A Nevada woman was injured Saturday after an approximately 40-foot fall from a cliff along the Lost Lake Trail located on the southwest side of Ledges State Park in Boone County. Officials with the Iowa DNR identified the woman as 19-year old Shannon Novak. She was taken by ambulance to Methodist Medical Center in Des Moines after suffering injuries to her back and ankle.

Novack was with two friends when she lost her footing and fell from a sandstone outcropping over the Des Moines River known as Solstice Rock shortly after 1:30 p.m. She was conscious and talking with bystanders when rescuers reached the scene.
Because of the ruggedness of the trail, Novack was instead taken downstream to the waiting ambulance by a boat from the Boone County Search and Rescue.

A man on a motorcycle lead authorities on a high-speed chase from Interstate 80 to Highway 59 and Shelby County Road F-58, before entering Elk Horn and driving on sidewalks and through yards between houses. He dumped the bike near the high school and ran on foot before being apprehended in the vicinity of F-58 and Madison Street, just before 10-p.m., Saturday.

The Iowa State Patrol and several other local law enforcement agencies were involved in the chase. The suspect was described as being a white male, about 220-to 230 pounds. He was transported to Myrtue Memorial Hospital in Harlan to be checked and treated for possible injuries following his being apprehended. Authorities said later the motorcycle had expired license plates out of Nebraska.

No other details are currently available. A second motorcycle chase was reported in Pottawattamie County late Saturday night, though no other details were immediately available.

Red Oak Firefighters were dispatched to 311 West Washington Street in Red Oak at 5:59am for a reported detached garage fire.  Upon arrival firefighters discovered a 12’x24′ garage fully engulfed in flames.  The garage and everything inside, including a 2001 Ford Fusion, were a total loss.

Firefighters were on scene for a little over an hour and were assisted at the scene by Red Oak Police. The fire also damaged a power pole and power lines belonging to MidAmerican Energy whom was on scene making necessary repairs shortly after flames were under control.  Mediacom was also notified of damage to their lines at the scene.

Red Oak Fire and Red Oak Police believe the fire is suspicious in nature and anyone with information is asked to call the Red Oak Police Department at 712-623-6500 or the Red Oak Fire Department at 712-623-6504.

(6/23 –Corrects hours/days of business – incorrect info. from the Chamber)

Officials with the Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce say a Grand Opening Ceremony for the new Arnold Motor Supply store will be held 9:30-a.m. Tuesday, June 23rd. The store is located at 1206 SW 7th Street, in Atlantic. Normal business hours are 7:30 a.m. to- 6:00 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 7:30-a.m. to 1-p.m. on Saturday. The store offers retail as well as paint and body services. Adam Kohrs serves as the store manager.

The Arnold Group of Companies was started in Spencer, in 1927 by E.P. Arnold and is one of the largest partnerships in the United States with stores in Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, Illinois, and Missouri. The company includes 52 auto parts stores as well as three warehouses, three light industrial coating distributors, one paint and body shop supply store, and a cylinder head re-manufacturing division.

Nineteen locations have complete machine shops located within the stores. The Arnold Motor Supply stores are affiliated with Auto Value Parts Stores one of the largest chain of auto parts stores in the United States.

The 2015 Cass County Relay for Life was held on Friday night at the Atlantic High School Track with hundreds of supporters participating  and large donation money raised.  Sunny weather welcomed a day full of events that began in the morning with a tractor ride that left from the Cass County Fairgrounds hosted by the Mahle relay team.

A motorcycle ride also was held starting at 1:00pm at the Atlantic City Park and ending at Relay for a donation presentation by the Windbags and UCC Riders team.

The survivor dinner took place at the Atlantic High School commons from 4:30pm-6:00pm with a big turnout of survivors enjoying a meal graciously donated by the Atlantic HyVee.

At 6:00pm survivors took to the track to open up the Relay event and celebrate another year of birthdays with all others present cheering them on.  The beautiful night included a variety of entertainment, education, kids activities, food and other fun.

The Luminary ceremony wrapped up the night honoring loved ones lost and supporting those still fighting Cancer.  The committee announced at the end of the night that the running total of donations was at $60,678 to support the American Cancer Society and the fight against Cancer.

The committee would like to send a huge thank you to all participants, teams, sponsors and all others that help make Relay for Life in Cass County a huge success.

w/ Chris Parks

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The Red Oak Police Department reports an arrest Friday evening at 5:36pm.  37-year-old Roger Lynn Gibson II of Stanton was arrested at 106 West Coolbaugh Street in Red Oak on a charge of Violation of Probation.  Gibson II was taken to the Montgomery County Jail and booked in on $5,000 bond.

A food drive benefitting the 4-H Food Stand at the Cass County Fair is underway in Atlantic. The Fair takes place July 23rd through the 28th. Liz Denney, Food Stand Coordinator, says that creates a fast need to get their grocery list put together. Denney says people have, in the past been very generous in their donations, and she hopes that continues this year, as well.

She says they’re working to generate a supply of groceries for the food stand, with local grocery stores and businesses setting-up receptacles and other ways to contribute. Fareway and Hy-Vee grocery stores in Atlantic are participating in the effort. Fareway has a cart placed in the store with a list of the items needed and people can purchase those items. Simply tie the bag shut and place them in the cart (to be picked up weekly). Hy Vee is “selling” Clovers and Blue Ribbons ($1 and $5 respectively)…which are then displayed in the store. Proceeds from the sales will go toward the purchase of items needed for the fair (by the Food Stand committee).

Drop-off boxes for food items are available at Rex Pharmacy, KJAN and Simply Hair.
Homemade goods are also welcome at the food stand. Such as a two-crust, fully-baked pie, brownies, cakes, fresh garden produce that is not cut-up, or any salad ingredients.

