(Radio Iowa) – The 127 employees of a grain processing plant in Cedar Rapids are now on strike. Ingredion Incorporated has been in negotiations since June with its union on a four-year contract. The existing contract ended Monday morning and union members voted to strike. The local union president was on the picket line and says they’re prepared to go as long as it takes to get a contract his members can agree to. “We’re far apart right now. I’m hoping soon that they’ll come back to the table. I don’t look for it this week but I hoping next week that they contact (me), and my committee and I can come back to the table and start negotiating again,” he says.

The workers are part of The Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International Union. Mitch Kacena has been at the plant for three and a half years. He said the company’s current offer would cut his pay from twenty-eight dollars an hour to twenty-six. That’s a drop of several thousand dollars each year. It’s his first strike. “I’ve never really been around before either. It’s kind of a whole new thing for me,” he says.

A spokesperson at Ingredion’s corporate office in Westchester, Illinois said there may be temporary facility stoppages, but the company plans to continue operating the facility and fulfill orders.

(reporting By Zachary Oren Smith, Iowa Public Radio)

(Radio Iowa) – The operators of a Dubuque entertainment venue say they have recovered funds involved in an overseas hack. The Five Flags Center says hackers attempted to initiate a wire transfer of money from the Center’s account at MidWestOne Bank in late June to an account in Hong Kong. Five Flags Center says in a statement they worked with MidWestOne Bank, local authorities and the F-B-I to find the source of the attack and stop the transfer before it could be completed.

Published reports say the attempted hack involved 300-thousand dollars.

(Radio Iowa) Much of Iowa’s expected to roast in this week’s heat wave — which may end up lasting much longer — and it follows a very steamy July. State climatologist Justin Glisan says the just-ended month was one-degree warmer than normal statewide and we had one-inch less of rainfall than the average. Glisan says Iowa’s farmers are especially concerned about forecast models that show more of the same during August. “We’re getting into the teeth of the growing season but also the warmest part of the year for Iowa late July and August,” Glisan says, “and we’re definitely going to turn on the furnace this week.” The Climate Prediction Center is releasing its maps for expected temperatures and precipitation during August — and both show the hot, dry trend will continue for Iowa during the month ahead.

“It doesn’t bode well for the drought conditions that we’re seeing, especially in northwestern Iowa where we have D1 to D3 drought, the extreme drought category,” Glisan says. “We would like to see timely rainfall to hold the crop on, but right now, the probabilities, they’re not working in our direction.” If there’s a bright spot to the past month, Glisan notes there was no severe weather anywhere in Iowa during July.

“We don’t have severe weather, we don’t have thunderstorms, we don’t get rainfall and hence, drought conditions expand,” Glisan says. “We saw similar behavior last year at this time. Drought was more pervasive last year, D1 to D2 across much of the northern two thirds of the state.” While we’re in the third year of a La Nina pattern, Glisan says it’s still too early to say if the warmer, drier weather will last into the fall months.

(Red Oak, Iowa) – Police in Red Oak report one arrest and one non-injury accident occurred, Monday. Officers arrested 51-year-old Sally Mae Petersen, of Red Oak, for Breach of Peace (a simple misdemeanor). Petersen was booked into the Montgomery County Jail and held on a $300 bond. And, a woman who told Police she had too much to drink, was involved in an accident Monday evening.

Authorities report 79-year-old Ladonna Marie Peterson-Figley, of Red Oak, told Police she was coming back from a restaurant. While pulling into a parking stall, her depth perception was off due to her state of intoxication. The 2014 GMC Terrain SUV she was driving struck a legally parked 2014 Nissan Altima, owned by Robert Fensterman. The woman told police she didn’t recall hitting the car, but due to her red vehicle and the red paint on the Nissan, Police said there was sufficient evidence to connect the damage to Peterson-Figley’s vehicle.

She was transported to the Montgomery County Memorial Hospital and informed about implied consent. Charges are pending the results of her blood test. Damage from the collision amounted to $1,700.00

(Creston, Iowa) – Officials with the Creston Police Department report the arrest at around 5:22-a.m. today (Tuesday), of a man wanted on a Council Bluffs Police Department warrant. 42-year-old Jullio Cesar Villapando Castro, of Creston, was wanted for Failure To Appear on an original Probation Violation charge. Villapando Castro was transported to the Union County Jail and held without bond while he awaits extradition to Council Bluffs.

