Cool Temperatures Preventing Crops From Emerging
(Le Mars) — Some crop officials are concerned about the slow seed development due to the recent cooler conditions. Although the latest weekly crop condition report shows farmers have planted 20 percent of their corn crop, much of that crop has yet to emerge. Joel DeJong is the Iowa State University Extension and Outreach Crops Specialist for northwest Iowa. He says there are some fields where this year’s corn crop has been planted for three weeks, and still nothing is happening.
DeJong says farmers are still within the window of opportunity for ideal crop development with maximum yields, but he says we do need some warmer weather.
Warmer temperatures are forecast for the weekend.
Soil Moisture Levels Are Still Short Throughout The State
(Le Mars) — Soil moisture levels across the state still remain adequate to short supply with topsoil moisture levels rated 6% very short, 28% short, 64% adequate and 2% surplus. Subsoil moisture levels rated 10% very short, 35% short, 54% adequate and 1% surplus. DeJong says he has two sites within Plymouth County that he monitors for soil moisture levels.
DeJong talks about the moisture levels at a site east of Le Mars.
The weather forecast is calling for some rain to occur for a few days this week.
Plymouth County Secondary Road Department To Install Culverts
(Le Mars) — Dogwood Avenue between county road C-16 going north to 140th Street will be closed beginning Tuesday, April 27th and will remain closed until at least Friday, May 7th. Construction crews from the Plymouth County Secondary Roads Department are replacing two old wooden bridges with culvert pipes. The closed road is a dirt roadway.
Hawarden Woman Able To Take Taser Away From Police Officer
(Hawarden, Iowa) — A Hawarden woman faces a felony charge after Hawarden Police officers say she allegedly disarmed an officer of his Taser during her apprehension.
According to statements from the Hawarden Police on criminal complaints filed with the Sioux County Clerk of Court, on Saturday night, 43-year-old Tamra Daugherty-Wilson of Hawarden was detained while officers investigated a possible alleged OWI. They say she was observed driving without headlights and failed field sobriety tests. She then refused to provide a breath sample. Before she completed the implied consent advisory, the officer says she became hostile in the police department. The statements say she assaulted an officer with the intent of inflicting a serious injury. They also say that during the alleged assault, Daugherty-Wilson removed the officer’s Taser before she was subdued.
Daugherty-Wilson was charged with assault on a peace officer and disarming a peace officer, both class D felonies, and a misdemeanor count of operating while intoxicated.
Her bond was set at $5000. She was released the next day.
(courtesy of KIWA radio)
Iowa House Committee Passes Ban on COVID Vaccine Passports
(Des Moines, IA) — A bill that cleared an Iowa House committee prohibits businesses, schools and government facilities from denying entry to people who haven’t had the COVID vaccine. It also bars all government entities from
issuing I-D cards with an Iowan’s vaccination history. Republican
Representative Steven Holt of Denison said, “I think vaccine passports are unAmerican, I think they’re unconstitutional and I think they’re unacceptable.” A number of speakers at a hearing Monday urged lawmakers to prohibit hospitals and health care facilities from requiring that patients or visitors be vaccinated against Covid-19. Holt said he’s spent several weeks
negotiating over the details — and is sympathetic to critics who say the bill doesn’t go far enough. A spokeswoman for the Iowa Hospital Association said hospitals need to have a patient’s medical history, including information about vaccinations, in order to provide the best care and the association opposes changes in the bill.
University of Iowa Health Care Joining National Vaccination Campaign
(Iowa City, IA) — University of Iowa Health Care is joining a national campaign to motivate more people to get vaccinated for COVID-19. It’s targeting groups that are more resistant to getting vaccinated, such as rural and young people, who could delay the country from reaching herd immunity. The
number of Iowa counties now turning down some or all their vaccine allotment has nearly doubled to include 80 of the 99 counties. More than 41 percent of Iowa’s population is fully vaccinated.
DWI Suspect Accused of Head-Butting, Spitting on Pleasant Hill Police
(Pleasant Hill, IA) — A drunken driving suspect is accused of assaulting police in Mount Pleasant during an arrest Monday afternoon. Officers say they were trying to take 33-year-old Christopher Greenwood into custody for crashing his vehicle into a pole with a child in the backseat. A police captain says Greenwood became combative and head-butted, kicked and spit at officers and it took three of them to get him in a squad car. One of the officers is being tested for communicable diseases because Greenwood’s saliva landed in her mouth. Greenwood was jailed on several charges including assault on a peace officer, child endangerment and interference with official acts.
The child in the booster seat wasn’t hurt.
Jackson County Authorities ID Girl Killed in UTV Crash
(Springbrook, IA) — Authorities in eastern Iowa are identifying the girl killed in a utility vehicle rollover crash on a farm near Springbrook. The Jackson County Sheriff’s Office says 12-year-old Ilah Portz was unconscious when first responders arrived Sunday afternoon. Life-saving measures were attempted but Portz died at the scene. Deputies say Ilah was a sixth grade student in the Andrew Community School District and counselors and support staff are assisting classmates and faculty members.
