Kelly Hertz

Yankton’s Ribfest/Chislic Fest scored a big success at its new Riverside Park home Saturday, drawing an estimated 12,000-15,000 customers for a day and evening of music, food, games, a car

Buy Now A Yankton man was arrested for driving under the influence (DUI) following a one-vehicle accident at 11:44 p.m. Tuesday night on 31st Street near Adkins Drive. According to the Yankton Police Department, the driver of a blue Subaru had been operating the vehicle under the influence when it collided with a utility light pole. The driver, identified as Nathaniel Nelson of Yankton and was arrested and charged with DUI (second offense) and open container in a motor vehicle. No further information was available at press time. The Yankton Police Department investigated the accident, assisted by the Yankton Fire Department and Yankton County EMS.

Buy Now Bert (played by Steve Schager) and Mary Poppins (played by Nan Lambertz-Schager) share a lovely moment during the song “Jolly Holiday” in a scene from the Dakota Theatre production of “Mary Poppins,” whose two-weekend run debuted Thursday night in the Meridian District. Showtimes on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturday are at 7:30 p.m., with 2 p.m. matinees on Sunday. Officials recommend that those attending reserve your tickets in advance to avoid long lines at the theater. Tickets can be purchased online, by phone or in person at the theater box office. To see more photos, visit www.yankton.net.

Olivia Kaul was crowned the 2026 Czech Days Queen during the coronation ceremony held Saturday in Tabor. Kaul will represent Tabor at various events during the upcoming year.

Buy Now Deborah Woracek, right, of the Fontenelle Forest Raptor Team, gets some help from Kathy Fischer, Fontenelle’s Raptor Program manager, in demonstrating that owls — in this case, a gray-horned owl — cannot swivel their heads all the way around (but they can come close) during a “Birds of Prey” event held at the Yankton City Hall gym Monday night as part of the local America 250 celebration. Although the event was moved from the Riverside Park amphitheatre to the air-conditioned gym due to the heat and humidity, a large crowd turned out to take in the raptors, as well as cool off with some free ice cream. The event was sponsored in part by the Yankton Community Library.

The editorial cartoon that appears on this page today (and with this article online) touches on a couple of timely issues as we prepare to celebrate the 250th anniversary of America this weekend.

Buy Now Yankton celebrated the Fourth of July — and the 250th anniversary of American independence — with music, food and fireworks on Saturday, capping off a week of festivities to celebrate the nation’s semiquincentennial. he crowd in and around the park swelled throughout the evening in preparation for the 10 p.m. fireworks display, which was fired off the top deck of Meridian Bridge. It provided a thunderous conclusion to the day and the week of events to honor the 250th.

Buy Now One person was injured when a vehicle veered off Highway 81and crashed into El Tapatio Restaurant in Yankton on Saturday morning. The incident occurred at approximately 11:40 a.m. According to scanner traffic, the southbound SUV left Broadway Avenue, plunged down the west-side embankment and smashed into the east side of the restaurant. One person in the vehicle needed extraction and was taken to a medical facility with unknown injuries. No other information is available. Responding to the scene were the Yankton Police Department, the Yankton County Sheriff’s Office, Yankton County EMS and the Yankton Fire Department.

Buy Now A 54-year-old Yankton man was transported to a local hospital after crashing his Jeep into the east side of El Tapatio in Yankton. According to the Yankton Police Department, around 11:40 p.m. Saturday night, witnesses said the driver veered off Highway 81 and into the building. The far east side of the restaurant is mostly a storage area, so the restaurant is still open and operating. Yankton Police Chief Jason Foote said the incident is still under investigation.