712 Digital Group - top

School Board meetings tonight (Mon.)

News

April 14th, 2014 by Ric Hanson

Members of the Elk Horn-Kimballton and Atlantic School District Boards of Education will hold separate meetings this evening. In Elk Horn, the EHK Board will gather at 5:30-p.m. for a regular session in the Family and Consumer Science Room at the High School, during which they will discuss and take action on: Summer 2014 Driver’s Education Fees; Driver’s Education Teachers; Early Retirement Applications and, Approval of a list of seniors for graduation.

In Atlantic, the Board of Education meets at 7:30-p.m. in the High School Media Center. During their meeting, the Board will hear Special Presentations from Frank Spillers, with regard to the “Scary Guy” program, and with regard to graduation credits at A.H.S.

The Board is also expected to act on General Education, Special Ed., and Amended contracts and/or Letters of Assignment, as well as approve volunteer coaching positions and any resignations. In other, Administrative matters, the Board will appoint a Board Treasurer, and  approve: A sponsor name change; Early retirement applications and resignations; A 1-to-1 Computer proposal; The 2014 Summer School program; The 1st or 2nd readings of various Board Policies, and a recommendation to adjust graduation rate credits to 48.

Discussion items include District Cost Reductions, and the Capital Projects Plan.

Slick roads causing accidents this morning

News

April 14th, 2014 by Ric Hanson

Slick and/or slushy roads were causing accidents this morning in the listening area. Medivac ambulance was called to the scene of a single-vehicle rollover accident near the Marne exit off Interstate 80, at around 5:35-a.m.  A Cass County Deputy reported from the scene the driver was injured, but the injuries did not appear to have been life threatening. Other accidents along I-80 involved vehicles that slid into the median or ditches.

Roadways are covered with black ice this morning. Along and south of I-80 roads were reported to be partially covered with slush and ice, with the bridges especially dangerous. North of I-80, roads were partially to mostly covered with snow/ice/and-or slush.

Use extra caution when traveling this morning.

(Podcast) Skyscan Forecast: Mon., April 14 2014

Podcasts, Weather

April 14th, 2014 by Ric Hanson

The (podcast) weather forecast for Atlantic & the KJAN listening area.  Sunday’s High in Atlantic was 48. Our low through 5:30-a.m. today was 26. Precipitation amounted to 1.12-inches, including snowfall of 1/2-inch.

Last year on this date, Atlantic reached a High of 69 degrees. The Low was 33. All-time record high for April 14th in Atlantic was 89, in 2003. The record Low was 11 in 1907. Sunrise is at 6:42 and Sunset is at 7:59.

Play

Catch My Drift: Monitoring for Pesticides in Iowa

Ag/Outdoor

April 14th, 2014 by Ric Hanson

DEWITT, Iowa – With the coming start of the growing season in Iowa, a group of volunteer “drift catchers” is preparing to spread out across the state to monitor the air for floating pesticides. Among the group is Greg King, who grows vegetables, fruits and flowers in rural DeWitt, and had some problems with agricultural drift last spring. “It was later found out to be drift of glyphosate or Round-Up,” he said. “It affected one of our crops, which was tomatoes, and they’re extremely sensitive. It also affected some of the trees in our yard, curling up the leaves and in one case, one of the plants died.”

According to Practical Farmers of Iowa, there were nearly 200 reported instances of pesticide drift in the state last year, although many go unseen and unreported. King said one way rural residents and horticulture farmers can minimize the potential for pesticide drift damage is to get on the sensitive crops registry, a directory compiled by the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship for use by pesticide applicators.

“And it gives the various sprayers in the area an opportunity to look up your particular address in the area where they’re going to be spraying and a chance to realize that perhaps they need to be more diligent,” King said. Beehives can also be registered with the state.

King said that when pesticide applicators know they’re working in a sensitive area, they do have options to minimize drift.

“They can slow the machines down, slow the pumps down, drop the booms. There are several things that can work in conjunction with what I might do on my side of the fence,” he said. “And in my case with a high tunnel, I would drop the sides down, close it off, turn the ventilation fans off, and that type of thing.” A high tunnel is a sort of greenhouse made of plastic sheeting supported by frames.

 

King urged those who want to get on the registry to act before May 1, since the start of the month is frequently when applicators will review the sensitive-crops list.

 

Information on the sensitive-crop registry is at IowaAgriculture.gov. Details on the drift-catcher program are at PANNA.org.

 

MARLENE MAE ROBINSON, 78, of Oakland (Svcs. At a later date)

Obituaries

April 14th, 2014 by Ric Hanson

MARLENE MAE ROBINSON, 78, of Oakland, died March 27th, at the Oakland Manor. A Memorial service for MARLENE ROBINSON will be held at a later date. Rieken Vieth Funeral Home in Oakland is in charge of arrangements.

MARLENE ROBINSON is survived by:

Her sister – Marilyn Robinson of Oakland.

And her cousins Greg and Jeff Robinson.

 

Water enthusiasts warned about river temperatures and debris

Ag/Outdoor, News, Sports

April 14th, 2014 by Ric Hanson

Water safety experts are warning canoers, kayakers and boaters that Iowa’s bodies of water have been slow to warm.Kayakers on Maquoketa River in Manchester Certified paddling instructor Darrin Siefken, of Waverly, says even though the air temperature feels spring-like, the water can be ice cold and dangerous. “Our rivers and lakes here in northeast Iowa just thawed out within the last week. So, most of those water temperatures are only about 50 degrees…when the air temperature is in the 60s or so.”

