SIDNEY, Iowa (AP) — Five men have been charged with illegally harvesting channel catfish in southwest Iowa. The state Department of Natural Resources says the men were seen on Jan. 19 loading catch onto a truck. Officials say it’s illegal to keep game fish from the Missouri River on a commercial fishing license.

They are each charged with 18 counts of illegal method of take. They each face thousands of dollars in fines. The men are 18-year-old Larkin Achenbach, of Pacific Junction; 57-year-old Lester Achenbach, of Thurman; 54-year-old Leland Achenbach, of Thurman; 50-year-old Frankie “Lyle” Achenbach, of Riverton; and 79-year-old James Achenbach, of Thurman.

The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission assisted in the investigation. A court date has been scheduled on Feb. 18.

Police in Lenox report the Lenox Community Schools were asked not to let students outside for about an hour this (Friday) afternoon. In a press release, authorities said “For a short time today around noon, the police department was dealing with a situation about 2 blocks north of the school. We were looking for an individual as part of our investigation. We did not believe this person presented any threat to the school at any time. However in order to ensure the highest degree of safety for our students, we asked the school to not allow the students outside the building for approximately one hour while we conducted our search.”

Officials say when authorities determined no threat existed, the school was immediately notified and resumed normal function. Police did not describe the precautions as a “lockdown” of the school.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – The Iowa Supreme Court says the Iowa Department of Transportation is responsible for paying three subcontractors after they completed work on state projects in 2011 but were never paid by the general contractor hired by the state.  The case centers on improvements made to Interstate 80 rest stops in Adair County. The DOT hired Universal Concrete Ltd. as the general contractor which in turn hired three subcontractors to provide equipment and concrete.

The three subcontractors, owed in excess of $32,000, sued the DOT but lost in district court and appealed. The appeal presents the first opportunity for the high court to decide whether a 1988 law requires the DOT to pay subcontractors shortchanged by a general contractor.

The court determined DOT should pay the subcontractors and any reasonable attorney fees.

The Cass County Board of Supervisors today (Friday) approved a contract with SWIPCO (the Southwest Iowa Planning Council), to provide and perform necessary services to carry out formal adoption of the local Hazard Mitigation Plan for rural Cass County and the eight cities located within the County. Action on the matter was postponed last week because there were some changes and conditions to the contract that needed to be made. The total cost of the project is $53,000, with the County’s in-kind share amounting to $7,950.

The Supervisors however tabled approval of the regulations for “Radon Control Methods,” which were passed and adopted earlier this week by the Cass County Board of Health. The Supervisors wanted more time to review the regulations and are expected to act on approving them during their meeting on Feb. 6^th.

Supervisor Gaylord Schelling, who is the Board’s representative on the County Board of Health, said there really isn’t a radon problem in Cass County, but there is in other parts of the State. Testing for radon is required prior to the sale of homes. Supervisor Duane McFadden had the test done when he sold his home. He said it cost about $1,700-to $1,800, which was covered the installation of equipment and the test itself.

The equipment remains in the house, usually in the basement, and serves as a precautionary means to evacuate the colorless, odorless radioactive gas from the home through a ventilation system. It’s meant as a precaution even if no radon is detected. Supervisor Chuck Rieken said smaller test kits are also available at most hardware stores. After a few days of monitoring, the kit is sent to a company that evaluates the results.

Schelling said if the initial test show there is no problem with radon, installation of the more expensive equipment to remove it, is not necessary. Rieken said the need for radon testing arises because it is a carcinogen that can cause cancer.

The average national indoor radon level is 1.3 picocuries (peek-oh-cure’ees) per liter of air (pCi/L). Information from http://ia-radon.info/ lists the level of radon typically found for each county in Iowa. In Cass County, the average indoor radon levels as determined by radon test results from Air Chek, Inc, is 8.5 pCi/L.

Sixty-eight percent (68%) of the homes tested in Cass County showed levels above 4 pCi/l, 17-percent were between two and 3.9 pCi/L, while two-percent were under 2 pCi/L. The US EPA has set an action level of 4 pCi/L. At or above that level of radon, the EPA recommends you take corrective measures to reduce your exposure to radon gas.

The Atlantic Police Department reports the arrest Thursday night of 25-year-old Andrew Nickum, of Atlantic. Nickum was taken into custody on a Cass County Warrant for Serious Assault stemming from an altercation that occurred early Saturday morning at 305 East 6th Street. He was booked into the  Cass County Jail and held pending a court appearance.