(Radio Iowa) – The Iowa Supreme Court has upheld a four-point-seven-five million dollar verdict for a northeast Iowa dairy farm. The award was for the operators of Vagts Dairy in West Union who sued Northern Natural Gas Company claiming stray electrical current from a pipeline corrosion prevention system made their cows sick. In one year they lost 17 percent of the cows.

The gas company appealed saying jury instructions were in error and the award too much. The Supreme Court ruled the jury instructions on what constitutes a nuisance were proper and the jury’s finding that stray voltage was definitely offensive, seriously annoying, and interfered with the Vagts’ normal use of land supported the dollar award.

(Pottawattamie County, Iowa) – An account has been established for the family of a Pottawattamie County woman who died during a collision last week in Omaha. The crash also left one-person injured. The accident happened at around 7:30-a.m. Thursday (June 20th), near downtown Omaha. Officials with GoFundMe say 21-year-old Chloe Johnson, of Crescent, was a passenger in the car that collided with another vehicle. Johnson was a sous chef at Sand Point in Omaha. Chef Marcus Jones organized a gofundme to help her family with expenses and hopefully donate to a charity in Chloe’s name.

Chloe Johnson

The driver of the car Johnson was a passenger in, who is from Council Bluffs, was being treated for a non-life-threatening back injury at last report. The driver of the other vehicle was not hurt.

An investigation into the crash is ongoing.

(Radio Iowa) – Officials with the U-S Army Corps of Engineers will hold an open house tonight (Tuesday) at the Effigy Mounds National Monument Visitor Center in Harpers Ferry to discuss plans to protect the area from flooding and erosion. The prehistoric burial mounds that comprise Iowa’s only national monument have stood for centuries, but the Corps’ Jill Bathke (BATH-key) says they’re now under immediate threat. “Construction of the locks and dams on the Mississippi River and climate change has altered the hydrology that has increased erosion of the shorelines,” Bathke says, “and that’s really eroded a lot of the irreplaceable Native American burial and ceremonial mounds and that cultural landscape.”

The protected area of northeast Iowa is home to some 200 earthen mounds that are believed to have been built during the first millennium. Many mounds are shaped like animals, including bears and birds. About 100 mounds are in a low-lying area known as the Sny-Magill unit, and she says that’s the section being placed at risk by the river. “Right now, out on public notice is our tentatively selected plan which would protect the Sny-Magill unit with a 2,000 foot linear berm,” Bathke says. “On top of that berm, there would be an access trail where people and tribal nations could views the mounds and appreciate their context in the cultural landscape.”

The monument is managed by the National Park Service, and the area east of the Sny Magill unit is part of the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge, which is managed by the U-S Fish and Wildlife Service. Bathke says coordination and consultation with tribal nations about the proposed protection plan is ongoing. Another element in the mix, she says an endangered species of mussel has been found in the area. “A lot of the work in the last year has been done to find ways to minimize impacts to those endangered species while also protecting this really important cultural resource,” Bathke says. “We’ve done consultation with over 19 tribal nations that are culturally or traditionally affiliated with the park, and so that also has taken time.” If the project is approved, the boat launch at Sny-Magill would be temporally closed in spring and summer of 2026 for construction.

“Generally, we found that there’s a lot of support for this project,” Bathke says. “We are proposing to have tribal monitors on site during all active construction activities to ensure that we’re doing this in a way that’s appropriate. And if there’s any significant findings that we would coordinate that appropriately with tribal nations.” Tonight’s open house runs from 5:30 to 7 P-M.

(Red Oak, Iowa) – The Red Oak Police Department reports officers dispatched to a residence in the 200 block of E. Elm Street, Monday, ended-up arresting a man on assault and other charges. Following a brief investigation, officers took 41-year-old Michael Duwayne Cobb, of Red Oak, into custody at around 5:30-p.m., on: 2 counts of Assault w/bodily injury; Going Armed with Intent (A Class-D Felony), and 4th Degree Criminal Mischief.

Cobb was being held in the Montgomery County Jail on a $5,000 bond.

(Spencer, Iowa) – Sheriff’s officials in northwest Iowa have identified a man who died Saturday, after his vehicle was swept away by flood waters. According to the Clay County Sheriff’s Office, William Schulze, of Elburn, Illinois, was driving a red Ford vehicle and attempting to cross rapid flood waters on 240th Avenue, when he was swept away in the flood waters from the Little Sioux River on Saturday. Witnesses told officers they saw a vehicle float under the waters.

Authorities said they knew where the vehicle was, but weren’t able to get to it safely until Monday.

(Radio Iowa) – A Republican lawmaker is calling on the University of Iowa to examine its use of animals in medical research, consider alternatives and release a public report. State Representative Taylor Collins of Mediapolis says he finds one experiment particularly grotesque — beagles with a fatal infection were euthanized, then blood and tissue samples from the dogs were studied.

“These are really concerning research practices that are occurring at the University of Iowa and we’re simply asking for a review of these practices because we shouldn’t be simply only looking at dollar signs when we’re conducting research,” Collins says. “We also need to be thinking about the ethical use of these animals.”

University of Iowa officials say the 25 dogs were infected with the disease when the owners of the beagles donated the animals for the research a decade ago and no dogs have been used in the university’s research since 2019. A written statement from university says faculty have an unwavering commitment to the health and well being of research animals and strongly support development of non-animal alternatives for research.

