with a length of 18 3/4 inches. Wright was using shad for bait to try to catch catfish, but instead he caught a state-record white bass.

“I was in my new boat baiting hooks on a trotline, and out of nowhere something hit the line hard,” Wright said. “I grabbed the line and yanked it, and then the fight was on. I finally got it in the boat after about three minutes and was totally shocked to see that it was a white bass.”

Wright added that he wasn’t sure if it was state record so he contacted MDC immediately.

“Once MDC confirmed that the fish was a state record I was so excited,” he said. “This was my dad’s and my dream. I just can’t believe it came true! This is by far the biggest white bass I have ever caught on a trotline. I plan on having it mounted so I’ll never forget catching a fish like that.”

MDC staff verified the record-weight fish using a certified scale in the town of Galena.

“2016 is shaping up to be a year for state-record fish,” said MDC Fisheries Programs Specialist Andrew Branson. “We have already had six new records so far, which is more than an entire year sometimes. The mild weather we have had so far this year means more anglers are fishing, and catching big fish.”

Wright’s recent catch set the state record for white bass in the alternative methods category.

Missouri state-record fish are recognized in two categories: pole-and-line and alternative methods. Alternative methods include: throwlines, trotlines, limb lines, bank lines, jug lines, spearfishing, snagging, snaring, gigging, grabbing, archery, and atlatl.

Missouri - MDC congratulates Joshua Cole on breaking the state record by shooting 30-pound, 15-ounce freshwater drum with bow and arrow on Table Rock Lake.

REEDS SPRING, Mo. – The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) reports that Joshua Cole of Reeds Spring became the most recent record-breaking fisherman in Missouri when he shot a freshwater drum on Table Rock Lake using a bow and arrow. The new “alternative method” record drum taken by Cole on March 31 weighed 30-pounds, 15-ounces. It was 33 inches long and had a girth of 30 inches. He shot the fish around 10 p.m. about one mile from Point 10 on Table Rock Lake.

“I can’t believe I shot a state-record drum,” Cole said. “I knew I was shooting at a big drum, but I didn’t realize how big it was until we got it in the boat.”

Cole added that it took two arrows to get it in the boat.

“It really didn’t put up much of a fight with two arrows in it,” he said. “I’m just glad we got it in the boat with no problems.”

The new freshwater drum broke the previous alternative-method state record of 26-pounds, 8-ounces taken on the Lake of the Ozarks in 2008.

“March was a great month for catching record-breaking fish throughout the state,” said MDC Fisheries Programs Specialist Andrew Branson. “There were four new state records set in March. This just goes to show you that conservation makes Missouri a great place to fish.”

MDC staff verified the new record-weight fish using a certified scale at MDC’s Shepherd of the Hills Hatchery in Branson.

“Once my friends and I got the fish in the boat, I knew that it was a state-record fish,” Cole said. “This is by far the one of biggest fish I have ever caught in my life, and I still can’t believe it!”

Cole hasn’t decided what to do with the fish just yet, but his hopes are high to shoot something bigger.

“This was my first time out bowfishing this year, and I can’t believe I shot a state-record fish,” Cole said. “I’m so ready to get back out on the water and find bigger fish.”

Missouri state-record fish are recognized in two categories: pole-and-line and alternative methods. Bowfishing is considered an alternative method and consist of a bow or crossbow that shoots arrows attached to a string so that the fish can be retrieved after they’re pierced. Other alternative methods include: throwlines, trotlines, limb lines, bank lines, jug lines, spearfishing, snagging, snaring, gigging, grabbing, and atlatl.

Route K in Stoddard County Reduced for Edge Rut Repairs
 
Route K in Stoddard County will be reduced to one lane as Missouri Department of Transportation crews perform edge rut repairs.

This section of roadway is located from Route 51 to Route M.

Weather permitting, work will take place Thursday, April 14 through Tuesday, April 19 from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.