Tornadoes confirmed in Clinton County following Monday night’s storms
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- Written by: Kelly Jo Ross - Breese Journal News Editor
A Germantown Elementary school bus with shattered windows sits beside an overturned clothing donation bin and a downed stop sign along Church and Westfall streets in Germantown after severe storms Monday evening caused widespread damage and power outages across Clinton County. The National Weather Service has confirmed that a tornado touched down near Trenton and another one in Germantown during Monday evening’s severe storms in Clinton County.
Severe storms swept through Clinton County on Monday morning and again in the evening, bringing heavy rain, damaging winds, and large hail, along with reports of possible tornadic activity.
The day began with intensifying weather conditions, including heavy rainfall, strong winds, and hail up to golf-ball size.
In New Baden, pea-size hail was reported Monday morning, and in Bartelso, there were reports of golf-ball size hail, covering the ground and resembling snow in some areas.
At Mickelson’s Auto Body in Bartelso, large hail shattered vehicle windows. 
A hail storm struck the area Monday morning, covering the ground in some parts, resembling snow. This was located in Bartelso, where they received a continuous downpour of up to 1-inch hail. At other areas near Bartelso, hail caused significant damage to roofs and siding.
Conditions were set for severe weather in the evening, causing many schools to cancel after-school events and activities ahead of the storm.
After 7:30 p.m., another round of storms moved through the county, producing intense lightening, heavy rain and strong winds, and the National Weather Service issued a tornado warning for Clinton County.
Widespread damage was reported in several towns, including Trenton, Damiansville, Germantown and Beckemeyer.
Near Damiansville, a shed was damaged, with debris scattered across nearby fields.
Along State Route 160 near Trenton, a tree fell onto a home, causing damage.
In the Village of Beckemeyer, it was reported that damage remained mainly south of the village, where several buildings were destroyed, particularly along Highline Road towards Carlyle.
Damage also was reported in Germantown, with downed trees and power lines. Mobile homes near Germantown Elementary School were destroyed by the storm, and the school itself sustained structural damage, along with the loss of a large tree at its entrance.
Utility crews work to clear storm debris at Germantown Elementary School in the aftermath of severe storms that caused widespread damage and power outages in Clinton County on Monday evening. No injuries were reported in Monday night’s storms.
Germantown Fire Chief Jeff Kampwerth said that preliminary assessments indicate that the path of damage was approximately 0.6 mile in length, and 39 buildings sustained moderate to significant damage as a result of the storm, along with numerous power lines and trees.
“Emergency crews, along with local responders and public works, are actively conducting damage assessments and assisting with cleanup efforts,” said Kampwerth, adding that community members also played a vital role, coming together to support neighbors and aid in recovery operations.
By Tuesday morning, volunteers and crews were actively clearing debris, particularly around Germantown Elementary and the residences near where the most impact occurred.
Power outages also affected multiple towns, including Trenton, Germantown and Bartelso. Schools in Germantown and Bartelso were closed Tuesday due to power outages. Trenton Elementary remained open despite not having power.
Several area businesses also shut down on Tuesday, including Dairy King and Freshway IGA in Trenton.
Germantown Elementary School will also be closed on Wednesday, as they continue to assess all areas of the building in coordination with their architect.
Linemen are pictured working to replace the broken power poles throughout the county. Emergency crews continue to assess the damage across the county, where twisted and uprooted trees were common sites.
On Tuesday afternoon, it was reported that the National Weather Service confirmed an EF-1 tornado touched down near Mid-America Airport in St. Clair County around 8 p.m. on April 27, then headed east into Clinton County near Trenton. Maximum wind speeds were estimated to be 110 mph.
A second tornado touched down in Germantown, moving east toward Carlyle, with EF-1 intensity and peak wind speeds also of 110 mph.
According to the Clinton County Sheriff’s Department, despite significant damage in several areas, there have been no reports of major 
A shed located on Highline Road, towards Carlyle, was destroyed following Monday night's storms.injuries or fatalities.
