Officials with the Iowa DNR said Tuesday afternoon, an electrical short in a well house serving the city of Elliott in Montgomery County prevented the well from coming online, and residents of town are being advised to drink bottled water only. Although the well is back online, it will take several hours before the tower refills and pressure is restored.

Due to high nitrate levels, the bottled water advisory has been issued. Bacteria samples have been collected today (Tuesday), and another set will be collected tomorrow (Wednesday). Until those samples are cleared, the city is furnishing bottled water to citizens, available at the town hall.

Test results may be available late Thursday at the earliest, or more likely Friday. Citizens should use bottled water until then. Infants who drink water containing nitrates in excess of the standards could become seriously ill and, if untreated, may die. Symptoms include shortness of breath and blue baby syndrome.

All residents should use only bottled water. Do not boil tap water, as boiling increases nitrate concentrations.

The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office says no injuries were incurred during a single vehicle accident on Tuesday.  At approximately 1:38pm a 1999 Silver Dodge Dakota pickup owned and operated by Austin M. Petersen of Red Oak was traveling westbound on 190th.  Petersen lost traction on the snow/slush covered road and crossed the center-line entering the south ditch of 190th Street near the intersection with J Avenue.  The left rear of the truck struck a utility pole causing the left rear axle to shear off and damage the box side of the truck.  The truck sustained an estimated $2,500 damage and there appeared to be no damage to the utility pole.  No citations were issued and the investigation is complete.

SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) – A major snowstorm is creating dangerous travel conditions as it moves across the Plains. Officials closed a section of Interstate 29 between Sioux City, Iowa, and Tea, South Dakota, because the snow and wind combined to limit visibility. Several inches of snow had already fallen in the Sioux City area Tuesday morning, and the snow is expected to continue throughout the day.

At the Pilot Travel Center truck stop along I-29 in Sioux City, there wasn’t much traffic Tuesday morning because conditions are so bad. Manager Dean Habhab says the store is staying busy taking care of the truck drivers who pulled off the highway ahead of the storm and remain parked in the parking lot. Habhab says he couldn’t see more than half a mile outside around mid-morning Tuesday.

Cass County Auditor Dale Sunderman reports today’s Special Election for the CAM Community School District will proceed as scheduled. The polls are open from Noon until 8-p.m.

Patrons of the CAM Community School District will vote on extending and increasing the Physical Plant and Equipment Levy (PPEL). The levy can be used for a number of expenditures including construction of buildings, purchasing property, buses and technology equipment, and energy conservation expenditures. The levy cannot be used for staff salaries or supplies – those expenditures must come from a school district’s General Fund.

The district currently has a voter approved PPEL in the amount of .67 cent per $1000 of property valuation. The district is asking for a .67-cent increase, to $1.34 per $1000 of property valuation. District officials say they plan to use the funds to improve and maintain their current facilities, purchase school buses and purchase technology for students and staff.

The polling center for CAM patrons living in the Grant, Franklin, Benton, or Lincoln Township in Cass County , in Adair County or Audubon County, will be held at the Anita Community Center. Voters’ residing in Union, Bear Grove, Noble, or Edna Townships in Cass or Adams County will vote at the Cumberland Community Building. Voter’s residing in that portion of the CAM Community School District residing in Massena or Victoria Township in Cass County or in Adams County will vote at the Massena Public Library.

The results of the vote will be canvassed by the Cass County Board of Supervisors, Thursday, beginning at 1-p.m.

LEON, Iowa (AP) – Authorities say two Missouri men have died after falling through thin ice on Little River Lake in southern Iowa. The Decatur County Sheriff’s Office says rescue crews were called to the lake just north of Leon when someone reported seeing a person fall through the ice around 2 p.m. Sunday.

Officials who initially arrived said the ice was so thin that rescuers could not stand or crawl on it. The Midwest Regional Dive Team was called, and members were able to pull 63-year-old David Adair, of Knob Noster, Missouri, from the lake. Adair was flown to Mercy Medical Center in Des Moines. Hospital spokesman Gregg Lagan says Adair died at the hospital later Sunday.

Crews also pulled the body of 33-year-old Joe Adair, also of Knob Noster, from the lake.

Ted Cruz won the Iowa Republican Caucus Monday night, while Hillary Clinton pulled-off a very slim victory over Bernie Sanders in the Democratic Caucus. Locally, 28.4% of Cass County Republicans voted for Donald Trump. Ted Cruz received 24.4% of the vote. Marco Rubio garnered 19%, Ben Carson 15.4%, and Jeb Bush 3.7-percent.

Cruz, Trump and Rubio finished one-two-and three in votes cast in Audubon, Guthrie, Adair and Shelby Counties, while the second and third place finishes flip-flopped in Adams and Montgomery Counties, where Rubio placed second and Trump came in third.

Cass County Democrats cast 60% of their vote for Hillary Clinton, while 38% voted for Sanders. Just 2-percent voted for Martin O’Malley. In the surrounding counties, Clinton won over the caucus voters in Audubon, Guthrie, Adair and Adams Counties. Sanders won in Shelby, Pottawattamie and Montgomery Counties.

The results for each county in Iowa are available at the Iowa Secretary of State’s website at https://sos.iowa.gov/

Blizzard conditions are causing all sorts of travel problems on the ground and in the air in Iowa today (Tuesday). Travel is not recommended by the D-O-T in many areas and tow bans are in place. National Weather Service Meteorologist Kelsey Angle says it’s a storm that is going to last awhile. “We have a big area of low pressure that moving threw the plains and the Midwest. And with temperatures cold enough, as well as well enough moisture, that is producing snow across Iowa,” Angle says.

He says the storm is bringing in colder temperatures. “Well we do expect temperatures to remain below freezing for much of the week,” Angle says. “And with strong winds we will see blowing and drifting of the snow continuing throughout the day, as well as tonight.”

The National Weather Service predicts the strong winds in western and northern Iowa will increase throughout the day. The winds have already caused problems in western Iowa, as American Airlines gate agent Troy Martin says their flights out of Sioux City were canceled. “It’s just a lot of heavy winds, a lot of heavy snow. Visibility is less than a half mile, and we are not going to be flying today,” Martin says.

He says the flights tomorrow morning may be canceled too if the planes cannot get in from Chicago.He says the airline will be rebooking people and they can call and find out what flight they are on if they haven’t gotten a call from the airline. There’s either a blizzard, winter or ice storm warning for most of Iowa. Parts of the state will get six-to-twelve inches of snow, as well as extremely hazardous travel conditions.

(Radio Iowa)

THE CITY OF AUDUBON WILL BE DELAYING GARBAGE/RECYCLING PICKUP BY ONE DAY. PICKUP THIS WEEK WILL BE WED/THURS DUE TO THE STORM.

Public Works is issuing a SNOW EMERGENCY NOTICE that will become effective on Wednesday from 5-am to 4-pm. The code reads as follows: In the event of a snow emergency proclamation, no person shall park, abandon, or leave unattended any vehicle on any public street, alley, or City-owned off-street parking area during any snow emergency unless the snow has been removed or plowed from said street or alley or parking area and the snow has ceased to fall.

During such emergency, parking shall specifically be prohibited between the hours of 5:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. expect that parking shall be allowed after the snow has ceased to fall and cleaning operations have been completed.

Also: parallel park in the business district if there is a windrow of snow in the street.

The City of Corning has extended its Snow Emergency Declaration for 12 hours, effective tonight (Tuesday), at 8-p.m.  At that time, all parking restrictions will be in effect the same as a new snow emergency. No parking will be allowed on marked snow route streets during the first 12 hours of the snow emergency.

Except for the business district in Corning, parking during the first 12 hours on all other streets will be on the south and west side only. For the remainder of the snow emergency, parking will be allowed on the north and east side of the street, if not prohibited by signs. All NO PARKING signs and direction of travel parking, will be enforced.

More area and State news from KJAN News Director Ric Hanson.

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