Local News from WIKY

The work to prepare the Owensboro Blue Bridge for cleaning and painting has begun. Transportation Cabinet Spokesman Keith Todd says the project's contractor got it underway Sunday night, and the bridge will likely be closed to traffic Sunday through Thursday, from 8 at night until 5 in the morning. Crews are installing rigging, that's needed for securing containment tarps, that will go up before the cleaning and painting begins in mid-March. The bridge will then be closed 24-7 until about mid-November.

  Gas prices have seen a spike in Indiana over the last few days, and one expert says it‘s due to problems in Chicago. Patrick DeHaan of GasBuddy.com says massive power outages in that area forced the shutdown of refineries and pipelines that carry gasoline through Indiana. DeHann says it‘s hard to say when prices will settle back down, but says it won‘t happen until traders regain confidence in the market.

Congressman Larry Buschon tells WIKY News that he supports the decison of Gov. Mike Pence to proceed cautiously on the proposed fertilizer plant at Mount Vernon. Buschon says questions must be answered about the involvement of Fatima, a Pakistani company, as a major part of the project. And Buschon is concerned about safety, following the blast that killed several persons and left 60 unaccounted for --and probably dead -- at West, Texas. Valley Watch President John Blair raises questions about the safety of the Mount Vernon project, and a similar undertaking at Rockport.

About a half dozen people who had stopped at a north side McDonald's for a cup of coffee or an Egg McMuffin got more than they expected. They had to get of the restaurant at Highway 41 and Mt. Pleasant Road when fire erupted on the roof. Keith Marvel tells WIKY News that when he left the building he saw the source of the fire, an exterior sign that was burning. Volunteer firefighters were dispatched and they extinguished the flames. Nobody was hurt.