Firefighters Respond To Two Dumpster Fires
(Le Mars) — Le Mars Fire and Rescue Department was called to not one, but two dumpster fires on Sunday. The first one happened at about 5:15 p.m. The fire was located behind the businesses of Pizza Hut, Super Cuts, and Taco Bell on Silent Prairie Road. When firefighters arrived, the dumpster was
fully engulfed with flames. Apparently, a witness to the fire reported the blaze to the staff of the Taco Bell restaurant as they drove through the drive through to order food. The dumpster is used by all the businesses for their cardboard disposal. According to Le Mars Fire Chief Dave Schipper discarded smoking material was thrown in the dumpster which then ignited the
cardboard, causing the fire. Firefighters were on the scene for only approximately 15 minutes. The second dumpster fire occurred at about 10:15 Sunday evening behind an apartment complex what used to be the Abbey. That fire was started when a resident had disposed his hot coals from a barbecue
grill into the dumpster. Again, firefighters were able extinguish the flames fairly quickly.
Reynolds Says Trump Should Not Impose Tariffs On Mexico
(Des Moines) — Republican Governor Kim Reynolds says the nation’s southern border needs to be secured, but she says “it cannot be done on the backs of Iowa farmers.” Reynolds says she hopes Trump “rethinks” imposing new tariffs on Mexico — or the new trade agreement is endangered.
President Trump’s top trade negotiator sent a formal letter to congress on Thursday, signalling the Trump Administration will formally submit the U-S-M-C-A to congress within 30 days. Officials in CANADA took a formal step earlier this week toward ratifying the agreement — before the president threatened new tariffs on Mexico, the other party in the deal.
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Ernst Speaks Out Against Proposed Mexican Tariffs
(Des Moines) — Republican Senator Joni Ernst warns the escalating tariffs President Trump is threatening to impose on Mexican imports would derail the U.S. Mexico Canada Agreement.
Ernst says Mexico must “step up and do its part” to stop the “stream” of asylum seekers crossing into the United States, but she says the livelihoods of Iowa farmers and producers are at stake if the president imposes new tariffs on Mexico.
Mexico and Canada are Iowa’s top export markets and Ernst says ratification of the U-S-M-C-A would provide “much-needed certainty” in the ag economy.
Iowa’s other Republican senator, Chuck Grassley, has also said new tariffs on Mexico would “seriously jeopardize passage” of the trade deal with America’s North American partners. Grassley said in a statement on Thursday night that Trump’s tariff threat toward Mexico was “a misuse of presidential authority and counter to congressional intent.”
Des Moines Boy Drowns While Swimming In Pond
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – A 13-year-old boy has drowned in a large pond in north Des Moines.
Police say Van Cin Lian of Des Moines went into the pond Saturday afternoon with two other boys. At some point he went underwater and didn’t resurface.
Dive teams from several agencies responded and used a drone in an attempt to find the boy.
Divers recovered his body about 6 p.m.
Drowning Reported At Iowa City Recreation Center
IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) – Authorities in Iowa say one person drowned at Terry Trueblood Recreation Center in Iowa City and a would-be-rescuer was taken to a hospital.
Television station KCRG reports that the incident happened Friday afternoon when a bystander reported that a swimmer disappeared under the water around 3:45 p.m. Another person who tried to rescue the swimmer was taken to the hospital. That person’s name and medical condition have not been
released.
Searchers with law enforcement and the Johnson County Metro Dive Team found a body about an hour after the incident was reported. The person’s name has not been released.
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DNR Warns People To Stay Out Of Rivers, Creeks, And Streams
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Iowa officials are warning people to stay out of the state’s swollen streams.
The Iowa Department of Natural Resources says water levels in rivers and streams across the state are high because of recent heavy rains. That causes fast currents, dangerous debris and bacteria in the water caused by runoff.
The department says more than 70 wastewater discharges into streams and rivers were reported over Memorial Day weekend.
The department asked Iowa residents to avoid streams until the water recedes.
Runner Dies At Finish Line
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Officials say a runner died near the finish line of a race from Saylorville Dam to downtown Des Moines.
Des Moines Fire Department officials say a 26-year-old man died
Saturday morning near the finish line of the 12.4-mile race.
Officials didn’t release details about how the man died or release
his identity.
Michael Zimmerman, a race organizer, released a statement saying, “On behalf of all of those that ran today and the entire running community, we are heartbroken about the loss of a fellow athlete. Our heartfelt condolences are with this athlete’s family and friends.”
More than 3,000 people ran in the race.
Firetruck Collides With Pickup – Killing Driver
DEWITT, Iowa (AP) – Authorities say a pickup truck driver died after colliding with a firetruck in eastern Iowa’s Clinton County.
The collision occurred around 9:45 a.m. Sunday at a rural intersection just north of Allens Grove Park. The Clinton County Sheriff’s Office says the Donahue Volunteer Fire Department firetruck was heading north on a nonemergency test drive when the driver began turning around to head south back to the station. Its right rear dual wheels were then struck by the
southbound pickup.
The sheriff’s office says the man driving the pickup died later at a hospital in DeWitt. His passenger was injured. Their names haven’t been released.
The collision is being investigated.
Council Bluffs Students To Have Free School Lunches
COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (AP) – All students in the Council Bluffs school district will receive free meals beginning this fall.
Lisa Stewart, director of nutrition services for the district, told the board of education this week that the entire school district now qualifies for Community Eligibility Provision, a federal program that allows students to eat free breakfast and lunch.
The Daily Nonpareil reports families in elementary schools could say up to $700 a year, with families of high school students saving up to $900 a year.
Stewart said the students qualified because of a state decision in March 2018 to accept certain classifications of Medicaid enrollees as automatically qualified for free lunches. She says the change was not caused by a sudden decline in the area’s economy.
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Business Managers Believe Economy Will Slow Down
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) – A new report says a May survey of business supply managers suggests economic growth will slow over the next three to six months in nine Midwest and Plains states.
The report issued Monday says the Mid-America Business Conditions Index dropped to 54.3 last month from 55.9 in April. The figure was 58.2 in March.
Creighton University economist Ernie Goss oversees the survey, and he says tariffs and flooding have harmed several states.
The survey results are compiled into a collection of indexes ranging from zero to 100. Survey organizers say any score above 50 suggests growth. A score below that suggests decline.
The survey covers Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri,
Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma and South Dakota.
