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Keep up-to-date with Fox News Radio, Radio Iowa, Brownfield & the Iowa Agribusiness Networks!
(Radio Iowa) – Some rural E-M-S directors are looking toward a new state law to help train more volunteer medical responders and keep them on the job. The law allows counties to declare E-M-S an essential service like police or fire and collect taxes to pay for it. Julie Scadden is the ambulance service director for Dysart in east-central Iowa. Scadden says her department is depending on fundraisers and Medicare fees from transporting patients.
“We can’t rely on it from year to year because you just don’t know,” Scadden says. “With COVID, Dysart as an example, we dropped 46-percent of our transport during 2020 and so our revenue dropped 46-percent.” About 80-percent of the medical responders in Dysart are volunteers. Scadden says the program was already shorthanded before seven people stopped volunteering last year over concerns they could be exposed to the coronavirus.
“That, I think, is one of our biggest struggles, trying to get the volunteers to come back,” she says, “and because workforce issues for all jobs, regardless of whether it’s EMS or not, are just really tough for everybody right now.” Scadden says local taxes could help rural programs cover the cost of training and equipment. She says Dysart is in the early stages of organizing an emergency E-M-S resolution. The law requires approval from county supervisors and at least 60-percent of voters. Scadden made her comments on the Iowa Public Radio program, “River to River.”
(reporting by Grant Gerlock, Iowa Public Radio)
(Radio Iowa) – Des Moines police now say the shooting that left a 15-year-old dead was part of an attempted robbery. Police say their investigation has determined the teen who was shot Sunday had a gun and another 15-year-old with a knife was helping him try to rob a 21-year-old man. The man had a gun and shot the teen and he later died. The other 15-year-old is charged with first-degree robbery. Police say they have recovered a gun and are still trying to determine how the three people who have not yet been identified got together.
(Radio Iowa) – An outdoor Veterans Day service was held early this (Thursday) morning at the Iowa Veterans Cemetery where more than six-thousand Iowa veterans are buried.
Iowa National Guard chaplain Lucas Murphy delivered an opening prayer.
As flags flapped in the brisk wind, taps was played to conclude the service.
More than 700 veterans were buried at the cemetery in 2020.
(Radio Iowa) – We still have six more weeks of fall but Ole’ Man Winter is giving us a preview of what’s to come. A Winter Weather Advisory is posted for 15 counties across northwest and north-central Iowa late tonight (Thursday) through Friday afternoon. National Weather Service meteorologist Roger Vachalek says driving could soon become more of a challenge. “We’re going to be looking at stronger winds and also some snow falling over northern Iowa,” Vachalek says. “The combination of those two things will cause some poor travel conditions, especially late tonight, overnight, through tomorrow morning and the commute.”
It’s been a while since most of us have gotten behind the wheel in these conditions, so Vachalek reminds motorists to take it slow and leave for destinations early. “Although we’re not expecting a lot of snow, maybe one to two inches closer to the Iowa-Minnesota border, there will be the possibility of some slick or icy roads and strong winds gusting to 30 or 40 miles per hour,” Vachalek says, “as well as during the rest of the day, we may have snow showers which reduce visibility from time to time.” Most of Iowa is expecting at least a dusting of snow and there’s a chance for -more- snow late this weekend.
“We have another system coming in on Sunday which will probably bring some snow to far northeastern Iowa. We’re keeping an eye on that one,” Vachalek says. “Thankfully though, by next week, Tuesday, we may actually be back in the lower 60s. There’s going to be a sharp turnaround back to warmer weather, at least for a day next week, before we start to cool down again.” How does he describe the upcoming weather pattern? In a word, “wild.”
RED OAK, Iowa—On Veterans Day, Thursday, U.S. Senator Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), and a combat veteran who served in the armed forces for over 23 years, recognized the selfless sacrifice of the Iowans and Americans who have fought for the United States in uniform. In a video dedicated to veterans, Ernst underscored her pledge to never forget the service members who fought in Afghanistan for the last 20 years, highlighting her bipartisan effort to create a Global War on Terrorism Memorial on the National Mall in honor of all those who served in America’s longest war.
Still frame image of Ernst’s Veteran’s Day video message.
Senator Ernst’s full remarks are below:
“For generations, the fabric of America and the freedoms we cherish in this great country have been protected valiantly by selfless heroes who’ve fought for our nation in uniform. “Veterans Day is just one of 365 opportunities we have every year to wake up and honor those who’ve answered the call to serve this nation.
