Supervisors Will Not Hold Meeting Today
(Le Mars) — Plymouth County Board of Supervisors will not hold a meeting today.
The next meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, January 3rd when new supervisor Gary Horton will begin his term as a county supervisor.
Le Mars Community Board of Education To Hold Special Meeting
(Le Mars) — The Le Mars Community Board of Education will hold a special meeting on Wednesday beginning at 12:00 noon. The meeting will take place at the Superintendent’s conference room. The school board will act on the resignation requests of Danielle Grause, a Middle School teacher associate, and
Le Ann Hobson, a High School teacher associate. The school board will consider extending a contract to Stacey Nelson, as the school’s nurse and associate for the remainder of the year.
City Crews To Pick Up Down Tree Limbs
(Le Mars) — City work crews will be picking up down tree limbs today and Wednesday from the strong wind storm that occurred Christmas evening. Scott Kneip is the city’s Public Works superintendent, and explains the city’s plan.
Residents are asked to help the city officials by placing the limbs next to the curb.
In addition, Kneip says city staff will open the city’s tree disposal site located on the west side of town.
Fire Department Had A Busy Christmas Night
(Le Mars) — The Le Mars Fire and Rescue Department had a busy Christmas night.
The Le Mars Fire-Rescue responded to a report of a building collapse at 406 4th St. SW. The call came in at 9:50pm and firefighters were on scene within one minute since they were monitoring the storm and wind. Upon arrival firefighters found the roof had been torn off of Pro Alignment Building. The
roof landed in some high voltage power lines and wrapped around a utility pole in front of the business. This caused a power outage in the Northwest part of Le Mars. 4th Street SW was shut down and Mid American Energy was called to the scene. Firefighters made entry into the Pro Alignment building and secured the power and gas to the building rendering it safe. Firefighters did find that the flat roof on the Pro Alignment building was still in place and the roof that blew off was an added on roof. There was only a small hole in the flat roof where a vent pipe went through. Mid American Energy arrived at the scene and rendered the powerlines safe and removed roof debris from the lines. The City Street Department removed the roof from the street with a payloader and the street was reopened by 11:40pm.
Five minutes into the Pro Alignment call Le Mars Fire-Rescue also responded to a powerline down in the alley next to Baackers Sports Bar. This scene was secured until Mid American Energy could come evaluate it.
Five minutes after the Baackers call firefighters responded to the 400 block of 1st Street NW for a tree down that had pulled the power service loose from a house. Firefighters checked the house and the wiring to the service and found everything to be intact, but it was jerked loose from the structure.
Firefighters waited for Mid American to come evaluate this scene as well.
After finishing up the call to the alley and the call to the 400 block of 1st street NW firefighters responded to the area of 6th Street NE and 4th Ave. NE for a possible power problem, however no problems were found in this area.
Several trees were also damaged or lost limbs throughout the City.
Firefighters returned to quarters from all of the incidents at 1:30am.
Des Moines Fire Fighter Injured On Call
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Authorities say a Des Moines firefighter has been injured battling a blaze at a tire shop.
Des Moines television station KCCI reports (https://bit.ly/2hpliaa ) the fire was reported around 10 a.m. Monday. Authorities say the fire started while workers were attending to a vehicle on a lift inside Don’s Tire and Auto.
The employees escaped without injury. The injured firefighter was taken to Mercy Medical Center – Des Moines with non-life-threatening injuries.
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Winter Can Activate Asthma Conditions
(Des Moines) — About one in every 12 Iowans has asthma and winter can be the worst season for many sufferers, as simply breathing cold air can trigger an asthma attack. Being cooped up indoors can be difficult too, with exposure to triggers like pet dander and smoke. Allergist Dr. David Slade offers tips on
keeping your asthma symptoms in check.
Slade says there are ways or other actions you — and others — can take to better cope.
If you’ve been inside where it’s warm, simply going outside and having the super-cold air hit your lungs could bring on an episode. Slade says it’s important to cover your nose and mouth with a scarf when you’re outdoors, especially on very cold, windy days.
Also, he says to talk with your doctor on developing a plan that really keeps your symptoms under control and establish a routine that works best for you.
Multiple Sclerosis Society Asking For State To Approve Grants
(Des Moines) — The National Multiple Sclerosis Society is pressing state officials to create a new grant program to help elderly and disabled Iowans renovate their homes. Dan Endreson is a public policy manager for the organization’s upper Midwest chapter.
Endreson and others met privately with Governor Branstad in August to discuss the concept. Endreson made the case in public last week at a budget hearing, asking Branstad to set aside 600-thousand dollars in state money for a Home Modification Assistance Program./
Endreson argues the investment ultimately would save the state money, keeping more Iowans living independently at home rather than moving into costly long- term care facilities. Traditional health insurance, Medicare and Medicaid
typically do not cover modifications like grab bars in the shower that make a home more accessible and safe for an elderly or disabled resident. Several other states offer mortgage assistance or grant programs to help finance those kind of upgrades.
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