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Accident blocks I-80 near the Shelby exit

News

January 13th, 2012 by Ric Hanson

A collision between a semi and a car has Interstate 80 eastbound and one lane of I-80 westbound blocked near the Shelby exit.  The interstate is closed from Exit 34 to 40.  Follow local detour or use alternate route if possible.  No other details are currently available.

CORY CUSTER, 21, of Harlan (1-16-12)

Obituaries

January 13th, 2012 by Ric Hanson

CORY CUSTER, 21, of Harlan died Tuesday, January 10th near Onawa, IA.  Funeral services for CORY CUSTER will be held on Monday, January 16th at 2:00 pm in the First United Methodist Church in Harlan.  Pauley-Jones Funeral Home in Harlan has the arrangements.

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Visitation will be held on Sunday from 12:00 pm to 9:00 pm at the funeral home.

Burial in the Harlan Cemetery.

CORY CUSTER is survived by:

Parents: Alice Custer & Cole (Michelle) Custer all of Harlan.

Brother: Wyatt Schaben of Harlan.

Step-Brothers: Jonathan Bolden of Omaha;  Elijah Bolden of Harlan

Step-Sisters: Whitney & Brianna Bolden of Harlan.

Grandparents: Rebecca Herning of Harlan; Bill (Ruby) Custer of Soldier, IA; Jolene Lytle of Harlan; and Vern Gross of CA.

Great-Grandparents: Marvin (Audrie) Will of AZ; and Pearl Custer of Woodbine.

FRIDAY, JANUARY 13th

Trading Post

January 13th, 2012 by Jim Field

FOR SALE: upright console tv with room to store dvd player and dvd’s underneath. Asking $50.00. Call or text 712-249-9283.

FOR SALE: Lighted, Danish modern china cabinet. Has 2 glass shelves, glass sliding doors, 2 side compartments, and 3 drawers. $200. Call (712)-243-7990.

WANTED:  Size 3X leather jacket.  243-3396.

Griswold’s Topham Named Gatorade Iowa XC Runner of the Year

Sports

January 13th, 2012 by Jim Field

The Gatorade Company, in collaboration with ESPN HS has announced that Rebekah Topham of Griswold High School has been named the 2011-12 Gatorade Iowa Girls Cross Country Runner of the Year.  Topham is the first from Griswold to win the honor.  The award recognizes not only outstanding athletic excellence, but also high academic achievement and character.  The 5-foot-7 freshman won the Class 1-A State Individual Championship last cross country season with a time of 13:59 on the four kilometer course, :32 faster than her nearest competitor.  It was the fastet time ever by a freshman at state.  Topham has never lost an in-state race and placed eighth at the 2011 Nike Cross Country Nationals Heartland Regional Championship with a time of 18:30.2.  Topham is home-schooled and carries a 3.26 grade point average and finds time to volunteer for a number of community services projects through her church youth group.  Topham is now a finalist for the Gatorade National Cross Country Runner of the Year award.

NTSB issues recommendations following freight train collisions

News

January 13th, 2012 by Ric Hanson

The National Transportation Safety Board, Thursday, issued two safety recommendations to the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) related to five rear-end collisions in which crewmembers failed to operate their trains at the required restricted speed. One of the crashes happened on April 17th, 2011, near Red Oak. The trains’ conductor Patricia “Trish” Hyatt and Engineer Tom Anderson, both of Creston, died in the crash. They were both 48 years old. A similar incident which occurred the following month in Mineral Springs, NC, also resulted in crewmember fatalities. Both are still under investigation by the NTSB.

All five of the NTSB’s recommendations focus on the need for railroads to  disseminate information related to these accidents to their employees, and to emphasize the need for crewmembers to operate trains in accordance with restricted speed operating rules. The other freight train accidents happened last year in Low Moor, Virginia, DeWitt, New York, and in DeKalb, Indiana. Four of the five accidents occurred on railroad lines over which Amtrak passenger trains operate. 

Because the accidents occurred on different railroads and under different circumstances, the NTSB said it was concerned that non-compliance with restricted speed requirements may be an issue affecting a broad segment of the U.S. railroad industry. Signal systems provide for the safe separation between trains. However, officials say there are times when trains are authorized to occupy the same sections of track. In these cases, safe train operations rely solely on crewmember compliance with the railroad’s restricted speed requirements. Typically, the requirements include “being prepared to stop within one-half the range of vision.” Complete understanding of and strict compliance with restricted speed requirements are absolutely mandatory to prevent catastrophic train collisions. 

