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Lotto America jackpot winning ticket sold in Dubuque

News

April 3rd, 2023 by Ric Hanson

Des Moines, Iowa  – Someone in Dubuque took home a ticket that won the Lotto America record-setting jackpot. According to a release from the Iowa Lottery, the ticket was purchased at Eichmans, a family-owned restaurant and convenience store on U.S. Highway 52.

The winner will have the option to choose between a $40.3 million annuity or $21.28 million cash option. The game’s previous record was set with a $22.82 million prize that was won by a Minnesota family in March 2018.

The winning numbers from Saturday’s drawing were as follows: 2, 38, 43, 46, 51 and Star Ball 7. The winning ticket would have matched all numbers, including the Star Ball. Eichman’s will receive a $5,000 bonus for selling the winning ticket.

Jackpot prizes must be claimed at the Iowa Lottery headquarters in Clive

Posted in News |

Fatality crash involving a pickup & a tractor in northwest Iowa Sunday evening

News

April 3rd, 2023 by Ric Hanson

(Clay County, Iowa) – A collision Sunday evening between a pickup truck and a tractor, resulted in the death of the tractor operator. The accident happened north of Spencer on U-S Highway 71 northbound, just north of 300th Street, a little before 6-p.m.

According to the Iowa State Patrol, a 2022 Chevy pickup driven by 68-year-old Jon Maurice Hjelm, of Spencer, and a 1955 International 300 tractor driven by 77-year-old Roland Dean Taylor, of Terril, were both northbound on Highway 71, when the pickup struck the tractor from behind in the right lane.

Taylor was thrown from the tractor, which came to rest in the median.

Posted in News |

Skyscan Forecast for Atlantic & the Nishna Valley: Monday, April 3, 2023

Weather

April 3rd, 2023 by Ric Hanson

Today: A 20 percent chance of showers between 1pm and 2pm. Increasing clouds, with a high near 57. East northeast wind 7 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 23 mph.
Tonight: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 43. Windy, with an east northeast wind 15 to 22 mph, with gusts as high as 44 mph.
Tomorrow: A slight chance of showers, with thunderstorms also possible after 4pm. Mostly cloudy, then gradually becoming sunny, with a high near 77. Windy, with an east wind 14 to 21 mph becoming south in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 31 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%.
Wednesday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 44. Windy.
Thursday: Sunny, with a high near 53.

Sunday’s High in Atlantic was 73. The Low was 34. Last year on this date the High in Atlantic was 52 and the Low was 28. The Record High on this date was 85 in 1981. The Record Low was 4 in 1975.

Posted in Weather |

Several education-related measures combined into one omnibus package

News

April 3rd, 2023 by Ric Hanson

(Radio Iowa) – A House committee has combined several education-related measures into one 38-page bill and it includes some of Governor Kim Reynolds’ proposals. The bill would prohibit instruction about sexual orientation and gender identity in kindergarten through sixth grade classrooms. It says books with graphic descriptions of sex acts must be removed from public school libraries.

It also specifies that a school administrator would have to notify a parent if a student asks to be known by a different name or pronoun at school. New, quicker routes for getting a teaching license are included and the Iowa Board of Educational Examiners would be changed if the bill becomes law, so parents make up half of the board’s members.

Some of these proposals were separate bills already cleared the House. They are now added onto a Senate-passed bill and the package is eligible for debate in the full House this week.

Posted in News |

Iowa women fall to LSU in NCAA Championship

Sports

April 2nd, 2023 by Ric Hanson

Foul trouble and hot shooting LSU doomed the Iowa Hawkeye women in the NCAA Championship game, Sunday afternoon. The Tiger’s made 11 of 17 from three point range, including nine of 12 in the decisive opening half in a 102-85 win in Dallas. It spoiled the Hawkeyes’ bid for a first national title. Iowa coach Lisa Bluder.

Iowa sliced a 21-point LSU advantage to seven in the third quarter before a key moment when senior center Monika Czinano was whistled for her fourth foul and junior guard Caitlin Clark was given a technical foul.

Czinano and fellow senior McKenna Warnock both fouled out and the Hawkeyes closed their first title game appearance with a record of 31-7.

It capped an NCAA Tournament that featured record attendance and surging television ratings.

Iowa junior Caitlin Clark finished with 30 points and eight assists but was on the bench in the second quarter with three fouls when LSU raced out to a 59-42 lead at halftime.

