The Madison County Board of Commissioners is seeking a qualified individual with the expertise and experience necessary to develop, promote and implement county forestry polices that assist federal, state and private forest land owners in management of forest lands and to enhance forest health, wildland fire mitigation, wildlife and watershed habitat and maximize the economic wellbeing of Madison County. The County Forester will represent the County Commission to the U.S. Forest Service (USFS), Montana DNRC, Bureau of Land Management (BLM), wood products entities and private land owners on issues of forest management, including fire mitigation grant programs. The Forester will advise the County Commission on forest management issues to include County response to project proposals through the NEPA/MEPA process and manage existing and future county timber lands and timber projects.

The agreement and payment terms will be negotiated with the selected offeror.

For further information, please contact the Madison County Commissioners’ Office, P.O. Box 278, Virginia City, MT 59755; by email at madco@madisoncountymt.gov; or by calling 406-843-4277.

All responses must be received by 5:00 p.m. Mountain Time on February 15, 2023.

The Madison County Board of Commissioners has one vacancy on the Big Hole River Advisory Board; two vacancies on the Big Sky Transportation District Board; two vacancies on the Board of Health; three vacancies on the County Compensation Board; one vacancy on the DUI Task Force; one vacancy on the Fair Board; one vacancy on the Housing Advisory Board; one vacancy on the Mental Health Local Advisory Council; one vacancy on the Planning Board; three vacancies on the Road Review Committee; one vacancy on the Solid Waste Board; one vacancy for a substitute member on the Tax Appeal Board; one vacancy on the Weed Board from the Cardwell/Harrison area; and one vacancy on the Taylor Cemetery District Board.

If you are interested in filling any of these vacancies, please contact the Commissioners’ Office at 406-843-4277, or by email at madco@madisoncountymt.gov.

PDF application forms can be found on the county website at https://madisoncountymt.gov/DocumentCenter/View/833

Please return completed applications to:

The Madison County Board of Commissioners is accepting applications for a County Representative to serve on the Ennis Planning Board per the following:

If you are interested in filling this vacancy, please contact the Commissioners’ Office at 406-843-4277, or by email at madco@madisoncountymt.gov.

PDF application forms can be found on the county website at https://madisoncountymt.gov/DocumentCenter/View/833

Madison County Commissioners’ Office

P.O. Box 278

Virginia City, MT 59755

We are excited to announce that a law enforcement canine program will be returning to the Sheriff’s Office soon! This process has been underway for months and we are finally nearing the end.

Deputy Tyler Mursch has been a driving force in the research, planning and execution of our new canine program. Because of his hard work, passion and commitment, Deputy Mursch was selected to be Madison County’s new K-9 officer. In the coming months, he will attend handler school with his new canine and his patrol vehicle will be outfitted for canine use.

The K-9 will provide the Sheriff’s Office with an invaluable tool for scent tracking and contraband detection! We would like to thank everyone who has made our new canine program possible: Molly McKinney (owner/operator of McKinney K-9), the Madison County D.U.I. Task Force, Jeff Gerth (Emergency Vehicle Solutions), Christine Keltner (the Sheriff’s Office Administrative Assistant), and the support of the residents of this great county! More info to be released when the program is fully up and running, but we here at the Sheriff’s Office were too excited not to let everyone know!

In other news, we would like to announce an upcoming Mass Casualty Training Event, organized by the Madison County Department of Emergency Services and the Sheriff’s Office. This event will occur in the first half of next year. The training will include multiple fire departments, hospitals, and emergency medical services. The incident training will provide the Sheriff’s Office and the other agencies with experience in handling mass casualty incidents. Mass casualty incidents can range from bus accidents to structure fires. This training will help us identify weaknesses and give us the opportunity to correct them. More information on this training event will provided.

And finally, if you pay close attention to our vehicles you may have noticed some new equipment in them. We have upgraded our in-car and body camera systems, along with our video evidence storage. Our current system was nearing the end of its life cycle and was not adequately meeting our required needs. The new system will automatically upload to one source. This will allow for a seamless process for the storage and dissemination of video evidence, and will free up more of a deputy’s time to focus on investigations and patrolling the county.

