Severe thunderstorms brought intense wind, rain and in some cases large hail to parts of southwest Iowa, Friday night. According to the National Weather Service in Omaha:

• 8:30-p.m.: Public reports of large trees down and corn flattened 3 miles east of Oakland (Pott. County)
• At around 8:25-pm, a trained storm spotter reported several trees 1-to 2 feet in diameter were down In Hancock (Pottawattamie County), and Emergency Management reported powerlines were down off 380th Street 5 miles w/sw of Hancock.
• At around 8:28-pm, estimated thunderstorms winds of up to 60 mph were reported by a spotter in Hancock, along with Ping-Pong ball size hail (1.5″ in diameter).
• There was a multi-vehicle crash reported on I-80 near Shelby. 511IA reports as of 9:25-p.m., oth east and westbound lanes were blocked. Semi’s were overturned and vehicles were off the road due to high wind and heavy rain. Avoid the area!
• 7:55-pm: Outbuildings damaged and trees down in Persia (Harrison County)

Healthy Cass County is showing up at the Cass County Fair in a big way this year. Healthy Cass County is co-hosting multiple booths in the Commercial Buildings of the Cass County Fair from Friday, July 30th, through Monday, August 2nd. Together with Cass County Iowa State University Extension and Outreach and PROSPER, Healthy Cass County is co-hosting a large booth on Mental Wellbeing. Mental Health was identified as the number one health need in Cass County in the 2021 Community Health Needs Assessment, taken by over 470 people from across the county. The mental wellbeing booth is designed to help people learn about how to take care of their own mental wellbeing and support friends and community members when they face challenges. The booth provides information on resources available to people in Cass County, and offers giveaways designed to help people relax.

Healthy Cass County logo

In addition to the mental wellbeing booth, Healthy Cass County is co-hosting another booth in the commercial building sharing information on resources in Cass County including food programs such as Grow Another Row and Cass County food pantries, as well as West Central Community Action programs including Head Start, childcare resources, and more.
COVID-19 Vaccines Available at Fair On Saturday, July 31, a nurse will be offering free COVID-19 vaccines at the Healthy Cass County booth in the commercial building from 4:00-6:00 PM. No pre-registration is required, and walk-ups are welcome.

The vaccines offered at the fair booth will be Johnson & Johnson vaccines, which require only one shot and are available for people age 18 and over. The Healthy Cass County booth is also providing information on where to find COVID-19 tests and vaccines in Cass County for people age 12 and older. Healthy Cass County is a community-focused volunteer network that promotes the health and wellbeing of Cass County residents. Healthy Cass County welcomes participants from across the county. For information on community wellness events or resources, follow Healthy Cass County on Facebook @HealthyCassCounty. Reach out to Cass County Wellness Coordinator Brigham Hoegh at bhoegh@iastate.edu or call 712-249-5870 for more information.

Atlantic Middle School (AMS) Principal Josh Rasmussen, Friday (today) sent to the local media (including KJAN), pictures of the damage caused by Tuesday’s fire and the copious amount of water used to fight the flames and save the building. Superintendent Steve Barber said the building will not be open for students when classes begin on August 23rd. Administrators are currently working through the process of placing students, but one thing is clear according to Barber: remote learning is not an option being considered.

Officials are weighing where to place the 330 students and 50 staff. Transportation, food service, technology, and maintenance will also be taken into consideration when they decide on where to house the displaced students. Mr. Barber says 80-85-percent of the building has minimal to severe damage, leaving about 15-percent of the building untouched. First Onsite Restoration arrived on scene Thursday morning, and by Monday, two crews of 30 working eight-hour shifts will be working inside the building. Restoration crews will heat the building to 100-degrees, along with de-humidifiers.

(Radio Iowa) – Construction of the fourth American warship that’ll bear the name USS Iowa is nearing completion. The 377-foot long nuclear-powered submarine PCU SSN 797, is being assembled in New England, according to Tom Hudson, executive director of the Iowa’s commissioning committee. The term PCU stands for Pre-Commissioning Unit. Once the vessel is commissioned into service, it will earn the title United States Ship (U.S.S.) Iowa, a Virginia Class Attack Submarine.

“One-hundred percent of the modules are in Grotton, Connecticut, waiting to be fully assembled,” Hudson says. “These submarines are built in segments, so specifically, the forward compartment, which would be the sail and the forward bow section, is actually built in Virginia at Newport News and is barged up the East Coast to Connecticut.” The submarine’s bow arrived earlier in July and is sitting nearby on the pier, waiting to be mated with the midsection. The submarine should be completely welded together into one massive grey craft by this fall, but it’ll still be a billion-dollar fish out of water.