It caps a season that saw Clark named the nation’s top player and set a new scoring record for the NCAA Tournament.

With six of the top eight players returning expectations will be high for next season.

Czinano says getting to the championship game was a thrilling way to close her career. She finished with 13 points and six rebounds before fouling out in the fourth quarter.

Posted in Sports |

Spring Celebration Market Releases Vendor List and Preorder Update

Ag/Outdoor, News

April 2nd, 2023 by Ric Hanson

ATLANTIC, IA (April 2, 2023) – Produce in the Park’s Spring Celebration Market is this Thursday, April 6 from 4:00 to 7:00 PM at the Cass County Community Center (805 W. 10th St. Atlantic, IA 50022). 12 of the 26 vendors participating in the pre-Easter farmers market are accepting preorders through 11:55 PM on Tuesday, April 4. For additional information on preordering, and to preorder online, visit www.ProduceInTheParkAtlanticIowa.com.

Miss NiNi’s Fine Desserts will offer a limited selection of products for purchase on-site at Spring Celebration Market. However, Miss NiNi cautions that only limited flavors and desserts will be available for in-person shoppers, and pies will only be available by preorder. Shoppers looking to enjoy one of Miss NiNi’s gourmet desserts on Easter weekend are encouraged to preorder must-have items, such as a particular cheesecake or pie. Miss NiNi’s desserts can be preordered at www.ProduceInTheParkAtlanticIowa.com. Customers with questions about Miss NiNi’s products should call Janine at 712-249-0145.

Miss NiNi smiles with her pies.

Spring Celebration Market vendors confirmed as of April 2 include: Johnna Joy Designs, Sweet Sisters Vegan, Brun Ko Farm, Holaday Baking, Sue’s Country Garden, Ter-Bear Honey, Noble Provisions, Smudge, Kringleman Pastries, Spirits of the Faire, Miss NiNi’s Fine Desserts, Donna’s Jewelry, Studio Samantha, Bridgewater Farm, Midwest Candles by Brit, Frosting, Inc., Creekside Crystals and Crafts, Blessings Bakery and Gifts, Knuckle Down Crochet, Crafts, and Pet Treats, Silver Valley Craft Corner, Unicorn Clouds, Imagine Garden Gift Store, Sugar Mama Cookie Co., Precursor Printing, and The Rocking Horse.

Pim’s Thai Food Truck will be in the parking lot of the Cass County Community Center selling their popular Thai food throughout the duration of the Thursday farmers market (4:00-7:00 PM).

Spring Celebration Market is sponsored by the Atlantic Community Promotion Commission, Cass County Tourism, First Whitney Bank and Trust, Cass Health, Gregg Young Automotive of Atlantic, and the Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce. For the latest information, follow Produce in the Park on Facebook (www.facebook.com/ProduceInThePark) or Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/produceintheparkatlanticia/) or sign up for the Produce in the Park newsletter at
www.produceintheparkatlanticiowa.com.

Posted in Ag/Outdoor, News |

Barn fire south/southwest of Cumberland

News

April 2nd, 2023 by Ric Hanson

(Cumberland, Iowa) – Firefighters from Cumberland were paged-out to a fully engulfed barn fire at around 3:32=p.m., at 72686 700th Street. Massena fire was requested to assist. The structure was said to be near a propane tank, and close to a residence. Griswold Fire was requested a little after 4-p.m., to send their grass trucks to the scene, because the fire from the barn spread to a nearby field.

Additional information is currently not available.

Posted in News |

NWS overview of Friday’s storms across Iowa (Updated)

News, Weather

April 2nd, 2023 by Ric Hanson

(Des Moines, Iowa) – The National Weather Service in Des Moines, in it’s latest report on an intense storm system that tracked across the state of Iowa on Friday, March 31st, says the system pulled unseasonably warm and moist conditions into the Midwest, which coupled with a very favorable wind profile, and created quite the volatile environment for severe thunderstorms. This produced several long lived supercells which developed across central Iowa during the afternoon. The storms were prolific hail producers along with a few reports of wind damage as they moved rapidly northeast. Eventually, the storms produced a few tornadoes before exiting into eastern Iowa.

One of the documented tornadoes began in Wapello County northeast  of Ottumwa then tracked northeast into Keokuk County.  The primary damage in Wapello County consisted of three  homes and one hog confinement facility. The first home lost the entire roof and one external wall. The first failure  point was likely the wind entering and lifting the garage which then led to failure of the roof. The home only had  straight nailed connections to the external walls spaced
every 18 inches and less to the roof.

