MONONA COUNTY, Iowa — The Iowa DNR reports that on Sunday October 20, at approximately 10:57 AM, Monona County dispatch received a call that Decatur Fire and Rescue was en-route to Tieville Bend Wildlife Management Area for a call of two hunters whose boat was sinking.  A father and teenage son were duck hunting on an oxbow lake within the Tieville Bend Wildlife Management Area and were motoring back to the boat ramp when their 14 foot johnboat began taking on water.

DNR Conservation Officer Gary Sisco and an Iowa State Patrol Trooper accompanied Decatur Fire and Rescue and pulled the hunters from their stranded vessel and transported them to shore.  Both individuals refused medical treatment.

Burt County, NE Fire and Rescue, Decatur, NE Fire and Rescue, Iowa State Patrol, and the Monona County Sheriff”s Office, along with DNR Conservation Officers Gary Sisco and Aaron Johnson were assisted with the rescue.

HARRISON COUNTY, Iowa – The Iowa Department of Natural Resources said Sunday, that at around 9:13-a.m. Saturday, divers with the Midwest Regional Dive Team recovered the body of a Nebraska kayaker and hunter that was missing since Friday evening. The body has been identified as 33-year old Cody Bengford, of Bellevue, Nebraska.  The body has since been transported to the Iowa Office of the State Medical Examiner in Ankeny for an autopsy.

Investigators believe Bengford left the boat ramp at the Nobles Lake Wildlife Management Area on Friday afternoon to head out for a bow hunt in the Desoto National Wildlife Refuge.  Bengford was reported missing that evening after he didn’t return. Two DNR Conservation Officers responded and began search and rescue efforts. Bengford’s overturned kayak was recovered a short time later along the north shoreline of the lake, however his body was not found. Search and rescue operations were suspended at 1:46am and resumed around 7:00am Saturday morning.

DNR Conservation Officers were assisted by the US Fish and Wildlife Service, Council Bluffs Fire Department, Harrison and Shelby County sheriff’s offices, Harrison and Shelby County Emergency Management, Missouri Valley Fire and Rescue, Modale Fire Department, Midwest Regional Dive Team, and the Iowa State Patrol.

WATERLOO, Iowa (AP) — Iowa investigators are working to determine who fatally shot a woman while she was driving in April. The Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier reports no arrests have been made yet in the April 28 death of Micalla Rettinger. She was a former softball player at the University of Northern Iowa who was driving home from work at a bar with two passengers when the shooting happened.

Rettinger died and one passenger was hurt in the shooting that happened in a remote area between Waterloo and Cedar Falls on Highway 218. Police Maj. Joe Leibold says the bullet and other evidence was recently sent to a Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms lab for additional testing.

Rettinger was from Lenexa, Kansas. She had been living in Waterloo since graduating in 2016 from college.

Emergency responders from Griswold and Lewis were called to the scene of a 4-wheel ATV accident northeast of Griswold this (Sunday) afternoon. An adult male was trapped under the machine in Turkey Creek, just east of 58488 Midway Road. The man was conscious and breathing, with a possible broken leg. The accident was reported at around 2:25-p.m.

Griswold Fire and Rescue, Lewis 1st Responders, Medivac, Atlantic Fire and Rescue, and Cass County Sheriff’s Deputies were enroute to the scene soon after the call went out. Atlantic Fire & Rescue was asked to respond with their ATV, as the terrain where the accident took place was difficult to navigate.

No other details are currently available.

Members of the Exira-EHK School Board are set to meet 6-p.m. Monday, in the Conference Room at the Elk Horn Building. On their agenda is a Spartan Media Presentation, followed later on by discussion and/or action with regard to:

• The Certified Enrollment numbers.
• Approval of: the Certified Annual Report (CAR Report); Special Education Report; and the Transportation Report.
• Approval of a Memorandum of Understanding between the Audubon County Sheriff and Exira-EHK.
• Approval of an Early Retirement Plan for the 2019-2020 School Year.
• Approval the second reading of Board Policies.
• and discussion/action with regard to Personnel Hires, Transfers, Resignations, etc.

The Iowa Department of Public Health says after a few years of plateauing, reported cases of syphilis are increasing in Iowa. Data through August 31, 2019, indicate 209 cases of syphilis have been reported this year, an 11% increase when compared to the same time period in 2018. When examining only the early/infectious stages of syphilis, the increase is even more significant, with 142 cases reported as of August 31 – a 25% increase compared to the same time period in 2018.

Authorities say although increases are occurring in both men and women, the rate of increase for women is much higher. For example, secondary syphilis cases among women increased to 15 through August 31 (compared to two cases during the same time period in 2018). Increases in syphilis among women correlate with increases in congenital syphilis (which occurs when a pregnant person is infected with syphilis, remains untreated, and passes the infection on to the fetus or neonate). There were three congenital syphilis cases in Iowa in 2018. Public health officials are investigating a probable case in 2019, as well.

CDC released national 2018 STD data earlier this month. These data indicate continued increases for chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis, but highlighted increases in syphilis, particularly congenital syphilis.
State and national data highlight the importance of prevention, early diagnosis and early treatment for syphilis.

Given the recent increases in diagnoses, increased testing efforts are encouraged for all sexually active populations. At a minimum, pregnant women should be tested at their first prenatal visit. Because syphilitic infection can occur during pregnancy, testing at 28-32 weeks gestation is also often beneficial.

