Des Moines – The Iowa Department of Corrections reports James Scott Hoffman, who was convicted of Robbery 2nd Degree and other charges in Polk County, failed to report back to the Fort Des Moines Reentry Center as required, Thursday.

Hoffman is a 66-year-old white male, height 5’10”, and weighs 197 pounds. He was admitted to the work release facility on May 12, 2023.

Persons with information on Hoffman’s whereabouts should contact local police.

James Hoffman

(Harlan, Iowa) – Shelby County Auditor Mark Maxwell reports new practices for Shelby County owned cropland in Shelby County are being used this year. Maxwell says there will not be an auction this year.  The Board of Supervisors and the Solid Waste Board will collect sealed bids at the Auditors office until November 17th and be opened on November 21st, 2023 at the regularly scheduled Board of Supervisors meeting.  Bid packets for both properties are available at the Auditors office or by calling 755-3831 extension 6.

Shelby County and the Shelby County Solid Waste Board each have farm ground available for rent for the 2024 crop season.  The Shelby County Farm is approximately 145 acres. The Solid Waste Board Farm located at the county landfill is approximately 103 acres. Separate sealed bids are required for each farm.

The bids must be received in the Auditors office by November 17th at 4:30 pm. A 10% down payment is due upon acceptance of the highest bid by the Supervisors.

(Update 3:45-p.m.: All responding Atlantic & Marne units have been told to disregard the field fire page.)

(Elk Horn, Iowa) – Firefighters with the Marne and Atlantic Fire Departments were requested to assist other firefighters in in Shelby County in battling a field fire south of Elk Horn this (Friday) afternoon. The fire was approaching a residence in the vicinity of Highway 173 and 500^th Street.

There are also reports of a field fire in Pottawattamie County. Yesterday (Thursday), there were two separate reports of combine fires in the area.

(Radio Iowa) – The Board of Regents will seek an additional one million dollars from the Iowa Legislature to address the mental health needs of students. Regent Abby Crow of Tiffin made a motion for the money during Thursday’s meeting, citing discussions with students.

“A central point of our conversation was the need for expanded mental health services and the benefits this will bring to our students at our Regent Universities,” she says. “Student leaders also provided us with a unanimous letter imploring us as Regents to support their efforts for expanded mental health resources and funding.” Crow says it is not the first time the issue has been discussed.

“I know as regents we’ve heard these needs presented consistently in recent years by students and university administrators highlighting an opportunity we have to address a central issue that touches the lives of many,” Crow says. She says if the funding is approved, the students want to continue their involvement.

“Our student leaders at our Regent universities would be extremely grateful to be involved in further conversations going forward regarding the specific allocation of this funding,” she says, “and offer their insight as to what specific mental health related resources programming or staffing might do the most good at their respective institutions.”

The Board voted to approve the request, which will go to the Iowa Legislature in January. Crow graduated from the University of Iowa in May 2023 with a degree in human physiology and a minor in biology. Her board biography says her goal is to pursue a career in the medical field, and is currently a nursing assistant at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics.

(Radio Iowa) – The calendar says fall but the thermometer says summer. Forecasters say much of Iowa’s southern half will see near-record high temperatures in the low 90s today (Friday) through Sunday. State climatologist Justin Glisan says it could be the start of a trend as the El Nino pattern is setting up, which may mean Iowans will be facing a warmer-than-normal winter ahead.

“We are getting a clear signal in the climate prediction outlooks for December, January, February, meteorological winter, which are showing elevated chances of warmer conditions across the upper Midwest including Iowa,” Glisan says. “This meshes well with previous years in which we’ve seen El Nino in wintertime and into early spring.” Glisan says it’s still too early to predict how much precipitation may fall in the winter ahead, including rain, freezing rain and snow.

“So we’ve had years in which we’ve seen above-average precipitation, we’ve seen years in which we’ve been below-average,” Glisan says, “so as of right now, not a clear signal in terms of precipitation, but definitely we’re looking at the potential for a warmer winter.”

While traditional calendars have winter starting on December 21st this year, the climatological winter Glisan referred to is from December 1st through the end of February.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – It’s that time of year once again, when the Cass County Conservation Board asks “When do you think the first Trumpeter Swan will arrive at the Schildberg Quarry?” Please call in your prediction (by November 10^th) to the Conservation Board at 712-769-2372, leave a message and return phone number if their staff are not in.