Tornado in northeast Wapello County.
Photo credit: Wapello Sheriff / EM

An unoccupied mobile home on the property was not well anchored and rolled to total destruction. This location was rated 110 mph and EF-1. Two well anchored hog confinement buildings  were totally destroyed and were rated EF-2. The tornado then impacted a location with a well built 2 story brick house. The house suffered some roof and window damage
and a loss of a garage door but sustained little other damage. Other damage indicators at the site suggested
EF-1 winds.

Total destruction of a house occurred just prior to the tornado exiting the county. This older house sat unanchored to the concrete block basement. The house was pushed off the foundation and crumbled. Some trees near the house and a propane tank were mostly left with little damage. A larger tree directly next to the house on the wind side had several large limbs removed. Due to all of these reasons, the wind at this location has been  rated at 135 mph, or high end EF-2.

The Tornado Path extends into Keokuk County. The National Weather Service in the Quad Cities reports “After collaboration with a team of survey experts, we have determined a prelim. rating of low end EF4 for the tornado that tracked from Wapello into Johnson County IA. Max estimated winds around 170 mph. Max width around 600 yards. There were at least three tornadoes reported by the QC NWS office.

Posted in News, Weather |

Skyscan Forecast for Atlantic & the Nishna Valley: Sunday, April 2nd, 2023

Weather

April 2nd, 2023 by Ric Hanson

Today: Mostly cloudy, then gradually becoming sunny, with a high near 69. Windy, with a south wind 11 to 21 mph becoming west in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 30 mph.
Tonight: Partly cloudy, with a low around 38. North northwest wind 8 to 10 mph becoming east northeast after midnight.
Monday: A 30 percent chance of rain, mainly before 1pm. Partly sunny, with a high near 56. Breezy, with an east northeast wind 10 to 16 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph.
Monday Night: A 20 percent chance of rain after 1am. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 42. Windy, with an east northeast wind 16 to 24 mph, with gusts as high as 37 mph.
Tuesday: A chance of rain, with thunderstorms also possible after 10am. Partly sunny, with a high near 76. Windy, with an east wind 15 to 21 mph becoming south in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 31 mph. Chance of precipitation is 40%. New rainfall amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.
Tuesday Night: A chance of rain and thunderstorms. Partly cloudy, with a low around 29. Windy. Chance of precipitation is 30%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.
Wednesday: Partly sunny, with a high near 42. Windy.

Saturday’s High in Atlantic was 54. The Low was 29. Last year on this date the High in Atlantic was 60 and the Low was 26. The Record High on this date was 88 in 2012. The Record Low was 13 in 1970.

Posted in Weather |

Joens 3-peats as Cheryl Miller Award winner

Sports

April 1st, 2023 by admin

AMES, Iowa – 3-peat. Ashley Joens did it again, as Iowa State’s women’s basketball star took home the Cheryl Miller Award, presented to women’s college basketball’s top small forward on Saturday. Joens is now owner of half the Miller Award’s in the six-year history of the trophy.

In addition, Iowa State is the home to four-of-six, with Bridget Carleton being the recipient in 2018-19.

Joens finished her Iowa State career with a huge collection of postseason honors. In addition to the Cheryl Miller Award, Joens was named to the WBCA All-America Team, a second Team All-American by the USBWA, a Third Team All-American by the Associated Press, the Big 12 Player of the Year and a unanimous selection to the All-Big 12 First Team (her fourth-straight season as a unanimous choice).

The Iowa State record books were rewritten by Joens, who will leave ISU as the career record holder for points (3,060), rebounds (1,391), games played and started (158), field goals (988), 3-pointers (344), free throws (740), double-doubles (65) and points per game (19.4). Her career points total ranks ninth in NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball history, while games played and started are both Big 12 records.

Her final season in Ames saw Joens lead the Big 12 and rank ninth nationally averaging 21.6 points per game. She scored in double figures in 31 of 32 games for the Cyclones this season, going over 20 on 20 occasions, including each of Iowa State’s final 10 games. She also had 16 double-doubles on the season.

Joens helped lead the Cyclones to the Phillips 66 Big 12 Women’s Basketball Championship title two weeks ago with an all-time legendary weekend, being the unanimous selection as Tournament Most Outstanding Player after averaging 26.7 points and 11.0 rebounds per contest, helping the Cyclones claim a first Big 12 trophy in 22 years.

Posted in Sports |