(Radio Iowa) – You may have heard the buzz about the mass return of the insect known as the cicada (suh-kay-duh) after 17 years in the ground. Iowa State Entomologist, Donald Lewis, says the emergence will be from Indiana to the east coast. Iowa has to wait until 2031 for the periodical cicada to return.”Back in 2014, the periodical cicadas emerged in the southeast portion of the state of Iowa, from about Ledges State Park southeastward toward corner of the state. So they have been in the ground for only seven years — and we have another decade to wait,” Lewis says.

Thousand of periodical cicadas emerge at one time and cover trees and other objects. Lewis says there is an annual cicada that we will soon see here. “It’s the one that appears about the middle of July and is present until frost. It makes the familiar Zuh-zuh-zuh-zuh sound up in the trees, and then disappears in the fall of the year,” he explains. He says you may also find the old shell of the cicada around the yard. “When the nymphs come out of the ground after feeding on tree sap for their prescribed period, they cling to tree bark, or the side of the shed or a fence post and they shed their skin. They shed their exoskeleton and a crack forms down their back. And the insect pulls itself out of its own shell,” Lewis says.

They then fly around until it is time to go back underground. There are not as many of the annual cicadas. Lewis says the purpose of the insects isn’t exactly known. “Cicadas are probably a link in the food chain, but it’s not a terribly obvious one to us,” according to Lewis. “We are talking about big insects. The annual cicadas are at least an inch in length and about as big around as your thumb.” He says the periodical cicadas are about three-quarters of an inch long. Lewis says a raccoon or bear or some other animal may eat cicadas — but they are too big for most predators to eat. While they may seem imposing — Lewis says cicadas are harmless to humans.

“They’re not a pest to crops, they don’t feed on the garden vegetables and the fruits in the back yard. They can’t bite and they don’t sting — so their impact on people is fairly minimal,” Lewis says. If you want to see the mass emergence of the 17-year cicada, you’ll have to head east to Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, Pennsylvania, and some coastal states. The nymphs surface during late May and June.

(Radio Iowa) – A flower garden at the Anamosa State Penitentiary was dedicated on Thursday in memory of nurse Lorena Schulte (SHULL-tee) and corrections officer Robert McFarland. They were brutally murdered during an escape attempt at the eastern Iowa prison on March 23rd. Beth Skinner, director of the Iowa Department of Corrections, addressed the Board of Corrections this (Friday) morning via Zoom for the first time since the killings. “These two individuals will never be forgotten, and neither will their families,” Skinner says. “Additionally, I want to thank all DOC staff who have stepped up in a very difficult time.”

Two inmates are charged in the murders of Schulte and McFarland. Skinner says donations of cash and items are pouring in from all over the country to honor the two slain staffers, and emails and letters are arriving daily. “I believe I have read over 500 letters from individuals, from agencies across the country,” Skinner says. “The support has been extraordinary. I want to thank everyone for the ongoing support, for the families, for our staff. Words can’t convey the level of gratitude we have.”

The killings caused “a major ripple effect” across the prison system, Skinner says, and a variety of changes are being implemented to prevent it from happening again. A new position is being created, a security operations director, who will oversee all nine Iowa prisons. Skinner says she’s hired Brian Foster for the position and he will start May 24th. “He works for the Wisconsin Department of Corrections,” Skinner says. “He has been a warden in three different prisons and he is currently the security chief for the Wisconsin Department of Corrections, which basically is doing the job that we want to do here in Iowa.”

An independent team of investigators is doing an assessment of the Anamosa prison while all nine prisons are subject of a thorough external review. Skinner says she’s also been leading what she calls feedback forums. “I spent about two weeks on the road. I went to every single prison, all nine prisons, in order for staff to voice their concerns to me directly,” Skinner says. “Next week, I have scheduled calls with every single warden and their administration to talk about the feedback that I have received and how we can work together and be more solution-focused.”

In addition to new equipment, including fixed and body-worn cameras, she says suggestions are being made for better ways to communicate “from the bottom up and from the top down.” Skinner says she’ll be visiting all nine prisons every three months to gauge the progress.

Three people were arrested on separate charges Thursday, in Pottawattamie County. The Sheriff’s Office on Friday (Today), said 38-year-old Marlen Martinez-Solares, of Omaha, was arrested at around 8-p.m. Thursday, following a traffic stop at Highway 6 and Hackberry Road. She was taken into custody for OWI/1st offense, with bond set at $1,000. In addition, Martinez-Solares was cited for Failure to Maintain Control of a Motor Vehicle, Littering upon a Highway, and Open Container – Driver.

Thursday afternoon, 47-year-old Jerry Lee Dawson was arrested at the Pott. County Sheriff’s Office, after he turned himself-in on a warrant for Violation of Probation. After the warrant was confirmed, Dawson was transported to the Pott. County Jail and turned over to Corrections staff.

