PLYMOUTH COUNTY FAIR – DAY 3 – UPDATE
John Ahlers – President of the Plymouth County Fair Board –
says the Plymouth County Fair got off to a great start in the first two days…
Now, hotter weather is in the forecast, but Ahlers says its manageable
New additions to the fair like the Kids Zone, are working out well
Ahlers is anxious to see a new event to take place at 3 this afternoon at the horse arena
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Day 3 of the Five Best Days of Summer unfolds today at the Plymouth County Fair Grounds. The focus this morning is at the livestock arena, as the beef show gets underway at 8 o’clock. Over at the Open Class Building is the Dog Show, starting at 8:30. The poultry show is at 1-30 at the livestock arena. There’s a cooking school at Century Hall tonight at 7. A demolition derby is the grandstand event this evening. Hear live reports from the Plymouth County Fair on KLEM this morning at 10:30 and 11:30 a.m., and 4:30 p.m.
KLEM will have live reports from our booth at the fair, at 10:30 and 11:30 a.m. and at 4:30 p.m. The Plymouth County Fair continues through Sunday.
JURY CONVICTS FORMER HAWARDEN MAN FOR SEXUAL ABUSE
A former Hawarden resident was sentenced Thursday on a charge of sexual abuse, third degree. 29 year old Misael Topete Topete was convicted in SIoux County District Court. The case took placer in July, 2017, when Topete entered the basement of his mother’s home in Hawarden and encountered the 19-year-old female victim. He forced the victim down on the basement steps and sexually assaulted her. The suspect later confessed to law officers that the victim told him to stop and he did not stop.
Trial was to take place in March, 2018, but Topete fled to Mexico, becoming a fugitive from justice. Earlier this year, the suspect turned himself into authorities. On conviction, Topete was taken into custody and will remain in the Sioux County Jail, pending the scheduling of his sentencing hearing. Sexual Abuse in the Third Degree carries a penalty of ten years in prison.
AGRICULTURE RECOVERY CENTER TO BE IN SIOUX COUNTY JULY 30
State, federal and local agencies, in conjunction with farming industry groups, will host a one-day Agriculture Recovery Center in Sioux County on Tuesday, July 30, noon to 8 p.m., to help Iowans recover from flooding and storm damage.
The event is designed as a resource fair. It will provide information on addressing agricultural or rural needs that are not covered by standard programs offered by FEMA or the state of Iowa. The U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Iowa Insurance Division and other government agencies are working with industry organizations such as Iowa Pork Producers, Iowa Soybean and Iowa Cattlemen to ensure unmet needs are identified and resources are shared.
This event on Tuesday, July 30, from noon to 8 p.m., will be held at the Dordt University – Agriculture Stewardship Building, located on US Highway 75 north of Sioux Center.
The Iowa Disaster Agriculture Resource Guide can be accessed through www.iowa.gov/resources-0/agricultural-resources
TWO MORE COUNTIES ARE ELIGIBLE FOR FEDERAL DISASTER ASSITANCE
Federal Disaster Unemployment Assistance is now available to those who live in Osceola and Pottawattamie Counties. Iowa Workforce Development director Beth Townsend says you should see if you qualify.
12 other counties, including Buena Vista, Cherokee, Clay, Dickenson, Emmet, Humboldt, Lyon, O’Brien, Palo Alto, Plymouth, Sioux, and Woodbury Counties had already been approved for the disaster relief.
She says the source of the money isn’t the most important issue.
You will need your Social Security Number and the name and address of your last employer or prospective employer to file for disaster assistance.
NW IA OFFICIALS MAY JOIN REGIONAL GROUP THAT OVERSEES LITTLE SIOUX WATERSHED
As part of flood recovery efforts, some officials in northwest Iowa are exploring the idea of joining a Water Management Authority that oversees the Little Sioux River watershed. The Little Sioux Headwaters Coalition currently includes agencies in areas along the Iowa-Minnesota border. Clay County Supervisor Allen Batschelet says rather than reinventing the wheel, joining the coalition — which was organized 15 years ago — makes sense.
