Officials with the Iowa Department of Transportation said today (Wednesday), that with the recent reopening of Interstate 29 in Fremont and Mills counties, it’s time to remove the temporary traffic control devices put in place on the state highways in western Iowa during the Missouri River flooding.  The DOT says the stop conditions at the New Street and Orange Street intersections with U.S. 275 in Tabor, will be removed and traffic will resume its previous operation, on Nov. 7th.  

And, the stop signs on U.S. 59 at the U.S. 59/Iowa 2 intersection near Shenandoah will be removed Nov. 7th. Normal traffic operations will resume at that time. The stop signs on Iowa 2 at this intersection will remain in place as they existed prior to the flooding. 

Motorists are encouraged to exercise additional caution at these locations as traffic adjusts to the changes.

It appears a malfunctioning hose on an acetylene (cutting) torch is to blame for a fire Tuesday afternoon, at an automobile repair shop, in Corning. According to Corning Fire Chief Donnie Willet, the blaze broke out at R-and-S Auto on Davis Street. The fire occurred as a torch was being used under a vehicle which was on a hoist.

A mechanic reportedly told Willet that acetylene started burning. The Fire Chief said it appears a hose malfunctioned, causing the fire, which caused some structural and smoke damage to the building. No injuries were reported. Firefighters from Corning, Lenox and Prescott were on the scene, for about 3-hours.

Willet estimated it would be several days before employees will be able to go back to work at the shop.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) – Officials say the skeletal remains of a 7-year-old Brazilian boy missing for nearly two years and believed to have been killed with his parents in Nebraska has been pulled from the Iowa side of the Missouri River, just south of Council Bluffs. Omaha Police Chief Alex Hayes and Douglas County Attorney Don Kleine announced the discovery Tuesday. A dive team pulled Christopher Szczepanik’s remains from the river last Thursday, but it wasn’t until Monday DNA tests confirmed the boys’ identity.

Three men were charged with murder in the family’s deaths, although the bodies hadn’t been found. The parents’ bodies still haven’t been recovered. Investigators say the men worked for the Szczepaniks. The family was living in Omaha while the father worked renovating a former school. They were last heard from in December 2009.

Due to problems with the water supply/flow, there will be no Atlantic Headstart classes or programs today (Wednesday, Oct. 19th),

Only minor injuries were reported following a single vehicle, rollover accident Tuesday night, in Cass County. According to dispatch reports, an SUV with a single male occupant rolled into the south ditch off of Interstate 80 eastbound, about two-miles east of the exit to Highway 71, or the 62-mile marker. The accident happened at around 9:45-p.m.

Early reports from the scene indicated the driver was trapped in the vehicle for a time, but was able to become freed before extrication was performed by emergency personnel. No other details are currently available. The accident was under investigation by the Iowa State Patrol.