712 Digital Group - top

NW Iowa fish kill traced to Sioux Center pork processing plant

Ag/Outdoor, News

November 2nd, 2012 by Ric Hanson

Department of Natural Resources officials have found the likely source of a massive fish kill in northwest Iowa.

Floyd River fish kill Oct 2012

Ken Hessenius, with the DNR, says the discharge into the West Branch of the Floyd River south of Sioux Center was traced to a local business. “Sioux-Preme Packing Company is a hog kill packing plant and they have a wastewater system,” Hessenius said.

The reason for the discharge is still under review and it’s unclear if the company was aware it was happening. DNR staff were notified of the situation on Monday by a local resident who reported the stream looked “murky.” Elevated ammonia levels were discovered in the stream, along with dead fish. The fish kill is still being counted.

“The preliminary information is the kill will be in the thousands, not hundreds, as initially reported,” Hessenius said. The dead fish have been found at least nine miles downstream of the plant, according to the DNR. Hessenius said potential enforcement action and fines against Sioux-Preme Packing are under review.

(Radio Iowa)

Posted in Ag/Outdoor, News |

(Podcast) Skyscan Forecast – Fri., Nov. 2nd 2012

Podcasts, Weather

November 2nd, 2012 by Ric Hanson

The Freese-Notis (podcast) forecast for the KJAN listening area and weather data for Atlantic…

Play

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (1,007.4KB)

Subscribe: RSS

Posted in Podcasts, Weather |

SOPHIA SHERWIN, 102, of Atlantic (Svcs. 11-10-12)

Obituaries

November 2nd, 2012 by Ric Hanson

SOPHIA SHERWIN, 102, of Atlantic, died Fri., Nov. 2nd, at the Heritage House in Atlantic. Funeral services for SOPHIA SHERWIN will be held 1-p.m. Sat., Nov. 10th, at the 1st Lutheran Church in Wiota. Roland Funeral Home in Atlantic has the arrangements.

Visitation is open at the funeral home from 8am-to 5pm Wed., Thu., & Friday, with the family visitation taking place from 5-7pm Friday.

Burial will be in the 1st Lutheran Cemetery, south of Wiota.

SOPHIA SHERWIN is survived by:

3 grandchildren and 6 great-grandchildren.

Posted in Obituaries |

University coaches top Iowa’s state salary list

Sports

November 2nd, 2012 by Ric Hanson

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Coaches at the University of Iowa and Iowa State University are the state’s highest-paid employees. The Gazette in Cedar Rapids says the Iowa Department of Administrative Services released a state salary database for fiscal 2012 on Thursday. It includes employees in all branches of state government. Coaches and doctors are always the top earners, with many of the largest salaries being paid in part with private money.

Iowa football coach Kirk Ferentz tops the list at $3.7 million. Next is ISU football coach Paul Rhodes, who was paid $1.4 million. ISU men’s basketball coach Fred Hoiberg earned over $908,000, while Iowa men’s basketball coach Fran McCaffery was paid $872,000. Rounding out the top five is University of Iowa professor Mark Iannettoni, at $867,000.

Posted in Sports |

Iowa morning News Headlines – Fri.. Nov. 1st 2012

News

November 2nd, 2012 by Ric Hanson

SMITHLAND, Iowa (AP) — Investigators have ruled out an explosion as the cause of a fatal fire that destroyed an old gas station in Smithland in western Iowa. The owner, 76-year-old Robert Jones, was found dead outside the building on Wednesday. The results of an autopsy are pending. The state fire marshal’s office says officials are still investigating the fire, but they don’t believe it was caused by an explosion. John Ticer says explosions people heard were likely aerosol cans popping from the heat. Ticer says there are no signs of foul play. Smithland is about 40 miles southeast of Sioux City.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Fertilizer maker CF Industries Incorporated says it plans to invest $1.7 billion in Iowa to expand its facility on the south edge of Sioux City. Governor Terry Branstad says the project announced today will be the largest capital investment ever for the state of Iowa. The project will add new ammonia and granular urea production plants, creating 100 new jobs with an average wage of about $20 an hour.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Boss will help President Barack Obama make his closing case to voters in Iowa. First lady Michelle Obama will meet up with the president, Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Bruce Springsteen and rapper Jay-Z later Monday in Des Moines. It’s set to be Obama’s last scheduled event of the campaign. Obama plans to return home Monday night to Chicago, where he and the first lady will watch Election Day results.

FORT DODGE, IOWA (AP) — Vice President Joe Biden is making a pitch for bipartisanship, telling voters in Iowa that it’s reassuring to see Democrats and Republicans working together in the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy. Campaigning yesterday in Fort Dodge, Biden said Americans always work better when they work together.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — An ex-Des Moines police officer has been given three years of probation on a weapons charge in violation of his probation in a drug case. Brandon Singleton was fired after he was caught with drugs in his patrol car after he hit a parked car last April. He pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charges of drug possession and was given a deferred judgment and placed on probation for a year. Yesterday a Polk County judge sentenced Singleton to probation, at the request of both the prosecutor and defense attorney.

AMES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa State senior guard Chris Babb has been suspended for three games for violating team rules. Cyclones coach Fred Hoiberg says Babb won’t play in Sunday’s exhibition against Minnesota State or in regular season games against Southern and Alabama A&M. Hoiberg declined yesterday any further comment on why Babb is suspended.

