Approximately 60 Soldiers from the Iowa National Guard will be welcomed home today (Saturday) in a ceremony at the Des Moines air base. Guard spokesman, Colonel Greg Hapgood. “The 185th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion from the Iowa Army National Guard is based at Camp Dodge. And they’ve been mobilized for the past year. They’ve spent approximately nine months in the Afghanistan theater operating out of Bagram Airfield and some other locations in Afghanistan,” Hapgood says.

Col. Hapgood spoke about the 185th CSS Battalion’s responsibilities. He says the soldiers specialize in command and control of units and support the coalition and U-S forces through transportation, maintenance, supplies, water purification and other logistical tasks.

Hapgood says their work is key to the entire mission. “Certainly when you are talking about operations like we have in Afghanistan, its incredibly important that you have logistics on time, you have what you need, when you need it and where you need it. And these soldiers do an excellent job at making sure those who are in combat directly have everything they need to do their job,” Hapgood says.

The public is welcome to attend the homecoming ceremony which will be held at 3 p-m today (Saturday).

(Radio Iowa)

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A call about an alleged assault at a bar in Red Oak early this (Saturday) morning, resulted in the arrest of 32-year old Jacob Michael Carnes, of Red Oak. According to Red Oak Police, officers were flagged down at around 12:30-a.m. outside the Red Oak Tap, where patrons stated Carnes had struck a female patron.

Carnes was charged with Public Intoxication and Domestic Abuse Assault/3rd or subsequent offense. He was brought to the Montgomery County Jail and held without bond, pending a court appearance.

Fremont County Sheriff Kevin Aistrope reports a narcotics investigation in Hamburg, Friday, resulted in the arrest on drug charges, of a Nebraska man. The Fremont County K9 Unit conducted the investigation, during which 20-year old Brayden Murrison, of Beatrice, Nebraska, was arrested for Delivery of a Controlled Substance and Possession of a Controlled Substance. Murrison was being held at the Fremont County Law Enforcement Center on $6,000 bond.

Brayden Murrison (Photo courtesy Fremont Co. S/O)

A call about a person carrying weapons in the parking lot of a store Friday evening in Council Bluffs, resulted in the arrest of a man on assault and weapons charges. Bluffs Police say at around 5:35-p.m., Friday, officers were dispatched to the Family Dollar parking lot at 2801 West Broadway for an armed subject damaging the business’ sign.

Upon arrival, an officer was approached by a man later identified as 30-year old Matthew Swarbrick, of Council Bluffs, as Swarbrick was carrying two open pocket knives. The man allegedly threatened the officer and threw both pocket knives at him.

Matthew Swarbrick

The officer was able to quickly take cover then ordered Swarbrick to the ground so he could be safely apprehended. No one was injured during the incident. Swarbrick was booked into Pottawattamie County Corrections for Assault on a Peace Officer, Going Armed with Intent, Intimidation with a Dangerous Weapon and Criminal Mischief 2nd.

Atlantic firefighters were called to a reported large grass fire early this (Saturday) morning on the northeast side of town. The call went out at around 3:25-a.m. for the blaze located just east/northeast of the Little League Ball fields, in the Atlantic Municipal Utilities’ well field complex. The area burning was said to be roughly 150-yards long by 50-feet wide, and was easily visible from less than one-mile away.

The flames were extinguished by 4-a.m.  No immediate cause for the blaze was determined, but smoking materials were a possibility, according to Fire Chief Mark McNees.