“The area in and around Germantown was hit particularly hard,” said Clinton County Sheriff Dan Travous. “ Mobile homes destroyed, trees on top of homes, and many houses with limbs penetrating through roofs and walls, and power lines snapped all over town.”
He said power outages remain an issue across the county, but lineman from across the region are making great progress.
Residents are urged to remain cautious during cleanup, avoid damaged areas, and monitor official updates as recovery and cleanup efforts continue.
A mobile home in Germantown is destroyed from Monday night’s storms. Clinton County Emergency Management Agency is working with the Red Cross, helping those displaced due to their homes being uninhabitable. Should you need assistance from the Red Cross, they can be reached at 1-800-RED-CROSS.
The Shed in Breese is officially open for business
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- Written by: Matt Wilson - Breese Journal Reporter
The Shed in Breese held a grand opening and ribbon cutting on Saturday, April 25. Pictured are, FROM LEFT, Lydia Schulte, Todd Schulte, Seth Schulte, Troy Schulte, Rhonda Schulte, Will Schulte and Robin Mettler. A one-stop shop convenience store where customers don't have to leave their cars has opened in Breese.
The Shed, located on Fourth Street, had its grand opening on Saturday, April 25.
The Shed is owned by Todd and Rhonda Schulte. It offers almost everything that a local convenience store would have except gas. Customers pull into The Shed during their normal business hours, place their order, and the workers go and get the items.
"The big thing that people have to realize is that they don't have to get out of their car," Rhonda Schulte said. "They just pull up, tell us what they want, and we go and get it for them."
Rhonda Schulte said the idea for the business happened when she went on a momcation to get a dog from Ohio after Todd had just returned home from deployment. The kids were really wanting a dog. Rhonda arrived in Ohio on a Friday night and was going to pick up the dog on Saturday. On Friday night, Rhonda decided that she was going to pick up some alcohol and watch a movie.
Rhonda kept Googling for a liquor store and it kept taking her to a building that looked like a car wash. She noticed that cars weren't clean coming out of the building and she saw some customers purchase alcohol. She pulled up and asked the worker "can you get beer here?"
The worker looked at all the coolers and said, "Yeah, what kind to you want?" She got home, called her husband and told him, "I know exactly what we should do with the property we bought in Breese."
They have been working two years to get The Shed — a drive-in convenience store — up and running. The Shed sells alcohol, sodas, food, fountain sodas, coffee, tobacco, among other items.
The Schultes had a trial run of the business on April 18 before the grand opening on Saturday.
"Business so far has been steady," Rhonda Schulte said. "We have more of a grasp on some of the things that we need to fix and change."
The Shed also has ice and can pack coolers for families who want to go to the lake.
The Schultes are in the process of building a website for The Shed. When the website is up, customers can pre-order items for pick up.
The Shed is veteran owned and they have 10% military and first responder discounts.
The Shed building was constructed in 1920. There have been many different businesses in the building.
The Shed is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., and Sundays 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. If a customer comes when The Shed is closed, there is a sensor that will open the door and they can drive out.
The Shed is located at 601 N. Fourth St. and the phone number is 618-858-1401.
Mater Dei walks it off against rival Cougars on shot from Wheelan
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- Written by: Jeremy Chawgo - Breese Journal Sports Editor
Ranging to the right — Mater Dei freshman Harper O’Brien ranges to her right on a first-inning grounder in the Lady Knights’ 5-4 win over rival Central on Wednesday. The shortstop was 1-for-2 with a single, a walk and a run scored. PHOTO BY JEREMY CHAWGO The Central Cougars softball team had an up-and-down week with two Cahokia Conference wins over Roxana while they dropped nonconference tilts to Greenville and Mater Dei.
The Lady Cougars are now 12-10 on the season and 4-2 in Cahokia play. They hosted Columbia on Tuesday and will play at Columbia on Thursday.
The win for Mater Dei was their only contest of the week as they moved to 9-12 on the season.
The Lady Knights are off until this Saturday when they have a two-team double header when they play Flora at noon and Johnston City at 2 p.m. with both games at Johnston City.
Greenville 10, Central 1: It was all Comets from start to finish in their nonconference win over the Lady Cougars on Friday.
