UTV FATAL
An 8 year old boy suffered fatal injuries Wednesday in a UTV accident near Hinton. The Plymouth County Sheriffs Department received a 911 call shortly before noon that a child was injured in an accident at a residence on Hill Lane west of Hinton. Authorities were told that a boy was driving an unregistered Polaris Ranger at the residence, and lost control of the vehicle on a grassy area. The vehicle rolled over on its top. The boy was partially ejected, causing serious injuries. He was taken to Mercy Hospital in Sioux City, where he was later pronounced dead. His name was not released. The accident remains under investigation. The Iowa State Patrol and Hinton Ambulance and Fire Department assisted at the scene.
AUGUSTFEST
Kingsley is celebrating this weekend, with their annual Augustfest. City Clerk Vicki Sitzman says activities begin this evening.
Augustfest Friday has several events from afternoon to evening.
Saturday is full of activities all day long …
…and into the evening.
Funds raised from the events at Augustfest will benefit the Kingsley Spooks, an anonymous charity that operates in the community.
Augustfest is put on by the Kingsley Chamber of Commerce.
FAIR RECAP
The Plymouth County Fair Board met this wweek to review the county fair, and indications are that the fair was a big success. Board Chairman Loren Schnepf says attendance was great, but he also saw a problem area.
Schnepf says those 118-thousand people come to the fair for different reasons.
The fair board won’t see final numbers until later, but revenues looked good for vendors.
Attendance at this year’s Plymouth County Fair was 8-thousand higher than last year’s fair.
INJURY ACCIDENT
A two vehicle crash northeast of Sioux Center Wednesday injured both drivers. The Sioux County Sheriffs Department says the crash occurred northeast of Sioux Center on County Road B30. A pickup driven by 72 year old William Kooiker of Orange City attempted a left turn into a farm driveway, into the path of an SUV driven by 75 year old Jacob Oolman of Orange City. Oolman transported by helicopter to Sanford Medical Center in Sioux Falls. Kooiker was taken by ambulance to Sioux Center Health. Kooiker was cited for failure to yield while making a left turn.
WIND POWER ORDINANCE
The Woodbury County Board of Supervisors gave first reading to an update their wind generator ordinance. The new rule would require far more distance between wind turbines and residences. It’s a move that MidAmerican Energy says will likely derail its plan to build a wind farm in Woodbury County. Daniel Hair of Hornick says the wind farm would be disruptive — he led a petition drive that more than 700 county residents signed asking supervisors to change the ordinance. It currently requires at least 12-hundred-50 feet of separation between a residence and a wind turbine, and the new proposal would double that requirement. Brenda Holtz is a landowner who opposes expanding the distance, saying it takes away property owners’ ability to decide what to do with their land. The board will hold two more public hearings before taking a final vote on its wind ordinance change.
FISH KILL CAUSE
Iowa Department of Natural Resources Fisheries biologist, Ben Wallace, says testing at Storm Lake has confirmed the disease that killed thousands of fish.
He says this is the first known outbreak in an Iowa lake. Wallace says they can’t say for sure how the virus got into the lake.
Wallace says the heat and spawning were likely contributing factors that made the virus worse. Removing carp can help improve water quality — but Wallace says this outbreak only killed young fish in the same year of growth.
He says these type of carp kills have happened at many lakes in Minnesota, and Wisconsin, but there’s no way to know if it will happen again here.
He says it takes a lot of conditions to come together to cause the problem in the fish who carry the virus.
Wallace says the fish are decomposing pretty quickly and scavengers, like raccoons, catfish and crayfish are also eating away at the fish.
DERECHO ANNIVERSARY
Wednesday was the two-year anniversary of the derecho that swept through Iowa causing billions of dollars in damage, destroying crops, and downing hundreds of trees. The storm got its start in southeast South Dakota and northeast Nebraska, gaining strength as it moved east. The National Weather Service confirmed it had maximum estimated winds reaching 140 miles an hour in some locations. Hundreds of thousands of Iowans were left without electrical service for several days. That storm killed three people and hurt several others. It has been called one of the worst derechos in U-S history.
SIOUX FALLS VIGIL
Friends and family are remembering a man shot and killed by police. Over 50 people gathered last night for a vigil honoring 21-year-old Jacob James at the Burger King on 12th Street and Williams Avenue where he was shot during a traffic stop Tuesday. Police and the Minnehaha County Sheriff’s Office tried to stop the vehicle James and three others were riding in when he and two others ran from the scene. Officials say James fired at officers while trying to run away and was shot. He was pronounced dead at the hospital.
DRIVER ARRESTED
The driver from a deadly traffic stop is in custody. Tanner Turkey was arrested yesterday after a pursuit. He is believed to have been the driver of a vehicle involved in a a police shooting on Tuesday. Authorities say a three people ran from the vehicle Turkey was driving and that 21-year-old Jacob James was firing at police. Police returned fire, killing James. Turkey drove away from the scene.
REFEREE SHORTAGE
Schools across Nebraska continue to struggle with staffing shortages and one of the most severe shortages is among referees for high school games. State officials say the shortfall is reaching a tipping point that could affect schedules this fall. Already, the first football game of the season for Tri-County Schools has been moved up to Thursday, August 25th, in order to make sure there are enough referees for the Friday night games that week. For Bruning/Davenport Shickley Schools, pay that’s split among a crew of referees for a game has been increased — from 500-dollars to 650-dollars. Officials with Malcolm Public Schools say the current shortage has not affected them yet but they worry about having to replace a number of referees who are planning to retire soon.