The Adams County Sheriff’s Department reports a man pulled over for speeding on Highway 34 and Notchwood Avenue early this (Sunday) morning, barricaded himself in his vehicle before leading authorities on a pursuit. Officials says the Adams County K9 Unit conducted the traffic stop at around 1:34-a.m., on a vehicle driven by Matthew Bowlden, of Waterloo. During an investigation, the K9 “Baxo” was deployed, and alerted to the odor of narcotics. Bowlden then barricaded himself in the vehicle, and refused numerous orders to exit his vehicle.

Taylor County Sheriff’s Deputies arrived on the scene to assist, and again Bowlden was ordered to get out of his vehicle, but refused. When deputies tried to gain entry into his vehicle, Bowlden fled from the scene and went westbound on Highway 34, at speeds in excess of 100-miles per hour. He then turned southbound into Brooks and continued on gravel roads before eventually losing control and wrecking his vehicle near 255th and Filbert Avenue.

Bowlden was taken into custody and charged with: Eluding law enforcement; Possession of a Controlled Substance/1st offense; and Interference with Official Acts. He was also cited for: Speeding (103 in a 55 mph zone, 80 mph in a 40 mph zone and 80 mph in a 30 mph zone); Failure to Obey a Traffic control device; Failure to Maintain Control; No Insurance – accident related; Careless driving; Failure to carry a Registration card, and Operating a non-registered vehicle.

Montogomery County Sheriff’s Deputies also assisted in handling the incident.

Two Guthrie County deputies who were shot while executing a search warrant late Thursday night in Stuart, have been released from a hospital, and are now recovering at home. Guthrie County Sheriff Marty Arganbright told KCCI in Des Moines, that Deputies Steven Henry and Jim Mink, who were sent home Saturday, are doing well, and he hopes to have them back to work soon. Deputy Kent Gries, who suffered from powder burns during the incident and was also injured, was released earlier, and is also recovering at home. A Stuart Police Officer was discharged from the hospital early Friday morning. The suspect they were trying to arrest and who opened fire on law enforcement Thursday, 52-year old Randall Comly, was shot at least twice and is recovering in police custody.

Comly remains in law enforcement custody at an undisclosed hospital in Des Moines. Criminal charges have yet to be filed in connection with the shooting. The Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation’s Major Crimes Unit said Friday the incident remains under investigation, and may take several weeks to complete.

DES MOINES, Iowa — This week (National Teen Driver Safety Week) and every week, parents should have conversations with their teens about the important rules they need to follow to stay safe behind the wheel. These rules address the greatest dangers for teen drivers: alcohol, inconsistent or no seat belt use, distracted and drowsy driving, speeding, and number of passengers. Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for teens (15 to 18 years old) in the United States – ahead of all other types of injury, disease, or violence. In 2017, there were 2,247 people killed in crashes involving a teen driver (15 to 18 years old), of which 755 deaths were the teen driver.  This is a 3% increase from 2016.

Alcohol and Drugs: All teens are too young to legally buy, possess, or consume alcohol.  However, nationally in 2017, 15% of teen drivers involved in fatal crashes had alcohol in their system.  But alcohol isn’t the only substance that can keep teens from driving safely.  According to the 2017 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 6.5% of adolescents 12 to 17 years old reported using marijuana.  Like other drugs, marijuana affects a driver’s ability to react to their surroundings.  Remind teens that driving under the influence of any impairing substance could have deadly consequences.
Seat Belts: Wearing a seat belt is one of the simplest ways for teens to stay safe in a vehicle. A total of 539 passengers died in passenger vehicles driven by teen drivers and more than half (60%) of those passengers who died were NOT buckled up at the time of the fatal crash. Even more troubling, in 87% of cases when the teen driver was unbuckled, the passengers were also unbuckled.  The chances of surviving a traffic crash are 45% higher when properly restrained in a seat belt.
Distracted Driving: Distractions while driving are more than just risky—they can be deadly. In 2017, among teen drivers involved in fatal crashes, 9 percent were reported as distracted at the time of the crash.  The use of mobile devices while driving is a big problem, but there are other causes of teen distracted driving which pose dangers as well.  They include adjusting the radio, applying makeup, eating or drinking, or distractions from other passengers in the vehicle.
Speeding: In 2017, almost one-quarter (27%) of all teen passenger vehicle drivers involved in fatal crashes were speeding at the time of the crash, and males were more likely to be involved in fatal crashes than females.
Passengers: Teen drivers transporting passengers can lead to disastrous results.  Research shows the risk of a fatal crash goes up in direct relation to the number of passengers in a car. The likelihood of teen drivers engaging in risky behavior triples when traveling with multiple passengers.
Drowsy Driving: Teens are busier than ever: studying, extracurricular activities, part-time jobs, and spending time with friends are among the long list of things they do to fill their time. However, with all of these activities, teens tend to compromise something very important—sleep. This is a dangerous habit that can lead to drowsy driving or falling asleep at the wheel.

In 2018, Iowa lost 29 young drivers between the ages of 14 – 20 in motor vehicle crashes. Four of those drivers had a blood alcohol over the legal limit and nine of these young people were unbelted.  The Iowa Department of Public Safety and the Governor’s Traffic Safety Bureau encourages you to talk to your teen drivers about safe driving practices. Losing even one is one too many, don’t you think?

(Statistics provided by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration)