The Red Oak Police Department reports the arrest of a man early Saturday morning following a disturbance at a local bar. Officers were called to the Red Oak Tap at 12:12 a.m. for a male out of control. After assessing the situation they arrested 27-year-old Brent Edward Hanson for Public Intoxication and Disorderly Conduct- Fighting. Hanson was taken to the Montgomery County Jail and held on $300 bond.

(Updated 10-a.m., 10/10) – The State of Iowa’s Coronavirus dashboard today shows there are 17 more Positive COVID-19 test results received for Cass County from10-a.m., Friday to 10-a.m. Saturday, for a total of 228 cases since the pandemic began.  There are 105 new cases in Pottawattamie County, 35 more cases in Harrison County and 22 more cases in Mills County. There was also one more death attributed to the virus in Guthrie County, for a total of 13 since the outbreak began. (See more detailed info. below)

Statewide, there are 1,315 new cases of COVID-19 since 10-a.m. Friday, for a total of 98,027. There have also been 21 more deaths statewide, for a total of 1,454. The IDPH says of the reported deaths, 977 were related to a pre-existing medical condition. There have been a total of 853,724 Iowans tested for COVID-19 to-date, with 755,732 total Negative results. There were 5,620 results received since Friday, with 4,890 of those Negative, and 712 Positive. Officials say 11.5% of persons tested had a positive test result.  Iowans who have recovered from the virus number 75,9354.

Hospitalizations are down slightly from Friday, from a record 461 to 450 as of Saturday morning. The IDPH says: three fewer patients were in an Intensive Care Unit (ICU), for a total of 101; 63 people with COVID symptoms were admitted to a hospital (compared to 77 Friday); and 40 patients are on a ventilator (up from 38 previously). Western/Southwest Iowa hospitals report 26 people hospitalized, seven are in an ICU, four were admitted and no one was on a ventilator.

There are currently 54 Long-Term Care (LTC) facility outbreaks in Iowa, 1,158 positive cases of COVID among patients and staff at those facilities, and there have been 731 deaths since the outbreak began. The IDPH reports 627 persons recovered from the virus at LTC’s.

In the KJAN listening area, here are the current number positive cases in each county, along with the 24-hour change in case numbers {+#}; the number of persons recovered, and the total number of [deaths] (if any), since the pandemic began,

• Cass, 228 cases {+17}; 189 recovered; 2 deaths
• Adair, 94 {+6}; 56; 1
• Adams, 52; 30; 0
• Audubon, 115 {+31}; 43; 1
• Guthrie, 324 {+4}; 199; 13
• Harrison County, 435 {+35}; 191; 5
• Madison County, 294 {+11}; 196; 2
• Mills County, 272 {+22}; 150; 1
• Montgomery, 132 {+7}; 100; 5
• Pottawattamie County, 2,602 {+105}; 1,966; 43
• Shelby County, 306 {+5}; 275; 1
• Union County,  178 {+3}; 115; 3

A collision in Harrison County between a semi and two pickups resulted in two men being transported to the hospital, Friday morning. The Iowa State Patrol says a 2003 Freightliner semi driven by 59-year old Richard E. Fuhs, of Harlan, was eastbound on Highway 30 at around 7:53-a.m., when he swerved to avoid a vehicle that was slowing to make a left turn onto 280th Street.

Hwy 30 crash scene photo submitted

The semi crossed the centerline of the road and collided head-on with a westbound 2012 Dodge RAM pickup driven by 26-year old Brett J. Marcum, of Logan. Another westbound pickup, driven by 36-year old Jonathan D. Moe, of Logan, was unable to stop in-time, and ran into the back of the first pickup.

The impact caused Marcum’s truck to enter the ditch on the north side of Highway 30. The second pickup then ran into the semi. Both the semi and the pickup driven by Jonathan Moe, came to rest in the westbound lanes of Highway 30.

Marcum was flown by LifeNet to the UNMC in Omaha. He was not wearing a seat belt. Fuhs – who was wearing his seat belt – was transported to the Missouri Valley Hospital by Mo. Valley EMS. The accident remains under investigation.

The driver of a vehicle, who was ejected as it rolled multiple times, was transported to the UNMC in Omaha on Friday. The crash happened at around 12:06-p.m. on the northwest side of Council Bluffs on Interstate 29 southbound, at mile marker 54. According to Council Bluffs Police, the vehicle ran off the road before rolling over, ejecting the driver.

The victim was transported by Council Bluffs Fire and Rescue to the hospital.  At last report, the unidentified driver was in critical condition.

A traffic stop Thursday morning south of Audubon, resulted a man and woman from Nebraska being arrested on drug charges. According to the Audubon County Sheriff’s Office, 40-year old Raymond Williams, of Omaha, was arrested for Possession of Controlled Substance- marijuana 3rd and Possession with Intent to Deliver. He was seen by the magistrate and held on a $10,000 bond. He later posted surety bond and was released.

32-year old Tameika Willis, also from Omaha, was arrested on Possession of Controlled Substance- marijuana 2nd and Possession with Intent to Deliver. She was also seen by the magistrate and held on a $10,000 bond. She later posted a surety bond and was released.

The Audubon County Sheriff’s Office was assisted by the Audubon Police Department.

(Radio Iowa) – Several northwest Iowa school districts now have mask mandates in place after the state relaxed its quarantine guidelines. Sibley-Ocheyedan Community School District is requiring students and staff in grades seven through 12 to wear masks in classrooms where they can’t social distance. Superintendent James Craig says there’s been very little pushback.

