(Radio Iowa) — We’re now at the halfway mark of tornado season in Iowa, and so far, there hasn’t been a single twister reported statewide this year. While tornadoes can strike during any month, April, May and June are considered the peak months. Meteorologist Chad Hahn, at the National Weather Service, says there is a reason why it’s been such a quiet period for the storms. “Of course, we’ve been experiencing a great deal of precipitation and certainly we’ve seen that with the ongoing river flooding across portions of the state,” Hahn says. “We’ve been cooler than normal over the past few weeks and because of that, we haven’t been able to get the thunderstorm activity going like we’d typically expect in the spring months here.”

After the prolonged cold spell, warmer weather should be moving in over the next few days. Hahn says that could bring a chance of thunderstorms, though likely nothing too rough. “At least at this point, the week looks fairly quiet, but we do see the mercury starting to rise off in the horizon,” Hahn says. “Of course, it’s not a matter of if, it’s when. We can’t let our guard down because we know when that switch flips, we’ll have to be ready to take the appropriate action if we have severe weather.” Hahn says Iowans should be prepared. “I encourage the public to know that we will get severe weather,” he says. “It’s not a matter of if, it’s when. When that does happen, it’ll likely go from zero to 60, so we need to battle the complacency bug and be ready for severe weather when it does strike.”

Last year, there were 69 tornadoes statewide with the most notable hitting Bondurant, Marshalltown and Pella on July 19th. Over the past decade, Iowa has seen as few as 16 tornadoes during all of 2012 and as many as 88 tornadoes in 2014.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Officials think a mountain lion seen in Des Moines likely has left town. The animal was spotted on security video last week west of downtown and on the city’s south side, not far from the airport. Des Moines police received two calls Wednesday morning from people who think they saw it, too, but the reports haven’t been confirmed.

Alex Murphy with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources said Wednesday night that agency officials think the mountain lion has made its way out of the city, because there’s been no video or picture evidence or a confirmed sighting in the last few days.

(Radio Iowa) — Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley is issuing a warning about the dangers of an escalating trade war with China. “As I like to tell the president when he says he likes tariffs, I try to remind him that Smoot-Hawley brought about the Great Depression, brought about Adolph Hitler, brought about World War II, brought about 60 million people losing their lives as a result of it,” Grassley says.

The Smoot-Hawley Act of 1930 raised tariffs on goods imported into the U.S. by 20 percent and sparked retaliatory tariffs from other countries on U.S. goods. According to Grassley, half the world lived in poverty after World War II, but reducing tariffs and promoting international trade have led nearly 50 percent of the world’s population to be classified as “middle class” today. “I like to tell the president that globalism has helped everybody, freeing up trade has helped everybody and let’s move on,” Grassley says.

Grassley, a Republican, made his remarks to the National Association of Farm Broadcasting. Fellow Republican Joni Ernst, Iowa’s other U.S. Senator, says Iowa farmers will suffer “permanent damage” if they lose access to the Chinese market.  “We need free trade. We need fair trade and we are not seeing that from China right now,” Ernst says. “So I would say: ‘China, quit hemming and hawing. Let’s get back to the (negotiating) table. Let’s finish this deal.’ It will be good for China. It’ll be great for Americans.”

President Trump began imposing tariffs last year and is threatening to impose a 25 percent tariff on another 325-billion-dollars in Chinese goods next month if there’s no deal. Trump also has promised 15 billion dollars in federal aid to farmers to compensate for trade-related losses.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Montana Gov. Steve Bullock is announcing he’s been endorsed in the 2020 Democratic presidential race by Iowa’s attorney general. It makes him the first 2020 candidate to receive the endorsement of a statewide elected official in Iowa. Attorney General Tom Miller says, “For 10 years since we first met, I have watched Governor Bullock proudly carry a progressive vision across every community in Montana, successfully take on the Koch Brothers and win, and prove that America is stronger when we unite together.”

Miller was one of the first Iowa elected officials to endorse Barack Obama in the 2008 Democratic presidential caucuses, and he is a longtime friend of the Montana governor’s.
The endorsement, announced Thursday, comes ahead of Bullock’s first visit to the state as an official candidate.

Two women were injured during a single-vehicle accident in Fremont County, Wednesday evening. The Sheriff’s Office reports the accident happened at around 7:15-p.m. on Highway 59, between 250th Street and 260th Street. Deputies determined a 2009 Saturn Aura driven by 39-year old Michelle Rene Graham, of Fairfax, MO., was traveling south on the highway, when for reasons unknown, Graham lost control, causing the vehicle to cross the centerline to the left. The car entered the northbound ditch, and continued south before sideswiping one tree and then striking a second tree head on.

Graham became trapped and was extricated from the vehicle after over an hour and forty-five minutes, by Shenandoah Fire and Rescue using the Jaws of Life. She was air lifted from the scene by LifeNet Helicopter to Nebraska Medicine in Omaha with life threatening injuries. Her passenger, 56-year old Teresa Amthor, of Rock Port, Missouri, was also air lifted from the scene by LifeNet Helicopter with unknown injures. Both women were wearing seat belts. In addition, the car’s airbags deployed as designed.

Shenandoah Fire and Rescue, Page County Sheriff’s Office, LifeNet, and the Iowa DOT assisted the Fremont County Sheriff’s Office with the call. Neither alcohol nor speed are believed to be factors. The vehicle was a total loss. The accident is still under investigation.

