Loreto Cruz

Several of SIU’s buildings have been called haunted. A number of authors have published novels and compilations of ghost lore across southern Illinois. Michael Kleen is one of those authors, and published a list of the top ten most haunted places in southern Illinois. One story claims that a student got lost in Faner Hall, a multipurpose building on SIU’s campus, and the student’s spirit still roams the halls at night.

The Mississippi River was originally expected to crest at Cape Girardeau on Sunday, Jan. 3, but instead reached its highest point a day earlier. Local leaders in several riverfront towns, and Illinois Emergency Management agency spokeswoman Patti Thompson said that's presumably due to several levee malfunctions further downstream. “Honestly, we were most concerned about the Len Small Levee… but now I guess we don’t have to be” Thompson said over the phone on Saturday.

A home near Ava, Illinois was torn off the foundation by a tornado Tuesday evening, February 28. The family wasn't home at the time. The home, located on Marlboro Road between Vergennes and Ava Blacktop, was pulled off of its foundation, part of it came to a rest in a field. Two dogs that were kenneled in the home were pulled out and were not injured.