OMAHA, Neb. (AP) – A big jump in a monthly survey index suggests more economic growth is ahead for nine Midwest and Plains states.  The Business Conditions Index rose to 55.9 in January, compared with 50.0 in December. Creighton University economist Ernie Goss says the December report suggested the region’s economy was slowing down because of debt concerns in Europe and the lukewarm U.S. economy. But he says it appears now that December’s “tepid reading was due to seasonal or nonrecurring factors.”

The survey uses a collection of indexes ranging from zero to 100. Goss says that any score above 50 suggests growth while a score below 50 suggests decline for that factor.  The survey of supply managers covers Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma and South Dakota.

A Red Oak man was taken into custody early this (Wednesday) morning, on a warrant out of Montgomery County, for Contempt of Court/Illegal Resistance. Red Oak Police say 20-year old James LeRoy Christensen, Jr., of Red Oak, was arrested just after 3-a.m.  Christensen was being held in the Montgomery County Jail, on $13,000 bond.

Sheriff’s officials in Fremont County said Tuesday, a 74-year old man suffered non-life threatening injuries from a self-inlficted gunshot wound, last Friday morning. Sheriff’s deputies and officers with the Tabor Police Department responded to the scene of a reported shooting incident at around 10:40-a.m., Friday, at a residence on Green Hollow Road.

When authorities arrived, they found Donald D. Study suffering from a gunshot wound to the chest. The man was transported to Mercy Hospital in Council Bluffs, by Tabor Rescue. Officials say Thurman Rescue crews also responded to the call, and assisted Tabor Rescue.