KELLOG, Iowa (AP) — A Newton bicyclist died early Monday after being hit by a truck in Jasper County. The Jasper County Sheriff’s Office says the crash happened about 4:30 a.m. on U.S. Highway 6 near Kellogg. The bicyclist died at the scene of the crash. He was later identified as 43-year-old Jermey Ray Williams. The truck driving stayed at the crash site and was cooperating with authorities.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A judge has approved a payment of $3.1 million for lawyers representing a former state official that a jury found was discriminated against by former Gov. Terry Branstad. The judge approved the amount in an order filed Friday for Roxanne Conlin and her team who won former Iowa Workers’ Compensation Commissioner Chris Godfrey a $1.5 million verdict. Branstad, now U.S. ambassador to China, was found to have discriminated and retaliated against Godfrey in 2011 because he’s gay. Taxpayers have paid $2.9 million for Branstad’s attorneys and will pay Conlin’s fees if the state loses a pending Iowa Supreme Court appeal.

(Atlantic, IA) — A report of an aircraft with smoke in the cockpit resulted in emergency crews being dispatched to the Atlantic Airport, this (Monday) afternoon. The Atlantic Police Department received a call from Minneapolis ATC (Air Traffic Control) at around 2:50-p.m. about the incident. The P-D relayed that information to the Cass County Communications Center. The Tower said the plane would be landing within five-minutes, but it ended up being sooner. KJAN News spoke with the Pilot, Nick Lambert, of Perry, about what he, and a male passenger, experienced.

(He said he was flying out of Omaha on the way back to Perry, when a vent motor “burned-up” on him. So he made an unscheduled landing in Atlantic.)

Beechcraft KingAir A90. (ric Hanson/photos)

Lambert said they had been out flying all day, and had no previous issues until they were underway on the final leg. Atlantic Fire personnel inspected the 1985 twin-engine Beechcraft King Air TurboProp A90. The smell was in the aircraft cabin, but the source could not immediately be identified. Lambert got on the phone to a mechanic, who suggested he fire-up the engines and see if the circumstances could be replicated. That’s when Lambert narrowed down the source to a vent motor in the cabin. Lambert and his passenger were expected to resume their flight. They were on the ground for about an hour.

FAA records indicate the aircraft is registered to Dutch Aviation, LLC., in Perry.

(Radio Iowa) — The ribbon was cut today (Monday) on the second Ronald McDonald House in central Iowa inside the MercyOne Children’s Hospital in Des Moines. MercyOne president, Karl Keeler, says it’s an important addition to the hospital. Starting my career, I started off at a children’s hospital in Colorado and the partnership between children’s hospitals and Ronald McDonald’s House are critical partnerships,” Keeler says. “And it’s amazing the difference it makes not only in the patients’ lives — but in family’s life — and the way you put the families at ease because they can be close to a loved one.”

The central Iowa executive director of the Ronald McDonald House, Brenda Miller, says it offers an important service. “The Ronald McDonald House houses families of ill or injured children. So ages newborn to 21 are able to use the house. Once they are here, they can stay as long as the need exists,” Miller explains. This new house allows families using the hospital to be much closer and not have to drive to get to the rooms at the other Ronald McDonald House.

Miller says hundreds of people will use the facility. “My guess will be we’ll have over 500 a year using this particular facility. We do what we call day guests as well as patients who have rooms here. Our day guests can come in and eat, have a shower, have a nap and just play, whatever they need, and then all of the 14 bedrooms. Some families may stay maybe one night for a procedure — some may stay a year — it just depends.”

She says they ask for a ten-dollar a night donation for the rooms– but that is not required. “I think one of the most important aspects of a Ronald McDonald House for families is the ability to have other families staying in the house that they can talk to and confide in — because they are all going through the same thing,” according to Miller. “And so, having that kind of support system and others who are going through what they are going through is a key part of their healing.”

Donations helped create the Ronald McDonald House and Miller says  ongoing donations will help keep it running. She says changes donations at the McDonald’s restaurants are part of that. Miller says the money collected in canisters at 61 McDonald’s around central is sent to the Ronald McDonald House. There are two more Ronald McDonald Houses in Iowa, one in Iowa City and one in Sioux City.

Marne Fire, Atlantic Rescue and Medivac were dispatched to 580th and Marne Road, Monday, for a two-vehicle accident with apparent, non-life threatening injuries. Emergency units were dispatched at 11:54-a.m. A female subject complained of arm pain, while a man complained he wasn’t feeling well. According to reports, a semi was crossing the road at 580^th and Marne Road. When three vehicles reduced their speed as the semi was crossing, one of the vehicles rear-ended another vehicle.

Additional information is currently not available.