Posted in News |

NWSForecast for the KJAN listening area: Friday, Nov. 2nd 2012

Weather

November 2nd, 2012 by Ric Hanson

TODAY…PARTLY SUNNY. HIGH IN THE LOWER 50S. EAST WIND 10 TO 15 MPH.

TONIGHT…MOSTLY CLOUDY UNTIL EARLY MORNING THEN CLEARING. LOW IN THE LOWER 30S. NORTHEAST WIND 5 TO 10 MPH.

SATURDAY…SUNNY. HIGH IN THE MID 50S. NORTHEAST WIND NEAR 5 MPH SHIFTING TO THE SOUTHWEST IN THE AFTERNOON.

SATURDAY NIGHT…PARTLY CLOUDY THROUGH MIDNIGHT…THEN MOSTLY CLOUDY WITH A 20 PERCENT CHANCE OF RAIN AFTER MIDNIGHT. LOW IN THE LOWER 30S. SOUTH WIND NEAR 10 MPH.

SUNDAY…MOSTLY CLOUDY. A 20 PERCENT CHANCE OF LIGHT RAIN IN THE MORNING. HIGH IN THE LOWER 50S. SOUTH WIND 5 TO 15 MPH.

SUNDAY NIGHT…CLOUDY WITH A 40 PERCENT CHANCE OF RAIN. LOW IN THE MID 30S.

MONDAY…MOSTLY CLOUDY WITH A 20 PERCENT CHANCE OF RAIN. HIGH AROUND 50.

Posted in Weather |

Cargill production facility in Panora to close early next year

News

November 2nd, 2012 by Ric Hanson

Officials with Cargill have announced the closing early next year, of the company’s shell egg production facility in Panora. The move means the elimination of some 55 jobs from the area. Two shift lines operate at the Panora plant, producing premium breakfast products for a variety of companies. One is expected to shut down in January, the other in March. A third shift is tasked with sanitizing the facility.

In a press release, Cargill says “After careful consideration, Cargill Kitchen Solutions has decided to close its hard-cooked egg facility in Panora and shift production to Big Lake, Minnesota. This was a hard decision to reach, especially due to the impact on our people. This decision allows Cargill Kitchen Solution to consolidate all products that require shell eggs as their raw material into one facility that can handle current and future demand. It also enables greater efficiency by focusing our production, supply chain, and quality assurance efforts in one location. We expect that we will shift production over the next six months and will add additional staff at the Big Lake location to accommodate the increased production there.”

The company says Cargill Kitchen Solutions’ business continues to perform well.

Posted in News |

High-scoring Creighton looks to improve on defense

Sports

November 2nd, 2012 by Ric Hanson

Missouri Valley Conference favorite Creighton expects to be one of the best offensive teams in the nation again this season. The Bluejays don’t expect to be one of the worst on defense again. Senior guard Grant Gibbs said the Bluejays were so good offensively last season that they simply believed they could outscore their opponents. He said Creighton was fortunate to win some of those games.

With first-team All-American Doug McDermott and nine of the top 10 players returning, Creighton is aiming to make a deep run in the NCAA tournament. The Bluejays know they probably can’t get away with allowing opponents to shoot 44.1 percent from the field, 36.1 percent on 3-pointers and average 69.7 points like they did last year.

Posted in Sports |

Norv’s Bolts beat staggering Chiefs 31-13

Sports

November 2nd, 2012 by Ric Hanson

SAN DIEGO (AP) — Antonio Gates caught a 14-yard scoring pass from Philip Rivers on the game’s opening drive to snap a streak of six straight quarters without a touchdown and the San Diego Chargers went on to a 31-13 victory over the staggering Kansas City Chiefs on Thursday night. The Chiefs, who lost their fifth straight, committed four more turnovers to run their NFL-high mark to a staggering 29, which have led to 104 points..

Snapping a three-game losing streak might take some heat off coach Norv Turner, who’s been heavily criticized by fans after the Chargers (4-4) blew double-digit, second-half leads in losses to New Orleans and Denver, and then lost 7-6 at Cleveland on Sunday.The heat will surely intensify on coach Romeo Crennel of the Chiefs (1-7).

Posted in Sports |

CASS COUNTY EXTENSION TO HOST IOWA FARM BUREAU TAX PLANNING WEBINAR NOV.9

Ag/Outdoor

November 1st, 2012 by Ric Hanson

Farmers can learn more about tax planning, farm tax changes, bonus depreciation and more during the Iowa Farm Bureau Federation’s (IFBF) 2012 Iowa Farm Income Tax webinar held Friday, Nov. 9th, from 1-3 p.m. The webinar is free to the public. The seminar features Roger McEowen, director of the Center for Agricultural Law and Taxation at Iowa State University (ISU), and Charles Brown, president of AgriFinancial Services, LLC.

During the webinar, participants will have the opportunity to ask questions. Farmers can access the webinar via their home/farm computers or at local host sites where people can gather to participate. In Cass county, a local site to participate in the webinar is the Cass County Extension Office, 805 West 10th Street, Atlantic. No pre-registration is needed for any of the sites. Other sites and more information on the webinar can be found at www.iowafarmbureau.com. If you have questions on the webinar, contact Ed Kordick at  515-225-5433.

The webinar will be recorded and available at the IFBF website, www.iowafarmbureau.com, for members only to view the information on their farm/home computer.

Posted in Ag/Outdoor |