Students and staff of the Atlantic Middle School will be “Unable to occupy [the building] for the foreseeable future,” according to Atlantic School District Superintendent Steve Barber, while mitigation strategies related to a fire that occurred Tuesday, are under way.  That was the consensus among mitigation inspectors following a fire that caused an estimated $875,000 damage to the roof that was under repair, and water damage to a good portion of the building. The price mentioned was the bid for Phase I mitigation from FirstOnSite Property Restoration, which the School Board approved during the emergency session. Phase I includes the removal of the water and deodorization of the structure. The District’s deductible is $5,000.

The School Board held an Emergency Meeting 8-p.m. Wednesday, to act on bids for the mitigation of fire-related damages. They heard from EMC Insurance Corporate Loss Specialist Scott Signor, who said he and Precision Roofing were on site Wednesday and walked the roof lines of the building, especially what they called “The area of origin.” He said they are developing what are being called “Temp repairs.”

Signor said something has to be built around the area of origin, and that “An area of subrogation may be possible as far as why the loss started.” He said several companies must first be put on notice and complete an inspection by several entities. The structure would have to be constructed over and above the affected area and then temporary repairs conducted over the entire area where it had burned. That while section was in the process of being replaced when the fire broke out. The temporary repairs would at least limit any future interior migration from rain that is expected in the next few days, and get the rain moving in the direction of the drains.

Signor said mitigation is just the first phase, and has nothing to do with repairs, the price of which will be significant. Signor said there were only four-to six rooms that were without apparent damage from the fire, smoke and water. Those rooms are located he said, in the southwest corner of the Middle School. “All other rooms are affected either substantially or less substantially,” according to Signor.

Barber and Middle School Principal Josh Rasmussen will organize a Google Document that will be a schedule of when personal items remaining in the building may be retrieved. If those items are damaged or destroyed, they will have to be identified by their owner and a general price provided, as allowed by the insurance policy. Signor echoed the sentiments of Mr. Barber, and the District’s local insurance agent Kip Harris, in saying that the quick response from Atlantic and other area fire departments, and the fact there was a thick concrete roof underneath the lining, saved the building from much more severe damage. He said firefighters “Did an outstanding job.”

The Harlan Police Department reports five arrests:

A total of three people were arrested on July 20th. 42-year-old Lisa Marie Briggs, of Harlan, was arrested on two active Shelby County warrants. She was transported to the Shelby County Jail. A man and a woman from Harlan were arrested following a call for service. Authorities say 34-year-old Roseann Dawn Randall, was transported to the Shelby County Jail where she was charged with domestic abuse assault. And, 38-year-old Keith Andre Smith, was transported to the Shelby County Jail where he was charged with obstruction of emergency communication and child endangerment.

On July 21st, 49-year-old Alan Lloyd Hill, of Harlan, was arrested following a traffic stop. Hill was transported to the Shelby County Jail where he was charged with possession of a controlled substance, possession of drug paraphernalia, and prohibited acts.

And, on Tuesday, July 27th, 54-year-old Vernon George Cady, of Sac City, was arrested following a traffic stop in Harlan. Cady was transported to the Shelby County Jail where he was charged with driving while revoked.

(Radio Iowa) – Governor Kim Reynolds says undocumented immigrants and illegal drugs are infiltrating Iowa and she may send state troopers back to Texas to provide border security in the future. “As the federal government effectively ignores its constitutional duty to secure our border, states must act and Iowa has,” she says. The state will spend about 300-thousand dollars on the two-week mission 28 state troopers just completed in Texas earlier this month. “It is an investment that I believe was well spent in helping really secure the southern border, the humanitarian efforts that were put in place,” Reynolds says. “I felt that it was the right thing to do.”

Dozens of troopers have been assigned to duty at next month’s Iowa State Fair as well as this week along the route of the Register’s Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa. Reynolds says she’ll re-evaluate in late August and may send state troopers back to the southern border. Reynolds says Iowa and other states like Nebraska and Florida have had to step up because the Biden Administration’s policies have made the border a magnet for illegal migrants, drug smugglers and human traffickers. “And it’s vulnerable migrants and law abiding citizens who are paying the price,” Reynolds says.

Reynolds held a news conference at the Iowa Department of Public Safety late this (Wednesday) morning. The patrolman who headed the mission to Texas outlined the ways in which Iowa officers assisted Texas Rangers and federal agents. Captain Mark Miller says some of the Iowa officers assisted in human trafficking investigations and traffic stops. A female trooper at a border gate noticed a migrant in the crowd was going into labor and summoned an ambulance. “A lot of these people have been on a long journey, so once they got their feet in our country, we wanted to make sure that they had water, they had food if they needed it and they had medical care,” Miller said.

Salaries account for about a third of the roughly 300-thousand dollar budget for this mission, with the rest spent on things like food, hotels and overtime pay. Miller says no State Patrol vehicles went south. Instead, troopers did overnight shifts with Texas officers. “It gave them that ability that if a high risk situation did develop, they could actually react to it,” Miller says, “instead of just standing by and waiting for more back up to get there.”

While Texas officers dealt with a driver, Miller says the Iowa troopers were able to interview others in the vehicle and determine if human trafficking was an issue. In one instance, Miller says a trooper found a woman hidden in a pick-up who was in critical condition due to dehydration. The leaders of the Iowa Democratic Party’s Latinx Caucus issued a statement after today’s (Wednesday’s) news conference, saying they’re grateful for the professionalism these troopers showed at the southern border, but they accused the governor of stoking fear against immigrants with her rhetoric. The group’s co-chairs say it is absurd for Reynolds to suggest, as she did late last week, that people seeking asylum are causing the spread of the Delta variant of Covid-19.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – The cause of a fire that damaged part of the Atlantic Middle School, Tuesday afternoon, remains undetermined. That was the word from Atlantic Fire Chief Tom Cappel, during a press conference at the Atlantic Fire Station, Wednesday. Cappel said the continued training area fire departments have received prevented a bad situation from getting worse.

The blaze broke out on the roof of the Atlantic Middle School building at around 12:37-p.m. Cappel said the flames were as high as 20-feet on top of the building, along with thick black smoke.

Atlantic School District Superintendent Steve Barber (left), & Fire Chief Tom Cappel (right)

Crews attacked the fire from the ground, shooting water from the hoses to the roof, while a ladder truck was being set-up.

The fire was contained within about an hour. Atlantic School District Superintendent Steve Barber said a dollar amount of the damage has not yet been tabulated. He said first and foremost, he was glad no one got hurt.

Barber said the damage was primarily from water used to fight the flames.

Insurance adjusters and other who are assessing the damage were on the scene Tuesday and today (Wednesday). As soon as they have a figure from mitigation companies, the Atlantic School Board will hold an emergency meeting to accept a “Not to exceed” number, and get the clean-up started.

Many have wondered how soon teachers, staff and others in the district can get back into the building. Mr. Barber said that’s undetermined right now because there is so much yet to do and much taking place behind the scenes.

Firefighters from Atlantic, Lewis, Marne and Griswold were on the scene, along with Cass EMS, Atlantic Police, the Cass County Sheriff’s Office, Cass County Emergency Management, and the Cass County Drone. Volunteers brought numerous bottles of cold water to help personnel deal with the heat and humidity.

DES MOINES – Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds has announced that Iowa Department of Public Safety (DPS) officers have successfully concluded their deployment to the U.S. Southern Border to aid law enforcement and border security efforts. The mission – Operation Lone Star – provided the Department’s support to the Texas Department of Public Safety in the Del Rio area from July 10-20.  This support was in response to the June 10, 2021, request from Texas Governor Greg Abbott and Arizona Governor Doug Ducey seeking law enforcement support from all 50 states. This request was made through Iowa’s existing EMAC, a national interstate mutual aid agreement administered by the Iowa Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management that enables states to share resources during a disaster.

At the time members of the Iowa State Patrol were sent, border encounters had just reached a 20-year high. They rose again in June, topping 1 million for the fiscal year.  “The situation at the U.S. southern border was and remains a humanitarian crisis, with consequences that reach far beyond Texas and Arizona,” said Gov. Kim Reynolds. “As the federal government effectively ignores its constitutional duty to secure our border, states like Iowa must act. By participating in Operation Lone Star, Iowa law enforcement played an important role in promoting humanitarian aid as well as safety and security of all Americans.”  

Law enforcement officials are recovering elevated levels of weapons and illegal narcotics smuggled into America. There was a 300% increase in fentanyl seizures in May of 2021 as there were in the same month the year prior. Seizures increased again in June with this year’s total now 78% higher than all of 2020.  Iowa specifically saw 523 grams of fentanyl seized between January and May 2020. Over that same time period in 2021, roughly 6,641 grams of fentanyl was seized – an increase of 1,148%. According to Customs and Border Protection, 93% of heroin found in our country were originally smuggled across the Southern border.

A total of 28 Iowa Department of Public Safety law enforcement officers volunteered to assist the Texas Department of Public Safety with four key mission tasks including traffic duties, humanitarian efforts, tactical operations and human smuggling operations. Those officers included 12 road Iowa State Patrol Troopers, 12 tactical operators, three command staff supervisors and one bilingual investigative agent.  Iowa State Patrol Troopers paired with Texas Highway Patrol Troopers to provide law enforcement duties designed to ensure public safety in the Del Rio area. These officers also worked the heavily trafficked Rio Grande River crossing , helping with rescue efforts and addressing humanitarian concerns.

The mission of tactical operators focused on disrupting criminal activities with teams identifying and searching locations where human smuggling was occurring, identifying drug/narcotics offenses and performing surveillance activities designed to identify criminal activities.  The DPS deployment consisted of 12-hour shifts and concluded with 5,000 hours of duty time. The participating officers represented 5% of the Department’s sworn workforce.

Over the coming weeks, Iowa will continue to evaluate the needs on the border and whether the state’s law enforcement might be useful again to officials on the border. As with Operation Lone Star, any future decision will be subject to Iowa’s own law enforcement needs.