Road Repairs Scheduled For Business Highway 75 – Hawkeye Avenue To Begin On Wednesday
(Le Mars) — The Le Mars Street Dept. has a contractor hired to patch some bad joints on Bus 75 from 18th St. S.W. going south to the Floyd bridge starting Wednesday, Nov. 24th 2021. We have Dakota Traffic setting up barricades Wednesday morning and they will divert traffic going north and south out to the outside lanes so the contractor can start on the two inside lanes . They will cut out the bad spots , pin it, and then use an M4 mix which cures in 24 hours . Once they have the inside lanes done Dakota Traffic will then divert the traffic into those two lanes and the contractor will work on the two outside lanes. We will also close 24th St. S.W. between Lincoln Ave. S.W. and Bus 75 to all traffic during this construction.
Law Enforcement Officials Want Motorists To Remember “ABC’s” While Driving During Thanksgiving Holiday Weekend
(Le Mars) — Law enforcement officials want motorists to remember their ABC’s while driving during the upcoming long Thanksgiving weekend. Trooper Karie Yaneff with the Iowa State Patrol says there will be an increase of patrol units watching the holiday traffic. Yaneff says the Governor’s Traffic Safety Bureau, along with the Iowa Department of Public Safety have initiated the slogan, “Safe Driving is as simple as ABC” with ABC meaning “Always Be Careful.”
Yaneff says the four-day Thanksgiving weekend has traditionally been a deadly holiday on Iowa’s highways and roadways.
The Governor’s Traffic Safety Bureau reports in Iowa last year, between November 15th and November 28th, 13 people lost their lives on Iowa’s roadways. Yaneff says there will be an increase of vehicles on the highways, because of the holiday, and she suggests people to have a designated driver if consumption of alcohol is likely during the holidays. She says people need to buckle up, not have any distractions when driving, and watch their speed, and be patient.
Excessive speeding by motorists has been a concern for law enforcement officials. Brett Tjepkes , chief of the Governor’s Traffic Safety Bureau, says too many motorists are giving in to the temptation to speed, and some are risking their own lives and those of everyone around them by doubling the speed limit, and worse. Tjepkes says it is becoming all too common to see motorists drive “One-hundred-ten, 120, even speeds in the 130s and 140s miles per hour. In 2020 in Iowa so far, there have been 669 reported crashes and 30 deaths in which exceeding the speed limit was the cause. Officials say speed is something we can all control.
Rejoice Community Church Prepares For Community Thanksgiving Banquet
(Le Mars) — For the past 16 years, the Rejoice Community Church of Le Mars has prepared a traditional Thanksgiving meal to be served to the general community, and this year is no different. Mike Metten serves as the pastor of the Rejoice Community Church, and says as many as 70 different volunteers help with the large feast. Pastor Metten says the Community Thanksgiving meal was for many years organized by Gene and Adri Riesch.
Metten says for this year’s Thanksgiving banquet meal, other volunteers have stepped forward to assume the duties of organizing the event.
Metten says the Thanksgiving banquet meal is open to anyone, but it was originally intended for those people who were too far away from their families, or have no family members to share a Thanksgiving meal.
The Rejoice Community Church pastor recites the statistics when preparing a Thanksgiving meal for the general community.
Metten says the Community Thanksgiving meal will consist of many of the traditional foods associated with Thanksgiving.
Metten says each year approximately 600 people are fed the traditional meal. Nearly half the number either have the delivery option, or carry-out. He says the community Thanksgiving meal wouldn’t be possible if not for the volunteers and businesses that donate their time, money, and products.
Delivery of meals will begin at about 10:30 a.m. Thursday morning, and the doors at the Rejoice Community Church will open at 11:00 a.m. for those wanting to sit down to enjoy their meal. The Thanksgiving banquet will be served until 1:00 p.m. For additional information, you can contact the Rejoice Community Church at (712) 548-4430.
Judge To Rule On Lowered Bond Request Next Week
(Fairfield, IA) — A Jefferson County judge says he will rule on a request for a lower bond by two teenagers next week. Attorneys for the teens accused of murdering a Fairfield High School Spanish teacher say they don’t have the means to flee and they are seeking a reduction in their bonds and release from jail as they await a trial. Sixteen-year-olds Jeremy Goodale (GOOD-ale) and Willard Miller each face a first-degree murder charge in the killing of Nohema Graber (no-AY-muh GRAY-ber) earlier this month. Prosecutor Scott Brown says based on the factors in the case, the bond at the least should be kept at one million dollars each or even raised to two million. Judge Joel Yates heard the lawyers’ arguments in court Tuesday.
Iowa Supreme Court Rules Against Inmates Suing Over Sex Offender Treatments
(Des Moines, IA) — The Iowa Supreme Court rules against a group of inmates at the Newton prison. They had argued their constitutional rights were violated by a delay in getting sex offender treatment they needed to be considered for parole. The ruling says the Iowa Department of Corrections has not postponed treatment in order to delay parole. It says it is a numbers problem where there are more male sex offenders in Iowa’s prison system than spots available for treatment. The ruling notes the Corrections Department has been actively addressing the need for sex offender treatment by increasing the number of classes and counselors.