“As usual we have received no commitments to make any improvements, conduct any kind of review or even admit any wrongdoing ever occurred. The only thing we have gotten back is a boilerplate FAQ to simply answer questions about the study,” Collins says. “The university and the Board of Regents can’t just continue to ignore issues that legislators bring to their attention. They either need to address this or we’ll do it for them like many other things.”

Collins led efforts in the legislature this year to cut the budgets for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion programs at Iowa, Iowa State and the University of Northern Iowa. Collins says two years ago the legislature passed a law that requires university researchers to set up adoption programs for dogs and cats that are retired from research.  “We’ve sounded the alarm bell on it before,” Collins says, “but as usual the university has become increasingly out of touch with everyday Iowans and the legislature when it comes to research.”

The Iowa director of the Humane Society has raised the same concerns as Collins and the group has started an online petition calling for changes in animal testing practices at the University of Iowa. Officials at the University of Iowa say for the past 30 years the university has been accredited by an international nonprofit that promotes the humane treatment of animals in science.

DES MOINES – Gov. Kim Reynolds announced Mondayy that President Biden has approved Iowa’s request for a Major Disaster Declaration for Iowa counties where significant damage was sustained from severe storms, flooding, straight-line winds, and tornadoes that occurred beginning on June 16, 2024 and continuing.

Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) are now authorized to provide assistance to Clay, Emmet, Lyon, Plymouth, and Sioux Counties. The Governor will continue to request additional counties as more information is collected.

Residents in these counties can now apply for the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) Individual Assistance Program, which provides disaster-affected homeowners, renters, and businesses with programs and services to maximize recovery, including assistance with housing, personal property replacement, medical expenses, and legal services.

Individuals and business owners who sustained losses in the designated areas can begin applying for assistance by calling 1-800-621-3362. The helpline operates from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m., 7 days a week. Anyone using a relay service, such as video relay service (VRS), captioned telephone service or others, can give FEMA the number for that service. Other options include registering online at www.disasterassistance.gov or downloading the FEMA app.

Homeowners, renters, businesses, and nonprofit organizations whose property was damaged or destroyed by this disaster, may be able to apply for low-interest disaster loans from the SBA. In addition, small businesses, agricultural cooperatives, and private, nonprofit organizations impacted by the severe weather may be eligible to apply for working capital loans.

Applicants may apply online, receive additional disaster assistance information, and download applications at www.sba.gov/funding-programs/disaster-assistance.

Applicants may also call SBA’s Customer Service Center at 1-800-659-2955 or email disastercustomerservice@sba.gov for more information on SBA disaster assistance. For people who are deaf, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability, please dial 7-1-1 to access telecommunications relay services.

The Iowa Individual Assistance Grant Program is no longer available in counties where the FEMA Individual Assistance Program has been made available and residents should apply for the FEMA Individual Assistance Program.

In addition, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Public Assistance Program has been activated for Buena Vista, Clay, Dickinson, Emmet, Lyon, O’Brien, Osceola, Plymouth, and Sioux Counties. The Public Assistance Program provides funding for emergency work, such as debris removal and emergency protective measures.

ATLANTIC, IOWA – June 25, 2024 – If you travel on Interstate 29 or I-680 north of Council Bluffs, the Iowa Department of Transportation’s District 4 Office wants you to know that it intends to close I-29 from milepost 55 (25th Street at the north edge of Council Bluffs) to the I-29/880 interchange (near Loveland) at approximately 11 a.m. on Tuesday, June 25. Timing will depend on rising flood water levels on the Missouri River.

In addition, the portion of I-680 west of I-29 located in Iowa will also be closed at approximately 11 a.m. due to rising flood waters.

Once the roadway is closed you will follow a signed detour that will start at the I-29/880 interchange near Loveland, continue east to the I-80/880 interchange, and then southwest on I-80 to Council Bluffs. If you are driving between Iowa and Nebraska, you should use I-80. Local traffic in the Omaha/Council Bluffs area should follow the signed detour.

The Iowa DOT reminds travelers to never enter a water-covered roadway. Do not move or travel around barricades or fencing as they are placed there for your safety. Turn around and don’t drown.

(UPDATED by Radio Iowa) – Authorities say the suspect in a southwest Iowa bank robbery died by suicide in a farm field. According to an Iowa Department of Public Safety news release, a man walked into the Iowa State Savings Bank in Lenox at about 1:30 Monday afternoon and demanded money. He left on a motorcycle, was chased into the neighboring county, crashed into a farm field and started running. Officers from four county sheriff’s departments and the Iowa State Patrol surrounded the field.

The Creston News Advertiser reports authorities used a drone to speak to the man, who responded that he would take his own life. The state agency’s news release indicates the suspect fired one shot and died of a self-inflicted wound. The Creston newspaper has identified the man as 45 year old Steven Sapp, a man from Nebraska with a criminal record.

Several media reports from more than a decade ago show Sapp did time in a Missouri prison after pleading guilty to stabbing a man to death with a pocket knife in southern Missouri in 2008. In 2013, Sapp was convicted of robbing a Pizza Hut in southwest Nebraska and beating two female employees at the restaurant. He was released from a Nebraska prison in 2022 after serving nine years on a 21 year sentence.