This is the SSN 774, the USS Virginia. It’s sister submarine, the Iowa, is under construction.

“By next spring, it’ll be ready to get wet and be christened, at which point it’ll actually be placed into the water,” Hudson says. “There’s a point of completion at that point, but as far as being operational and ready to go to sea and conduct patrols for the U.S. Navy, that won’t be until commissioning which is in the summer of 2023.” There’s a difference between the christening and the commissioning, and Iowans who are Navy enthusiasts are being invited to both events in the coming years.

“The christening will definitely be in Connecticut and that’s when the shipyard will release the submarine over to the Navy for testing,” Hudson says. “Commissioning is to be determined. We’re really hoping that we can petition the Navy and bring that submarine to the West Coast of the United States and tie her up alongside the great battleship Iowa out in Long Beach and commission it alongside the battleship.” The battleship U-S-S Iowa was launched during World War Two in 1942 and is now a floating museum in Los Angeles Harbor. Some of the submarine’s 134 crewmembers have already been assigned, and they’re making visits to Iowa in order to get Iowans interested in the sub. A team of them rode RAGBRAI this week while more sailors will be visiting the Iowa State Fair next month.

“We really want Iowans to become aware of the boat, become aware of the crew and understand that the namesake Iowa will continue a great tradition in the Navy,” Hudson says. “We really do want folks to participate in those milestone ceremonies.” The submarine will become the fourth U-S Navy vessel to be named after the state of Iowa.

The Virginia-class, also known as the VA-class or 774-class, is a class of nuclear-powered fast attack submarines in service with the U.S. Navy. The submarines are designed for a broad spectrum of open-ocean and littoral missions. They were conceived as a less expensive alternative to the Seawolf-class attack submarines, designed during the Cold War era, and are replacing older Los Angeles-class submarines, 29 of which have already been decommissioned.

Sailors like to refer to submarines as boats, not ships, and you can follow this boat’s progress on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/SSN797

AMES, Iowa – July 29, 2021 – The Iowa Department of Transportation is providing public notice of corridor preservation for Interstate 80 at the U.S. 169 interchange in De Soto, Dallas County.  This notice includes a depiction of the corridor preservation area on a map, which is available at www.iowadot.gov/pim. Width of the corridor preservation zone varies depending upon location within the corridor. Corridor preservation is a tool the Iowa DOT uses to preserve land for future highway needs. It does not restrict development in any way, but merely offers the DOT a chance to review the proposed development when notified by the city or county.

The Iowa DOT is implementing corridor preservation for this project on July 29, 2021. It is the intent of the Iowa DOT to continue to utilize corridor preservation for this project. The Iowa DOT may need to acquire additional right of way or property rights within this designated area. This notice shall be valid for a period of three years from the date of publication of notification of city or county, and may be refiled by the Iowa DOT every three years.

Per Iowa Code 306.19(5), each city and county within the designated preservation corridor shall provide written notification to the Iowa DOT of: (1) an application for a building permit for construction valued at $25,000 or more; (2) submission of a subdivision plat; or (3) proposed zoning change within the area. Notification must be provided to the Iowa DOT at least 30 days prior to granting the proposed building permit, approving the subdivision plat, or changing the zoning. Written notification shall include all pertinent information regarding the proposed permit, plat, or zoning change.

If the Iowa DOT, within the 30-day period, notifies the city or county in writing that the Iowa DOT is proceeding to acquire all or part of the property or property rights affecting the area, the city or county shall not issue the building permit, approve the subdivision plat, or change the zoning. The Iowa DOT may apply to the city or county for an extension of the 30-day period. After a public hearing on the matter, the city or county may grant an additional 60-day extension of the period.

The Iowa DOT shall begin the process of acquiring property or property rights from affected persons within 10 days of the Iowa DOT’s written notification of intent to the city or county.

The city or county written notification shall be submitted to the Iowa DOT contact listed below.

For information regarding the corridor preservation, contact Scott Suhr, District 4 planner, Iowa Department of Transportation, 2210 E. Seventh St., Atlantic, Iowa 50022, by phone at 712-249-4015 or 800-289-4368, or email scott.suhr@iowadot.us. You can also submit comments or questions electronically at: www.bit.ly/iowadot135874267.

(Atlantic) – The Cass County Board of Supervisors, Friday, received a report on the status of child care facilities in the county. Discussion lasted about 35-minutes. The Board heard from Massena City Councilman and member of the Childcare Board, Jack Bissell, along with Jared Wyman, who is with the City of Griswold, and Dan Haynes, Director of the Nishna Valley YMCA, in Atlantic. Bissell started the discussion by telling the Supervisors that Massena doesn’t have as many child care providers as they used to have.