Gluten free dessert recipes are also welcome. And, financial donations to the 4-H Food Stand may dropped off the ISU Extension/Cass County Center, in Atlantic, or at Simply Hair. Volunteers are also an integral part of the Food Stand. She says they have about 450 volunteers who work in shifts. If you can donate time to work a few hours, let her know.

Call Liz Denney at 712-254-0561, if you can set aside some volunteer time. Food stand hours Thursday through Tuesday morning, July 23rd through the 27th, are 6:30-a.m. to 10-p.m. The final Tuesday of the Fair, which is Sale Day, the hours are from 6:30-a.m. until 10-a.m., with breakfast being served.

The daytime menu includes Windsor Chops, Lamb and Ham balls, Roast Beef, Chicken and Noodles and during their evening they’ll serve hot beef sandwich, with hot pork sandwiches being offered as an option, Friday and Saturday evening.

Sunday is Father’s Day and while it’s usually a time reserved for celebrating our dads with gifts of neckties and golf putters, a study finds it’s the most dangerous day of the year to take a drive in Iowa. Alex Murphy, spokesman for the Governor’s Traffic Safety Bureau, says new figures show Father’s Day has become the state’s highest single fatality holiday.

“When we started looking through this data, it surprised all of us in the office and we thought if it surprised us, it has to surprise everyone across the state,” Murphy says. “Nationally, the 4th of July is the deadliest holiday on roadways, but then we started looking closer at Iowa’s numbers and it turned out Father’s Day is the deadliest.” Murphy calls it an “alarming” traffic safety trend. During the past 10 years, Iowa has recorded 19 traffic fatalities and 23 serious injuries in crashes on Father’s Day, Murphy says, “also, on June 22nd, that single day is the single most deadly day on Iowa roadways.” While New Year’s Eve is also a dangerous night to drive, given the typical winter weather combined with a higher potential for drunk drivers, Murphy could only speculate why Father’s Day has moved to the top spot of the deadliest days list.

“It’s nicer out, you have a lot more motorcycles on the roads, many more people are out traveling,” Murphy says. “It’s really hard to attribute it to anything specific but the nice weather could play a role in that, having more people out on the Iowa roadways.” For travelers this weekend, he reminds Iowans to buckle up, obey the speed limit and other posted signs and laws, watch for pedestrians and motorcyclists, don’t drink and drive, and avoid distracted driving.

(Radio Iowa)

(Updated 10:52-p.m.)

Police in Council Bluffs have apprehended a 35-year old female transient and her alleged male accomplice, who were said to be involved in the theft of a tow truck from a convenience store. Sgt. Darren Budd with the Council Bluffs P-D, said at about 9:06-p.m., Friday, uniformed officers of the Council Bluffs Police Department with the assistance of Adult Probation officers, located and arrested Jennifer Rae Malone, of Oakland (IA), without incident. Malone was taken into custody on a warrant for the following charges:
1.Criminal Mischief 2nd Degree
2.Theft 1st Degree
3.Conspiracy to Commit a Non-Forcible Felony
4.Control of a firearm by a felon
Bond on the warrant was set at $500,000.00. No additional charges have been filed.

Suspect Jennifer Rae Malone, 35, from Oakland.

The incident leading officials to suspect her in the case began at 9:48-a.m., Friday, when Todd Gochanour, the owner of Action Towing reported that his tow truck had just been stolen from the lot of Casey’s at 2301 S. 24th Street, in Council Bluffs. According to Gochanour, he had been called to Casey’s to unlock a car door. As he pulled into the lot, a female (later identified as Malone) waved him over to a white car. As Gochanour was getting out of his truck, a man standing near the white car stated, “I got it, we don’t need it unlocked”.

The woman that had waved Gochanour down became apologetic and asked him how much they owed him. When he told her that there was no charge, she offered to buy him something to drink. The two of them went into Casey’s, got a soda and approached the register for payment. The female then stated that she had forgot her money in the car and would be right back. The female exited Casey’s and got into the unlocked and running tow truck and sped off. The man who was with the female was seen following the tow truck on a black motorcycle. The white car in the parking lot actually belonged to one of the Casey’s employees and was not associated with the either of the suspects.

A customer inside Casey’s, who had witnessed the theft, followed the stolen tow truck into Omaha, where he witnessed the truck become involved in an accident near 13th and Dodge and then leave the scene. Minutes later, the tow truck was found abandoned in Council Bluffs, near 38th Street and Avenue C. Missing from inside the truck was an undetermined amount of cash and a .45 caliber Glock handgun that belonged to Gochanour.

At 10:25-a.m., another witness reported seeing a black motorcycle circling the parking lot at Ameristar Casino. As Officers approached the man, he fled on the motorcycle, leaving Ameristar’s property and traveling south on River Road, which dead ends under I-80. Once the man came to the dead end, he went off road and onto the bike trail system, traveling in a south easterly direction. A short time later, he was located on the motorcycle near an apartment complex in the 3200 block of Renner Drive. The man then abandoned the motorcycle and a short foot pursuit ensued, with him being apprehended in that same general area.

He refused to speak with the Police, or identify himself. Video from Casey’s General Store was used to positively identify him as the same man involved in the theft of the tow truck. The black motorcycle that the man had been riding was stolen out of Omaha. The man, who was booked into Pottawattamie County Corrections under the name John Doe, faces charges that include: Conspiracy, Theft 1st Degree, Theft 2nd Degree, Eluding, Possession of Controlled Substance (Methamphetamine), Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. Authorities were in the process of positively identifying the man through fingerprint comparisons.