Hinton Man Injured in Motorcycle Accident
(Hinton) — An early morning motorcycle accident left a Hinton man in serious condition. 59-year old Darrel Hansen of Hinton was riding his motorcycle on County road K-22 at about 6:10 a.m. Friday, when he came upon a deer carcass lying in the middle of the road. The deer had been hit by a previous passing vehicle, but was not removed from the roadway. Hansen tried braking, but could not avoid hitting the carcass and rode over the deer causing him to lose control of his motorcycle. The Hinton Ambulance and the Hinton Fire Department responded to the accident. The Plymouth County Sheriff’s Department and the Hinton Police assisted with the accident. Hansen was transported to Mercy Medical Center in Sioux City with was was referred to as incapacitating injuries.
Three Vehicle Accident On Highway 75 Near Hull
(Hull) — Sioux County authorities are investigating a three vehicle accident that happened Thursday morning on U-S Highway 75, about four miles northwest of Hull. Jacob Bickett, age 21, of Beresford, SD was driving a utility truck southbound on Highway 75. Bickett reported he fell asleep and drifted into the northbound lane. John Fogo, age 58, of Clay Center, NE was driving a semi tractor pulling a flatbed trailer northbound on Highway 75 when Bickett entered the northbound lane and the two collided. Following the collision, Fogo lost control of the semi tractor and entered the west ditch. Kathy Van Essen, age 63, of Sioux Center, IA was driving northbound on Highway 75 behind Fogo. In an attempt to avoid the collision between Bickett and Fogo, Van Essen entered the west ditch where the vehicle rolled onto its top. Van Essen and a passenger, Orlan Van Essen, were both transported to the Sioux Center Hospital by the Hull Ambulance for treatment of minor injuries. Fogo was transported to the Rock Valley Hospital by the Hull Ambulance for treatment of minor injuries.
The utility truck owned by Cummins Central Power of Sioux Falls, SD sustained approximately $40,000 in damages. The semi truck, owned by WN Morehouse Transportation of Omaha, NE sustained approximately $70,000 in damages. The cargo on the flatbed trailer, consisting of cement cattle feed
troughs, sustained approximately $15,000 in damages. The Ford Explorer driven by Van Essen sustained approximately $15,000 in damages.
The Sioux County Sheriff’s Office was assisted by the Hull Fire and Hull Ambulance.
Sioux County Authorities Investigates Rural Burglary
(Sioux Center) — The Sioux County sheriff’s department is investigating a rural burglary that occurred sometime between Thursday evening and Friday morning. The incident took place at a residence four miles west of Sioux Center. Reported missing are power drills, saws, battery packs, hand tools, Dale Earnhardt Jr.and Sr. 1/16th and 1/64th scale Nascar die cast race cars and Nascar memorabilia, sports trading cards, CB radios, stereo equipment, speakers, an amplifier and a .22 caliber Smith and Wesson
handgun.
Casino Omaha To Re-Open
ONAWA, Iowa (AP) – Nebraska’s Omaha Tribe says it plans to reopen its flood-damaged Iowa casino by the end of the year.
CasinOmaha was shut down by flooding in June 2011.
The tribe says the casino will have a new look when it reopens and a new name, Blackbird Bend Casino.
Construction is expected to start next week with doors opening in late December. The casino is situated near Onawa, between Omaha, Neb., and Sioux City.
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First Lady Michele Obama Visits Iowa
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa (AP) – First lady Michele Obama noted early voting had begun in Iowa as she encouraged University of Northern Iowa students to cast their ballots before Election Day.
Michelle Obama spoke to about 2,500 people on the Cedar Falls campus.
Referring to early voting, which began Thursday in Iowa, Obama told the crowd, “here in this state it is already Election Day.”
Iowa is among nine states where Democrat Barack Obama and Republican Mitt Romney are spending the vast majority of their campaign travel time and money. Obama, Romney and groups supporting them have spent more than $50 million on Iowa advertising.
Iowa is the first of the battleground states to begin voting, accepting absentee ballots and allowing in-person voting at elections offices and satellite sites.
Vice President Biden To Campaign In Iowa
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – The campaign for Democratic President Barack Obama says Vice President Joe Biden will return to Iowa next week.
Obama’s campaign announced Friday that Biden will speak at an event Thursday but didn’t give specifics.
The announcement came on a day that first lady Michelle Obama held a campaign rally at the University of Northern Iowa in Cedar Falls.
Next week, Republican vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan also will travel to Iowa. Ryan will speak in Dubuque on Monday and then hold events Tuesday in Clinton, Muscatine and Burlington.
The visits come as thousands of Iowans already have begun casting ballots thanks to the state’s early voting laws.
Boswell Files Defamation Lawsuit Against Fallon
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Democratic U.S. Rep. Leonard Boswell has filed a defamation lawsuit against Iowa activist Ed Fallon, after Fallon alleged that he was offered an $80,000-a-year job to not run
against the congressman in 2008.
The Des Moines Register newspaper reports that the lawsuit was filed Friday in Polk County District Court. Fallon, a former state lawmaker, challenged Boswell in the 2008 Democratic primary but
lost.
Fallon made the allegation earlier this week in an email to friends and on his website. He alleged that Boswell sent an aide to offer him the job, and claimed that the aide described Boswell as
power-hungry.
Boswell denied the allegations on Friday. The eight-term congressman is in a tough campaign against Republican and fellow incumbent Representative Tom Latham.
Train – Vehicle Collision Results in Fatality
LISBON, Iowa (AP) – Authorities are investigating a train crash that killed an eastern Iowa motorist.
KCRG-TV in Cedar Rapids reports that authorities were called to the crash scene in Lisbon just after 8:30 a.m. Friday. Officials say an SUV driven by a rural Lisbon woman was headed southbound on
Gillette Lane, when she struck a Union Pacific Train that was traveling westbound.
Lisbon Police Chief Rick Scott confirms that the woman died, but she was not identified. No one else was injured.
The crash prevented drivers from traveling north and southbound through Mt. Vernon on Highway 1.
Union Pacific spokesman Tom Lange says the train would move once the on-scene investigation was completed.