He said the City started working with the school board after a survey was sent out.

He said the school district is working on their child care facility plans.

Bissell said child care is not an “overly large money making business” for a City, but it’s something that needs to provided, “To keep the town going.” The CAM School District is expected to hold a bond vote in November. If the measure passes, construction could begin next summer, and a facility could be ready to go by the end of 2022. Board Chair Steve Baier made it clear to all three men, that American Rescue Plan funds cannot be used for Operational Expenses. They can be used for infrastructure and renovation. The County has already received the first-half payment of funds designated through ARP, for more than $1.2-million. The other half is expected in 2022.

Jared Wyman told the Supervisors they have been looking at some contracts to get a piece of ground to build a new structure and they have been raising funds for a new daycare, because the school is full, and there’ no room to run a daycare. Their goal is to somehow raise about $2-million.

He said they hope to have a budget figure done by the end of the year and they hope to start building next spring. Dan Haynes said the Ann W. Wickman Child Development Center in Atlantic is pretty much full. The Nishna Valley Family YMCA has been in charge of running the facility for the past 11-years. He said they’re making accommodations at the Y to convert some areas to child development areas for about 21-children.

Haynes told the Supervisors that if any of the American Rescue Plan funds are able to be used for any of the childcare projects, it would be greatly appreciated. Local governments must appropriate the money by the end of 2024 and spend it by the end of 2026. The Cass County Supervisors will continue meanwhile, with discussions on possible uses for the money.

The Cass County Sheriff’s Office says there were six arrests over the past week and one, minor-injury accident investigated. Those arrested include:

On Thursday, July 29th –

• 25-year-old Tyler Ray Osborn, of Council Bluffs, on a Cass County warrant for violation of probation. Osborn was transported to Cass County Jail where he is currently being held.
• 19-year-old Dante James Watkins, of Atlantic, on a Cass County warrant for violation of probation.  Watkins was transported to Cass County Jail where he is currently being held.
• And, 29-year-old Anthony Rey Asay, of Atlantic, for possession of a controlled substance.  Asay was transported to Cass County Jail and later released on bond.

On Monday, July 26th –

• Cass County Sheriff’s Deputies arrested 28-year-old Robert Paul Joens, of Exira, on three Cass County warrants for violation of probation.  Joens was transported to Cass County Jail where he is currently being held on bond. And,
• 31-year-old Jeffrey Scott Rowland, of Council Bluffs, was arrested on a Cass County warrant for ongoing criminal conduct, theft 2nd, and unauthorized use of credit cards.  Rowland was transported to Cass County Jail where he is currently being held on bond.

On July 25th, 42-year-old Anthony Ryan Karns, of Wiota, was arrested for violation of a no contact order.  Karns was transported to Cass County Jail and was later released on his own recognizance.  Karns violated the no contact order that same day after his release and was arrested again by Cass County Sheriff’s Office.  Karns posted bond the following day and was released.  Karns was arrested again on July 27 for violation of a no contact order.  Karns was later released after posting bond.

Cass County Sheriff’s officials report one person suffered minor injuries during an accident at around 2-p.m. on July 24th. Mitchell William Benes, of West Des Moines, was transported to the Cass County Memorial Hospital for treatment of his injuries that happened during a collision at the intersection of Olive Street and Boston Road.  Authorities say Kevin Ray Anderson of Sanford, MI, was driving a 2016 Freightliner semi-tractor trailer westbound on Boston Road, and came to a stop at the intersection.

Benes was driving a 2020 Chevy Blazer was also traveling westbound on Boston Road. His vehicle failed to stop at the intersection, and struck the rear of semi.

(Radio Iowa) – COVID-19 hospitalizations in Iowa hit a record low of 46 in late June — but they have been increasing in the past month — and were reported at 158 this week. University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics epidemiologist, Melanie Wellington, says she’s concerned Iowa is headed towards a surge in hospitalizations like the one in Missouri. “Community transmission is definitely on the rapid rise, and vaccination in the state remains relatively low,” according to Wellington. “And that is a recipe for a lot of people getting infected — and those who are not vaccinated at high risk for being hospitalized.”

Wellington says she’s more worried about those who are not vaccinated than she is of the threat of COVID variants.  “The vaccines are still very effective at preventing most diseases, most infections, and certainly almost all severe diseases and hospitalizations. The vaccine is still really more important than ever,” Wellington says.

The Iowa Department of Public Health says 61 percent of adult Iowans are fully vaccinated.