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Two Vehicles Damaged, Two Arrested following Domestic Incident in Lincoln County Published on 08/06/2024 under News

A domestic dispute in Lincoln County last week left two vehicles damaged and two people in custody.

According to the Lincoln County Sheriff's Report, that incident happened last Tuesday in the Town of Tomahawk. Deputies were sent to a report of a domestic dispute involving a 42 year old woman from Tripoli, and 33 year old man from Eagle River.

According to the deputies the two subjects were having a heated verbal argument. In that process they learned the woman intentionally backed her vehicle into the man's car. In response, the man broke out a window on the woman's car.

As a result, both parties were brought to the Lincoln County Jail on domestic disorderly conduct charges.

In Other News

Pollinator Week Places Emphasis on Creating Habitat

Published on 06/19/2025 under News Property owners can play a role in protecting the world's declining pollinator population. This week is National and State Pollinator Week and a number of local agencies are educating the public on the importance that pollinators play, while also encouraging people to create their own pollinator habitats. All week long groups will be hosting pollinator events, seminars and workshops. While much of the focus is on bees and butterflies, other pollinators include moths, native fly species, beetles, hummingbirds and even bats. These pollinators are crucial to not only our food chain, but to our overall ecosystem. Pollinated plants also help feed wildlife, clean the air, and stabilize soil. Over the years, we've seen a concerted effort to expand pollinator gardens and habitats in the Northwoods. These are natural spaces, filled with native plants that attract pollinators by providing both food and protection. These are simple projects that can also be created in backyards and gardens by leaving small natural areas. We'll have a bit more on creating a pollinator space during the Friday Sunrise Show.

Published on 06/19/2025 under News Aspirus Hospitals in both Tomahawk and Rhinelander were recognized for their commitment to tissue donation. The two Northwoods hospitals were recently honored with Tear Drop Award from the American Tissue Services Foundation. The award is presented to facilities that exceeded their tissue donation goals and demonstrating the impact of a hospital-wide culture focused on generosity, education, and healing. Tissue donations can include bone, skin, heart valves, connective tissue, and veins, and just one tissue donor can help up to 75 people. The award comes in the shape of a tear drop. Joyce Kratz of the American Tissue Services Foundation explained, "Every time you think about a tear drop hitting water, it causes ripples — and they really don't know how many people they're impacting with those ripples." In all four Aspirus Hospitals received the recognition. In addition to Tomahawk and Rhinelander, their facilties in Medford and Portage were also honored.

Published on 06/19/2025 under News In a heart-related emergency every second counts. That's why having defibrillators available in public locations is important. Lincoln County approved an investment to place new or upgraded AED units in county facilities and locations. At their meeting Tuesday, the supervisors approved a lease contract for 14 AEDs. Ahead of the vote, Emergency Management Director Tyler Verhasselt discussed the need. He said the county's current inventory, eight units, were all expired by more than 5 years. He added that the manufacturer no longer exists and the model discontinued making service and maintenance a challenge. In addition to replacing the eight current AED units, Verhasselt recommended increasing to 14 units to provide better coverage. The recommendation was to lease the AEDs rather than purchasing them, as the contract includes a number of benefits including regular maintenance. The agreement was with Cintas, which the county already has contracts including for first aid cabinets. With tight budgets, the supervisors did discuss cost. Each unit is $125 a month, which works out to $21,000 annually. The supervisors acknowledged the investment and importance of having these life-saving tools available. Ultimately, the supervisors approved the lease contract as presented.

Published on 06/19/2025 under News Just a heads up for those who need to conduct business at the Lincoln County Service Center early next week. The County will be taking part in an active threat training exercise throughout the day Monday. This may impact some county services. The training will be conducted in two sessions. During the morning, the second floor of the building will be closed. This includes the County Treasurer, EMS, County Clerk, Information Technology, Administration, Corporation Counsel, and Emergency Management offices. And in the the afternoon, the ground floor will be closed affecting UW-Extension, Register of Deeds, Forestry, Land Services, Veteran Service Office, Maintenance and Economic Development Corporation. Members of the public who have business with any of these departments on Monday are encouraged to plan accordingly and may want to adjust their schedules.

Published on 06/19/2025 under News Anglers have one more summer fishing opener coming up this weekend. While the general inland fishing opener is in April, several species of fish open a bit later to accommodate spawning. That includes the small-mouth bass, which will open for harvest in the Northern zone starting Saturday. In our area, the northern zone are water bodies north of Highway 64. Smallmouth bass are often targeted for sport as they are known to put up a fight on the water. Prior to Saturday's opener, anglers could still target 'smallies' but only for catch-and-release. The southern zone season is already open. The general bag limit is five large or small mouth bass combined, with a minimum length of 14 inches, however some waterways do have special limits. Anglers are encouraged to always check rules and regulations on the waterway they plan to fish before casting a line.

