(SIOUX CITY) — It’s been a month of extremes when it comes to weather.
According to reports from the National Weather Service we know that Sioux City had a record high on May 10th of 96 degrees, and a record low of 35 degrees just one week later on May 17th. Now, we’re coming off a day of record rainfall for May 25th, with a total of 2.76 inches reported in Sioux City. (This was the amount at 3pm Wednesday when this report was written.)
So, why the extremes? Philip Schumacher, meteorologist with the National Weather Service out of Sioux Falls, explains.
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Schumacher says the next system coming into the area on Friday night is expected to only produce a half inch of rain to kick off the holiday weekend. Long term Schumacher predicts the the extremes will calm down.
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Historically, average summer temperatures for Siouxland are in the mid 80’s with lows in the mid 60’s. Average monthly rainfall in June, July and August is between 4 and 5 inches.
McCrary awarded Legacy honor
(LE MARS)–A Le Mars woman is being honored for her contributions to the financial services industry.
Kathy McCrary of First National Bank is the 2011 Iowa Bankers Association “Marketing Legacy Award” winner.
McCrary, who has worked at First National since 1986, received the honor during the Iowa Bankers Association Marketing Conference.
The Legacy Award honors Iowa bank marketers for outstanding service. Other professionals in the financial services industry nominate their peers for the honor based on marketing success and significant contributions to the industry.
McCrary serves as First National’s Marketing Officer. In addition to daily marketing activities, she has served two terms on the Iowa Bankers marketing committee. She has helped First National earn more than 20 Iowa Bankers “Best of Iowa” awards since joining the bank’s marketing department in 2000.
First National Bank C-E-O Roger Claypool describes McCrary as a dedicated bank officer who has always worked hard to achieve most any objective to promote the bank and the community. She is President of the Le Mars Area Chamber of Commerce Ambassadors and a member of the Chamber’s Business Promotions Committee.
Dordt to add clock tower to campus
(SIOUX CENTER)–A new sight and sound for time is under construction in the center of the Dordt College campus.
A 54-foot tall clock tower is part of the Dordt capital improvement projects from the ongoing Vision 2020 capital campaign.
The clock tower has been part of the campus master plan for several years.
The construction project is funded entirely by financial donations from friends of Dordt College.
This summer’s construction work on the Sioux Center campus will also include renovation of several East Campus apartments, expanding the campus green spaces toward Covenant Hall and additional parking locations on the east side of the Dordt campus.
Judges to weigh death for man who killed South Sioux City girl
DAKOTA CITY, Neb. (AP) A three-judge panel will consider whether to impose the death penalty for a Mexican national convicted of killing a 3-year-old South Sioux City girl.
A hearing for Melecio Camacho-De Jesus is scheduled for June 7 in Dakota County District Court.
Camacho-De Jesus was convicted last July of the first-degree murder of Evelyn Verdugo Paniagua in South Sioux City. During the first part of the sentencing phase of his trial, jurors found there were aggravating circumstances in the May 2009 killing that warranted the death penalty.
But the second part of Camacho-De Jesus’ sentencing phase was delayed because the judge who handled his case retired at the end of 2010. It will resume with the June hearing.
Camacho-De Jesus was living in Sioux City at the time of the child’s death.
Pawlenty: Minnesota budgets were in the black
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) Former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty is defending his budget approach and says that he balanced every one of his budgets.
The Republican presidential contender on Wednesday pitched himself as an economic pro and says his approach in Minnesota could help change Washington. He says he would cut the federal workforce and end “crony capitalism.”
When asked about his handling of the state budget, he told reporters the budgets always were in the black. He isn’t eager to bring up the mammoth deficit that was forecast for his successor’s first budget.
Pawlenty spoke to a conservative think tank in Washington as part of a week-long rollout of his White House run. His remarks were on the economy, a top concern of voters.
Oaths for Supreme Court additions set for June 3
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) Three new members of the Iowa Supreme Court will be sworn in during a ceremony on June 3.
Gov. Terry Branstad will administer the oath office to Justices Thomas Waterman, Justice Edward Mansfield and Justice Bruce Zager during a ceremony in the House Chamber of the Iowa State Capitol.
Branstad appointed them to the state Supreme Court earlier this year to fill vacancies created when three justices were voted off the bench last fall for their role in a unanimous 2009 decision that legalized same-sex marriage in Iowa.
Waterman was in private practice in Davenport before his appointment. Mansfield was a justice on the Iowa Court of Appeals and Zager was a district court judge before his appointment to the supreme court.
Kentucky worker dies in fall from roof in Bettendorf
BETTENDORF, Iowa (AP) Authorities say a construction worker from Kentucky died after falling off a roof of a building in Bettendorf.
WQAD-TV says 37-year-old William Mangrum, of Mayfield, Kentucky, accidentally fell 26 feet to his death Tuesday afternoon. Police say he was stretching rubber sheeting across the roof of the Muslim Community Center of the Quad Cities when he fell.
Iowa teen accused of shooting at woman, child
FORT DODGE, Iowa (AP) A Fort Dodge teenager has been arrested on allegations he fired a gun at a woman from a passing car.
Seventeen-year-old Deangelo Foy is charged with attempted murder. Police say he allegedly fired a shot at the woman and her son while they were in the woman’s car early Wednesday morning. The bullet allegedly struck the car’s windshield.
Police say officers stopped Foy’s car a short time later and took him into custody. A handgun was recovered during the traffic stop.
Officials at the Webster County jail say Foy is no longer in custody.
High wind topples Belle Plaine church bell tower
BELLE PLAINE, Iowa (AP) Workers are preparing to clear debris after high wind toppled a church bell tower in Belle Plaine.
The Gazette in Cedar Rapids is reporting that the bell tower at First Lutheran Church came down late Tuesday afternoon. When it fell, the 25-foot tall brick tower came down on a covered walkway in front of the church.
A few members were in a different part of the church when the tower fell and no one was injured.
Flood gate leads to wastewater discharge in DM
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) A flood gate weighing several tons has fallen at the Des Moines wastewater treatment plant, leading to a discharge of partially treated wastewater into the Des Moines River while repairs are made.
The gate, which is closed when the river threatens the plant, fell Wednesday morning. Dave Perry of the Iowa Department of Natural Resources says it appears a metal pin that holds the gate in place broke, causing the gate to drop.
Perry says officials are still trying to recover the gate, and there’s no estimate on how long repairs may take or how much partially treated wastewater has been released.
The plant discharges about 120 to 180 million gallons per day. The city is testing for pollutants, and the agency is monitoring the situation.
(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
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