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Last updated on Monday, January 1, 2018
(UNDATED) - In July 2017 , there was a large fish kill at Greene-Sullivan State Forest Reservoir, a former Monroe County auditor was sentenced to house arrest and a Galactic Gathering in Mitchell in celebration of Indiana’s space heritage.
Thousands of Fish Die At Greene-Sullivan State Forest
Thousands of fish were found floating belly-up in Greene-Sullivan State Forest Reservoir 26.
Steve Siscoe, property manager says oxygen depletion is one of the most common natural causes of fish kills. The hypoxic event may be brought on by factors such as algae blooms, droughts, high temperatures and thermal pollution.
The 42-acre reservoir located on Greene-Sullivan State Forest had an average depth of 4.5 feet with a maximum depth of approximately 12 feet.
On warm summer nights during algal blooms, the dissolved-oxygen concentration sometimes drops too low for the fish, and a die-off can occur which is what happened at the reservoir.
Most of the fish killed were gizzard shad, but there were some catfish, bass, crappie and bluegill found. Siscoe says the remaining fish will repopulate.
Former Monroe County Auditor Sentenced To House Arrest
Former Monroe County Auditor Steve Saulter was sentenced to serve three months on house arrest after pleading guilty to a felony charge of official misconduct.
Saulter, 65, pleaded guilty to illegally using a his county issued credit card to purchase items and to buy his late wife's medications. In exchange for the guilty plea, three counts of fraud were dismissed.
Saulter resigned from his position as auditor in 2016 after Special Prosecutor Stanley Levco from Evansville charged Saulter with three counts of felony fraud and one count of official misconduct for using his county-issued credit card 15 times to purchase food and medicine.
The purchases, made in September and October of 2015, were recorded on store video cameras.
Saulter admitted making the $620 in purchases at Walmart, Kroger and Marsh, but told a detective he "accidentally" used the office credit card instead of his personal debit card because he was under a lot of personal stress at the time and the cards were similar in appearance. Saulter's wife had been ill, and she died on February 14, 2017.
Saulter, a Democrat, served as county auditor for 3.5 years before he resigned in July 2016.
Galactic Gathering: A Celebration of Indiana's Space Heritage
Eleven of Indiana's Astronauts gathered in Mitchell, celebrating Indiana's Space Heritage during the Galactic Gathering - the largest gathering of Hoosier born astronauts ever.
Events kicked off with the Liftoff Breakfast at Spring Mill Inn where those who purchased tickets really got to interact with the honored guests.
The event was hosted by Virgil I. Grissom Memorial, Inc.
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