Smart Talk 1270 News Five days a week, from Elkhart and South Bend to Allegan and Warsaw, Don Wagner brings you area and national news of importance to the Michiana listener, as well as Sports coverage including scores, stories and live game coverage. Tune in each weekday morning for local news at Noon, 3pm, 4pm and 5pm plus IRN/USA News national updates at the top of every hour and IRN/USA News headlines at 30 past most hours of the day.

News Director Don Wagner

Weather Center Forecast AM 1270 Sports Today's News Posted Daily Monday to Friday

Last Update 9/2/2010

August 2010 will go in the record books as the driest August in history. Meterologist Jim O'Brien of the National Weather Service says we only had about a third of an inch of rain the entire month, breaking the record-low set way back in 1897. O'Brien says September doesn't seem to have much relief either. He expects a pretty warm month. O'Brien says soybean farmers are not happy with the lack of rain, but other farmers say the dry weather has given them an opportunity to work in the fields. Fall foliage will probably not be as colorful as usual because of the lack of rain.

A South Bend hospital is about to fall under the wrecking ball. Starting today, the old St. Joseph Regional Medical Center near South Bend's downtown will be torn down -- bit by bit. The St. Joe Med Center moved to a brand new facility in Mishawaka last December, and hospital spokesman Mike Stack says it could take a Chicago-based company until October of next year to completely demolish the old building. The old site may be used to build a new St. Joseph High School if the local Catholic diocese can raise enough money.

Mishawaka Mayor Jeff Rea only has five days more on the job before he leaves office. Rea is stepping down September 7th to become the new director of the St. Joseph County Chamber of Commerce. 11 people have thrown their hats into the ring for Rea's job. Republican precinct committeemen and women will vote on Rea's replacement during a special election tonight at Mishawaka's GOP headquarters.

A hostage situation at the Indiana State Prison in Michigan City has ended peacefully. Prison officials say an inmate, Scott Nicholson, assaulted a correctional officer Wednesday morning and took another prison employee hostage while in a housing unit at the facility. The hostage was released after about 90 minutes, and Nicholson surrendered. The prison employee was slightly hurt and received medical treatment. Nicholson was just convicted last week of attempted murder and other charges in the assault of a correctional officer at the Pendleton Correctional Facility.

If you're at risk of losing your home from foreclosure, the state wants to help out. A number of free state-sponsored workshops were held Wednesday across Indiana where struggling homeowners got help from counselors. The workshops were held at National Guard armories in South Bend, Fort Wayne, Indianapolis and Hammond. Lieutenant Governor Becky Skillman says the goal is to try to keep us in our homes. If you were not able to attend Wednesday's workshop, you can get help online at "877gethope.org" or by calling 1-877-GET-HOPE.

State School Superintendent Tony Bennett has announced the ten finalists for the 2011 Indiana Teacher of the Year Award. They include four from our area -- Penn High School physics teacher Stacy McCormack; Elkhart Memorial history and economics teacher Erin Hartman; Joann Brugos, who teaches first grade at LaPorte's Hailmann Elementary; and Leesburg Elementary fourth grade teacher Stacy Huffer. The winner, to be announced later this month, will be Indiana's candidate for National Teacher of the Year and will be recognized in Washington, D.C. in the spring.

For the first time in 160 years, Michigan won't have a state fair. Governor Jennifer Granholm has canceled Michigan's State Fair this year, saying the debt-ridden state could no longer afford to help pay for it. The fair had been losing money, and attendance had dwindled from a high of one-million people in 1966 to less than 220-thousand last year. Granholm's decision makes Michigan the only Midwest state and one of few in the country without a state fair.

Blood supplies are running thin. The American Red Cross in Northern Indiana has made an urgent plea for blood donations, and now the Indiana Blood Center is reporting its first critical blood shortage in two years. The center was 15-percent shy of its normal daily needs. Spokeswoman Wendy Mehringer says no one event caused the shortage. Mehringer says blood donations usually drop off during the summer months and around vacation time.

The family of a 32-year-old woman who died after a pallet of bottled water fell on her at a Kroger store in Central Indiana is suing the water bottler, arguing a new eco-friendly bottle design may have contributed to the accident. A lawsuit pending in federal court in Indianapolis says Nestle Waters' new bottles use less plastic and could not support as much weight as previous bottles. No word how much money the family is seeking.


...In Sports...

Big news from the Big Ten. With the addition of Nebraska, the Big Ten is splitting into two divisions in football. IU and Purdue will be in one division, along with Illinois, Ohio State, Penn State and Wisconsin. The second division includes Michigan, Nebraska, Iowa, Michigan State, Northwestern and Minnesota. The divisional realignment applies to football only, starting in 2011, and keeps open the option of IU and Purdue meeting in the final regular season game of the year. The winners of each division will meet in the conference championship game at Lucas Oil Stadium next year.

The college football season for three Indiana schools kicks off tonight. The Indiana Hoosiers open play at home against the Towson Tigers. It's the first meeting in football between the two schools. Ball State welcomes Southeast Missouri State to Muncie, while Valparaiso opens its season on the road at Western Illinois. On Saturday, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, under new head coach Brian Kelly, will kick off their season at home against the Purdue Boilermakers.

The Indianapolis Colts wind up the preseason tonight when they face the Cincinnati Bengals at Lucas Oil Stadium. Peyton Manning and the Colts' stars will see limited if any playing time tonight. Manning has not taken a snap in the fourth preseason game since 2004. Head coach Jim Caldwell and his staff will be using tonight's game to evaluate players, with the final cutdown to 53 players coming up on or before Saturday afternoon.

The Chicago Bears wrap up their preseason tonight in Cleveland against the Browns. The Bears are winless in their three games. Kickoff is set for eight o'clock, Eastern Time.

The Chicago White Sox kept within four games of the front-running Minnesota Twins in the American League Central after powering past the Cleveland Indians Wednesday, 6-4. Alex Rios and Alexei Ramirez hit solo homers to lift the Sox to the three-game sweep. The Twins beat the Tigers in ten innings, 2-1.

Koyie Hill, Kosuke Fukudome and Tyler Colvin hit run-scoring doubles to lead the Chicago Cubs past the Pittsburgh Pirates at Wrigley Wednesday, 5-3. The North Siders won two of three in the series.