Dickinson County Supervisor Steve Clark says it may be time to have his county, along with Clay, Cherokee and Buena Vista Counties become part of the Water Management Authority for the Little Sioux.
Last month’s Little Sioux River flooding devastated swaths of Spencer and Cherokee. In the small community of Linn Grove, the crest was six feet higher than the previous record set in 1993. The Little Sioux Headwaters Coalition is scheduled to meet August 14th to hear from a consultant about flood control measures.
A HARRIS VP PROSPECT DUE IN IOWA SATURDAY
There’s a new level of interest in an Iowa Democratic Party banquet this weekend. Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear — booked weeks ago to headline a party fundraiser in Des Moines this Saturday — has emerged as one of the people Kamala Harris is considering as a running mate. Iowa Democratic Party chair Rita Hart says the event is sold out.
Beshear is one of only three Democrats from Kentucky serving in statewide or federal office. He won a second term as governor last year after steering his state through a series of tragic natural disasters. Hart says Iowa Democratic Party activists are generally more jazzed about the party’s prospects in the 2024 election now that Harris is the party’s presumptive presidential nominee.
Donald Trump easily won Iowa’s electoral college votes in 2016 and 2020. Polling for 2024 — prior to Joe Biden’s exit from the race — has indicated Iowa to be firmly in Trump’s column again. Hart says enthusiasm for Harris may help Democrats who are also on the Iowa ballot this year, running for congress and for state and local offices.
Hart and the rest of the delegates to the Democratic National Convention met Monday night and unanimously endorsed Harris.
NW IOWA COLLEGE SETTLES SUIT WITH HUMAN TRAFFICKING CLAIMS
The board of a northwest Iowa community college has accepted a settlement with international students who accused the school of human trafficking. Western Iowa Tech Community College in Sioux City will pay two-point-three million dollars to settle a lawsuit involving ten students from Brazil. College President Terry Murrell took full responsibility for the program’s problems. In April, the college’s board of directors approved paying three-million dollar to students from Chile who filed a lawsuit in 2020. The students said they were promised a free, two-year program with internships but were instead forced into working manual labor jobs to pay off tuition. Murrell disputed that claim, saying the students were free to leave at any time and were paid for every hour they worked, plus free tuition and other amenities.
IOWA FIREFIGHTERS DEPLOY TO WESTERN STATES
Around one dozen Iowans are helping battle wildfires in other states — across the Rocky Mountains, on the West Coast, and in the Pacific Northwest. The supervisor of the Iowa Department of Natural Resources’ Fire Program, Ryan Harr, says they’ve dispatched Iowans to help extinguish dangerous flareups in California, Colorado, Idaho, Oregon and Wyoming — and one crew just returned from fighting wildfires in South Dakota. In addition to firefighters, Iowa is also dispatching E-M-Ts and logistical planners to points west. Most of their assignments are for two weeks and Harr says the 14-hour days can be both grueling and rewarding. While Iowa has gotten a reprieve from several years of drought with heavy rain in recent months, Harr says the western U-S has seen just the opposite.
WET SPRING COULD HURT PHEASANT NUMBERS
The wet spring could lead to a drop in the number of pheasants in Iowa. Iowa D-N-R wildlife research biologist Todd Bogenschutz says we went from major drought to major flooding in a pretty short time frame, and the flooding coincided with the peak nesting time. He says hunters had their best harvest last year since 2007. The relatively mild winter helped more pheasants survive, so it’s hard to tell what their fall pheasant survey will show. Bogenschutz says there are still going to be birds out there, but some areas may see a drop in numbers, particularly in those areas that saw flooding. The annual roadside pheasant surveys are held in August and the results on pheasant numbers will be released in September.
