With the increasing demands on our personal and professional time in today’s busy society, learning to juggle multiple tasks at once is something we all face daily.  As a result, a new traffic safety epidemic has emerged on America’s roadways that demands immediate attention:  distracted driving.  The National Highway Traffic Safety Association has designated April as “National Distracted Driving Awareness Month”.

Nationwide nearly 6,000 people are killed every year and a half million more are injured in distracted driving traffic crashes.  Each year in Iowa, an average of 10 lives are lost and nearly 1,000 people are injured in some 1,800 distracted driving crashes.  One of the most alarming and widespread forms of distracted driving is cell phone usage.  According to a Carnegie Mellon study, driving while using a cell phone reduces the amount of brain activity associated with driving by 37 percent.  A report from the National Safety Council found that more than one out of every four traffic crashes is caused by people talking on cell phones or sending text messages.

Iowa law states that no person shall use a handheld electronic communication device to write, send or read a text message, instant message or electronic mail while driving a motor vehicle, unless the motor vehicle is at a complete stop off the traveled portion of the roadway.  This does not prohibit use of a global positioning or navigation system.

No teen driver holding a restricted driver’s license shall use any electronic communication device or electronic entertainment device while driving a motor vehicle, unless the motor vehicle is at a complete stop off the traveled portion of the roadway.  This does not apply to the use of electronic equipment permanently installed in the motor vehicle or a portable device operated through permanently installed equipment, such as OnStar.

No one is immune from the dangers of distracted driving.  Every life is precious so, please remember:  One text or call could wreck it all.

(Iowa Dept. of Public Safety Press Release)

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) – The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers says this spring’s drier than normal weather has helped keep space free for floodwaters in the reservoirs along the Missouri River.   The corps said Friday nearly all of the 16.3 million acre-feet of the planned storage space for floodwater remains free because March was so dry. The corps now says runoff into the Missouri River should be about 94 percent of normal this year, but that could change because it is still early. Last year, late spring rains combined with heavy snowpack to force the release of massive amounts of water from the dams and record flooding along the 2,300-mile-long river.
Corps officials say there appears to be enough water this year to provide for full navigation from Sioux City, Iowa, to St. Louis.

Officials with the Iowa National Guard have confirmed today (Friday) 49-year old Staff Sgt. Cory A. Mildenstein of Sioux City, died after drowning in the Atlantic Ocean while swimming near Aquadilla, Puerto Rico on Wednesday, April 4^th.

Staff Sgt. Cory A. Mildenstein

Mildenstein, a member of the Civil Engineering Squadron, 185th Air Refueling Wing, Iowa Air National Guard based in Sioux City, was conducting construction projects upgrading military facilities in Puerto Rico at the time of the accident. 

Mildenstein was born in Cherokee, and graduated from Sioux City East High School in 1981. He enlisted in the U.S. Air Force in October 1985. Following graduation from Basic Training, he attended the Electronic Warfare Systems Specialist Course and was then assigned to George Air Force Base, CA. He joined the Iowa Air National Guard in October 2005 and was named honor graduate of his Structural Maintenance course. Mildenstein previously deployed to Bagram, Afghanistan as part of the Iowa Air National Guard Civil Engineering team in 2011. 

The family of Staff Sgt. Cory A. Mildenstein issued the following statement: “Cory always had a smile on his face and space in his heart for everyone. He was very proud of his children Amber, April and Zac. He loved spending time with family and friends and he was always willing to help with a home repair, or car project.” 

Funeral arrangements are pending.