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 3:40 a.m. CDT

CARROLL, Iowa (AP) — Outside his sprawling Iowa congressional district, Republican U.S. Rep. Steve King’s stream of inflammatory comments generate outrage and condemnation. But back home they rate little more than a shrug. Many interrupt King’s comments as racist, and House Speaker Paul Ryan and the White House have distanced themselves from his most recent statements. But in King’s conservative district, he likely can count on continued support.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Republican Sen. Joni Ernst met with confrontational crowds in Des Moines and Cedar Rapids where she was repeatedly shouted down and booed over the GOP health care reform plan. Ernst drew laughter and booing when she said many of the millions of people likely to lose insurance under the bill will willingly chose not to buy insurance once the mandates under the current law are lifted.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Police in Des Moines are investigating a shooting that left one man dead and injured another man. Police say officers were called around 4 p.m. Friday to a residence for a report of a shooting and found two men injured. Police say one man had been shot in a foot, and the other man had been shot in his upper torso. Both me were taken to local hospitals, where the man shot in the torso died.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Police say a 79-year-old Omaha woman embezzled more than $1.2 million from her employer and blew it gambling at casinos. The Omaha World-Herald reports that Annie Carbullido pleaded no contest Tuesday to two counts of theft by deception and two counts of tax evasion. Her sentencing is set for May 17.

Iowa Gov. Terry E. Branstad, Friday, signed a proclamation to allow the transportation of oversize and overweight loads of forage through Iowa. The proclamation is intended to aid cattle producers in Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas, where wildfires have caused a shortage of forage.

The action will allow vehicles transporting forage through Iowa to be oversize and overweight, without a permit, until May 16, 2017. The proclamation applies to loads transported on all highways within the state excluding the interstate system, and those which do not exceed a maximum of 90,000 pounds gross weight, do not exceed the maximum axle weight limit determined under the non‐primary highway maximum gross weight table in Iowa Code, by more than 12.5 percent, do not exceed the legal maximum axle weight limit of 20,000 pounds, and comply with posted limits on roads and bridges.

The Iowa Department of Transportation will monitor the operation of the proclamation to assure the public’s safety, and to facilitate the movement of trucks involved in transporting forage to the impacted states.

As we usher in spring next week, the construction season will also bloom and blossom quickly. Interstate construction crews have steadily worked over the winter months to ramp up for spring and with the warmer weather approaching, residents and travelers through Council Bluffs will see that happen. Scott Schram, Iowa DOT District 4 engineer in Atlantic, says a few early impacts due to construction will begin next week:

The westbound Interstate 80 exit at Iowa 192/South Expressway (exit 3) and right lane of westbound I-80 between the I-80/I-29 interchange (exit 4) and Iowa 192/Expressway (exit 3): Overnight closures are scheduled for each evening from 10 p.m. until 5 a.m. the following morning Monday through Thursday, March 20-23 (ending Friday morning, March 24).

The right lane of westbound I-80 between the I-80/I-29 interchange (exit 1) and the Missouri River bridge: Overnight closure scheduled for Monday night, March 20, from 11 p.m. until 5 a.m. Tuesday, March 21, for pavement restriping.

The southbound I-29 to westbound I-80 ramp (exit 51): The ramp will be closed from 12 a.m. to 4 a.m. Tuesday, March 21.

Eastbound I-80 at the I-80/I-29 interchange (exit 4): Eastbound I-80 will be closed overnight from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m. until the following morning on Wednesday and Thursday, March 22 and 23 (ending Friday morning, March 24).

Iowa 192/South Expressway between the westbound I-80 ramp and 30th Avenue: Iowa 192/South Expressway will be closed overnight each evening from 9:30 p.m. until 5:30 a.m. the following morning Monday through Thursday, March 27-30 (ending Friday morning, March 31).

Schram says “More details about the 2017 interstate construction activities will be discussed with the public at an open house meeting in April; details will be announced soon. The Iowa DOT anticipates that ongoing work will most impact people traveling on the interstate and local businesses in the area.”

The Iowa DOT is in the process of reconstructing I-80, I-29, and I-480 in the Council Bluffs metropolitan area. This comprehensive interstate redesign will modernize the highway system and improve mobility and safety of approximately 18 miles of interstate. Motorists are encouraged to allow for extra travel time while this interstate improvement takes effect. If you would like more information about detours and traffic impacts visit the program website, www.CouncilBluffsInterstate.IowaDOT.gov.