Iowa DOT Warns Motorists To Use Caution While Driving On Icy Roads and Highways
(Le Mars) — The Iowa Department of Transportation is reporting all roads and highways in northwest Iowa are either wet, or many are partially ice covered. Snow plow trucks have been distributing salt or sand. The Iowa DOT urges motorists to use caution, especially on bridges and overpasses. Le Mars city street crews and Plymouth County secondary road crews are working this morning applying sand, salt, and brine where needed.
County Supervisors To Begin Reviewing Budget
(Le Mars) — The Plymouth County Board of Supervisors will begin the process of reviewing the 2019-2020 fiscal year budget during today’s meeting scheduled for the County courthouse board room. The supervisors will convene beginning at 9:30 a.m. In addition to reviewing the county’s budget, the supervisors will hear from County Engineer, Tom Rohe and from Ryan Berven of Kingston Life and Health. Berven will discuss the county’s health insurance program.
Fire Department Completes Investigation On Garage/House Fire
(Le Mars) — The Le Mars Fire and Rescue Department has completed its investigation to the garage and house fire that happened Sunday evening at 18081 Lake Avenue. Le Mars Fire Chief Dave Schipper says the garage and home sustained more than $250,000 worth of damage, including the loss of two
vehicles that were parked inside the garage. Schipper says the fire was accidental, and was started in the the back of the garage along the west wall on the work bench. Schipper says improperly discarded smoking materials is the cause for the fire.
photos contributed.
Two People Dead and Two Others Hospitalized After Vehicle Falls Through Ice
STORM LAKE, Iowa (AP) – Authorities say a man and child died after the vehicle they were in broke through lake ice in northwest Iowa.
The Buena Vista County Sheriff’s Office says deputies and other
first responders were sent to Storm Lake a little before 6 p.m. Sunday after receiving a report about the vehicle. The emergency workers went onto the ice, found the man and three small children and took them to shore.
The sheriff’s office says the man and one of the children were
pronounced dead later at a hospital. The two other children were flown to a Sioux Falls, South Dakota, hospital.
The names of those involved and details about their being on the ice have not been released.
Eastern Iowa Firefighter Recovering From Injuries Sustained During Explosion
IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) – Officials say an eastern Iowa firefighter injured in a fiery explosion that killed a colleague is making strides in his recovery.
Clinton City Administrator Matt Brooke said Monday that 23-year-old Adam Cain is listed as stable and has begun physical therapy. Brooke says Cain was able to walk about 100 feet (30 meters) Sunday at University of Iowa Clinics & Hospitals in Iowa City.
Brooke says Cain “is doing well and is in good spirits” and was able to receive a visit Monday from fellow Clinton Fire Department firefighters.
Fire Lt. Eric Hosette died Jan. 5 while fighting the fire at the ADM
grain facility in Clinton.
Crop Advantage Meeting Scheduled For Today
(Le Mars) — Farmers and agricultural lenders will want to attend the annual Crop Advantage Meeting sponsored by Iowa State University Extension and Outreach. The program is scheduled for today (Tuesday) and will begin with registration at 9:30 a.m. Joel DeJong, Iowa State University crops
specialist for northwest Iowa says the session will begin with Dr. Elwynn Taylor, ISU Extension Climatologist, and conclude with Dr. Chad Hart, ISU Extension Agricultural Economist.
DeJong says attendees will have the opportunity to pick from nine different programs from three different sessions featuring different speakers and timely topics.
The Extension Crops Specialist says when farmers look back on 2018, the word they may choose to describe the crop year could be “frustrating.” Farmers were delayed in getting their crops planted due to cool and wet conditions, then flooding had occurred in June.
DeJong says that frustration continued into the autumn when the crops were ready to be harvested, and northwest Iowa had an abundance of rainfall, which led to additional wet fields and flooding.
Registration for the Crop Advantage Meeting to be held at the Le Mars Convention Center is $60.
Iowa Pork Congress Scheduled For This Week
(Des Moines) — As many as five-thousand pork producers from across Iowa will be in Des Moines this week for the 47th annual Iowa Pork Congress. Greg Hora (HOR-uh), of Fort Dodge, is president of the Iowa Pork Producers Association which is hosting the convention. While some events started last evening,
(Monday), the main draw is the industry trade show, which runs Wednesday and Thursday.
Speakers and seminars will run the same days as the trade show, and one talk is focused on biosecurity and swine disease preparedness.
Events last night included the Taste of Elegance cooking contest, featuring a dozen chefs from across Iowa who whipped up a variety of dishes using pork. The association’s business meeting is today, along with an auction to raise money for a youth scholarship program.
Class Action Lawsuit Against Former Lottery Official
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Lawyers pursuing a class-action lawsuit on behalf of lottery customers nationwide are seeking to interview the jailed insider who allegedly rigged jackpots for himself and others for years.
The lawyers said in a court filing Friday they want to take the
deposition of Eddie Tipton at the prison in Clarinda, Iowa, to gather information for their case against the Multi-State Lottery Association.
Judge Michael Huppert recently granted class-action status to the
case, which involves customers who bought losing tickets for roughly 20 drawings between 2005 and 2013 that were allegedly tainted by Tipton’s software.
Tipton worked for the Iowa-based lottery association, where he built and installed random number generators that picked winning combinations.
He’s serving a prison sentence after admitting to installing code
that allowed him to predict winning numbers on certain days of the year, and working with his brother and others to buy tickets and win jackpots.
