By AP/KWMU
St. Louis, MO – Gas was selling at some stations in the St. Louis region for $3.20 per gallon this morning (Friday).
That comes as gas prices are being investigated in both Missouri and Illinois.
Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan says her office has received reports that unbranded stations could not buy gas from terminals. Her office has sent letters to gas terminals owners to ask if that's true and, if so, why.
SCHOOLS OFFER HELP
Gov. Rod Blagojevich said Thursday that children driven from hurricane-battered areas can enroll in Illinois schools. Kids from the Gulf Coast will be considered homeless, which means they can enroll without being residents.
That's similar to what Missouri's education commissioner, Kent King, told schools this week.
Missourians who had enrolled in a Gulf Coast school that is now closed can go to Missouri State University in Springfield for free this semester. Other schools are also waiving fees and tuition. Mizzou says it's offering help on a case-by-case basis.
Augustana College in Rock Island, Ill. says it will offer free fall tuition to as many as ten students whose colleges were impacted by the hurricane.
PHILANTHROPHY A number of businesses in the St. Louis region are offering to match any donations that employees make to help with hurricane relief.
Members of the Metropolitan Association for Philanthropy have so far pledged about $7.5 million in cash and other support from the St. Louis region.
People who work for the city of St. Louis will be able to make a one-time before-taxes deduction from their paychecks to the Red Cross for hurricane relief.
OTHER NOTES:
- The St. Louis Convention and Visitors Commission says it's calling groups that had planned conventions and meetings in the Gulf Coast this fall to see if they'd like to relocate to St. Louis.
- The Illinois Corrections Department said it will share blankets, water and other supplies with prisons in Louisiana. - At least 90 Illinois police officers have volunteered to help restore order in areas hit by Hurricane Katrina. No one has yet made a formal request for their assistance, but the volunteers are standing by for orders to travel to the affected states.
- Another 40-person Illinois Medical Response Team is being sent to Louisiana to assist in caring for victims of Hurricane Katrina.
- A group of 24 young patients from New Orleans was flown into Kansas City Thursday night to be cared for at Children's Mercy Hospital. The youngsters were all patients at Children's Hospital in New Orleans, which has had electrical and supply problems.