Gehlen Catholic Spells Out Requirements For “Return To Learn”
(Le Mars) — With the exception of the Kingsley-Pierson school district that began classes last week, all of the other surrounding area schools will start next week. Gehlen Catholic School will hold orientation on Monday, August 24th with students returning to classes on Tuesday, August 25th. Amy Jungers, the Development Director with Gehlen Catholic says the concern is on the students, faculty, and staff personal safety. Jungers says Gehlen Catholic will begin by holding in-person classes with emphasis on social distancing.
She says parents of elementary age students will want to be aware of some changes when dropping off, and picking up, their children.
Masks and/or face coverings will be required to be worn by students, faculty, and staff. However, Jungers says there will be a few exceptions.
Jungers says students, faculty, and staff will be reminded to wash their hands on a frequent basis.
The Gehlen Catholic official says hand sanditizer stations will also be available. Jungers says Gehlen is asking parents to check their children’s temperature before sending them to school as another preventative measure.
MidAmerican Energy Gives Status Update Report
(Des Moines) — It has been a week since the strong derecho wind storm that swept across the state, and destroyed structures, crops, and power lines.
Many people are still without power, although utility companies have been working around the clock since the storm hit, trying to restore power to their customers. Geoff Greenwood is the spokesperson for MidAmerican Energy. He says last week’s storm was like no other storm, and he offers a status update as of Monday morning.
The utility company spokesperson says help from other utility companies from across the U-S came to Iowa to assist with the power restoration efforts.
Greenwood says with all the destruction to the electrical grid system because of the storm, surprisingly, the company’s wind turbine farms did not sustain any major damage, and were able to continue generating electricity.
With the wide spread area of damage, and with a large number of electrical utility poles needing to be replaced, did MidAmerican have enough supplies for the restoration process?
Greenwood says although power is expected to be restored within the next day or so, he says there will be some long-term needed repairs that will need to be addressed at a later time.
Trump Approves Federal Disaster Funding For Iowa
(Washington) — President Trump has approved a disaster declaration for Iowa after a derecho storm ravaged portions of the state last week. KCCI-TV and CBS News reports the President made comments as he left on a trip to Wisconsin and Minnesota. He hinted that he may visit Iowa to see the damage. Officials are now saying instead of today, (Monday), the President will conduct that tour of Iowa on Tuesday. Governor Reynolds estimated the state will need $4 billion from the federal government in order to recover. In the estimates, she includes 8,273 homes that were destroyed or had major damage, $23.6 million for the damage of public infrastructure and $21.6 million for removal and disposal of debris. “From cities to farms, Iowans are hurting, many still have challenges with shelter, food and power,” said Reynolds. “Resilience is in our DNA, but we’re going to need a strong and timely federal response to support recovery efforts,” said Reynolds.
Governor Pushes Back Against Criticism About Storm Response
(Des Moines, IA) –– Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds says she has commitments from the state’s largest utilities that customers will have their power restored by Tuesday. Reynolds is pushing back against those accusing her of being slow to respond to the wind storm that devastated the state. The governor is promising help for tens of thousands of residents who are entering their fifth day without electrical service. She says 100 members of the Iowa National Guard arrived in Cedar Rapids Friday to help clear fallen
trees blocking downed power lines.
Weekend Shooting Leaves 1 Person Dead In Waterloo
(Waterloo, IA) — Waterloo police say a shooting late Saturday night has left one person dead, but no arrests have been made yet. Emergency responders were called at 11:42 p-m about a report of shots fired. Officers say they found a wounded 49-year-old man when they arrived. He was taken to UnityPoint Health-Allen Hospital where he died. His name hasn’t been released. Waterloo police say they are treating the death as a homicide.
The Iowa State Medical Examiner’s Office will conduct an autopsy.
Police Arrest 2 After Car Theft, High-Speed Pursuit, Teenager Held Hostage
(Des Moines, IA) — Des Moines police have arrested a 39-year-old man and a 38-year-old woman for a wild incident Saturday on the city’s south side. It started with a stolen car, involved a high-speed pursuit, and included a 13-year-old child. No names have been released and nobody suffered serious injuries. At one point, the man and woman ran into a house, while the
occupants managed to barely get out. Police say the teenager held as a hostage was the child of one of the suspects.
Union: Federal Budget Cuts Impacting Local Delivery Service In Des Moines
(Des Moines, IA) — The Des Moines Postal Workers Union says federal budget cuts and policy changes are having an impact on local delivery service. Newly-appointed Postmaster General Louis DeJoy has cut executives, stopped overtime pay, and changed delivery policies since coming onboard. Local union officials say machines needed to sort mail have been removed in Des Moines. They say Iowans need to call on Congress to pass a 25-billion-dollar funding bill as a part of coronavirus pandemic relief.
