CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa – Sept 1, 2011 – Interstate Power and Light Co. (IPL), an Alliant Energy company announced today that it will cycle air conditioners for all participating Iowa customers. Weather conditions are such that from 1-7 p.m. today customers enrolled in the Appliance Cycling Program will have their air conditioner cycled in 15 minute intervals to reduce overall energy usage. Today, Alliant Energy will be sending a signal to the switch for the 48,000 participating customers throughout the state. This cycling event is expected to reduce overall electricity demand by 33 megawatts. 

Participating customers have a small control switch placed on or near their central air conditioner. The control switch will cycle the outdoor cooling unit off and on every 15 minutes. The furnace fan will continue to circulate the cooler, drier air already in the home. Alliant Energy pays each participating customer $8 per month from June through September – whether the air conditioner is cycled or not. A similar program for electric water heaters is also included in today’s event.  Customers enrolled in that program receive a $2 per month discount during the same June through September time period. Appliance Cycling events typically occur between May 15 and September 15 on weekdays from 1-7 p.m. They are not initiated on weekends or holidays. Participation in the program is limited.

This marks a record tenth time Alliant Energy has cycled residential customers this year.

(Press Release)

The Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH) urges Iowa women to educate and empower themselves and their families about the seven symptoms of a heart attack most commonly seen in women. According to the American Heart Association, only half of U.S. women recognize chest pain and pain in the arm, neck and shoulders as the typical symptoms of a heart attack. The “Make the Call. Don’t Miss a Beat” campaign, led by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office on Women’s Health, seeks to increase women’s knowledge of the symptoms of a heart attack. 

“A woman suffers a heart attack every 90 seconds in the United States,” said Terry Meek, IDPH Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention Program project coordinator. “Yet according to a 2009 American Heart Association survey, only half of women indicated they would call 9-1-1 if they thought they were having a heart attack and few were aware of the most common heart attack symptoms.” 

IDPH urges women to make the call to 9-1-1 immediately if they experience any one or more of the following symptoms:

• Chest pain, discomfort, pressure or squeezing
• Shortness of breath
• Nausea
• Light-headedness or sudden dizziness
• Unusual upper body pain, or discomfort in one or both arms, back, shoulder, neck, jaw, or upper part of the stomach
• Unusual fatigue
• Breaking out in a cold sweat 

For more information about the “Make the Call. Don’t Miss a Beat” campaign, visit www.womenshealth.gov/heartattack. For information on the IDPH Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention program, visit www.idph.state.ia.us/hpcdp/hdsp_home.asp.

A traffic stop on Interstate 80 northeast of Council Bluffs Wednesday evening resulted in the arrest of two New Jersey women on drug charges. Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Department Investigator, Sgt. Dwayne Riche told KJAN News Deputy Brian Miller pulled a 2005 BMW X-3 over for speeding, on eastbound I-80 near the nine mile-marker, just after 5-p.m.

The deputy requested permission to search the vehicle, but was denied. Riche says Miller deployed his K-9 partner “Francisco,” who alerted to the presence of drugs in a rooftop car carrier on the vehicle. A search of the carrier resulted in the recovery of approximately 21-pounds of hydroponically grown marijuana, 2.2-pounds of cocaine and 28-grams of hallucinogenic mushrooms.

The driver of the vehicle, 27-year old Justine Magno, and her passenger, 26-year old Allison Wolfe, both of Teaneck, New Jersey, were arrested on charges of Possession of Drugs with the Intent to Deliver, Possession of Controlled Substances, and other, drug-related charges.

The women were being held in the Pott County Jail on $100,000 bond, each.

Nine of out every 10 car seats in Iowa are used incorrectly. Could yours be one of them? Find out, at a free car seat check-up being offered Thursday, Sept. 22nd, at Cass County Home Care, in Atlantic. The event, which takes place from 5-7pm at 1500 East 10th Street, offers car seat inspections and free information on traveling safely. For more information, call 712-243-8006.