Ride Right Bicycle Safety Organization Creates Clever Public Safety Message
(Le Mars) — The Ride Right Association has a mission to promote bicycle safety, and they recently developed a public safety message featuring posters that are found throughout windows and bulletin boards of Le Mars businesses.
The campaign features Le Mars Mayor Dick Kirchoff along with bicycle rider Dani Hurt. The campaign reads “Don’t Be A Dick, Instead Be A Dani.” Mark Sturgeon is a member of the Ride Right bicycle organization. He says the committee came up with the idea to have a tongue in cheek public service message.
The safety campaign shows a contrast of what a bicycle rider should do, compared to what a bicycle rider should not do when riding a bicycle. Mayor Kirchoff is illustrated of the things a bicycle rider should not do while riding a bike, whereas Dani Hurt is illustrated of doing the correct things when riding a bicycle, such as wearing a helmet, using proper hand signals,
remaining on the right side of the road, and staying hydrated with water instead of with alcohol. Sturgeon says the response has been favorable, and is quickly being spread on social media platforms such as Facebook, and Twitter.
Last month, the Ride Right Association held a bicycle rodeo for youth and presented each participant with a new bicycle helmet, as well as taught youngsters the correct hand signals when riding a bicycle. Sturgeon says the Ride Right Association will also be visible during the kickoff to RAGBRAI.
Sturgeon says that presentation will be held Saturday at the Uptown Events Center, next to the Iowa BBQ and Hardware Hank store.
July 19th Marks 32nd Anniversary Of United Flight 232 Crash At Sioux City Airport
(Sioux City) — 32 years ago today, on July 19th 1989, United Airlines passenger flight 232, crashed at Sioux Gateway Airport in Sioux City. The airliner, carrying 296 people from Denver to Chicago suffered hydraulic failure. Because the plane was able to stay airborne, a fleet of fire trucks and ambulances were lined up at the airport waiting and hoping for a safe outcome. Captain Al Haynes, the pilot of the airliner, was communicating with the airport tower, trying to make it to the airport without any steering.
The loss of hydraulics resulted in the plane being able only to make right turns with turning comparable to driving an old car without power steering.
As the plane descended, it looked like it might land safely, but it tilted with the wing hitting the runway. The plane cartwheeled, broke into pieces, burst into flames, and skidded into a nearby cornfield.
112 people lost their lives, but amazingly 184 people on board survived. Besides the waiting emergency vehicles, so many survived because Sioux City rescue personnel had practiced an airline crash disaster drills in the recent past. That also led to the development of the Tri-State radio network for emergency responders to communicate with each other as cell phones were not widely used in 1989.
(photo courtesy of the Chicago Tribune)
Cleanup Of Old DICO Superfund Site To Start
(Des Moines, IA) — The U-S Environmental Protection Agency plans to begin removing buildings from the old DICO superfund site in Des Moines. The 43-acre property was taken over by the city in May. It’s been sitting vacant for more than 26 years and has a history of environmental problems. Removing the buildings helps clear the way for a possible development there. One
group wants to build a U-S-L championship soccer stadium at the location south of downtown Des Moines. American Equity Life Insurance has committed five million dollars to the project.
University Of Iowa’s New President Has Taken Over
(Iowa City, IA) — The University of Iowa’s new president has taken over the job. Barbara Wilson was chosen by the Iowa Board of Regents to succeed Bruce Harreld in April. She is the 22nd person and the third woman to hold the position. Wilson officially started Thursday. In a message to the U-of-I community, she said she is “excited and proud” to lead the university into a new era of excellence. She says the university’s leadership is getting ready to celebrate its 175th anniversary. Wilson comes to Iowa City from the University of Illinois System.
New Open Enrollment Law Sees 100+ Students Seeking To Leave Davenport Schools
(Davenport, IA) — The end of the diversity plan in the Davenport Community School District has more than 100 students ready to leave. A report in the Argus-Dispatch says most of the 117 students are white. Iowa lawmakers
approved the new open enrollment law last spring. It effectively ended Davenport’s diversity plan. It stopped students from leaving the district.
Other Iowa school districts that used to restrict transfers have also seen a wave of students leaving.
Bagley Residents Can Finally Drink Tap Water Again
(Bagley, IA) — People living in Bagley can finally go to the kitchen and drink the water directly out of the faucet again. It’s been two years since authorities determined the water was unsafe. People had been complaining about brown, murky water and the Iowa Department of Natural Resources found the problem was caused by manganese. For two years residents of the Guthrie County town have had to use bottled water for drinking and cooking. The cleanup project cost one-point-two million dollars. The D-N-R declared the water was now safe to drink last Friday.