“It’s a good opportunity to dress properly and bring along another set of clothes in a dry bag just in case you would tip over,” Siefken said. Kayaking is becoming increasingly popular in Iowa. Charles City has a world-class course built in 2011 and similar venues are under construction in Manchester and Elkader. Siefken instructs his students, before they hit the water, to let others know where they’re going and when they expect to return.

“And then make sure you follow up and tell them when you get back…it helps with today’s technology that we can get a hold of people pretty easy,” Siefken said. He warns that many rivers in Iowa are full of debris that has washed downstream and could cause navigation problems.

(Radio Iowa)

Death certificate process streamlined in IA

News

April 14th, 2014 by Ric Hanson

Getting a copy of a death certificate in Iowa will get a little easier, beginning next week. The Omaha World-Herald reports  a new electronic system that starts next week, will allow people to pick up a certified copy at any county recorder’s office in the state. Iowa officials say the system will reduce errors and save time for funeral directors and physicians or medical examiners who must complete the forms. Currently a trip to Des Moines or to the office of the county recorder in the county where the person died is necessary.

Certified copies of Death Certificates are needed to handle matters ranging from life insurance policies to stocks and bonds, and to begin the settling of an estate. The current certification process starts with the funeral home, where information about the deceased person is entered into a computer, printed and either hand-delivered or mailed to the person’s physician or to a medical examiner.

The physician or medical examiner then fills in several boxes on the form, records the person’s cause of death and signs the document. When the form is returned to the funeral home, the information is double-checked. If it’s incorrect or incomplete, it must be returned to the physician. The completed, correct forms go to the county recorder along with a request for a certified copy. If the recorder discovers that information is missing, the form goes back to the funeral home. If everything is in order, the recorder prints a certificate and applies the office’s seal to it.

State officials say the new system eliminates the need for funeral directors to deliver records to physicians and to travel to file certifications, state officials say. It also reduces the processing of paper records at county recorders’ offices and by the Bureau of Health Statistics. The system also electronically notifies the Social Security Administration of the death.

Iowa physicians will be required by state law to use the new system. Iowa officials have been conducting training on the system statewide since February.

Iowa News Headlines: Monday, April 14th 2014

News

April 14th, 2014 by Ric Hanson

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press…

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) – At least one tornado has been reported in Iowa as powerful thunderstorms moved across the Midwest and Plains states. The Johnson County Sheriff’s Office in southeastern Iowa says that a tornado was spotted near the town of Lone Tree around 6 o’clock last night but that there were no injuries or damage.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – At least 386 state employees have been hired by Governor Terry Branstad’s administration without advertising the positions, but this is not a new practice in Iowa. Critics told the Des Moines Register the practice makes it easier for friends and campaign donors to land the jobs. But Branstad spokesman Jimmy Centers says the unadvertised hires are allowed under state law for certain jobs.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Des Moines police are investigating the apparent slaying of a 57-year-old woman on the city’s eastside. The Des Moines Register reports officers were called to a home at 2:14 p.m. Sunday after a relative found the woman unresponsive on the floor. Police didn’t identify the victim yesterday.

AMES, Iowa (AP) – Iowa State University has suspended Abdel Nader from the basketball team after his arrest on suspicion of drunken driving over the weekend. The Iowa State Police arrested Nader around 11:40 p.m. Saturday on suspicion that he was operating a vehicle while intoxicated. Nader is a 6-foot-6 small forward who sat out this past season after transferring to Iowa State from Northern Illinois.

Unruly man forces Southwest jet to divert flight to Omaha

News

April 14th, 2014 by Ric Hanson

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) – A California-bound Southwest Airlines flight was diverted to Omaha, Neb. after witnesses said a passenger tried to open a door midflight. The airline said the Chicago-to-Sacramento plane landed on Eppley Airfield Sunday to “have an unruly passenger removed” before continuing on to its destination. The flight with 5 crew members and 134 passengers arrived in Sacramento about two hours behind schedule.

Monique Lawler told KABC-TV after reaching her final destination in Los Angeles, that the man acted strangely during the flight, and that at one point he came out of the bathroom soaking wet. She said when he went to the back of the cabin to try to pry open the door, a flight attendant screamed for help.

Once on the ground, a doctor onboard told KCRA-TV he and two other passengers tackled the man in the back of the cabin and restrained him until air marshals escorted him off the plane. Scott Porter said the man “was going to do bad things to the plane.”

The airline had no further details about the passenger.

Iowa State suspends Nader after DUI arrest

Sports

April 14th, 2014 by Ric Hanson

AMES, Iowa (AP) – Iowa State University has suspended Abdel Nader from the basketball team after his arrest on suspicion of drunken driving over the weekend. The Iowa State Police arrested Nader around 11:40 p.m. Saturday on suspicion that he was operating a vehicle while intoxicated. Nader is a 6-foot-6 small forward who sat out this past season after transferring to Iowa State from Northern Illinois.

Nader led Northern Illinois with 13.1 points a game in 2012-13, and he was expected to play next season.  Iowa State athletic department spokesman Matt Shoultz says Nader has been suspended indefinitely in accordance with the conduct policy for athletes.