(The safety recommendation letters may be found here: http://www.ntsb.gov/safety/safety_recs.html)

Brayton teen escapes injury during rollover accident

News

January 13th, 2012 by Ric Hanson

A Brayton teen escaped injury during a rollover accident that occurred Thursday night, about a mile south of Exira. The Audubon County Sheriff’s Office says 16-year old Cody Ray Juelsgaard was traveling south on Kingbird Avenue, at around 7:15-p.m., when he lost control of a 1998 Chevy pickup he was driving as he was negotiating a curve in the road. The vehicle began to drift to the right before it entered the west ditch and flipped onto its roof, causing about $3,000 damage.

(Update 11:45-a.m.) Homicide suspect on the run in Ringgold County

News

January 13th, 2012 by Ric Hanson

Robert Taylor's truck

Murder suspect Robert Taylor

Authorities in southern Iowa are on the lookout for a man suspected in a homicide case. Officials with the Iowa Department of Public Safety say the Ringgold County Communications Center in Mount Ayr received a 9-1-1 call just after 2-a.m. from 2339 – 280th Street in Mt. Ayr.  A juvenile inside the home called and reported a domestic altercation between 40-year old Robert Taylor,  and 45-year old Lori Yeager.  The responding deputies found Lori Yeager dead inside the home, the victim of an apparent homicide. Robert Taylor left the residence, and is actively being sought by authorities.

Officials say Taylor has an active arrest warrant on a charge of Murder in the First Degree.  He was last seen driving a copper (burnt orange) 2008 Ford F350 Super Duty truck with Iowa license 981 RZD.  Taylor is considered armed and dangerous.  Anyone with information concerning Taylor’s whereabouts is asked to call 911 immediately or the Ringgold County Sheriff’s Office at (641) 464-3921.

Minor injuries reported following accident in Atlantic

News

January 13th, 2012 by Ric Hanson

The Atlantic Police Department says one person suffered minor injuries during a collision Thursday evening at the intersection of 6th and Chestnut Streets. Officials say vehicles driven by Alisha Muzzy, of Elk Horn, and Christopher Crespo, of Atlantic, collided after Muzzy failed to stop for a red light at the intersection. The accident happened at around 6:40-p.m., Thursday. Muzzy was transported to the Cass County Memorial Hospital for treatment of her injuries. She was also cited for Failure to Obey a Traffic Signal. Damage from the crash amounted to $5,000.

Backyard and Beyond 01-13-2012

Backyard and Beyond, Podcasts

January 13th, 2012 by admin

Lavon Eblen speaks about Marilyn Monroe in light of  the recently released movie “My Week With Marilyn”.

Play

Latham says he’s the “clear choice” in the 3rd district race against Boswell

News

January 13th, 2012 by Ric Hanson

Republican Congressman Tom Latham says he’s the “Clear choice” to represent the 3rd District in southern and southwest Iowa this November, against incumbent Democrat Representative Leonard Boswell. Latham told KJAN News it’ll “probably the clearest choice anybody’s had in a Congressional race, because of Boswell’s vote to approve bills which influenced the country’s debt crisis. He says Boswell supported the Wall Street bailout, stimulus spending,  Cap and Trade, the Presidents health care bill (commonly referred to as “Obamacare,” and Dodd-Frank, which Latham says will have an impact on local, small banks in rural communities, in a very negative way. Latham says he opposed all of those bills.

Latham says the government needs to cut spending. The Obama administration’s stimulus bill, he says, cost the country $1-trillion, and failed to deliver on benefitting the economy as promised. Latham says Boswell has sided with Obama and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and continues “In lock-step” with the administration in making poor decisions on how to get the economy moving. Latham says he’s attended over 550 town hall meetings, listening to Iowans, and working on ways to prevent Washington “from dumping on us, here,” as far as coming up with regulations that hurt the local economy and impede business growth.

And, while advertising during the caucuses in Iowa were negative, and often featured personal attacks by the candidates, Latham says he won’t go down that path, unless he’s attacked. Latham says he has always “Run for an office, rather than against somebody.” He says he’s tried to tell Iowans why he wants to serve them and represent them in Washington, and talk about issues. He says during the last campaign, Boswell did not run one positive ad. Latham says “The idea of politics of personal destruction is ridiculous, because it doesn’t do anybody any good, and doesn’t let people know who you are, and what you stand for.” He says his ads will be issued-based, but he will reserve the option to respond appropriately, if he’s attacked on a personal level.