A unique event is set for Saturday in Atlantic. The Ba-Da-Ba-Da Bing Bang Rally will feature more than 25 large military vehicles from Iowa and nearby states. The vehicles will be arriving in Atlantic Saturday morning. They then will be parked at the American Legion Memorial Building also known as the former National Guard Armory at 201 Poplar.

The Rally provides a way for collectors to show off their machines and for everyone to get up close and maybe even get a ride. The public is encouraged to visit the display between 10:00am and 3:00pm. A cruise will leave the Armory at 3:30 to end at Sunnyside Park. Viewers can view vehicles on the move on south Chestnut Street, 22nd Street and Sunnyside Lane.

City officials have been notified that the start date for the Highway 6 construction project in Atlantic will be Tuesday, May 26th.  The project area is expected to be shut down after the morning rush on the 26th and remain closed until completion.

Officials with the Iowa Department of Transportation have said the public will be informed each week through the local media, about detours for Highway 6 in Atlantic. The road is scheduled to be closed from the intersection of Olive Street and Highway 6 (7th Street) east to just past the entrance to Burger King.

In the days leading up to construction, orange “Trailblazing” detour signs with the names of each business will be erected, directing people to those local businesses they would normally have access to on 7th Street.

Signs will also be placed at 7th and Olive directing traffic to 10th Street for local, through traffic. Other, non-local or “Global” traffic will take Highway 173, Interstate 80 and U-S Highway 71 into or around Atlantic.

Project updates will be made available to the media for dissemination to the public on Monday afternoons, following meetings with the contractor, once construction begins. The idea is to keep the public informed on progress being made.

The scholarship committee of The Trevor Frederickson Memorial Fund handed out two $750 scholarships to this year’s recipients, Stephanie Freund and Jennifer Hohenberger of Atlantic. In addition, $200 will be sent to the charity of their choice in hopes of starting a new tradition of paying it forward.

The Organization also announced a recent donation to the Nishna Valley YMCA’s 2015 Partnership with Youth campaign. The Trevor Frederickson Memorial Fund donated $1000 to the annual campaign as a Chairman’s Roundtable Member. Pictured are Laena Frederickson and Grant Petty, siblings of Trevor’s. They encourage others to donate by stopping by the YMCA and talking to Michelle to make your donation.

Clarinda Police Chief Keith Brothers reported this morning that a student is missing from custody at Clarinda Academy. At 5:45am Clarinda Academy 17-year-old student Correy Jared Thunder Hawk of Sioux Falls, SD escaped from the facility by jumping out of a dormitory window. Thunder Hawk is a 5′ 6″ Native American weighing 145 lbs. with black hair and brown eyes. He was last seen wearing a blue sweat shirt and gray sweat pants.

Thunder Hawk is considered dangerous. If you see the escaped student you are encouraged to not approach him and call 911.

Iowans should be prepared for the possibility of severe weather this weekend. National Weather Service meteorologist Rod Donovan says scattered storms will be moving into southwest Iowa this afternoon and spreading statewide overnight.

“We could have a few storms that could produce hail up to the size of quarters. That will be the main threat with these, in addition to brief periods of heavy rainfall,” Donovan says. A better threat of severe storms, with large hail and strong winds, may arrive Saturday night.

“Overnight Saturday night, we could have some storms moving out of Nebraska and Kansas into the area and bring the threat of severe weather, especially over the western portion of the state,” Donovan says. An EF1 tornado struck the west-central Iowa town of Lake City last weekend. Donovan says there’s a chance for more tornadoes later this weekend.

“The day to be watching is Sunday and it will really depend on the timing of the system and what time (storms) move through the state,” Donovan says. “There are some indications now that it may not move through until early afternoon or mid-afternoon and certainly that would enhance the risk for stronger storms and the potential for a few tornadoes.”

High temperatures today through Sunday are expected in the 70s. Dry, but much cooler conditions are in the forecast for Monday and Tuesday.

(Radio Iowa)

The Creston Police Department reports one recent arrest and a reported home invasion.

Early this (Friday) morning at 1:14am Creston Police arrested 56-year-old Donald Brown of Creston for Public Intoxication.  Brown was arrested near the intersection of New York Avenue and Union Street.  He was taken to the Union County Jail and held on $300 bond.

Creston Police also received a report of a break in on Thursday at 3:20pm.  Lena Darling reported that someone had broken into her home at 422 Livingston Avenue in Creston through a basement door between 1:30pm and 3:20pm on Thursday.  Many items were taken from the home including a 36″ flat screen tv, a 14K gold ring, laptop, tablet, silver ring, medication, surround sound system among other items.  Loss was estimated at $4,205.  The incident remains under investigation.

w/ Chris Parks

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DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – The Iowa Legislature will face another week of negotiations as they struggle to reach a budget compromise that will allow them to conclude their session.

Leaders said Thursday there was still work to do before they can adjourn. The Republican-led House and Democratic-majority Senate have not been able to agree on an overall spending level or how much new money to provide to schools.

Senate Majority Leader Mike Gronstal, a Democrat from Council Bluffs, said the two sides were trying to find ways to make some one-time payments to make up the difference between their budget proposals.

House Speaker Kraig Paulsen, a Hiawatha Republican, did not detail why lawmakers are having difficulty, but said they were dealing with a perennial problem: “Democrats want to spend more than Republicans.”

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Des Moines officials intend to keep operating its traffic cameras along Interstate 235 while the city goes to court, challenging a state ruling that the cameras must be turned off.

Deputy city attorney Carol Moser told The Des Moines Register that the cameras “are in our jurisdiction, and we enforce traffic violations in that area.”

The Iowa Transportation Department recently rejected requests from Des Moines, Cedar Rapids, Muscatine and Council Bluffs to keep operating their camera systems.

Council Bluffs Mayor Matt Walsh said his city likely won’t challenge the state directive. Officials in Cedar Rapids haven’t decided on whether to appeal, and Muscatine Mayor DeWayne Hopkins has said the city is considering its options.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Two more Iowa farms have tested positive for bird flu.

The Iowa Department of Agriculture says two northwest Iowa farms raising young chickens to eventually lay eggs likely have the virus. No estimate of numbers was immediately released for a farm in Sioux County, the 12th case in that county and one in Plymouth County, the first case there.

Iowa has 52 bird flu cases in 14 counties. Nearly 25 million chickens and 970,000 turkeys will die.

South Dakota announced Thursday its first chicken farm with 1.3 million egg layers. The state earlier found the virus on turkey farms.

Nebraska officials confirmed their second case, a chicken flock, and Minnesota reported two new cases.

The USDA lists 162 confirmed cases nationwide affecting more than 33 million birds.