And, at around 9:25-a.m. Thursday, 36-year-old Daniel Jason Kennedy, of Council Bluffs, an inmate at the Pott. County Jail, was presented with a warrant for Criminal Trespass/2nd offense. Once he acknowledged the warrant, Kennedy was returned to the custody of jail staff.

The Cass County Sheriff’s Office on Friday (today), reported five arrests from April 30th to May 5th. On Wednesday (5/5), Deputies arrested 53-year-old Charles Jonathan DeJong, of Manning, on two Cass County warrants for Failure to Appear.   DeJong was transported from the Carroll County Jail to the Cass County Jail and later released on his own recognizance.

On May 2nd, 59-year-old Myron L. Flathers, of Bridgewater, was arrested on a Cass County warrant for violation of probation.  Flathers was transported to Cass County Jail.  Upon arrival at the jail, he was found to be in possession of drug contraband.  He subsequently was assessed with an additional charge of possessing contraband, and was being held on $7,000 bond.

On May 1st, Cass County Sheriff’s Deputies arrested 29-year-old Shialea Kay Cozad, for driving while barred.  Cozad was transported to Cass County Jail as was later released on her own recognizance. That same day, 31-year-old Marshall Brandon Fischer, of Atlantic, was arrested on charges of driving while barred and assault with bodily injury.  Fischer was transported to Cass County Jail and also later released on his own recognizance.

And, on April 30th, Cass County Deputies arrested 29-year-old Nathan Drew Simington, of Griswold, for OWI/1st offense.  Simington was cited and released.

The Sheriff’s Office reports also, that a little before 4-a.m. Sunday, May 2nd, deputies responded to an accident on eastbound I-80 at mile marker 57 (the Olive Street exit). Authorities say Loren Griffin, of Exira, was driving a 2016 Dodge Ram when he fell asleep at the wheel. The pickup truck ran over 50 yards of cable barrier and support posts, until it came to rest on the north side of the eastbound lanes. Griffin was not injured. His vehicle sustained an estimated $20,000 damage.

(Radio Iowa) – A Las Vegas man who’s making a cross-country journey on a stand-up electric scooter is almost done with the Iowa leg of his month-long adventure. Alex Simon left Boston, Massachusetts on April 24th and is traveling in segments all the way to Newport, Oregon. The past several days, Simon’s been quietly making his way across Iowa via U-S Highway 20, making stops in Dubuque, Iowa Falls and Fort Dodge.

“I’m promoting micro-mobility,” Simon says. “It’s nothing more than replacing cars with a smarter alternative when traveling short distances, based on zero to three miles. Instead of taking a

Alex Simon

car just to go down the road or to the coffee shop or to the park, maybe we can take an electric scooter or an e-bike or a skateboard, and that’s what this trip is all about.”

Alex Simon on an electric scooter

Simon plans to ride from Fort Dodge to Sioux City today (Friday) and is scheduled to arrive in Oregon by May 23rd.

https://www.facebook.com/zerotoepic/

The Iowa Department of Public health Friday, reported 459 new COVID-19 positive tests, and 18 additional deaths, including one in each of Audubon, Mills and Montgomery Counties, and two in Pottawattamie County (See the County-by-County-data below). This latest round of recorded COVID-related deaths bring the statewide total for the pandemic, to 5,980. The health department reports 397,132 total positive tests since the start of the pandemic. The state’s 14-day positivity rate is 3.8%, and the seven-day positivity rate is 3.7%.

COVID hospitalizations across the state are nearly steady. As of Friday, there were 189 hospitalized, 43 persons in an ICU, 44 people were admitted, and 16 were on a ventilator. In RMCC Region 4 (hospitals in western/southwest Iowa), there are 14 COVID patients hospitalized; three remain in an ICU; four people were admitted, and two people remain on a ventilator.

There have been more than 2.4-million doses of a COVID vaccine administered in Iowa, with 1.14-million persons having completed their respective vaccination series.

The state reports there are now two Long-Term Care Facility Outbreaks. Those are at the New Hampton Nursing and Rehab Center in northeast Iowa, and Urbandale Health Care Center. Combined, they have 22 positive cases among residents and staff,  with 18 total recoveries. The state reports 2,323 care facility deaths since the pandemic began.

In the KJAN listening area, here are the current number positive cases by County; The # of new cases since yesterday {+} if any; and the total number of deaths in each county to date:
Cass, 1,460 cases; {+2}; 54 deaths
Adair, 982; {+0}; 32
Adams, 349 {+1}; 4
Audubon, 526 {+0}; 10
Guthrie, 1,290 {+0}; 29
Harrison County, 1,925; {+1}; 73
Madison County, 1,746; {+2; 19
Mills County, 1,781; {+0}; 22
Montgomery, 1,106;{+1}; 38
Pottawattamie County, 12,161; {+20}; 168
Shelby County, 1,364 {+0}; 37
Union County, 1,362; {+2}; 32