Gun-show shooting called an accident
HOT SPRINGS - Two men were injured Saturday during an accidental shooting at the South Hot Springs Lions Club Gun and Knife Show at Hot Springs Convention Center.
According to the Hot Springs Police Department, Charles Pike, 42, received a “non-life threatening injury” about 11 a.m. after picking up a pistol off a vendor’s table “when the gun went off, striking Pike in the left hand.”
The bullet then ricocheted off the floor and struck William Bennett, 37, in the left side of his chest.
The bullet did not penetrate Bennett’s chest and the injury is “non-life threatening,” police said. The men’s places of residence were not included in the police report.
Bennett and Pike were taken to local hospitals and the accident is under investigation.
The show went on as scheduled and was packed with patrons.
Larry Louden, president of the South Hot Springs Lions Club, said the organization had been hosting the show since 1985.
Saturday’s shooting was the first of its kind to occur in the history of Lions Club gun shows in Hot Springs, he said.
The gun, a .45 caliber automatic, was owned by vendor Darrel Blount, a Hot Springs attorney. Blount said he heard the gun go off when he was away from his table for about 10 minutes getting a soft drink.
-ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE
7 sites face review for historic register
The state review board of the Arkansas Historic Preservation Program will consider seven properties for nomination to the National Register of Historic Places during its Aug. 7 meeting in Little Rock, program director Frances Mc-Swain said.
The group will meet at 10 a.m. in the Old State House Museum at 300 W.
Markham.
Properties to be considered are:
The Dunbar Historic District and the Southern Trust Building, both in Little Rock.
The Camp House in Aplin, Perry County.
The Hall-Hogan Grocery in Conway.
The Walnut Grove Cemetery in Cord, Independence County.
The Thomas J. Hankins House in Pelsor, Pope County.
The W.F. and Estelle McWilliams House in El Dorado.
The board will also consider the Hankins Country Store in Pelsor for listing on the Arkansas Register of Historic Places, which recognizes historically newsworthy places that are not eligible for inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places.
Those seeking more information on the register can call the Arkansas Historic Preservation Program at (501) 324-9880 or visit the website at www.arkansaspreservation.org.
-ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE
Tulsa debris pickup could take a month
TULSA - Tulsa officials say it could take more than a month to pick up all the debris left after last week’s violent storm.
City spokesman Lara Weber said Monday it would likely take so long because damage was spread throughout the city’s 200 square miles and 3,000 miles of streets.
City crews began collecting limbs and other waste early Monday on the outskirts of town, with the plan to move inward, where there is the most damage.
Debris pickup will continue on weekdays and crews will only make one pass through the city.
The city says residents must leave tree debris at the curb, but residents can also take debris to the city’s processing site.
-THE ASSOCIATED PRES
SJoplin school staff travel costs climb
JOPLIN, Mo. - Top Joplin school administrators have spent tens of thousands of dollars on travel since the May 2011 tornado, much of it for trips to express gratitude to groups that helped the district recover.
Receipts from credit cards issued to Superintendent C.J. Huff and Assistant Superintendent Angie Besendorfer showed $42,625 spent on travel since the tornado damaged or destroyed several schools, the Joplin Globe reported. Nearly half of that - $20,402 - was travel costs for other district staff members, with Huff spending at least $13,600 and Besendorfer spending at least $8,600.
Organizations that hosted or sponsored some of the events that Joplin administrators attended reimbursed the district for more than $16,000 of the $42,625, according to the records.
Huff last week acknowledged that administrators have traveled extensively during the past two years but said that’s starting to slow down.
The “thank you campaign” to meet with groups around the state, such as the Missouri National Guard and the St. Louis Suburban School Nurses’ Association, kept the city in the spotlight and encouraged continuing donations, he said.
-THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Northwest Arkansas, Pages 8 on 07/30/2013