Authorities said also, a man residing in the 500 block of N. Division Street, in Creston, reported Monday morning, that someone had stolen his backpack from his 1998 Jeep Cherokee, while the vehicle was parked at his residence. The backpack contained: a Kline wire stripper; Nebo pen light; 3 sets of Allen wrenches; A set of step bits, and three college text books.

The loss was estimated at $250.00.

(Radio Iowa) – A man who arranged heroin and fentanyl distribution in eastern Iowa that led to a near-fatal overdose was will spend more than 33 years in federal prison. Forty-year-old Derrick Trawick from Chicago was found guilty by a jury in January of aiding and abetting the distribution of heroin and fentanyl near a playground. The trial evidence showed that Trawick was a heroin dealer in Dubuque who was nicknamed “Worm” and “K-G.”

He sold a bag that contained heroin and fentanyl in May of 2019 that caused one of the users to suffer an overdose and she stopped breathing for several minutes. She regained consciousness after being given Narcan. Evidence presented at sentencing also showed that Trawick sold large quantities of ice methamphetamine in Dubuque and had previously been convicted of six other felony crimes, including aggravated criminal sex abuse and domestic abuse assault causing injury.

(Updated) ARCADIA, Iowa (via KTIV) – A crop dusting helicopter pilot walked away from a crash in Carroll County, Monday morning. According to the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office, first responders were paged to a helicopter crash south of Arcadia, at about 9:30 a.m., Monday. The pilot told authorities he was spraying a corn field in a Bell 206 Jet Ranger helicopter when the engine suddenly quit. The helicopter ended up crashing near the intersection of 210th Street Avenue and Delta Avenue. The sheriff’s office says the pilot, 78-year-old Michael Milliron, was able to get himself out of the helicopter and walk to the highway. He was checked out by Carroll Rescue and transported to a local hospital for non-life-threatening injuries. The Federal Aviation Administration will investigate the crash to determine the cause. The helicopter was totaled in the crash.

It was the second western Iowa crash of a crop dusting aircraft in less than three-days. At around 1:10-p.m. Saturday, a fixed-wing single-engine Air Tractor, Incorporated crop dusting airplane crashed onto a road and caught fire near Ute, in Monona County. The accident happened when the aircraft struck electrical lines. and crashed onto a road near 230^th and Teak. The pilot died at the scene. The road the plane crashed onto, was re-opened to traffic Monday afternoon.

As of the latest information, no name had been released.

(Avoca, Iowa) – Officials with Regional Water said Monday, that one of their pipes was hit South of Kirkman/northeast of Harlan (Nishna Ave, Oak Road, & M36). Crews were working to repair the pipe. Official say “When water is restored, these customers will be in a BOIL ADVISORY for the next couple days. Customers affected should have received a phone call and/or email.”

The 2022 Cass County Fair Beef Show was held on Monday and the Grand Champion selection capped off the final full day of the fair. The Supreme Overall Market Animal went to Morgan Will of the Benton Franklin 4-H Club. Morgan showed the 4-H Grand Champion Market Steer and Market Animal before winning the Supreme Overall title.

Reserve Overall Market Animal went to Claire Pellett of the Atlantic FFA. Claire showed the FFA Grand Champion Market Steer and Animal before taking the Supreme Reserve spot.

Other winner in the Beef Show were:

Champion FFA Market Heifer: Logan Eilts.
Reserve Champion FFA Market Heifer: Callee Pellett.
Champion FFA Market Steer: Claire Pellett.
Reserve Champion FFA Market Steer: CeCe Hensley.
Supreme Champion FFA Market: Claire Pellett.
Champion FFA Beef Carcass: Callee Pellett
Reserve Champion FFA Beef Carcass: Malena Woodward.
Champion 4-H Beef Carcass: Claire Pellett.
Reserve Champion 4-H Beef Carcass: Quincey Sorensen.
Grand Champion 4-H Market Heifer: Graham Hagen.
Reserve Grand Champion 4-H Market Heifer: Holden DeVore.
Grand Champion 4-H Market Steer: Morgan Will.
Reserve Grand Champion 4-H Market Steer: Raylea Amos.
Supreme Champion 4-H Market Beef: Morgan Will.
Reserve Supreme Champion 4-H Market Beef: Raylea Amos.
Overall Supreme Champion Beef: Morgan Will.
Reserve Overall Supreme Champion Beef: Claire Pellett.

Watch the full replay of the show here: