Taney County

  Flood me once, shame on you; flood me twice, shame on me.   Tuesday night many Taney County homeowners are looking for a way out of flood number three, even four in some cases.   The late April flooding gutted many houses in Branson, Hollister, and Taney county.   If the water reached above the first finished floor that house is eligible to be bought-out by FEMA.  In Branson alone nearly 50 houses qualify, but it's just not that simple.   "We had more rain the week before that flood than we have in a year in Texas.

The Community Foundation of Taney county is helping recovery efforts in Branson from the Leap day tornado.   The group presented a $92,000 check this afternoon to city officials. That money will be used to help people who are still struggling with housing and other needs. The February 29th tornado hit downtown Branson and parts of Taney county, leaving behind a lot of damage. The Community Foundation of the Ozarks also made a contribution today. It presented Springfield public schools with a $50,000 check.

A proposed tax to fund 911 services in Taney County will not appear on the April ballot after all. County commissioners voted to reconsider the April date after the 911 board requested it. The board says more time is needed to educate residents about decreasing 911 funds and what the sales tax would pay for. In April, Taney County voters will decide on a tax levy proposal to fund a county library system. Commissioners approved a 15 cent levy instead of the 20 cents originally proposed.

  An area of the Ozarks that attracts people from around the world is struggling to keep its own people from proverty.   Despite unemployment dropping nationally the number of people seeking government assistance in Taney County is on the rise.     Christian Action Ministries, the county's largest food pantry, is stretched pretty thin.  The area typically employs mostly seasonal workers, which means summer.  This winter has been particularly bad.   "I write songs in the jazz, blues, country genre.

TANEY COUNTY, Mo. - There could be a break in a ten-year-old murder case out of Taney County. The Taney County Prosecutor is scheduled to hold a news conference on the 2003 homicide investigation of Rebecca Sutton. The 19-year-old's bones were found in the Mark Twain National Forest in 2004. The news conference is scheduled for Thursday afternoon. Keep checking back to KSPR.com and watch KSPR News at 4 for the latest on these new developments.

BRANSON, Mo. -- 911 in Taney County is over cost and under budget. County leaders fear if nothing is done, people in Taney may not be able to call the emergency number in 2016. Inside one of the county's 911 call centers, dispatchers work to save lives. The service may go away because of the budget. "It's important that our residents and our visitors don't have to go looking in a phone book through two or three pages of emergency numbers," said Branson Fire Chief Ted Martin. 911 is funded by a tax on landline phones.

MERRIAM WOODS, Mo. - Fireworks could be to blame for a house fire in Taney County. Crews responded just after 5 Saturday evening to a call in the 1000 block of Lake Road in Merriam Woods. Firefighters were able to extinguish the flames quickly and contain the blaze to the porch and attic. Though an official cause was not determined, officials say fireworks were being used in the area and could not be ruled out.

FORSYTH, Mo. -- With Veteran's Day right around the corner, one community hopes to have the funding to make a new veterans memorial a reality. The new memorial is being built in front of the Lake Taneycomo Elks Lodge in Forsyth. There's still more work to be done before it's finished and organizers say it could take another $15,000 to do that. The Elks Lodge started on the project last August.  The plan is the stones out there now will surround a brick walkway leading into the memorial.

The 911 Advisory Board will tell county leaders the best way to head off an internal emergency is to consolidate all of the county's 911 dispatch centers. Right now, Taney County's 911 is a wide operation: a Branson dispatch center answers calls for police and fire within the city limits. If you're calling from Hollister, that city has its own police dispatch. For any other service in Taney County, there's a separate call center at the sheriff's office in Forsyth.

A high speed chase this morning ended with a suspect seriously injured. Officials say the man stole a car in Taney County and led police on a chase that reached speeds up to 100 miles per hour. It started on highway F and US 160 and ended on Highway 76 near Manes road. The 26 year old driver was taken to a hospital by helicopter after he was thrown from the car. Authorities say the car had been stolen from Nixa on Wednesday.