Home News KLEM News PM Update August 18, 2010

KLEM News PM Update August 18, 2010

(DOON)–Two people went a hospital after a traffic accident near Doon on Monday afternoon .

The Lyon County Sheriff’s Office reports a John Deere tractor driven by 75-year-old Earl Gort of Doon was sideraking the north ditch of Garfield Avenue. Gort drove out of the ditch and was struck on the left wheel of the tractor by a mini-van driven by 78-year-old Helen Niemeyer of Doon.

Gort and Niemeyer were taken to Hegg Memorial Hospital in Rock Valley to be treated for injuries.

Western Iowans talks to King about deficits, debt

(LE MARS)–Too much federal government spending–Congresman Steve King says that concern comes up in every single meeting with Iowans from the 32 counties in his district.

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King says the second top concern is the loss of personal liberty and freedom.

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The Republican from Kiron was in Le Mars for a KLEM News interview Tuesday during a joint meeting with his Washington, D-C and Western Iowa staff in the Ice Cream Capital of the World.

Floyd Valley Hospital hosts Senator Grassley for Kiwanis meeting

(LE MARS)–Floyd Valley Hospital will host Senator Chuck Grassley for the Le Mars Kiwanis Club meeting Tuesday morning.

Hospital administrator Mike Donlin says Senator Grassley is the guest speaker for the Kiwanis meeting. The 7 a-m Kiwanis gathering in the lower level conference room at Floyd Valley Hospital is open to the public.

Donlin says this will provide an opportunity for Senator Grassley to have a dialogue with the public.

The hospital’s Community Action Team (CAT) will provide coffee and donuts for the public.

USDA loans and grants improve

(LE MARS)–Loans and grants for energy efficiency through the Department of Agriculture’s Office of Rural Development will help producers make changes in farm operations.

Senator Chuck Grassley announced the funds. Grassley says the funding will increase the energy efficiency of many farms and businesses as well as expand renewable energy in Iowa.

The awards include a total of eight-million dollars for energy efficiency projects involving 102 loans and 102 grants.

Those receiving funds for energy efficient grain drying systems include T-L-K Farms of Alton; Joseph Kessenich and Adam Schroeder, both of Le Mars.
Rockwell Collins earns $140M Air Force contract

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Rockwell-Collins contract for testing system

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) Cedar Rapids-based Rockwell Collins has been awarded a $140 million contact by the U.S. Air Force to develop a high performance system for testing military weapons.

The technology is called the Common Range Integrated Instrumentation System, or CRIIS.

The company says in a news release Tuesday that the system will give the military the ability to effectively test weapons systems so the next generation weapons can be deployed to the field more quickly.

With options, the company says the contract could be worth more than $300 million.

Jury convicts Polk County man

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) A 43-year-old Iowa man has been convicted of first-degree murder in the beating and strangling death of his girlfriend last year in a Des Moines trailer.

A Polk County jury deliberated less than four hours Tuesday before declaring the Des Moines man guilty of killing Melissa Kay Dean when she tried to leave him.

Christopher Michael Phipps showed no emotion as the verdict was read.

No one in the week-long trial disputed that Phipps killed Dean sometime on Sept. 17-18, 2009. The dispute hinged on his level of guilt.

Prosecutors argued he was guilty of first-degree murder, which mandates a life prison sentence; his public defenders pushed for a manslaughter conviction with a lesser sentence.

After she died, prosecutors say Phipps loaded Dean’s body into his pickup truck and drove her to a parking lot, where he called police.

Gamblers seek treatment

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) As the recession drags on, more Iowans are seeking treatment for gambling addiction.

Over the past three fiscal years, the Iowa Department of Public Health has seen a decrease in the number of people seeking treatment for gambling addiction.

But that changed this year. About 5 percent more people have reached out for help.

Experts say the down economy could be fueling the trend as some Iowans who are hoping for a quick fix to their financial problems head for the casinos or online gambling sites.

Mental health experts say people who become addicted to gambling can crave a game of cards like an alcoholic craves a drink. Stopping isn’t easy, but there are many national, state and local programs to help.

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

228M eggs recalled following salmonella outbreak

WASHINGTON (AP) An Iowa egg producer is recalling 228 million eggs after being linked to an outbreak of salmonella poisoning.

The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said eggs from Wright County Egg in Galt, Iowa, were linked to several illnesses in Colorado, California and Minnesota. The CDC said about 200 cases of the strain of salmonella linked to the eggs were reported weekly during June and July, four times the normal number of such occurrences.

The eggs were distributed around the country and packaged under the names Lucerne, Albertson, Mountain Dairy, Ralph’s, Boomsma’s, Sunshine, Hillandale, Trafficanda, Farm Fresh, Shoreland, Lund, Dutch Farms and Kemp.

The Food and Drug Administration is investigating the egg company.

Lawsuit filed over July 4 parade rampage in Iowa

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) The parents of a child who was injured by two runaway horses during a Fourth of July parade in Bellevue are suing the owner of the horses for negligence.

Jessica Mack, of Bettendorf, was among 24 people injured when the horses bolted as they were pulling a buggy. The horse owner, Mardell Steines, was driving the buggy with his wife, Janet, and three other relatives. Janet Steines was thrown from the buggy and died.

In lawsuit filed Aug. 11 in Jackson County, Steven Mack and Stacey Mack claim eight careless or negligent acts by Steines, including improperly operating the carriage.

A telephone message to the Macks’ attorney, Charles Wallace of Chicago, on Tuesday was not immediately returned. Online court records don’t list an attorney for Steines. A telephone call to Steines wasn’t immediately returned.

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

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