A Mass of Christian burial has been scheduled for Monday, May 30, at 11 a.m. in the St. Peter the Apostle Church in Joplin for three victims of last week’s tornado in Joplin. Burial will be in the St. Francis Xavier Catholic Cemetery in Cherryvale.

Rusty Howard, 29, and his two children, Harli, 5, and Hayze, 19 months, were found together in the after-storm rubble of a retail building in Joplin. Family members said the children were clutched in the arms of their father when their bodies were discovered by rescuers. They are survived by Rusty’s wife and the children’s mother, Edie Boss of Joplin who was working at the time of the tornado and was not with the other family members when the storm struck last Sunday evening. Edie Boss is a former resident of Cherryvale and has many relatives there.

A full obituary will be printed in this week’s Montgomery County Chronicle.

The National Weather Service in Wichita conducted a weather conference call this morning to discuss the current weather conditions for the rest of the day and through the night.

There is a tremendous amount of instability in the atmosphere, which will produce a very volatile weather environment .  There is a significant chance for severe weather with large hail, damaging winds, and the potential for EF4 or EF5 tornadoes.

There are some extenuating circumstances that will affect the develoment of these storms, with cloud cover a real factor that will affect the severity of the storms.

With the threat of these super-cells, you are advised to take extra precautions and prepare to take cover below the ground if at all possible.

These storms will begin around McPherson in Western Kansas around 3 p.m. to 4 p.m., this afternoon with the dry line moving east to north east into Southeast Kansas, affecting the Montgomery County area from 6 p.m., on this evening.  The NWS indicated that there WILL be tornadoes attached to this weather, the severity and exact location depends on the extenuating circumstances

Montgomery County residents should pay close attention to the weather this afternoon and evening and be prepared to take necessary precautions.

CHERRYVALE — Mercy Hospital has announced plans to relocate its Cherryvale Clinic to the vacated Dollar General store building at 203 W. Main.

Mercy leaders and building owner Phillip Eastep entered a lease agreement last week that will provide for a remodel of the vacant building to accommodate expanded patient services for the clinic.
Read more

BY ANDY TAYLOR

(Updated at 7:30 p.m., Monday)

Montgomery County’s emergency personnel and various organizations are responding to the tornado that devastated a large portion of the Joplin, Mo., community on Sunday evening.

More than 20 employees of Mercy Hospital in Independence were dispatched to Joplin on Sunday night, said Joanne Cox, Mercy spokesperson. Among the 20 employees were 12 nurses plus two physicians, surgeon Christopher Lewis and physician Casana Brunton.  Mercy chief executive officer Eric Ammons also transported a vehicle filled with various medical supplies, and a disaster response trailer filled with emergency room-type equipment and a power generator also was taken to Joplin, said Cox.

Mercy is allied with St. John’s Medical Center in Joplin through the Sisters of the Mercy, the charitable organization that owns and operates the Mercy hospitals as well as St. John’s. St. John’s Medical Center took a direct hit in the tornado, sending the 183 patients to various hospitals, including Freedom Medical Center in Joplin as well as hospitals in Springfield, Mo., Carthage, Mo., Miami, Okla., and Pittsburg, Kan.

Read more

CHERRYVALE — According to the Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT), U.S. 169 west of Cherryvale will now remain closed to through traffic until the middle of next week.
Read more

BY ANDY TAYLOR

COFFEYVILLE — Invocations will be included in future Coffeyville Community College graduation ceremonies after a CCC trustee voiced concern about the lack of an opening prayer at the May 14 commencement.

At the CCC trustees’ monthly meeting on Monday, trustee Blake Allen asked president Linda Moley why the May 14 graduation ceremony did not include an opening prayer, which, Allen claimed, was customary in previous graduations. Moley said some faculty members had opposed having a prayer at the graduation ceremonies. Moley said she made the decision to not include the prayer based on the faculty members’ opinions.
Read more

The Montgomery County Chronicle publishes death notices on this website at no charge to the family of the deceased. Complete obituary can be found in the print edition of the Montgomery County Chronicle. Complete obituaries are printed at $20, which is billed to the funeral home handling the funeral and burial arrangements. Click on “Read More” to find the death notices.

Read more

Sheriff’s department officers were justified in using lethal force to protect themselves and other officers from an Independence man in an April 27 incident, county attorney Larry Markle said today.

Ray Joseph Humphrey of Independence was killed by law enforcement officers after he fired at officers in a wooded area north of Liberty on the afternoon of April 27.

Markle said that after reviewing video of the shooting incident, he felt the officers were justified in using lethal force to stop Humphrey’s behaviors and actions, which Markle said, was escalating when officers arrived at the scene.
Read more

Rail crossing repairs to start on U.S. 169 in Montgomery County

CHERRYVALE — On Friday, May 13, the South Kansas & Oklahoma Railroad (SKOL) will begin replacing tracks and surfacing at the two SKOL crossings on U.S. 169 west of Cherryvale, weather permitting.

Read more