(Radio Iowa) – Authorities investigating a fatal weekend plane crash in eastern Iowa have released the name of the man killed. Johnson County sheriff’s officials have identified the victim as 73-year-old Dale Bieber, of Coralville. They say Bieber was the only occupant of the single-engine aircraft that went down in a farm field near the Green Castle Airport northwest of Iowa City Sunday afternoon. Authorities say Bieber died at the scene.

Officials don’t yet know why the plane crashed. The cause is under investigation by the Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board.

A Public Hearing is set for this evening at the Courthouse in Greenfield, as part of a special Adair County Board of Supervisors meeting, and with regard to the first reading of Solar Energy Systems Ordinance #38. The hearing begins at 7-p.m.  Officials say the Courtroom at the Adair County Courthouse will be available for the Board meeting and the public will be allowed to attend in person. Public in-person attendance will be limited to 21 people, however, to allow for social distancing.  Any person or organization desiring to be heard will be afforded an opportunity to be heard, for a duration of 3 minutes. You will need to sign up to speak prior to the commencement of the meeting.

Written comments can also be submitted to the Auditor’s Office for the Board’s review. The Courthouse will be open beginning at 6:30 p.m. to allow time for individuals to sign up to speak. If you would like to speak and want to attend via conference call, please contact the Auditor’s office at (641) 743-2546 or email auditor@adaircountiowa.org to sign up.

If you will be attending the hearing in-person, you are asked to please wear a mask, and sign in before entering the courtroom.  The conference phone will still be used for those who cannot attend in person and can be accessed by using the following dial in information: Dial in Number: (605) 313-6157 Access Code: 526272#

Following the Hearing, the Board will hold the second and third readings of the Ordinance, and act on a Resolution to Approve Ordinance #38.

(Radio Iowa) – The Iowa Department of Natural Resources has filed charges against a Pleasant Valley man in connection with a fatal boat accident on the Mississippi River near LeClaire in August of 2020. Conservation officer, Travis Graves, says 44-year-old James Theil is charged with two felony counts of involuntary manslaughter. “One for the death of Craig Verbeke, one for the death of Anita Pinc,” Graves says.

Thiel was also charged with two aggravated misdemeanor counts of involuntary manslaughter, one count of reckless use of a watercraft, and one count of operation of an unregistered watercraft. Graves says Thiel allowed a minor to drive the boat, and the minor was driving when the accident happened, which violates Iowa law.

(Radio Iowa) – The Iowa chapter of the American Heart Association is hosting a live webinar this (Wednesday) afternoon to discuss the vaping epidemic in Iowa’s schools and efforts to make all schools tobacco- and vape-free. Wesley Franklin, the association’s community impact director, says they’ll offer an in-depth look at the “alarming” trends in youth tobacco use. All are welcome to attend. “We’re looking at school officials, school directors, administrators and educators, who will be our main audience,” Franklin says. “Of course, we’ll have some parents who are passionate about reducing or eliminating vaping and tobacco in schools.”

Virtually all Iowa schools are required to be tobacco-free and smoke-free, but vaping doesn’t involve tobacco or smoke — it’s a chemical vapor — so in some schools, vaping is still permitted as the rules are written. “There is still a discrepancy about how is vaping not part of it,” Franklin says, “and a lot of our school officials are not updating their tobacco policies to make sure that vaping products and all of those elements of vaping are updated within their policy.” Recent polls find about one in four Iowa high schoolers say they vape daily. The workshop is free and starts at noon.

Register here:
https://heart.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Xr6i0eVwTJqm8wz0P-mHXA

Police in Des Moines are investigating a crash that took place a little after 8:30-p.m. Tuesday, and that resulted in two fatalities. Authorities say 51-year-old Jerry Coles and 47-year-old Kristy Hyde were killed in the crash. Police said 46-year-old Stacey Coles-Behle was injured in the crash and remains hospitalized in serious condition. In a news release, Police said “Witness statements, and preliminary examination of evidence at the scene, indicates that the passenger car, a 2016 Mercedes Benz, involved was traveling northbound on E. 14th Street at what appeared to be a high rate of speed. The two motorcycles involved were southbound on E. 14th Street and turning eastbound on Washington Avenue. The Mercedes Benz struck the motorcycles within the intersection. The Mercedes Benz continued northbound until it crashed into a utility pole, shearing it off at the ground, and came to a stop. Witnesses reported that multiple persons got out of the crashed Mercedes Benz and ran from the scene.”

Police said no arrests have been made.