City Water Crews Working On Water Main Break
(Le Mars) — Le Mars city water department crews are working on a major water main break that occurred sometime during the overnight hours near the 100 Block of Plymouth Street SW. Le Mars Police Officer Dan Plueger, while on patrol duty, first noticed the water rushing down the street at about 6:00 a.m. Tuesday morning. Upon further investigation, the American Legion Hall had at least six inches of water in the basement as a result of the water main break. Legion members were busy during the early morning hours cleaning the basement of the Legion Hall. Police officers Justin Daale and Dan Plueger assisted with squeegeeing water that had collected in the Legion Hall basement. City Water Department Superintendent, Rich Sudtelgte indicated as of 8:00 a.m. crews were still trying to locate the exact position of the water main break. Plymouth Street a.k.a. Highway 3 has the east lane of traffic shut down from 2nd Avenue West to 1st Avenue West as city crews work on the water main break.
Voting To Occur At Usual Polling Locations
(Le Mars) — Election day is to be held one week from today, and County Auditor Stacey Feldman says people will vote at their usual polling location. For all Le Mars residents, voting will take place at the lower level of the Le Mars Convention Center on Tuesday. Voters will report to their respective precinct and tell of their address, and a ballot will be then given to the voters. The ballots will reflect the appropriate city council and mayor elections, as well as the appropriate school board elections. For rural residents, the ballot will only feature the respective school board elections.
Residents Can Vote For Le Mars Police Dog “Ace” For A Grant
(Le Mars) — Le Mars residents have the opportunity to cast a vote for the Le Mars Police Department’s K-9 unit to win a $5,000 grant. Officer Bob Rohlmiller is the K-9 handler for the Le Mars Police Department. He says people have until midnight, Tuesday, October 26th to vote in the Aftermath K-9 contest for Le Mars Police Dog, “Ace”.
Rohlmiller says Rexwinkle Funeral Home submitted the nomination. He says people can cast their vote each day until the deadline.
The Le Mars Area Chamber of Commerce has sent a link for the voting to its membership, otherwise, Rohlmiller says Le Mars residents can go online to the Le Mars Police Department Facebook page and cast their vote.
The contest involves local police departments and county sheriff’s offices from the states of Nebraska, South Dakota, North Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Iowa.
Funeral Set For Fallen Iowa State Trooper Banda
(Waukon, IA) — The Iowa State Patrol is releasing details on the funeral for Trooper Ted Benda, who died following an accident in his patrol car. The Patrol says visitation for Trooper Benda will be held today (Tuesday) from 4:00 to 8:00 p-m at St. Patrick’s Catholic Church in Waukon. The visitation is open to the public. The funeral is Wednesday at 11:00 a-m at the Waukon High School. Benda’s squad car crashed on October 14th as he was on his way to assist the Clayton County Sheriff’s Office with a wanted suspect. He died six days later in the hospital.
Man Sentenced to Federal Prison For Concert Fraud Scheme in Iowa
(Cedar Rapids, IA) — A Chicago man will spend more than six years in federal prison for defrauding Iowa concert venues. Court records show at least six Iowa venues were bilked by 43-year-old Romel Murphy for concerts that never happened. One paid Murphy 50-thousand dollars. The U-S Attorney’s Office says Murphy claimed to be a talent booker and sent fake contracts to entertainment venues that appeared to cover artists’ fees for concerts. Prosecutors say Murphy pocketed more than 410-thousand dollars. He pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud.
Iowa Soybean Harvest Could Be Wrapping Up Soon
(Des Moines, IA) — The latest U-S-D-A crop report shows the Iowa soybean harvest was at 83 percent complete by Sunday. That is up from 60 percent complete last week and six days ahead of the five-year average. The report says the southern one third of the state lags behind in the bean harvest. On the corn side, the completion rate hit 60 percent — up from 43 percent the prior week. That’s one week ahead of the five-year average. Growers in the northeast and south central regions still have more than half of their corn remaining to be harvested.
Southwest Iowa Man Draws 210-Month Sentence For Child Pornography
(Council Bluffs, IA) — A man who prosecutors say was discovered with child pornography during an investigation of online harassment of his ex-wife will serve more than 17 years in federal prison. Thirty-three-year-old Kenneth Howard Crum Junior of Sidney was sentence to 210 months in prison after pleading guilty to receipt and possession of child pornography. Court information shows investigators were looking into the harassment of Crum’s ex-wife via internet websites in November 2020 and got a search warrant for his cellphone. They say they found images and videos of child pornography involving children under the age of 12 on that phone.
Domestic Violence Deaths This Year Already Match Last Year
(Des Moines, IA) — A report by the Iowa Attorney General’s Crime Victim Assistance Division shows there were 17 domestic violence deaths in the first nine months of 2021 — which is the same amount in all of 2020. Division Director, Sandi Tibbetts Murphy, says that is a big concern with three months of the year left. Tibbetts Murphy can’t say there is a direct link to the pandemic — but says it is an aggravating factor. She says many of the service providers work one-on-one with the victims and the pandemic forced them to almost withdraw. Tibbetts Murphy says you should always seek help in dealing with your situation, and says there are advocacy programs across the state which provide services that are free and confidential.
Triple-A Says Plan Ahead For Holiday Travel
(Undated) — Triple-A Iowa spokesperson Meredith Mitts, says the sooner you lock in your plane tickets, hotel reservations for holiday travel, the better. Mitts says the closer we get to the holidays, the cost for airfare rises and the availability shrinks. If you haven’t bought travel insurance in the past, Mitts says you may want to start now with all the recent flight delays or cancellations. A survey by the motor club finds 35-percent of Iowa respondents say they’ve already reserved their holiday trips.
Poison Control Center Warns About Dry Ice Use
(Sioux City, IA) — A nurse from the Iowa Poison Control Center says if you are to use dry ice for special effects around Halloween — be aware of the potential dangers. Tammy Noble is the education coordinator for the Iowa Poison Control Center and says dry ice is far colder than normal ice and can cause frostbite if it touches bare skin. And Noble says dry ice should never be used in a beverage as swallowing the dry ice is extremely dangerous due to the issues with frostbite. Noble says parents also need to keep track of the small, button-sized, or coin-sized batteries that may be used to illuminate or animate children’s Halloween costumes so kids don’t accidentally swallow them.
The Iowa Poison Control Hotline is answered 24 hours a day. The number is 1-800-222-1222.
Bill Seeks Transparency For Federal Judges On Investments
(Washington, DC) — Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley, a Republican from New Hartford, has joined Republican Senator John Cornyn of Texas and Democrat Chris Coons of Delaware to introduce the Courthouse Ethics and Transparency Act. The bill requires online publication of financial disclosure reports for federal judges and to mandate that federal judges submit periodic transaction reports for certain securities transactions. Grassley says the bill will help increase transparency and reassure the American people that the federal judicial system remains unbiased and fair. This legislation would subject federal judges to the same disclosure requirements as other federal officials. Several other Senators from both parties have signed onto the bill.
