Home News KLEM News Update May 9, 2010

KLEM News Update May 9, 2010

(ORANGE CITY)–Sioux County Sheriff Dan Altena says a sheriff’s deputy and his K-9 are a great team and the county is fortunate to have them both.

Sheriff’s office Deputy Justin De Bruin and K-9 Molly competed at the U-S National Police Canine Association trials and brought home three trophies.

The deputy and dog were second overall; third in team competition; and fourth in outdoor search.

Altena says Deputy De Bruin works very hard to train Molly and the effort has paid off in numerous drug cases.

(LE MARS)–Le Mars area residents gathered for “National Day of Prayer” in Le Mars Thursday with prayer based on the Lord’s Prayer.

Master of Ceremonies Mike Wells introduced the orchestrated prayers of praise, priorities, provision, personal relationships and protection.

Jim Rahn of Youth for Christ/The Asylum led with praise.

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Jason Larson of United Methodist Church of Le Mars prayed for God in the lives of people in the nation.

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Mike Wells asked for provision for the President and the Cabinet.

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Dan Krause of Assembly of God prayed for forgiveness.

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Matt McGrew of Le Mars Bible Church led prayer for protection.

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This was the 59th annual “National Day of Prayer.”

(SIOUX CITY)–A musical tribute to mothers is planned at the Betty Strong Encounter Center in SIoux City this afternoon.

The Mother’s Day program will be presented by Siouxland singer/songwriter Kemi at two this afternoon. The Chicago native and mother of three will perform in the Stanley Evans Auditorium at the Betty Strong Encounter Center.

Kemi is active in the choir and serves as a youth advisor at Mount Zion Baptist Church in Sioux City. She is employed as an advocate against violence.

Musical selections will include “My Girl” and “Amazing Grace.”

(SIOUX CITY)–Bicyclists will be helping others when they ride in the fifth annual “Wheeling for Woman Aware” bicycle ride to benefit Women Aware of Sioux City.

Women Aware helps homemakers in transition and limited-income families achieve greater emotional and economic stability.

The June 12th event at the Adams Homestead and Nature Preserve features 20, 35, and 50 mile loops as well as a family ride option on trails within the preserve.

Registration information is available through the Women Aware web site or by contacting the United Way of Siouxland agency in Sioux City.

(SIOUX CITY)–Western Iowa Tech Community College’s “Battle of the Bands” is Friday. The free public event is a day-long music festival and competition.

The headliner is “Dirty Secret”, a cover band from Omaha, Nebraska. They’ll perform Friday night at nine, following the competition.

Bands from Siouxland and surrounding areas will compete for prizes from one-thousand dollars for first place to $500 for third place. The event is from noon until 10:30 Friday night.

A limited-contact team sport, Ultimate Frisbee , will be played. The Battle of the Bands is in an area known as the Comet Crater, a grassy area in front of Building A.

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DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) A Revenue Department administrator says state budget cuts are causing delays in processing some tax refunds.

Due to budget cuts, Stuart Vos says his agency hasn’t been able to hire dozens of temporary workers to handle an influx of mailed-in paper returns in late April.

The agency has brought in help from other areas but still has been delayed in processing 2009 returns that were mailed in.

Vos estimated that about 75 percent of returns have been filed electronically. People filing electronically received refunds within a couple weeks, but people who mailed in returns may not get refunds until late June.

WAVERLY, Iowa (AP) Bremer County authorities say they have disinterred the remains of homicide victim buried more than 30 years ago to see if technological advances may yield new evidence in her death.

Bremer County Attorney Kasey Wadding says the body of Marie Lisa Peak was disinterred Friday and sent to the State Medical Examiner’s office in Ankeny for re-examination.

Peak was 20 years old when her in September of 1976, when her body was discovered in Bremer County just north of Waverly. An autopsy indicated Peak was a victim of sexual assault and died of a broken neck. At the time of her disappearance the Knoxville native had been a journalism student at Wartburg College.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) The Iowa Department of Human Services is laying off a total of 88 front line workers at offices and facilities throughout the state.

The workers received their layoff notices Friday.

In an e-mail to department staff Friday morning, DHS Director Charlie Krogmeier said the jobs will be eliminated July 1, but other positions within the department will be available almost right away for most of the people laid off.

Krogmeier added, though, that some workers would have to relocate to a new city to accept a different job within another DHS office.

During the next week, 23 county DHS offices will switch from being open full time to just part-time hours. A third of DHS’s 99 county offices were already operating on a part-time basis.

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) City officials in Cedar Rapids say the demolition of the former Sinclair meatpacking plant will begin on Monday and is expected to take as long as six months.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency is paying the $7.75-million demolition bill, plus another $211,000 for a firm to monitor debris coming from the site for contaminants.

A lingering question at the Sinclair site is the former plant’s smokestack. Historical preservationists have said they will work to raise funds to reinforce and preserve the structure, which the city says is leaning and could pose a safety threat to demolition crews.

The D.W. Zinser Co. of nearby Walford won the city contract to perform the Sinclair demolition.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) A bipartisan group of politicians are joining construction industry leaders in pushing for additional spending to repair the state’s and the nation’s tattered infrastructure.

They held a rally Friday on the steps of the Statehouse in Des Moines, saying the effort would not only make desperately needed repairs, but would create new jobs and help turn around the economy.

Republican U.S. Rep. Tom Latham says the investment could create good-paying construction jobs. He was joined by Democratic U.S. Rep. Leonard Boswell in pushing Congress to approve a new long-term highway funding plan.

Boswell says Congress can’t continue to pay for big programs like highways by simply growing the deficit.

Construction industry officials are calling for a long-term funding source, such as the gas tax, to ensure big projects get done.

OELWEIN, Iowa (AP) A large fire that began above an antiques store has destroyed apartments and businesses in downtown Oelwein.

Fire officials say the blaze began above the West Charles Mall antiques store late Friday. It then spread to at least one neighboring building in the northeastern Iowa community.

It took firefighters from six different departments until Saturday morning to get the flames under control.

No one was injured in the fire. Several people have been left homeless, and at least two businesses were affected.

The cause of the blaze is under investigation.

JANESVILLE, Iowa (AP) Authorities in Bremer County have charged a volunteer Janesville firefighter with drunken driving after he allegedly rolled a fire truck while on duty.

The Bremer County Sheriff’s Office says 43-year-old David Francis Flood was driving the truck when the accident occurred on March 27 in rural Bremer County.

After an investigation, Flood was charged Thursday with operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated.

A deputy estimated the damage to the fire truck at around $30,000. No injuries were reported in the incident, and an accident report didn’t indicate if anyone was in the vehicle with Flood at the time.

(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

 

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