We would like to thank Deputy Trever Dowton for his hard work and passion to make our new camera system possible. Deputy Dowton worked with Hanna Brook (Madison County Grant Administrator) for a portion of the funding. He was also involved in the scheduling, installation and configuration of the entire system, working closely with Jeff Gerth (Emergency Vehicle Solutions) and Motorola Solutions.

As always, nothing we do would be possible without the citizens of this great county. We are very grateful for your continued support. Thank you all again!

Respectfully,

The Madison County Sheriff’s Office

On Wednesday, August 24 at 16:44, the Madison County Communications Center received a report of possible unexploded ordnance near mile marker 23 on Montana Highway 41 South near Twin Bridges. The original call described three pieces of what the reporting party believed to be dynamite. The dynamite was found in an outbuilding that was set to be demolished.

Madison County deputies responded to the residence. At great risk to themselves, two deputies entered the building and confirmed the pieces to be unexploded ordnance and other possible materials were located at the scene. The two deputies, one with prior military experience in explosive materials, documented the ordnance and exited the building. The United States Air Force 341st Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) Unit from Malmstrom Air Force Base in Great Falls was informed of the situation and responded to the scene.

In cooperation with multiple agencies and resources, the Madison County Sheriff's Office and the USAF EOD team destroyed the explosives after being safely transported away from the residence onto state owned land. The EOD team identified the explosives as highly unstable and responded as such. Montana Highway 41 South was closed for a brief period to mitigate the risk to the public. Ruby Valley EMS and the Twin Bridges Volunteer Fire Department were also on scene during the incident to provide any needed aid.

This incident is not only an example of the bravery of America's service members, law enforcement, emergency medical services and firefighters, but also demonstrates the danger of holding onto unexploded ordnance. Please do not allow situations like this to repeat themselves. The reporting party did the correct thing by immediately notifying law enforcement. A sweep of the property was performed and no more ordnance was located.

A big thank you goes out to the United States Air Force, Ruby Valley EMS, Twin Bridges Volunteer Fire Department, and the Madison County Communications Center for their assistance in this incident.

On Thursday, July 28, 2022 at 10:05am, the Madison County Communications Center received a 911 call from the area of South Main Street in Twin Bridges.

Deputies and emergency medical personnel responded to an initial report of an adult female victim that had been injured in a possible assault. The reported suspects were two adult males that had fled the incident scene. Witnesses at the scene reported the fleeing suspects were possibly armed with a firearm.

Madison County Deputies and Montana Highway Patrol responded to the Sheridan area in an attempt to locate the fleeing vehicle and suspects.

The male suspects were reported driving on Mill Creek Road outside Sheridan. At 11:38am, MHP Troopers and Madison County Deputies performed a high-risk traffic stop with the individuals near the 200 block of Mill Creek Road. One of the suspects was arrested on scene with charges now pending. The second suspect was detained at the scene and subsequently released without charges.

The female victim was transported from the scene to a medical facility to receive care for her injuries.

If you witnessed any part of the incident or have any further information regarding the incident, please contact the Madison County Sheriff's Office at 406-843-5301.

DO YOU OWN AND/OR OPERATE A SHORT-TERM RENTAL PROPERTY SUCH AS, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, AN AIRBNB OR VRBO? MONTANA STATE LAW REQUIRES THAT ALL SHORT-TERM RENTAL PROPERTIES BE LICENSED THROUGH THE MONTANA DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES. *SEE MONTANA CODE ANNOTATED 50-51-201.

PLEASE CONTACT THE MADISON COUNTY SANITARIAN OFFICE TO BEGIN THE PROCESS OF OBTAINING YOUR PUBLIC ACCOMMODATION LICENSE.

 -ZACHARY KOZICKY, RS

 CELL: 406-465-7339

EMAIL: ZKOZICKY@MADISONCOUNTYMT.GOV

OFFICE PHONE: (406) 843-4275

FAX: (406) 843-5362