JXN MS NEWS YOU CAN USE: MDOT SAYS 55 NORTH & SOUTH AT STACK IS F’D / URBAN AIR BREAK-INS & PEARL PD

1- JACKSON, Miss. —The Mississippi Department of Transportation will be closing two lanes in both directions of I-55 over the Pearl River in Jackson for bridge work. Set-up for the project will be underway Tuesday, and shutdowns will start Wednesday on I-55 north and south before The Stacks. MDOT Spokesperson Michael Flood said the project is a hydro-demolition over the north and southbound I-55 bridges. Workers will blast away the old road foundation. "It is basically like you are pressure washing, but you are on a construction scale, so it blasts out all the asphalt, concrete that is on top of that bridge deck, and it goes all the way down to the rebar," Flood said. "Then they check the rebar to see the shape that it is in." They will repair the sections that need it and come back with a complete overlay. But it's no small job and not one that will be handled overnight. MDOT said it is a 24-7 operation that will take until the end of the year to complete. According to MDOT, The Stack has more than 113,000 vehicles traveling daily. Commuters who travel the bridge daily said this project is not going to be easy. "We have got alternate routes posted on our website, like I-220 to get around it if you're headed north. You can also use highways 468 and 475 to Lakeland Drive to get around it, as well," Flood said. MDOT said the work is needed to extend the life of the bridges. 2- Family Adventure Park Urban Air spoke out about a series of vehicle break-ins that happened Saturday while the owners were enjoying their time in the park. They shared more on how the situation unfolded. "Whenever the people were coming back up, our security was actually walking in and it was brought to his attention and he immediately jumped into action to help those people," said Tim Kempt, manager at the park. Kempt said they have a good relationship with Jackson police, as they patrol the parking lot for urban air at no cost. Jackson police Chief Joseph Wade shared the problems these break-ins cause not only for law enforcement, but the community as well. "The first issue is that now we have another stolen gun on the streets of Jackson. Now, we are only adding to the availability and accessibility of guns in our community. And also, we have a population of individuals within our community that continue to pillage and plague our community with gun violence specifically," Wade said. Wade is asking the community to lock their doors and take their weapons out of their vehicles, especially when going out to public spaces. "I ask that the public to please take the guns out of their vehicles at night, please do. I think it's a precaution, well I know it's a precaution for law enforcement and your fellow citizens in the city of Jackson," Wade said. Kempt said they just want the community to feel safe and enjoy the park. "We are just a place where people can have fun, eat, and enjoy time with their family," Kempt said. The break-ins are still under investigation, and Jackson police have not arrested any suspects at this time. 3-PEARL, Miss. (WLBT) - A man died after a vehicle accident in Pearl on October 10. The Pearl Police Department says the incident happened around 11:17 p.m. in the 2300 block of Highway 468. A press release says the first officer who arrived at the scene witnessed a male fleeing the accident and running on Highway 468 toward his patrol vehicle. As other officers arrived at the scene, they found the wrecked vehicle around 100 yards away from the male. There, they found a woman with severe head trauma. Officers requested additional medical services and started caring for the victims. Authorities say that the male went into cardiac arrest, and medical personnel started CPR. According to the press release, the officer then ordered the male to the ground, and he complied. The male and female were taken to the University of Mississippi Medical Center for treatment. According to the press release, the male died at UMMC. The Pearl Police Department also released a statement regarding this incident to dispel social media reports claiming that officers kneeled on the male’s neck. "This incident has been reviewed by [the] Administration, and these claims are completely fabricated. This entire incident was captured on body and dash cameras. The individuals responsible for these outlandish claims should be ashamed of themselves for taking a tragic death [and] horrific scene and using it to cause irreparable harm to the community/police relationship. Thank you to the many responsible and reputable news sources who contacted the Pearl Police Department to verify the accuracy of this information prior to publishing fictitious claims."