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Furever Friends #406

This week we meet Cooper, a 1 year old black and brown Hound Mix weighing 45 pounds, and Barkley, a 2 year old grey and white Labradoodle weighing 61 pounds, 2 dogs looking for new Furever homes. If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to the shelter at 270-769-3428, visit their Facebook page at Hardin County Animal Shelter – Elizabethtown or stop by in person at 220 Peterson Drive in E-town. Furever Friends is brought to you by locally veteran-owned, Pet Supplies Plus, at 209 Towne Drive in Elizabethtown.

Health officials confirm measles outbreak across five counties

The Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services is confirming an outbreak of measles across five counties, noting more cases have been confirmed in the commonwealth this year than in any year since 1991.

The health cabinet says 15 cases of measles have been confirmed in Christian, Owen, Todd, Trigg, and Washington counties in the last four days. That number is expected to increase as the Kentucky Department for Public Health is actively investigating additional reports. Updated case numbers can be found on the KDPH measles dashboard.

The health cabinet says all 19 cases reported in 2026 have been for individuals who were not vaccinated against measles. The American Academy of Pediatrics and other experts say two doses of the measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine are 97 percent effective against the disease.

The health cabinet says the immunization rate among Kentucky kindergartners has recently increased to 90.7 percent, but this remains among the lowest rates in the nation. This comes as the United States is experiencing its largest measles outbreak since the disease was declared eliminated in the U.S. in 2000.

Contact your local health department or primary care provider for more information on measles and the MMR vaccine.  

Radcliff Council approves police policy updates

The Radcliff City Council met for a regular voting meeting Tuesday.

The council approved updated policies and procedures for the Radcliff Police Department concerning facial recognition technology and automated license plate readers. City Attorney Mike Pike said the updates come recommended by the Kentucky Association of Chiefs of Police.

“It tightens things up in terms of privacy restrictions and appropriate uses of the system and data retention, et cetera, so it’s a good policy,” Pike said.

The council also approved amendments to the city employee handbook concerning retirement and bereavement policies.

Radcliff Parks and Recreation Director Rebekah Kammeyer highlighted Senior Citizen Month by discussing senior activities at Colvin Community Center, which take place every Tuesday and Friday from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Kammeyer also discussed efforts to establish an ADA-accessible storybook trail at Saunders Springs.

“If anyone would like to help participate, leave your legacy behind, any sort of donation would be helpful,” Kammeyer said.

Contact the community center if you are interested in making a donation.

The council also presented a Mayor’s Recognition Award to Youth Theatre of Hardin County in recognition of their recent performance of Shrek The Musical.

The Radcliff City Council will next meet September 8.

ECTC holds groundbreaking for $16 million Science Building expansion

Elizabethtown Community and Technical College Chancellor Dr. Juston Pate said Tuesday’s groundbreaking for an expansion to the college’s Science Building is not just a kickoff for a construction project, it’s a kickoff for the next 40 years of the Science Building.

“Local workforce development is really the point for this,” Pate said. “When we talk about adding value to students’ lives and then returning that value back out into the community, it’s largely evident in the careers that they take.”

Pate discussed the expansion during ECTC’s annual Community Breakfast. The $16 million expansion to the west and south sides of the building is expected to be completed in 2027. Pate said biology and chemistry programs are important to the healthcare field, and the expansion comes at a time where healthcare worker shortages are seen across the area.

“By both expanding and providing more relevant experiences through this renovation, we’re really going to be enhancing our workforce through our students’ lives,” Pate said.

During the breakfast event, Jennifer Swope was presented with the ECTC Chancellor’s Pathfinder Award in recognition of her chairing of the ECTC Home for Hope campaign, which helped fund construction of the Family Scholar House housing facility.

Learn more about ECTC’s ongoing projects at ectc.us/grows.