Officials with The Iowa Department of Transportation (DOT) say the DOT has been awarded two regional America’s Transportation Awards at a ceremony held at the Mid America Association of State Highway Transportation Officials’ annual meeting in Lexington, Ky.

I680 reconstruction

First, the Iowa DOT was recognized in the “Ahead of Schedule” category for the Interstate 680 reconstruction project in Council Bluffs. The section of  highway was completely rebuilt in only 34 working days following the 2011 Missouri River flooding.

Second, the Iowa DOT received an award in the “Best Use of Innovation” category for the Keg Creek Bridge.

Keg Creek Bridge pre-fab (IA DOT image)

The bridge was completely prefabricated off-site and then assembled at the construction site using an accelerated bridge construction method. Utilizing this approach, the road was closed for only two weeks.

For more contest and project details, visit www.americastransportationaward.org/

The U-S Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa said Wednesday, that 48-year old Jaime Richard Schieffer, of Council Bluffs, was sentenced Tuesday in United States District Court in Council Bluffs, upon his conviction for possession of a sawed-off shotgun. United States Attorney Nicholas A. Klinefeldt said Judge John A. Jarvey sentenced Schieffer to twenty four
months imprisonment, plus twenty four months of supervised release following his imprisonment, and imposed a $100.00 special assessment for the Crime Victim Fund. The Judge also ordered forfeiture of the shotgun and accompanying ammunition.Schieffer remains in the custody of the United States Marshal pending designation of the Federal Bureau of Prison facility at which he will serve his sentence.

Klinefeldt said on November 29th, 2011, an indictment was returned by the Federal Grand Jury for the Southern District of Iowa, charging Jaime Richard Schieffer with possession of a sawed-off shotgun. Schieffer appeared in Federal Court in Council Bluffs on April 5th, 2012, and pled guilty to the firearms charge.

The case against him was the result of an encounter on August 31st, 2011, in Council Bluffs, between Jaime Schieffer and an Iowa Highway Patrolman. The encounter ultimately led to the Trooper finding a sawed-off shotgun and shells at Schieffer’s residence. Both the stock and the barrel of the shotgun had been shortened.

The case was investigated by the Iowa State Patrol and the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. It was prosecuted by the United States Attorneys Office for the Southern District of Iowa.

A Griswold man was sentenced on drug charges Wednesday.  47 year old Douglas Dean Bates was sentenced to 180 months imprisonment for Conspiring to Distribute Methamphetamine in and around Cass County.  District Judge John Jarvey also ordered Bates to serve a five year term of supervised release following incarceration. On February 21, 2012, Bates plead guilty to conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance – methamphetamine. The conviction was the result of a three year investigation into methamphetamine trafficking in and around Atlantic, Iowa. At the time of his guilty plea, Bates admitted that from July of 2009, until May of 2010, he agreed to distribute methamphetamine obtained from a South Omaha, Nebraska, source to customers in the Atlantic, Iowa, area.  The investigation was conducted by the Cass County, Iowa, Sheriff’s Office, Audubon County, Iowa, Sheriff’s Office, Cass County, Iowa, County Attorney’s Office and the Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement. This case was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa.

The Cass County Board of Supervisors had their regularly scheduled meeting this morning in Atlantic.

The supervisors head from Cass County Conservation Director Micah Lee.  In his quarterly report, Lee says the Iranistan shooting range near Lewis has now closed.

He says they had some concerns from people in the area that their property was being damaged from the shooting area.  So he says the board voted to close the area to shooting until they can figure out how to make the area safer.  Lee says the may consider a new place in the area to put the shooting range.

Towards the end of the meeting, the supervisors head from Cass County Emergency Management Coordinator Mike Kennon, who spoke about burn bans going into effect around the area and when or if Cass County might institute a burn ban.

He says its not as easy as just saying, “we want a burn ban” as there are other considerations.  He says primarily fire departments from the southern portions of Cass County are concerned about the fire risk.  There will be a fire association meeting being held tomorrow night where Kennon says a possible burn ban will likely be discussed.

Burn bans are already in effect in Montgomery, Mills, Audubon, Pottawattamie, and Page Counties.

(Updated to add Pottawattamie County)

Burn bans will be issued for four southwest Iowa counties.  Officials in Audubon, Mills, Page and Pottawattamie Cunties will have burn bans go into effect.

In Audubon County, the burn ban will go into effect on Thursday at noon.  In Mills and Pott Counties, the burn ban goes into effect today at noon.  In Page County, the burn ban goes into effect Thursday at 8 AM.

A burn ban already went effect this morning at 8:00 in Montgomery County.  Altogether, 37 counties in Iowa have announced burn bans.

A burn ban means no open burning will be allowed. Permits for burning may be requested from area fire departments, but approval is up to the local fire chief.  Recent hot and dry weather has made conditions favorable for wildfires that can cause heavy damage.