Duplicate dates will not be allowed. For example, if a caller predicts November 25th, no one else will be allowed to predict that arrival date. So, call anytime until November 10th to make your prediction! One prediction per family, please. The sponsors of this contest will determine the official arrival of more than 6 trumpeter swans to Lake 4, and if they arrive before the Nov. 10^th no more dates will be taken.

The winner will receive a Trumpeter Swan Prize from the Cass County Conservation Board. Sorry, this contest is only for residents of Cass County.

Trumpeter Swans have visited the Schildberg Quarry for, at least, Twenty-four out of the last twenty-five winters. Arrival and departure dates of the swans have been as follows:

1997/1998 December 18 – January 2

1998/1999 Nothing on record

1999/2000 December 25 – February 15

2000/2001 November 23 – March 6

2001/2002 December 25 – February 24

2002/2003 November 23 – March 15

2003/2004 November 26 – March 21

2004/2005 November 25 – March 18

2005/2006 November 17 – March 5

2006/2007 October 30 – March 9

2007/2008 November 22- February 14

2008/2009 November 18- March 12

2009-2010 November 19 – January 5

2010-2011 November 5 – February 10

2011/2012 November 17 – February 21

2012/2013 November 24– March 4

2013/2014 November 12- April 7

2014/2015 November 11- April 6

2015/2016 November 22- March 24

2016/2017 November 19- March 9

2017/2018 November 9- March 20

2018/2019 November 11- January 23

2019/2020 November 8- March 3

2020/2021 November 30- February 13

2021/2022 November 22- February 28

2022/2023 November 22- February 22

(Sidney, Iowa) – A woman from North Carolina died this (Friday) morning in Fremont County, when she was struck by a semi tractor-trailer. The Iowa State Patrol reports a 2012 Kenworth semi driven by 44-year-old Jeffrey Hartley, of Glenwood, was leaving a parking/fueling area traveling eastbound. When Hartley turned south from a truck stop onto 211th Avenue north of Highway 2, the semi he was driving ran over 65-year-old Debora Lee Turbett, of Lexington, NC, as she was walking west across 211th.

The woman died at the scene. The semi is registered to Scales Sales and Service, out of Glenwood. The Patrol was assisted in their investigation by the Fremont County Sheriff’s Office.

(Harlan, Iowa) – Officials with the Shelby County Emergency Management Agency report the County will be going into a burn ban, starting Sunday, October 1st. The ban is being implemented due to a high fire danger, and water shortages around the county. The Shelby County EMA will update residents when the ban is lifted.

(Shambaugh, Iowa) – The Page County Sheriff’s Office has released the name of the man whose body was discovered following a house fire Sept. 18th, in Shambaugh. The State Medical Examiner’s Office performed an autopsy on the victim, who was identified as 63-year-old Jimmy Wayne Blank, of Shambaugh.  The autopsy determined Blank died as a result of smoke from the fire.

The sheriff’s office was dispatched on Sept. 18th to a house fire at 409 Cinder Alley in Shambaugh. After fire departments from Clarinda and Braddyville extinguished the fire, Blank’s body was found during the investigation of the structure.

The State Fire Marshal along with the Clarinda and Braddyville Fire Department investigated the cause of the fire.

(Radio Iowa) – More than ten-thousand dollars was raised for an ailing firefighter at this week’s benefit meal in the Wright County community of Eagle Grove. Fire chief Tom Peterson says 21-year-old firefighter Lance Hennigar is having an expensive, major surgery next month and the department decided to hold a fundraiser. “We had fire trucks from all over the county show up and we probably served about 300 meals,” Chief Peterson says. “We had 30-some silent auction items donated, local industries and businesses donated for the fundraiser. We even had a fireman from Pennsylvania that was passing through and he stopped and had dinner.”

Hennigar’s kidney transplant operation is scheduled for October 10th at University Hospitals in Iowa City. He only has one functioning kidney and his mother already donated one of hers to her son. It could take six months to a year for Hennigar to heal. The 21-year-old has VATER syndrome which affects several parts of the body.

Lance Hennigar

Those who would like to contribute to the Lance Hennigar Fund can mail donations to the Eagle Grove Fire Department.