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THREE LAKES - Freezing cold temperatures didn't stop people from jumping into an icy cold lake Saturday. The jump helps raise money for people with cancer.
More 100 jumpers took the plunge this year at the 15th annual Polar Bear Plunge.
"We've had to move the jump time back 30 minutes because we've still got cars pulling in," says WRJO host and Polar Bear Plunge committee member Amy Linnett. "We've never had to do that before."
TOMAHAWK - The Tomahawk Area Interfaith Volunteers (TAIV) will use a new mobility van to help disabled and low income seniors in the area. The group's volunteers use their own cars to get seniors where they need to go.
Volunteers will still use those cars once they get the van because of high demand.
The van will serve a similar role to buses aging groups use to transport seniors across the Northwoods. The van can carry five people including two who use wheelchairs. Cindy Wescott volunteers in multiple rolls with the group. She's been heading the transportation committee. She says the group could use the van tomorrow.
WAUSAU - A 29-year-old Iowa man has been charged for assaulting a police K-9 dog while he was being arrested New Year's Eve in Wisconsin.
Andrew Devens was arrested Dec. 31 after allegedly assaulting a 23-year-old woman and breaking a car windshield with a tire iron. He allegedly struck the police dog, a Belgian Malinois named Csibi, several times.
The woman did not require medical treatment. Csibi wasn't seriously injured and remains on active duty.
MADISON - Gov. Scott Walker begins his second term Monday as the Legislature reconvenes with larger Republican majorities for a two-year session. The big issues they're likely to face:
_ How to plug a $2.2 billion state budget gap. Walker is to introduce his plan in early February and lawmakers will spend months altering it before voting on the tax and spend plan likely in late spring.
_ Whether, when and how much to cut property and income taxes, as Walker promised on the campaign trail. That promise is made more difficult by the budget shortfall.
GREEN BAY - About 30 children headed to a religious conference in Green Bay got a scare but are safe after the church bus they were on caught fire.
No injuries were reported during the Friday incident on the city's west side. The bus was from the Immanuel Baptist Church in Wausau.
The bus was evacuated and burned in a parking lot. The children were taken to the conference on a city transit system bus.
LAC DU FLAMBEAU - Snow and ice don't seem to be able to stop the growing popularity of a historic sport in Lac du Flambeau.
Friday's lacrosse workshop celebrated what's called "The Creator's Game" for kids in the area.
We went indoors for a look at what's normally an outdoor game.
MERRILL - The Northwoods will see the thermometer drop during the next few days. Frigid temperatures can cause problems for you and your car.
Mechanics at Mike's Garage in Merrill always see an increase in customers when the temperatures dip far below zero.
Most of the issues have to do with a car not starting or that's very slow to start.
LINCOLN COUNTY - The Lincoln County Humane Society needs more room for the animals it cares for.
The shelter takes in about 1,100 animals a year.
That's why volunteers and employees are fundraising for a new location.
MINOCQUA - Scrap metal in Minocqua can save lives. The Island City Masonic Lodge uses scrap metal donations to buy defibrillators for the community.
The group has donated 16 defibrillators since 2007. The machine can help keep someone alive when they go into cardiac arrest.
The lodge decided to collect scrap metal because it's something many people have laying around.
LINCOLN COUNTY - Just renovating the existing buildings on the Lincoln County Fairgrounds could cost more than $1 million, according to the preliminary results of a study of the fairgrounds.
The county had a consultant look at how it might improve the fairgrounds and draw more events and people.
"The main thing from the study was the fact that we would, in fact, in order to make this a viable enterprise, we would have to have a grandstand of some type again, either just a free standing grandstand or berm seating system as well as some kind of major event building," said Merrill City Administrator David Johnson.
MADISON - Hundreds of people died on Wisconsin roads last year, but the overall total was the fewest in more than seven decades.
The Wisconsin Department of Transportation released primary statistics Friday. The agency says there were 491 traffic fatalities in 2014.
WMTV in Madison (http://bit.ly/1HlsbhH ) reports that's down 7 percent from the year before. It's also the first time below 500 since 1943.
MILWAUKEE - A crowd of about 150 people have gathered outside a Milwaukee courthouse to protest the killing of a black man by a white police officer.
The crowd is chanting ``Black lives matter,'' and ``Dontre Hamilton,'' the name of the man shot to death last April in a downtown park.
Civil rights leader Jesse Jackson was to appear at a news conference at the courthouse and at a rally later.
WAUWATOSA - Dozens of people have gathered at a rally in suburban Milwaukee to show their support for police officers.
Milwaukee TV station WTMJ reports (http://bit.ly/1xkFnQM ) the group gathered Thursday in Wauwatosa along Highway 100 near a shopping mall. Images showed the group holding signs that said, ``Support your cops,'' and, ``Police lives matter.''
The station reports supporters of Dontre Hamilton, a black man who was shot and killed by a white Milwaukee police officer, also gathered in the same area at one point. The groups were peaceful.
RHINELANDER - Republicans will start the New Year with very healthy majorities in both chambers of the state legislature. That will give the party lots of power when the next session begins.
Republican majorities increased in both chambers after the November election. Gov. Scott Walker could lead the way again on policy. However, UW Professor of Political Science Kenneth Mayer doesn't think that will happen just yet. Instead, Republican legislative leaders should take the lead early in the session.
"You can see some of that with Walker being a little bit reluctant to stake out clear positions on things like right-to-work," Mayer said.
TOMAHAWK - The Tomahawk Area Interfaith Volunteers (TAIV) will use a new mobility van to help disabled and low income seniors in the area. The group's volunteers use their own cars to get seniors where they need to go.
Volunteers will still use those cars once they get the van because of high demand.