After two scoreless innings, the Comets soared in the third inning with a single tally before garnering seven in the fourth inning and single tallies in the fifth and seventh frames.
Central got their lone run in the bottom of the fifth inning. Addison Singler led off with a single, before the next two hitters struck out. She moved to second on a passed ball, stole third and scored on a wild pitch as they trailed 9-1.
Kaitlyn Lurkins was the story of the game as she went the distance for the win, allowing one earned run and scattered eight hits and two walks while she struck out four batters. At the dish, she was 4-for-4 with three singles, a homer, a run scored and three batted in.
Payton White was 3-for-5 with a single, a double, a triple, two RBI and three runs scored.
Dalanee Materkowski was the losing pitcher, tossing three innings and allowing two earned runs on five hits, no walks and one strikeout.
Singler and Kate Johnson each had two singles for the Cougars who had all eight of their hits accounted for by singles.
That’s a theft — Roxana base runner Madison John slides into second base safely ahead of Taylor Trame who makes a strong play to corral the ball. Madison Ahle is backing up the play in the Cougars’ 5-4 win over the Shells on Tuesday in Breese. PHOTO BY JEREMY CHAWGO Central 4, Roxana 3 (8 innings): The Lady Cougars worked around four fielding errors in their season-sweep over the Shells on the road on Thursday.
Central used one mighty swing of the bat to take the lead early on in the first inning, before having to steal the win in extra innings.
Central went to work in the top of the first inning when Madison Ahle and Reese Renth each singled. After a fly out, Taylor Trame connected on a long, three-run homer to left for a 3-0 lead.
Roxana responded in the bottom of the inning with a solo tally.
The Shells got another single tally in the second inning on a single from Raegan Martin and an RBI single from Kassidy Schuyler to get within 3-2.
Roxana tied things up with one out in the seventh inning when Madison John singled and later scored on a wild pitch for a 3-3 game.
Central regained the lead in the top of the eighth inning when Eden Campanella doubled to the gap before moving to third on a ground out. Campanella crossed on a passed ball to gain a 4-3 cushion.
Campanella got a groundout and two strikeouts in the bottom of the inning to secure the victory.
Campanella was 2-for-3 with a double and a single while Trame’s lone hit was the three-run homer. Central got two walks from Materkowski in a game where they out hit Roxana 8-7.
Campanella was the winning pitcher as she went 2-1/3 innings of relief where she allowed one unearned run on one hit, one walk and two strikeouts.
Dalanee Materkowski pitched the first 5-2/3 innings and allowed one earned run on six hits, two walks and a punch out in her no-decision.
Have a Dei — Mater Dei sophomore second baseman Ellisen Wheelan uses two hands to corral a grounder in the first inning of the Knights’ walkoff win over Central on Wednesday. Wheelan was 3-for-4 with four RBIs. PHOTO BY JEREMY CHAWGO Mater Dei 5, Central 4: The Lady Knights walked it off against the rival Cougars on Wednesday in Breese.
The Cougars took charge with an unearned run in the first inning before MD scored twice in the third and once in the fifth to take the lead.
Central got a three-run homer in their final at bat in the top of the seventh inning before MD walked it off in the bottom of the inning.
Ellisen Wheelan was the story of the game as she was 3-for-4 with two singles, two stolen bases, a run scored and four batted in. Senior Taylor Robert was 2-for-3 from the leadoff spot with two singles, a walk, four stolen bases and two runs scored.
She was also the winning pitcher in relief as she went the final three innings and allowed three earned runs on four hits, one walk and three punch outs.
Freshman Eden Campanella paced the Cougars’ offense with a single, a homer, a walk, a run scored and a three-run homer in the seventh inning. Reese Renth added two singles and a run scored.
Dalanee Materkowski took the loss as she tossed two innings and allowed three earned runs on four hits, one walk and one strikeout.
Mater Dei committed the lone two errors in the contest while they out hit the Cougars 9-8.
The Cougars got on the board in the first inning when Madison Ahle reached on an infield error and scored on a ground out from Taylor Trame for a 1-0 lead. CHS stranded two runners on base.
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