DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Six Iowa counties hit by storms last week now qualify for emergency disaster assistance. Gov. Terry Branstad has issued proclamations for Adams, Clarke, Decatur, Mills, Taylor and Wayne counties. All were affected by severe storms that brought heavy rain, hail, and high wind on June 3. The proclamation allows state resources to be used.

The proclamation also activates the Iowa Individual Assistance Program for Decatur County which provides grants of up to $5,000 for households meeting income eligibility guidelines for home or car repairs, replacement of clothing or food, and other assistance.

State emergency management officials have requested a federal damage assessment to public infrastructure in 10 counties including Adams, Clarke, Decatur, Harrison, and Mills counties. Also included are Montgomery Pottawattamie, Ringgold, Taylor and Wayne.

Police in Council Bluffs, Thursday, released a report identifying the remains of a person found following a house fire on Dec. 31st, 2013, in rural Mills County. Officials with the State Medical Examiner’s Office in Ankeny said based on circumstantial evidence in the case, bone fragments discovered in the home at 16683 Alcorn Avenue, are most likely those of Council Bluffs resident, 26-year old Travis Bach.

Several small, burned bone fragments were located during an excavation of the home on Jan. 15th and 16th, 2014. The fragments were sent to the State Medical Examiner’s Office for testing. A test of Mitochondrial DNA was conducted, but none was located.  The Medical Examiner has listed the cause of death as accidental, and probably related to smoke inhalation and thermal injuries.

The home where Bach’s remains were found belonged to 69-year old Gerald Nibbe, who’d been away the night of Dec. 31st, 2013, night visiting family in Omaha. The Mills County Sheriff’s Office and the Iowa State Patrol had responded to a call from a security company around 9:30 p.m. saying the home’s motion-detecting security alarms were going off. When officers entered the home, they discovered multiple alarms going off and a fire.

Nibbe returned between 11 p.m. and midnight to find his home ablaze. Bach’s mother, Colleen, said her family believed Travis Bach was near the scene of the fire. Officials had investigated a suspicious vehicle parked on the property the night of the event. The vehicle’s owner, who lives in Council Bluffs, told sheriff’s deputies that he lent the vehicle to Travis Bach. Bach knew Nibbe and had done “odd jobs” for him in the past.

Council Bluffs police Sgt. Chad Meyers says authorities believed from the outset that remains found at the scene were Bach’s, but DNA tests were inconclusive. Meyers described the home as a “hoarder’s house,” full of items that made the fire burn hotter and longer than usual.

Investigators with the Iowa State Fire Marshal Division were not able to determine what caused the fire.

The Vision Iowa Board has awarded a total of $135,000 in Community Attraction and Tourism (CAT) grants for improvements at the French Icarian Village in Corning, and renovations at the Dunlop Wildlife Recreation Area near Orange City. The grants were approved by the Vision Iowa Board at their meeting in Des Moines, Wednesday.

The French Icarian Colony Foundation’s “Garden to Table” Kitchen and Sanitary System Project received a requested $40,000 toward the total $166,945 cost of the project. The award is contingent upon the foundation having completed its fundraising efforts within 60 days. The project includes the renovation of the basement and other areas of the historic dining hall to be used as a state-certified community kitchen, installation of a sanitation system for the dining hall and two public restrooms for
visitors.

And, the City of Orange City received a $95,000 CAT grant for the Dunlop Wildlife Recreation Area Renovations project. That was $2,300 less than they had asked for. The total cost of the project is $516,500. The award is contingent upon the City completing its fundraising efforts within 30 days.

The project will renovate the Dunlop Wildlife Recreation Area by adding an amphitheater, fishing piers, trails, a playground, bathrooms, a bridge to a trailer campground, a bigger open-air shelter, a picnic and camping area, plus new trees, bushes and seeding.

The Vision Iowa Program provides financial incentives to communities for the construction of recreational, cultural, educational or entertainment facilities that enhance the quality of life in Iowa. Currently, 388 CAT awards have been granted by the board, totaling $145,359,186. The next Vision Iowa Board meeting is scheduled for July 9, 2014, in Des Moines.

CARROLL, Iowa (AP) — Iowa authorities have arrested a third man accused of stealing flagpoles from the Carroll American Legion over the Memorial Day weekend. The Carroll Daily Times Herald reports  that 18-year-old Jerad Wayne Reed of Lohrville was arrested on Tuesday. Authorities have also charged 37-year-old Christopher Lee Gay and 20-year-old Chance Abel Kenny, both of Lake City.

Police say the men stole two trailers with an estimated 550 metal flagpoles and attempted to sell them at two local salvage yards. Legion members say the salvage-yard workers declined to buy them. The total value of the poles was estimated at $16,500.

All three men face felony theft charges. They face up to 15 years in prison if convicted.

Iowa Auditor of State Mary Mosiman Thursday (today) released a report on a special investigation of the City of Menlo for the period January 1st, 2001 through May 31st, 2013. The special investigation was requested by City officials as a result of concerns regarding certain transactions prepared by the former City Clerk, Brenda Simmons.

Mosiman reported the special investigation identified $82,893.51 of improper and unsupported disbursements. The slightly more than $81,632 worth of improper disbursements identified include:
• Over $62,362 worth of payments made by the City for health insurance coverage which
should have been paid by Ms. Simmons and the City’s former maintenance employee, John Freeman,
• Approximately $6,430 worth of unauthorized payroll and the City’s share of related FICA and IPERS payments,
•Nearly $12,680 of additional payroll issued to Ms. Simmons because of an improper increase in hourly wages and the City’s share of related FICA and IPERS payments, and
• And $160 of interest paid to IPERS.

The slightly more than $1,260 of unsupported disbursements identified includes just over $1,073 worth of payments to Ms. Simmons and almost $188 worth of payments to Simmons’ husband. Mosiman reported it was not possible to determine if additional improper disbursements were made because sufficient records were not readily available.

The report includes recommendations to strengthen the City’s internal controls and overall operations, such as improving segregation of duties, performing bank reconciliations, requiring adequate documentation to support disbursements, and performing an independent review of bank statements. In addition, all disbursements should be approved by the City Council.

Copies of the report have been filed with the Division of Criminal Investigation, the Guthrie County Attorney’s Office, and the Attorney General’s Office. A copy of the report is available for review on the Auditor of State’s website at http://auditor.iowa.gov/specials/1322-0367-BE00.pdf
and in the Office of Auditor of State.