Published on 06/19/2025 under News A pair of long-time Tomahawk bingo players will split an impressive jackpot. The summer WaWui Bingo games at SARA Park have been back for six weeks, but the progressive prize has been building since the end of last season. It was just a few dollars shy of $5,000 for the final game of the evening last night. All the winning player had to do was cover their entire card in 59 numbers or less. It wasn't one, but two players who did so. As a result, they'll share the winnings, each receiving a check for $2,498. The winners were Christine Palomo and Rod Berg. The progressive prize will reset for next weeks session. WaWui Bingo takes place each Wednesday night during the summer. Proceeds go towards SARA Park.

Published on 06/18/2025 under News The Lincoln County Board approved a purchase agreement with a private provider that would lead to the sale of Pine Crest nursing home by the end of the summer. The vote last night came at the end of a nearly three hour meeting. Earlier this month, the County announced a tentative purchase agreement for the skilled nursing facility in Merrill had been reached with Ensign Group and subsidiaries Merrill Health Holdings LLC and Jack Pines Healthcare LLC. The purchase price is listed at $9.5 million. The resolution projects the county will save approximately $1million annually, and the property will also return to the tax roll. As far as related costs, the County will need to lease space from Ensign or find an alternative location for Health and Human Service. That was a point raised by several supervisors. Before the supervisors began discussion, citizens had a chance to weigh in during public comment. It was an unusually crowded board room, and additional chairs were set up to accommodate. Many in attendance held signs and work yellow People for Pine Crest t-shirts. Around a dozen people who spoke were in opposition. Two citizens did utilize their allotted time to support the sale. Pine Crest was the last item on the agenda, and the supervisors took a short recess before introducing the resolution. They spent approximately 45 minutes during the discussion raising a number of concerns, and even some new developments. Many of the negotiations have been conducted at the Administrative and Legislative Committee and in closed session. Supervisor Greg Hartwig noted that they actually received multiple offers for Pine Crest, and Ensign was not the highest. However, he noted that the A&L Committee felt they would be in the best interest to serve Lincoln County going forward. The impetus to sell Pine Crest originated with concerns over operational and maintenance costs of the facility going forward. Earlier in the meeting, the 2026 preliminary budget was presented, with a projected $1.5 million shortfall needing to be balanced. Gary Olson of North Central Health Care was asked to address the board. NCHC has been operating Pine Crest on behalf of the county dating back to 2020. He noted that the ownership uncertainty over the last several years has been difficult. He added that their executive committee would be reconsidering that contract at the end of the year. While supervisors opposed to the sale attempted several maneuvers to delay, that vote ultimately came and the sale approved 14-8. They anticipate a closing date of August 1. This is actually the second attempt at a Pine Crest sale. A sale had been agreed to last summer as well, however the deal fell apart.

Published on 06/18/2025 under News From biking and hiking to snowmobiles and ATVs, Wisconsin has trails of all types. An aquatic trail in the Northwoods has been making waves, and recently received a national designation. The 108 mile Great Pinery Heritage Waterway follows the Wisconsin River. It originates at the Hat Rapids Dam in Oneida County, carves through Lincoln and Marathon Counties, and ends at the Lake DuBay Dam in Portage County. In celebration of Great Outdoors Month and National Trails Day, the US Department of the Interior designated five new National Recreation Trails around the country. That includes the Great Pinery Heritage Water Way. Secretary Doug Burgum said, "National Recreation Trails create opportunities for locally managed tourism to boost economies and benefit hikers, bikers, paddlers and other recreationists alike." Each recipient will receive a certificate of designation, letter of recognition, as well as special trail markers highlighting the trail. The designation is the latest in an effort to develop the trail in recent years. Volunteers and trail supports have been completing landing improvements, installing signage, and even developing an online presence catering to kayakers and canoes. For more information on the trail.

Published on 06/18/2025 under News Wednesday in Tomahawk means another night of Music on the River. After an exciting kick-off last week, the summer concert series returns for week number two. And it's a newcomer to Music on the River with the Kylar Kuzio and her band. Kylar has been gaining accolades around the state. Last year, they were in the top three during the Hodag Country Music Festival pick-off competition. According to the band bio, Kylar incorporates original material along with popular songs from a wide variety of genres including country, rock, pop and even hip hop. As always, Music on the River concerts are free. The show begins at 6pm at Veteran's Memorial Park.

Published on 06/18/2025 under News A Wausau man is accused of defrauding investors of more than $15 million. According to the US Attorney's Office, Stanley Pophal is facing charges of wire fraud and money laundering. The 63 year old was arrested over the weekend and made an initial appearance in federal court. According to the criminal complaint, beginning in 2019, Pophal solicited investors to purchase promissory notes from him with supposedly guaranteed rates of return. Over the next six years, he received more than $15,000,000 from at least 120 investors. The complaint alleges that Pophal did not actually invest the money, instead using it to live an extravagant lifestyle, including the purchase of over 300 snowmobiles. To keep the fraud scheme going, Pophal is accused of using newer investments to pay previous investors. The charges are a result of an investigation conducted by IRS and FBI.

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