National EMS Week May 18-24 in Le Mars
National EMS Week this year will be observed next week, May 18th through the 24th. Le Mars Fire Chief Dave Schipper says in Le Mars both fire and EMS services are jointly under the Fire-Rescue Umbrella with both full-time and on-call staffing.
John MacGregor is the EMS Supervisor for the Department.
MacGregor says extensive training is involved with certification requirements.
Chief Schipper says the department received 132 EMS calls last month, and last year logged more than 2,000 calls.
A Chamber Community Coffee will be held Monday morning (May 19) from 9:30-10:30 a.m. at Fire Station 1, 45 1st Ave SW, to kick off EMS week.
Feenstra Campaign Advertising
Even though Congressman Randy Feenstra hasn’t officially announced a run for governor, a campaign advertisement released this week appears to show he’s in the race.
Feenstra announced this week that he formed an exploratory committee. Yesterday, his campaign sent out a news release saying they plan to spend $400,000 dollars on ads that will run statewide.
One of the ads calls Feenstra a “proven conservative” who can take the state to new “heights.” Feenstra is 6-foot-five.
State Senator Mike Bousselot has also formed an exploratory committee. The only Republican to officially announce a run in the Republican primary for governor in 2026 is former state representative and pastor Brad Sherman of Williamsburg.
Earlier this week, State Auditor Rob Sand launched his campaign for the Democratic primary. A Democrat hasn’t won the governor’s office since 2006.
Winnebago Industries Announces Layoffs
About 200 hourly employees at Winnebago Industries’ Forest City manufacturing facility will be laid off starting next month.
Company employees were told on Wednesday that after a thorough business analysis that the company has made the difficult decision to reduce the workforce and pause their Class A motorhome production line. The company said the layoffs reflected current inventory levels, challenging market conditions and lower consumer demand.
The last day of work for employees impacted will be June 13th.
Company officials have not responded to requests for further comment about the layoffs.
Iowa’s Jobless Rate Ticks Up
The state unemployment rate rose one-tenth of a percent to 3.5% in April. Iowa Workforce Development director Beth Townsend says that’s partly because more people are looking for work.
Townsend says manufacturing continues to be a down area. She added that Iowa lost 7,400 jobs over the last 12 months. Townsend says there’s no clear evidence yet on the impact of tariffs on the job market.
Townsend also said that private service industries were responsible for most of the job gains in April, adding about 41,000 new jobs. Professional and business services are the ones that gained the most, and those jobs included professional, scientific, and technical services. Construction gained 13,000 jobs last month.
