(Creston, Iowa) – Police in Creston say no injuries were reported following two separate accidents that occurred in the past couple of days. At around 5:34-p.m., Thursday, vehicles driven by 28-year-old Emma Brightwell and 44-year-old Christina Williams, both of Creston, collided on Highway 25 near the intersection with Howard Street. Authorities say Williams was driving a 2003 Lexus and was coming down a hill northbound, when she attempted to turn into her driveway. She wasn’t able to slow down in-time, came to a complete stop and began to backup, so she could enter the driveway. At about that same time, a 2016 Nissan Rogue driven by Brightwell, came over the crest of the hill in the same lane as the Lexus. Brightwell attempted to go around the other vehicle, but was unable to do so due to the snow, and other traffic. Her SUV rear-ended the Lexus, causing a total of $8,000 damage. No citations were issued.

The other accident happened at around 3:45-p.m., Wednesday on Highway 34, in Creston. Authorities report a Southern Iowa Trolley (2015 Chevy Express van) driven by 73-year-old James Kneedler, of Creston, and a 2002 GMC Sierra pickup driven by 50-year-old Frank Mills, of Kent, were both traveling west on Highway 34, when the Trolley, which was in front, made a brief lane change, so it could make a wide right turn because of a snow bank at the parking lot entrance. Kneedler told Police he did not see the pickup, which was traveling in the inside lane. A passenger in the pickup said the the Trolley did not have its turn signal on.

The pickup continued straight and became parallel to the Trolley. The van struck the pickup driver’s side, broadside. Damage from the collision amounted to $8,000. Police later issued a citation to Mills, for Failure to Provide proof of financial liability (insurance).

Roads in western and southwest Iowa (with the exception of parts of I-80/880 & 29) for are generally partially covered with a  mix of snow/slush/ice, varying on/off ramp conditions, ice bridges and blowing snow, in the latest Iowa DOT report.

(Radio Iowa) Officials with the Iowa Donor Network are releasing numbers for 2023 to celebrate the extraordinary impact of organ and tissue donation. Network spokeswoman Heather Butterfield says during the past year, 123 “donor heroes” in Iowa gifted a remarkable 350 organs for transplant. She says a record was also set last year. “We had an unprecedented 1,027 tissue donors, and each tissue donor has the opportunity to enhance the lives of 50 to 300 people,” Butterfield says, “so we’re talking about thousands and thousands of lives saved, thanks to the generosity of donors from right here in Iowa.” Over the past few years, she says more Iowans have checked the box to identify themselves as donors on their drivers’ licenses.

“Iowa Donor Network has seen a remarkable 40% increase in organ donors since 2019 and a 21% increase in organs transplanted,” Butterfield says, “which just shows the incredible commitment that Iowans have to saving lives.” Regardless of age or medical history, she says anyone can register to save lives as an organ, eye, and tissue donor. “The most common way is at the DMV when people get their license. If they’re already a donor, it’ll say the word ‘DONOR’ right there on the front of your license,” Butterfield says. “If you aren’t registered, you can simply go online to our website, IowaDonorNetwork.org, click the ‘Register’ button, and it takes less than three minutes to sign up.”

Butterfield says the selflessness and generosity of Iowa’s donors creates a lasting legacy of hope and healing.

(Radio Iowa) – The manager of the DeSoto National Wildlife Refuge in western Iowa reports not as many birds flew through the area this past migration season. Desoto manager Tom Cox says the drought, left the refuge without the water to flood as much wetland for geese, ducks, and swans.“Birds tend to follow the habit. And with this kind of region-wide drought, they’re probably skirting around where they’re finding better habitat during their migration,” he says.

Cox says the dry conditions led to bird numbers dropping 50 percent.“It kind of opened your eyes up that what the birds are after is the habitat, and that’s what supports them.”

The refuge is along the Missouri River near Missouri Valley, Iowa. Cox says overall, he isn’t too worried because conditions usually bounce back, allowing for better birdwatching during a different season.

(Red Oak, Iowa) – Police in Red Oak, Thursday night, arrested 30-year-old Dallas Eugene Davis, of Red Oak, following a call about a domestic incident in progress in the 1000 block of E> Washington Street. Officers arrested Davis for: Domestic Abuse Assault/1st offense;  Assault with bodily injury to a law enforcement officer; 3 counts of Child Endangerment, and Interference with official acts.

Davis was being held without bond in the Montgomery County Jail.

(Radio Iowa) – House Speaker Pat Grassley says House Republicans intend to examine the activities of agencies that provide temporary workers, like traveling nurses, in Iowa nursing homes. “We pay for as a state, roughly 50% of the bill…in nursing homes through Medicaid,” Grassley says. “And right now we’re seeing every time we put more money into the sytem, these out-of-state companies continue to skyrocket the rates.” Grassley says it appears the agencies are also “poaching” staff from nursing homes.

