Official Newspaper of Eddy County since 1883

701 Rundown: Dec. 20, 2021

Here’s your weekly rundown of some of the most interesting headlines from newspapers across North Dakota.

Icy roads make for accidents

A single-vehicle accident that sent one man to a Minot hospital occurred west of Bottineau on Monday, Nov. 29.

According to Bottineau County Sheriff Steve Watson, Bottineau resident Derek Lund was driving on Highway 5 when ice on the highway sent him into the ditch and rolled his vehicle. The incident left Lund with a broken leg and a cut on his head. He was then brought to the emergency room in Bottineau before being transferred to the Trinity Health Center in Minot.

That Monday, the Bottineau Sheriff’s Department responded to two other incidents where vehicles ended up in the ditch due to icy road conditions. The second of which occurred just outside Lansford, but the individual involved exited the ditch without assistance.

(Story by Scott Wagner, Bottineau Courant)

Working remotely is becoming more common

For some, commuting for work means a one-hour drive or at least a trip into town, but for others, it’s a quick stroll into the other room. Despite having a bad reputation in the past, working remotely has become more and more popular in recent years, and companies are seeing some very positive results.

Kyle Nelson, a resident of Finley N.D., is a software engineer for Wex Health Inc. out of West Fargo. Nelson has been with the company for seven years, but for five of those years, he’s been on and off working remotely.

“Originally I worked out of an office in Fargo,” Nelson said. “Due to acquisitions and company growth, I was forced to work from home during some office expansion. ... then COVID hit, and I’ve been working from home ever since. I’ve been offered a place to work back in the office recently, but as the rest of my team also works remotely, there is no reason to return to the office.”

According to online statistics, 77% of remote workers say they are more productive when working remotely, and roughly three-fourths of remote workers say they do it for the decreased distractions.

(Story by Lisa Saxberg, Steele County Press)

Fessenden Ambulance Service on brink of closure

Without additional volunteers, the Fessenden Ambulance Service may be forced to cease operations.

“Our roster is made up of great volunteers, but if we don’t get more people on board to help, we could lose our ambulance service in Fessenden,” Squad leader Dawn Beck said.

“Getting people to volunteer and keeping them on the roster has been a problem for us and is a problem for rural ambulance services across the state,”added Beck, a 20-year veteran of the Fessenden Ambulance Service.

The Fessenden Ambulance Service currently consists of six emergency medical technicians (EMTs), two emergency medical responders, one nurse and seven drivers, who work together to provide basic life support response to medical emergencies 24 hours a day.

“That’s barely enough to fill the schedule,” said Beck. “We need at least one EMT on every call, so most of us cover at least 168 hours a month. Everyone is giving all that they can.”

If they can’t find additional volunteers and are forced to close operations, services from New Rockford, Harvey, and others would be tasked with picking up portions of the Fessenden district.

“We’d be covered, but response time would probably more than double,” Beck concluded.

(Story by Anne Ehni, The Herald-Press)

Deputy interrupts rural Mapleton burglary

On Wednesday, Dec. 1, just before 5 p.m., a Cass County Sheriff’s Deputy was in the right place at the right time to stop a burglary at a rural Mapleton property.

According to the Cass County Sheriff’s Office, the deputy was patrolling west of Mapleton when he observed suspicious activity on a property off County Road 10. After approaching the individual, identified as 34-year-old Tina A. Retz, of Detroit Lake, Minn., the deputy determined that she was burglarizing the property, and placed her under arrest.

A search of her vehicle revealed drug paraphernalia and a concealed weapon. Retz was subsequently charged with burglary, carrying a concealed weapon and unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia, and was transported to the Cass County Jail.

The incident remains under investigation.

(Story by Angela Kolden, Cass County Reporter)