Iowa Astronaut And Others On ISS Get Ready For Thanksgiving In Orbit
(Houston, TX) — N-A-S-A has released a video of Iowa native astronaut Raja Chari and four of his crewmates aboard the International Space Station as they prepare for Thanksgiving in orbit. Chari, who grew up in Cedar Falls, says he’ll be keeping alive a tradition with his wife and kids tomorrow even though he’s some 250 miles up and moving at nearly five miles a second. “Typically in our family Thanksgiving, we’ll do a thing where we go around the table and say what we’re thankful or grateful for,” Chari says, “so I’ll probably call in and do that remotely.” The 44-year-old Air Force colonel and three other astronauts lifted off atop a Falcon 9 rocket from Kennedy Space Center in Florida on November 10th.
US Senate Candidate Cuts Campaign Short After Death In Family
(Manilla, IA) — A western Iowa farmer who announced in late May that he planned to run for the U.S. Senate in 2022 has ended his campaign. Dave Muhlbauer (MULL-bow-er) of Manilla is a former Crawford County Supervisor. His father and grandfather were state legislators. Muhlbauer’s nephew died in an accident earlier this year and Muhlbauer sys the tragedy has had a devasting effect on his family. Muhlbauer says after a period of reflection with his family and close friends, he’s decided he cannot continue his campaign for the U-S Senate. Muhlbauer was the first Democrat to announce they hoped to challenge Republican Chuck Grassley’s bid for an eighth term in the U.S. Senate.
Fire Destroys Convenience Store/Truck Stop
(Rockwell City) — A popular truck stop and convenience store at the intersection of Highway 20 and State Highway 4 near Rockwell City, Iowa, was destroyed by fire on Tuesday. The store was known as “Sparky’s” and served as a stopping point for motorists traveling on Highway 20. Apparently, a semi truck had caught on fire near the fuel pumps, and north winds had swept the fire to the nearby structure. Within minutes the building was destroyed. Thick black smoke could be seen for miles. Fortunately, everyone inside the building was able to escape the burning structure. The convenience store burned to the ground and is a complete loss with damage estimated around five-million dollars. The truck driver was hospitalized and treated for smoke inhalation but no one else was hurt. Investigators are working to determine what caused the truck to catch fire.
Grassley Criticizes Biden Plan to Release Strategic Oil Reserves
(Washington, DC) — Senator Chuck Grassley opposes President Biden’s plan to release 50-million barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve in an effort to bring down gas prices. The Iowa Republican says the president should only tap the reserve in a “real emergency” or in the case of critical national security issues. Grassley suggests Biden undo his executive order stopping construction of the X-L pipeline, undo the order restricting the drilling on federal lands and stop the order restricting fracking. Grassley claims the president’s gesture will have little-to-no significant impact on gasoline prices.
Iowa Ethanol Prices Soar in 2021
(Ames, IA) — The price of ethanol has more than doubled this year in Iowa. A gallon of ethanol was selling for a dollar-39 in January and is more than three dollars this month. Iowa State University economics professor Dermot Hayes says ethanol prices dropped significantly last year as energy consumption fell due to the pandemic. But he says almost as many people are driving as before and energy prices are high, making ethanol more valuable. Ethanol plants made record profits in 2014 and 2021 could go down the second most profitable year. The U-S-D-A estimates ethanol plants will use more than five billion bushels of corn to produce ethanol this year.
Man Sentenced to 50 Years For Killing Girlfriend in Dubuque
(Dubuque, IA) — The sentence is 50 years in prison for an Illinois man who killed his girlfriend in Dubuque. Richard Forsythe of Galena pleaded guilty to the second-degree murder of 20-year-old Jennifer Lopez of Galena in a deal with prosecutors. Forsythe was initially charged with first-degree murder. Police found the body of Lopez at the Dubuque Arboretum and Botanical Gardens in February. Investigators say she was stabbed 15 times. Forsythe must serve at least 70 percent of the sentence before he’s eligible for parole.
Governor Reynolds Pardons 2 Iowa Thanksgiving Turkeys
(Des Moines, IA) — Governor Kim Reynolds continued the annual tradition today (Tuesday) of pardoning two turkeys from becoming Thanksgiving dinner. The governor said, “I proudly proclaim Squash and Stuffing as symbols of Iowa’s great turkey industry — and they are free to roam.” The two turkeys are from a farm in Ellsworth and walked right up in front of the governor as she read the proclamation on the back lawn of the Terrace Hill governor’s mansion. Reynolds gave a shout-out to the fifth-grade class at West Marshall Elementary for helping name the turkeys Squash and Stuffing. Reynolds also talked about the importance of Thanksgiving and said she loves that life is getting back to normal and people can gather with their families. The turkeys are being taken to Living History Farms.