Two Red Oak men were arrested on separate charges late Wednesday night, in Red Oak. Authorities say at around 11:40-p.m., officers arrested 36-year old Jorge Uvaldo Jaraz Armenta, for Domestic Abuse Assault. He was taken into custody in the 500 block of High Street in Red Oak, and held without bond in the Montgomery County Jail.

And, at around 8:15-p.m., 30-year old Chase Michael Samples was arrested in the 1100 block of N. 3rd Street in Red Oak. Samples faces a charge of Driving While Suspended. He was being held in the Montgomery County Jail on a $566.25 bond.

Police in Council Bluffs are investigating a robbery that took place outside of a residence at around 7:10-p.m., Wednesday. The incident happened in the 2900 block of Ave F. The victim, 61-year old Debra Ekstrom, was just arriving home, when an unknown male came up behind her and grabbed her purse with such force that Ekstrom fell to the ground and hit her head on the pavement.

The suspect then ran off with her purse. Ekstrom was transported to a local hospital and treated for minor injuries. The suspect is described as a black male of medium build, between 16 and 21 years of age, about 6 foot tall, wearing short flat top hair, no shirt, and blue jeans.

The Council Bluffs Police Department’s Criminal Investigations Division is investigating the crime. Anyone with information regarding the incident is asked to call us at (712) 328- 4728. Or, to remain anonymous, you can call Crimestoppers at (712)328-STOP.

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 3:30 a.m. CDT

NEW YORK (AP) — The Democratic race for president could be getting another candidate. The mayor of New York, Bill de Blasio, has been considering a run for months and is expected to announce a decision this week. He’s booked an appearance on ABC’s “Good Morning America” ahead of travel to Iowa on Thursday and events there and in South Carolina on Friday. Both states are among the handful that cast the first votes in the Democratic primary.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds has been dropped from a lawsuit alleging that her predecessor and others in his administration singled out a former state official for a pay cut because of his political party or sexual orientation. The long-running lawsuit filed by former Workers’ Compensation Commissioner Chris Godfrey against former Gov. Terry Branstad is set for trial in state court on June 3 in Des Moines. Reynolds was Branstad’s lieutenant governor.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Current and former attorneys general from both major parties and several states are imploring Iowa’s Republican governor to veto a measure meant to prevent the state’s attorney general, currently a Democrat, from being able to file or join lawsuits challenging Trump administration policies. They think the Republican move would violate basic checks and balances. Iowa would be the only state to impose such limits on an attorney general if Gov. Kim Reynolds signs off on the bill.

SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) — A South Dakota man accused of robbing a northwest Iowa bank has been sentenced to more than eight years in federal prison. Federal prosecutors for Iowa said Wednesday in a news release that 43-year-old Brendon Reed, of North Sioux City, South Dakota, was sentenced Tuesday to 105 months in prison and ordered to pay nearly $14,000 in restitution to the United Bank of Moville.

Officials with the Iowa Dept. of Transportation said Wednesday, that a second lane on Iowa Highway 2 west of I-29, has reopened to traffic. A single lane was reopened last Friday, May 10, providing limited mobility to the area. In opening a second lane, mobility will be greatly improved, and traffic delays should be reduced between Iowa and Nebraska.

As with the eastbound lane that was reopened last week, the westbound lane reopened today has water over the roadway; however, a temporary solution has been put in place. The solution includes concrete barrier rails along the edge of the road to keep vehicles on the roadway and permeable rock laid on the roadway to provide a surface for traffic to pass across while allowing water to continue to flow. This solution restores mobility without causing water to be pushed to surrounding land.

This area is susceptible to ongoing threats of flooding and is being closely monitored. Traffic patterns on Iowa 2 between I-29 and the Nebraska border may shift or the roadway may need to be closed to traffic periodically, possibly with short notice, to accommodate shifting water levels. Travelers should check 511ia.org, the Iowa 511 mobile apps or call 511 (within Iowa) or 800-288-1047 (nationwide) for up-to-date closure information on Iowa 2 or any other state-owned roadways across Iowa.

The Southwest Iowa Squadron of Heroes has announced they have been awarded two local grants.  Grant applications were submitted to Southwest Iowa REC and to the E.F. & Sylvia Schildberg Foundation.  The Squadron appreciates the support that has been given by so many to make this all possible.

Pictured above is Batman’s assistant, ROPD Police Chief Justin Rhamy accepting grant check from Seth Wise with the E.F. & Sylvia Schildberg Foundation, Schildberg Construction. (Photo submitted)

Organizers say “We are one step closer to getting the Hero Bus on the road.  Stay tuned for several exciting announcements in the next few weeks.”

Southwest Iowa Squadron of Heroes was formed to promote a positive message and outreach to those in the age bracket of 1-101. Their Mission Statement is to “Affect a positive influence in one person’s life (hopefully a young person), and the efforts/cost/time will all be worthwhile. We may never know the result or the particular person we had a positive contact with and that part of the equation does not matter.”

Their current superheroes include: Wonder Woman (Sydney Rhamy), Batman (Justin Rhamy), Optimus Prime (Luke Mellott), Captain America (Will Brown), and Thor (Justin Mann). Other committee members include Brad Baker, Karl Bormann, and Kattie Lewis.

For more information and upcoming events, see the Southwest Iowa Squadron of Heroes Facebook page.