The van will serve a similar role to buses aging groups use to transport seniors across the Northwoods. The van can carry five people including two who use wheelchairs.
MARATHON COUNTY - Update--Police in Marathon County this morning told us the name of a man who died while driving.
Gerald Ceresero lived in the town of Sharon Portage County.
The 66-year-old man was driving yesterday morning in Marathon County.
RIB MOUNTAIN - A California man could face criminal charges for allegedly resisting arrest and assaulting a K9 officer.
The Marathon County Sheriff's Office was called to a home because a man allegedly assaulted a woman and broke a car windshield with a tire iron. The person who called 911 told police the man had been drinking and had access to a handgun.
When deputies got to the home, they say the man refused to follow instructions and resisted arrest. Deputies say they used a K9 because the man was combative and there was a possibility he was armed.
MERRILL - It seems like more people used the Safe Ride Home program in Lincoln County this New Year's Eve compared to last year.
The program gives bars and restaurants vouchers for free cab rides.
Workers then give those vouchers to customers.
TOMAHAWK - Cerny's Greenhouse in Tomahawk just finished their holiday season and have closed their doors to the public, but you may notice more lights on than usual. They've already started preparing for the spring season, and they're doing things differently this year.
"We plan for our Spring season before our Christmas season even starts," explained Cerny's Greenhouse Co-Owner Justin Cerny. "Even during our Christmas season is when we're starting to plant some of the things for our Spring season."
They already planted their begonias and mandevillas for the Spring season, but they've eliminated a step from their usual growing process. This could mean big financial changes for the greenhouse.
MARATHON COUNTY - The Marathon County Sheriff's Offices will try to find out know how a 66-year-old man died while driving Thursday morning.
The man was driving the car with his 60-year-old wife and 7-year-old granddaughter near County Line Road and Ice Age Lane in the Township of Bevent, southeast of Mosinee. Police received a phone call about the incident at 6:36 a.m.
Deputies say the man suffered some health problem while driving. The car then went into a ditch after experiencing the issue.
RHINELANDER - Felix Dean Wendt can say that he is the first baby born in the Northwoods!
Felix was born at 7:58 a.m. January 1st at Ministry Saint Mary's Hospital in Rhinelander.
The proud parents are Amanda and Matthew Wendt of Rhinelander.
RHINELANDER - A Rhinelander man will represent the Northwoods on the board of directors for the Community Blood Center. Jerry Shidell started his term on the board Thursday.
Shidell has been involved with the Community Blood Center for years. He's donated blood and organized many blood drives.
Shidell thinks he'll be able to offer the board of director a unique perspective.
MINNEAPOLIS - A Minnesota woman whose husband was the first American to die from Ebola hopes to see the deadly virus eradicated in 2015.
In July, Decontee Kofa's husband, Patrick Sawyer, died of Ebola in Nigeria after traveling from his native Liberia, which has been hit hard by the disease.
Kofa says she would like to see organizations, governments and groups continue efforts to treat Ebola patients in West Africa.
LAKE MILLS, WI - The Wisconsin State Patrol has released dash camera video of a trooper being dragged by a suspected drunken driver who sped away from an interstate traffic stop.
The video shows the trooper reaching into the car to try to stop the driver Friday night, but the man accelerated and dragged the officer about 100 feet. The trooper then tumbles to the pavement at the edge of the interstate. The officer gets up, runs back to his squad, attempts to pursue the driver, but loses him.
MADISON - The state Department of Natural Resources will offer its third annual free fishing winter weekend later this month.
Anglers can fish without a license or Great Lakes salmon stamp on all Wisconsin waters on Jan. 17 and Jan. 18. The agency also will loan equipment out at 19 sites around the state, including eight state parks. Locations and contact information are available on the DNR's website.
MADISON - Wisconsin state parks officials say a New Year's Day hike would be a great way to start 2015.
The Department of Natural Resources is hosting First Day Hikes events at 11 state parks Thursday. The hikes are part of a nationwide initiative led by America's State Parks to get people outdoors, with over 400 hikes scheduled this year in all 50 states. Participants are encouraged to use the hashtag #firstdayhikes to share their experiences on social media.
State parks employees and volunteers will be leading the hikes.
MILWAUKEE - The Milwaukee Police Department has temporarily taken down its news website after the site possibly was hacked.
The department says it took MilwaukeePoliceNews.com offline after indications Tuesday night that the site was ``being disabled by an outside group.''
The police department's main website remains online, but the news site could be down for days while it's upgraded to improve security.
RHINELANDER - The Community Blood Center could face a blood shortage. The number of donations the center needs has gone down because of the holiday season.
Community Blood Center volunteers think the weather has a lot to do with the decrease in donations. Some people might not want to donate because they don't want to leave their homes in the cold weather.
Volunteers think the holiday season makes it difficult for people to find time to donate.
ANTIGO - An Antigo man could spend life in prison for allegedly beating a 16-year-old boy with a baseball bat.
18-year-old Dylan Madderom now faces a new charge of first-degree attempted homicide.
Madderom was initially charged with reckless endangerment of safety. That charge was replaced by the attempted homicide charge.
WISCONSIN - Beer may be the topic of discussion for lawmakers in Wisconsin very soon. The Wisconsin Grocers Association wants to allow people to get fresh beer on tap at grocery stores. People would be able to buy a growler, or bring in their own, and have it filled at the store.
"Across the country, in many other states, growlers are already hugely popular with grocers having the ability to fill those growlers and sell them to their customers," said Brandon Scholz, president of the Wisconsin Grocers Association. "A year or so ago it started to gain some steam in Wisconsin. A lot of grocers across the state were interested in filling and selling these growlers."
There are more than 100 craft breweries in Wisconsin.
