The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office responded to a report of a van in the ditch at about 4:53pm Thursday (9/26) on C Avenue about 2/10th of a mile north of 140th Street near Red Oak.

Upon arrival officers found a 1998 Chevy Astrovan driven by 52-year-old Rlena Dee Crouse of Red Oak had struck a power pole owned by MidAmerican Energy with the front drivers side of the vehicle.  After investigation it was determined that Crouse was traveling northbound on C Avenue, just north of the intersection with 140th Street, when a deer entered the roadway from the east.  Crouse swerved to miss the deer and crossed the roadway to the opposite shoulder and ditch.  The van then travelled about 1/10th of a mile before striking the power pole.  Crouse suffered no injuries as she was wearing a seat belt and the airbag deployed in the van.

The power pole snapped in half just above the ground, causing $2,500 damage.  The van was totaled in the crash at a value of $1,869.

No citations were issued following the investigation.  MidAmerican Energy and Red Oak Fire Department assisted Sheriff’s Officials at the scene.

The Iowa State Patrol reports a single vehicle accident resulted in a death on Wednesday (9/25) at 4:55pm on I-29 in Monona County.  The driver who died from his injuries has now been identified as 52-year-old Marc Sarchet of Cherokee.

Sarchet was driving a 1997 International Crane  northbound on 1-29 when it lost control, crossed the median, and eventually came to rest on it’s side.  The vehicle ended up blocking the southbound lanes of traffic two miles north of Sloan.  Sarchet was taken by Mercy Air Care to Creighton University Medical Center and was later pronounced dead.  The accident is still under investigation.

(Joel McCall-KNOD) The Harlan Community School District has been recognized as one of the top schools in the country by the United States Department of Education. The district, along with 285 others, has been named the 2013 cohort of National Blue Ribbon Schools in the United States. The United States Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan, announced the schools earlier this week in a press release. The award is based on the districts overall academic excellence or their progress in improving student academic achievement. The Harlan Community School District was one of 5 schools, and the only high school, from the state of Iowa named a Blue Ribbon School. Harlan Community Superintendent Justin Wagner told KNOD news the award is quite the honor,

Wagner1: “Exciting, great honor for the staff, you know those are the folks in the trenches making the difference. I am really happy for them. From my seat, it really reflects what I know what happens everyday so it is always good to see the honor that reflects the work being put in.”

He says the process for being a blue ribbon school is complicated,

Wagner2: “You have the Federal and State Government involved. Each state is allowed to nominate a certain amount of schools. They have a rigorous process that they have to go through; they call indicators of excellence in school districts before you get nominated.”

A lot of the process deals with your academic achievement in regards to the Iowa assessment scores,

Wagner3: “You have to be in the upper echelon. In Iowa, you have to be in the top 15 percent. We know Iowa is amongst the best states in test scores so we know we are in an elite group. And then there are other indicators that they talk about that make up the nomination.”

A few members of the staff will be going to the ceremony including a high school teacher, high school principal, a board member and the superintendent. Wagner said this is a proud moment for the district,

Wagner4: “It truly is an elite award. Again, we are just extremely excited and proud of the high school staff and principal. But I will tell you this is a reflection of kids and staff as a whole.”

All the National Blue Ribbon Schools will be honored at a recognition ceremony on November 18^th and 19^th in Washington D.C.