“What is the number one priority when it comes to providing care?” Grassley says. “It’s making sure you have proper staffing levels and continuity of care and that’s why we’re going to look at it.” In December, Senate Democrats called on Senate Republicans to launch an investigation of cases of abuse and neglect in Iowa nursing homes. Grassley says as House members being drafting next year’s budget the state agency that inspects nursing homes, those issues will be examined, along with nursing home staffing issues in general.

“Whether it’s accountability for the individuals in the home or its for the taxpayer, I think it’s something we need to engage in,” Grassley says. Grassley made his comments on “Iowa Press” on Iowa P-B-S. Six months ago, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services determined 42 percent of Iowa nursing homes had a shortage of nurses and other staff who provide direct care to residents. That’s nearly double the national average and Iowa nursing homes have begun to rely on temporary agencies to fill key roles.

(Radio Iowa) – Senator Chuck Grassley has been discharged from a hospital in the Washington, D.C. area where he was being treated for an infection. On Tuesday, Grassley’s U-S Senate office announced Grassley was receiving antibiotic infusions as treatment for an infection. His office announced late Thursday afternoon that he’d been released from the hospital and expects to be back to work next week. Just over an hour after that announcement, Grassley posted a message on the social media platform X in his typical syntax, thanking people for the well wishes and prayers, saying he’s happy to be home and he looks forward to getting back to work.

Grassley, who is 90, had hip surgery in January of last year to repair a fracture. He is the oldest currently serving member of the U-S Senate.

(Radio Iowa) – Many Iowa businesses are still struggling to recover from last week’s double-whammy of monster snowstorms, including LifeServe Blood Center. Center spokeswoman Shay Willis says the heavy snowfalls caused the center several setbacks, which impacted perhaps thousands of patients in the 161 hospitals in Iowa, Nebraska, and South Dakota which LifeServe supplies with blood products.

“We have unfortunately had to cancel some of our mobile blood drives,” Willis says. “We’ve also had to either adjust or close some of our donor centers, so we have seen nearly a 1,000-unit loss, and if you really calculate that to the number of lives impacted, it’s nearly 3,000 lives.” That’s because each unit of blood donated can save up to three lives. Willis says all of the non-profit’s facilities in Iowa are open again now, but blood supplies are running critically low. She says all blood types are needed.

“That actually changes daily, but if you were to visit our website and look at our homepage, you can actually see every single day what types of blood are most in need,” Willis says. “Today, our inventory in some cases looks decent, but in other cases, not so much.” It’s been a challenging few weeks for LifeServe, as the mass shootings at Perry High School on January 4th prompted an urgent demand for extra blood at Des Moines area trauma hospitals.

LifeServe photo

“We had to use a lot of O-negative and O-positive blood and so those types of blood are typically the lowest and most critically in need,” Willis says. “I think that’s still the case today, but really I think the moral of the story is, there is always a need for a safe and stable community blood supply.”

LifeServe has 11 donor centers in Iowa: Ames, Ankeny, Des Moines (2), Fort Dodge, Marshalltown, Mason City, Pella, Sioux City, Urbandale and West Des Moines. For more information about blood donation or to schedule an appointment to donate, call 800-287-4903 or visit lifeservebloodcenter.org.

(Radio Iowa) – The Marshall County Sheriff’s Department and other first responders helped a woman give birth during last week’s blizzard. Deputy Joseph McMillen says he was concerned after getting the call because he had gotten stuck in the snow drifts trying to answer an earlier call. “This is going to be a big deal because I don’t think anyone’s going to be able to get to them in that remote part of the county,” he says. Sergeant McMillen says busting through a few snow drifts on the gravel road, the thought of walking did cross his mind. “As I’m driving westbound on 140th I start to process, okay this is going to be me walking,” he says. “So I kind of made that decision before I even got stuck if I did get stuck and once my vehicles disabled it’s I didn’t even I didn’t really think about it.”

Sergeant McMillen approached a house with the front porch light on, and it turned out to be the correct house with the woman and her husband waiting. “I could tell that she was in the advanced stages of labor based on my experience…so I kind of knew that all right this baby’s gonna come soon and I looked at Dad and I said ‘Alright dad it’s gonna be me and you nobody else is coming’,” McMillen says.

Deputy McMillen. (Marshall County Sheriff’s Dept. photo)

McMillen says dispatchers were working to get more help to the farmhouse, and the Clemmons Fire Chief used his tractor to clear a path for the ambulance. “Me and dad are down there, we’re working with mom and I see a tractor go by. and I know there’s an ambulance behind that tractor,” he says. “The feeling of relief is almost indescribable. You know that there’s an advanced level of care there. It’s no longer just Sergeant McMillan. It’s now Sergeant McMillan in whatever level of care showed up, which turns out it was a paramedic. So watching them come in the back door was they were like angels such an answer to prayer.”

He says he assisted the paramedics with the birth. Sergeant McMillen credits dispatchers for finding help, and for working with the woman and her husband before he arrived. McMillen says they are not releasing the name of the family.