“It’s also a chance for us to say thank you to the families and loved ones of the men and women who’ve sacrificed life and limb in the name of their country. They too are our nation’s heroes. “This year, Veterans Day takes on a new meaning following the end of the U.S. mission in Afghanistan.
“We must never turn the page on the valiant Americans who’ve served our nation in Afghanistan during the Global War on Terrorism. “For 20 years, these servicemembers sacrificed the comfort of civilian life to protect our homeland and safeguard the freedoms and liberties we continue to enjoy today. These brave men and women are heroes—every single one of them.
“That’s why I’m leading a bipartisan effort to build a memorial on our National Mall in honor of all those who fought and died in the Global War on Terrorism—our nation’s longest war. “As a combat veteran who served over 23 years in our nation’s uniform, I am forever grateful for all those who’ve fought to keep America the greatest country on the face of the planet.
“Today and every day, let’s continue to honor our troops for all they’ve given to this country. The selfless sacrifice of so many Americans, and their families, have kept us safe and made us better. “May God bless the men and women who served—and continue to serve—the United States of America.”
(Radio Iowa) – It’s long been said you should never discuss religion or politics in polite company, but a third topic is being added to the list this holiday season: vaccinations. Many Iowans are planning their first big family meals in a few years, and University of Iowa professor and psychologist Michele Williams says if you’re concerned some family members may endanger others, you’ll need to speak up. “That dividing line that happens a lot in families is usually resolved by deciding we’re only going to talk about football or the kids or other things that we have in common and we’re not going to talk about politics,” Williams says, “but with the issue of vaccinations, health becomes involved and people have very strong opinions.”
While some family members may want to be cautious for children or the elderly at Thanksgiving, for others, not getting vaccinated is part of their identity and it’s an expression of personal freedom. “Most of us approach conversations like this as a debate. We want to win the conversation. We want to win over the other side to our point of view and we want to point out the flaws in the other side’s logic,” Williams says. “That’s often not the way to come to a win-win situation.”
Williams says the routine phone call to a cousin or nephew may get uncomfortable, quickly, if you go about it the wrong way. Then again, in some families, there may not be a “right” way. Still, if you’re hosting an event and want to ensure everyone who attends is vaccinated, try to make it a dialogue and not a debate. “I think it’s starting off with those ‘I’ statements,” Williams says. “‘I’m really concerned about Aunt Betty, or Mom or Grandma. I don’t want us to have a family gathering that results in them getting sick, getting hospitalized. Let’s talk about what we can do,’ and get the other person’s perspective.”
Some Iowans have quit their jobs to avoid mandatory vaccinations at their employer, she says, so it’s clearly an issue about which they feel strongly. If someone is not welcome at the table due to their vaccination status, perhaps they’d still be able to enjoy everyone’s company with a compromise: “Why don’t we have dessert outside where everyone will be safe and we’ll have hot cocoa and cider and pie in the backyard by the fire pit,” Williams says. “Everyone will have that time together but we won’t be inside in an enclosed area for long periods of time.”
Williams is a U-I professor of management & entrepreneurship in the Tippie College and she’s a psychologist who specializes in management communications and relationships.
Local news from KJAN News Director Ric Hanson.
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(Atlantic, Iowa) – During a regular meeting Wednesday evening of the Atlantic School Board, Superintendent Steve Barber addressed a number of matters. The first pertained to the status of repairs underway at the Middle School. The facility was damaged by a fire that began while crews were on a lunch break from laying down new roofing this past July. The cause was never found, but it was deemed accidental. Barber said crews were wrapping-up repairs to the new roof on Wednesday.
Demolition work on the Central Office at Washington is done. It is currently an open space. Mr. Barber said also the cost of LED lighting in the entire building will be costlier than expected. The original plan after the fire, was to convert the building from the current conventional lighting to LED, which would have been more energy-efficient over the years, last longer and don’t flicker when they wear out. But they do tend be more costly than the fluorescent bulbs.
The consensus of the Atlantic School Board was to not include LED lighting in the reconstruction process, and stick with the type they had. In other business, the district is seeking specifications in order to solicit bids for a 77 passenger bus for 2023 delivery.
Barber also discussed the federal vaccine mandate that was temporarily put on hold by a Federal Judge, and that was supposed to go into effect on January 4, 2022, for all businesses with 100 or more employees.
The District’s legal counsel is studying the matter since the temporary STAY was enacted last week.
Red Oak Police, Wednesday night, arrested a woman for Simple Assault. 27-year-old Emily Kay Louise Rohner, of Red Oak, was arrested at around 9:45-p.m. in the 1660 block of E. Summit Street. She was being held in the Montgomery County Jail on a $300 bond.