“I know that there are folks that don’t want to wear the masks, but they’re really doing a good job of doing it here,” Craig says, “and understanding that doing that keeps them safer and keeps them more likely to stay in school and not have to be quarantined at home.” Sibley-Ocheyedan tightened its social distancing measures two weeks ago. Students in upper grades had to participate in some classes remotely when social distancing wasn’t possible. Craig says with a mask requirement, the district can have all students in its classrooms safely.

The West Lyon Community School District in Inwood now requires masks for students and staff in grades seven through 12 when they can’t social distance. Superintendent Shawn Kreman says before this, a couple students had already quarantined twice because of close contacts. “I think the message was, ‘Hey, by masking up, we’re going to better our chances to not be sent home for 14 days.'” Kreman says, “So I think the underlying message, kids got it really quickly.”

Kreman says the district is requiring masks in upper grades only because it’s harder to spread those students at least six feet apart. Unlike elementary kids, those students also move to several classrooms throughout the day. The Iowa Department of Public Health’s new guidance says people in schools don’t have to quarantine if they were wearing masks properly while in close contact with an infected person who was also wearing a mask.

(By Katie Peikes, Iowa Public Radio)

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate says Iowans have set a record for absentee ballots requested in an election. Pate reports 703,768 requests as of Friday. That surpasses the previous high set in 2016 when more than 693,000 Iowans requested absentee ballots. Of the requests just over 365,000 were requested by Democrats and more than 212,000 were from Republicans.

Voters registered with no party requested nearly 124,000. Over 96,000 have been returned so far with nearly 60,000 of those from Democratic voters. Iowans have until 5 p.m. Oct. 24 to request an absentee ballot. Iowa voters can also cast a ballot in person at their county auditor’s office through Nov. 2.

WAVERLY, Iowa (AP) — Officials in the northeastern Iowa city of Waverly say a $36 million construction project to expand and renovate the Waverly Health Center is ahead of schedule, despite the coronavirus pandemic. The Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier reports that the second phase of the project is underway, just months after the mid-May groundbreaking. The second phase will add 31,000 square feet to include a new emergency department, large family practice clinic and outpatient area.

It’s expected to be enclosed by Thanksgiving and operational in a bout a year. The third phase will renovate 40,000 square feet of the current emergency department and support staff areas into a new general surgery clinic, orthopedic clinic and other outpatient services.

If you’re looking to spend time outdoors enjoying fall weather, you might want to check out the new Cass County trails map found at www.AtlanticIowa.com. Cass County Wellness Coordinator Brigham Hoegh says printed copies of the Cass County trails map can be picked up at the Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce, and will be distributed throughout the county this fall and next spring. Nishna Valley Trails sponsored the map, which was created in partnership with Healthy Cass County. The map, designed by Hotch Studios, highlights 12 different trail locations across county.

Cass County Naturalist Lora Kanning says “People ask about trails in Cass County, but we haven’t been able to give them a simple reference until now. This map does that. It tells you where the trails are, how long they are, if they are accessible, and if they are dirt, grass, gravel or paved. Additionally, we know the risk of transmitting COVID-19 is lower outdoors, so now is a fantastic time to spend more time on our trails.”

Nishna Valley Trails and Healthy Cass County, in cooperation with other area organizations, are developing a trail-needs survey that will be made available this fall with the goal of gaining input and feedback about how the Cass County Trail System can be improved. In the meantime, ideas for trail improvements may be submitted to Cass County Wellness Coordinator Brigham Hoegh at bhoegh@iastate.edu or 712-249-5870.

If your business or organization would like printed copies of the map, please contact Brigham Hoegh. For more information on local wellness events or resources, follow Healthy Cass County on Facebook @HealthyCassCounty.

DES MOINES – Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds and the Iowa Economic Development Authority (IEDA), Friday (today) announced the launch of the new Residential Utility Disruption Prevention Program. The program will provide eligible households with up to $2,000 towards electric, natural gas and water bills if they are at risk of disconnection due to an inability to pay due to a COVID-19 related loss of income. Payments through the program will be made directly to utility providers and applied to the applicant’s account.

The Governor said “We are facing an unprecedented pandemic and from the very beginning the state has made it a priority to provide critical assistance to families, farmers, renters, homeowners, and small business owners For Iowans who lost their job or saw their paycheck shrink as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Residential Utility Disruption Prevention Program will help them keep the power on and their water running.”

The state allocated approximately $14.5 million of federal CARES Act funds for utility assistance programs (the Small Business Utility Disruption Prevention Program launched in mid-July). To be eligible to receive assistance, a residential electric, natural gas and/or water utility customer must have:

• A primary Iowa residence with active residential utility accounts, renters may apply as long as the utility account is in the applicant’s name;
• An unpaid utility bill balance or have previously entered into a payment plan with their utility provider;
• An annual income that is 80% of the median family income, based on county and household size
• Experienced a COVID-19 loss of income (job loss, reduction in hours, reduction in pay) on or after March 17, 2020 that resulted in hardship in paying bills for electric, natural gas, and/or water utility service provided between March 17, 2020 and October 31, 2020.

IEDA and Iowa Finance Authority Director Debi Durham says “Iowans, especially our low-income citizens have been greatly impacted due to the COVID-19 pandemic. We are proud to make available this program offering to help our most vulnerable maintain critical utility services.”

For a full list of eligibility requirements, additional information and to apply, visit iowahousingrecovery.com. Applications will be accepted between October 8, 2020, and November 20, 2020, or until funding is depleted, whichever comes first. Assistance will be awarded based on application completeness and eligibility in order received until all funds have been exhausted.