No Meeting This Week For Plymouth County Board Of Supervisors
(Le Mars) — Plymouth County Board of Supervisors will not meet today as they do not have any agenda items to discuss.
City Council To Hold Public Hearing On Urban Renewal Area
(Le Mars) — The Le Mars city council will hold a public hearing at noon today to discuss the designation and expansion of the Highway 75 Urban Renewal Area and Urban Renewal Plan Amendment. Following the hearing, the council will discuss the consent items. As for action items, the city council is expected to award a contract for the Key Avenue Recreation Trail
Project, and approve the Fedder’s Marine and RV development agreement. The Convention and Visitors Bureau, Wastewater Treatment Plant, Ambulance Services, and the Public Library will all submit their annual reports.
Five More Counties Added To List Of Emergency Disaster Areas
(Des Moines) — Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds continues to look at damage caused by the flooding. On Monday, the governor toured southwest Iowa and visited the towns of Pacific Junction, and Hamburg. She has included five additional counties to
the growing list of counties declared as an emergency disaster, and eligible for state and federal relief funding. The new counties include Crawford, Delaware, Page, Palo Alto, and Tama. There are now 41 counties listed, including Plymouth, Sioux, O’Brien, Cherokee, Ida, and Woodbury.
Vice President Pence To Visit Flooded Regions
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) – Vice President Mike Pence will travel to Nebraska to survey damage from flooding in the Midwest.
White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders tweeted that President Donald Trump requested Pence go Tuesday to the Midwest to see the damage.
Sanders says Pence will be joined by Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts and Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds.
The tweet did not say where in Nebraska Pence would go.
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Le Mars City Officials Close The Recreational Trail Due To Flood Damage
(Le Mars) — Le Mars city officials gathered Monday morning to assess the damage that has occurred to city property and infrastructure as a result of the recent flood waters. City Administrator, Jason Vacura says the recreational trail will be closed for an undetermined time in order to make
the necessary repairs.
Vacura says he isn’t certain as to how long of time the recreational trail will be closed. But he says city officials want to make sure the trail will be safe before allowing the public to have access to the trail.
The city administrator is hoping that federal funds through FEMA can be used to help finance the repairs to the recreational trail, but he says city officials will first need to estimate the damages, along with the costs and time to repair the trail.
Vacura says city officials are still evaluating the city streets to determine if any damage may have occurred. He says there may need to be some shoulder repairs to both Marble and Mahogany Avenues.
Vacura says the Waste Water Treatment Plant was able to handle the additional water load from the flooding, and kept on operating without any major problems. The Le Mars Municipal Airport sustained some damage from last week’s flood. Many of the runway lights will need to be replaced.
Big Sioux River Receding – Akron Spared From Severe Damage
(Akron) — Near Akron, reports show the Big Sioux River has crested, and since Saturday has now been receding. Gary Horton is a county supervisor with the Plymouth County Board of Supervisors. He says due to levies and sandbagging efforts, the town of Akron was able to keep most of the water
from entering the downtown region.
Horton says this flood has been ranked as having higher flood waters than with past year’s floods. However, due to the work of the Akron Fire Department and the Akron City employees, they were able to keep most of the water at bay.
Horton says he has not heard of any reports from Akron residents with water in their basements. He says if there is water in basements, it may be due to the snow melt near a house, as opposed to rising flood waters.
Cedar Rapids Prepares For Flooding
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) – Western Iowa is not the only area of Iowa concerned with flooding. Barriers have been placed to protect some Cedar Rapids neighborhoods from floodwaters.
The National Weather Service says the Cedar River is expected to crest later Monday at 18.5 feet (5.6 meters). That’s nearly 3 feet (1 meter) into what the service says is major flood stage but nearly 13 feet (4 meters) below the 2008 record of 31.1 feet (9.5 meters).
The sand-filled barriers are arrayed along the west side of the
river. Storm drains and manholes have been plugged in the neighborhoods.
Any flooding isn’t expected to reach houses and businesses.
Construction On Highway 75 To Begin On April 1st
SIOUX CITY, Iowa – March 18, 2019 – Reconstruction work on U.S. 75 between Plymouth County Road C-80 near Sioux City, and Plymouth County Road C-60 near Hinton, requires shifting traffic into a head-to-head pattern in the
southbound lanes to accommodate reconstruction of the northbound lanes beginning at 8 a.m. Monday, April 1, until Thursday, Oct. 3, weather permitting, according to the Iowa Department of Transportation’s District 3
Office.
Left turns will be prohibited through the work zone during the construction.
Peterson Contractors, Inc. was awarded the $8.8 million contract for this project.
Two Year Old Child Dies After Man Sits On Him
COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (AP) – Police say a 2-year-old boy died after a Council Bluffs man sat on him.
Pottawattamie County court records say 31-year-old Larry Murphy is charged with first-degree murder and child endangerment resulting in death.
Murphy remains in custody pending bail of more than $1 million. His preliminary hearing is scheduled for Monday.
Police say Murphy had been staying with the boy’s mother and her two sons at a Council Bluffs motel. She told police Murphy became angry at the 2-year-old for taking his cellphone Friday, so he sat on the boy for around 20 seconds as the boy lay on a motel bed. Murphy was described as being 6 feet
(1.8 meters) tall, weighing 160 pounds (72.6 kilograms).
The boy was unresponsive when Murphy checked him later and was pronounced dead after being taken to a Council Bluffs hospital. The criminal complaint says a doctor noticed signs the boy may have been asphyxiated.
