Four people were arrested recently, in Creston. Authorities say 23-year old Taran Austin, of Creston, was arrested a little before 2-a.m. Friday, for Public Intoxication. He was later released on a $300 bond. 34-year old John Foster, of Creston, was arrested at around 2:10-a.m. Friday, for Domestic Abuse Assault/3rd or subsequent offense. He was later released on a $5,000 bond.

At around 11:30-p.m. Saturday, Creston Police arrested 58-year old David Bruce, of Creston, for OWI/1st offense. He was released on $1,000 bond. And, at around 9:15-a.m. Sunday, 39-year old Sheri Watters, of Creston, was arrested for Criminal Mischief in the 5th degree. Watters was cited and released from the scene, on a Promise to Appear.

The area’s latest and/or top news stories at 7:06-a.m. From KJAN News Director Ric Hanson.

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OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A new report says a June survey of business supply managers suggests economic growth will continue over the next three to six months in nine Midwest and Plains states. The report issued today (Monday), says the Mid-America Business Conditions Index rose to 55.4 last month from 54.3 in May. The April figure was 55.9.

Creighton University economist Ernie Goss oversees the survey, and he says “weak farm income, produced partially by tariffs and flooding, pulled regional growth below that of the nation.”
The survey results are compiled into a collection of indexes ranging from zero to 100. Survey organizers say any score above 50 suggests growth. A score below that suggests decline.

The survey covers Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma and South Dakota.

(Radio Iowa) — The Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs has awarded 140-thousand dollars in grants for a new program to help the developers of film and digital media productions that tell Iowa stories. The leader of the State Office of Media Production, Liz Gilman, says they are called “Greenlight Grants.” “The people who applied for the grants, they had to be a resident of Iowa,” Gilman says. “And then any money that is earned through these grants — they had to be used to pay for Iowa services.”

The grants can be used to produce features, shorts, pilot episodes or proof-of-concept videos to help Iowans propel a script to the screen. The first grant went to an eastern Iowa producer. Andrew Sherburne of Iowa City was awarded 50-thousand dollars to support the production of “The Workshop,” a film about the Iowa’s Writers Workshop, the world renowned educational department at the U-I.

A documentary about a group which chased adventures outside of Iowa was awarded 40-thousand dollars. “There was an Iowa club called the Mountaineers, and they were scaling mountains. As, you know Iowa is prairie and rolling hills and there’s not too many mountains around here,” Gilman says. ” So, it’s a really interesting story to show a group of Iowans who used to go out and climb mountains and come back and give talks about it throughout the state.”

Colleen Krantz of Adel won an award of 30-thousand dollars to develop a T-V drama called “Complete Bull.”  “She’s developing a story that’s an interesting agricultural story regarding a woman who comes back to her state and goes into the bull semen business that her family has. So, it’s a really interesting, unique story about modern agriculture,” she explains.

The final award of 20-thousand dollars went to Scott Siepker of Des Moines to support post-production of “Kinnick: The Definitive Documentary,” about the life of football legend Nile Kinnick and the stadium that bears his name. “This is a historical documentary, so again, another great Iowa story to get out there,” Gilman says. She says the goal is to create and sustain more jobs, retain filmmakers in Iowa and tell more stories that are important to our state.

BRIGHTON, Iowa (AP) — Authorities say a search will resume today (Monday) for a kayaker missing along the Skunk River near Brighton in southeast Iowa. The Washington County Sheriff’s Office says the search began after it was reported that the kayaker had flipped in the water but didn’t resurface. The search began Saturday night and continued without success on Sunday.
The name of the missing person hasn’t been released.

DAVENPORT, Iowa (AP) — Some eastern Iowa residents are dealing with damage from a summer storm system that knocked down trees, limbs and power lines and flooded streets. The Dubuque County Sheriff’s Office says at least three people were injured Sunday night, two when their mobile home was destroyed in rural Peosta. Storm debris that included limbs, rain gutters, lawn furniture and the like was strewn across streets.

More than 20,000 MidAmerican Energy customers lost power for a time in the Quad-City metropolitan area. A wind gust of 76 mph was recorded at Dubuque Regional Airport, and Davenport Municipal Airport had a gust of 52 mph.

The Union County Secondary Roads Department reports County Road H-33, just east of the Adams County line, northwest of Cromwell, is closed due to a pavement buckle. The road was closed Saturday, pending repairs.

Authorities in Iowa say many agencies will be participating in the national “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” campaign from July 3rd to July 7th, 2019. In an effort to combat drunk driving, officers will be exhibiting zero tolerance for impaired drivers. Nationally, during the 2017 July 4th holiday period (the most recent statistics available) 601 people died in motor vehicle crashes, or, an average of 134 per day. During that same time there were four fatalities on Iowa roads.

Besides the possibility of serious injury and death to the impaired driver, he or she is endangering the lives of anyone else in their vehicle, or anyone that they may encounter on the road. There is also a financial aspect of driving impaired. An OWI arrest can cost up to $10,000. You could lose your license, your car, and your job. You could serve jail time. Before you set out to celebrate this holiday weekend make a plan – have a designated driver, call a taxi, or other rideshare service.

Area law enforcement agencies remind you, that it is never okay to drink and drive!

(Radio Iowa) — Iowans who are planning trips this week will find plenty of company on the road. The number of travelers over the Fourth of July weekend is expected to set a record not just for the holiday, but for all holidays. Rose White, spokeswoman for Triple-A-Iowa, estimates a record 49-million Americans will be taking trips of 50-miles or more from home during the long weekend. “This is the highest level since AAA began tracking holiday travel 19 years ago,” White says. “We predict drivers will experience the greatest amount of congestion in the major metro areas on Wednesday, July 3, as the commuters mix with the holiday travelers.”

Travel volume for the holiday is expected to rise more than four-percent, with nearly two-million more vacationers than a year ago. A record high 41-million people will be traveling by car, which means higher demand for gasoline. “For Iowa, prices are much lower than the national average, currently sitting at $2.53 a gallon, which is 16 cents lower than a year ago,” White says. Factors driving the boost in travel numbers include favorable gas prices, low unemployment, robust consumer spending, and rising disposable incomes. A large refinery in Pennsylvania is shutting down, following recent explosions and fires. White was asked what effect it might have on gas prices in Iowa. “It may or may not, at this point, we don’t know,” White says. “It certainly will impact the region along the East Coast but as they do need additional supplies from other sources, if they do have to tap into some of those in the Midwest, it could certainly tighten our supplies as well.”

The national average price for gas is $2.69, down 15-cents from a year ago. In Iowa, the cheapest gas is selling in Sioux City at $2.38 a gallon while Dubuque has the most expensive gas at $2.67.

A Taylor County man was arrested a little after 7-p.m. Sunday for OWI/3rd or subsequent offense. Timothy Dean Coleman, of Clearfield, was arrested at Highway 34 and Notchwood Avenue in Adams County, following a traffic stop on a vehicle traveling 74 mph in a 55 mph zone.

Coleman was taken into custody after he failed Standardized Field Sobriety Tests and registered a BAC of nearly double the legal limit. He was brought to the Adams County Jail and held on a $5,000 cash-only bond.