Legislators are growing frustrated as they seek answers to the “colossal” problems that have delayed the opening of the new state prison in Fort Madison. The facility was to open nearly a year ago, but problems with its ventilation systems are still being fixed. Department of Administrative Services director Janet Phipps Burkhead testified before the House Oversight Committee Thursday, but similar responses to a variety questions about the project.  “I just honestly don’t know that,” Phipps Burkhead often said.

Representative Vicki Lensing, a Democrat from Iowa City, says she was “disappointed” and hopes the director isn’t “stonewalling” legislators.  “Someone was calling the shots, so tell us who. And changes were made. Tell us who,” Lensing says. “Who authorized that?” Lensing and other legislators say they are “growing frustrated as they try to “connect the dots” and figure out what happened to the Fort Madison facility.

For the past 10 months Phipps Burkhead, who is an attorney, had led the state agency that is the project manager for the prison. She did confirm she’s working with lawyers in the attorney general’s office who are plotting a lawsuit against companies involved in the prison project to try to recoup some of the extra costs.

In 2008, the estimated cost of a new, maximum-security prison in Fort Madison was 132-million dollars. Officials now say the actual cost will likely be about 54 million more than that. The 800-bed prison is going to sit empty for several more months as companies are just now submitting bids to install a new smoke ventilation system and get it installed.

(Radio Iowa)

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) – Regional experts for the National Weather Service say the risk of flooding is at or below normal for Iowa this spring. Cedar Rapids television station KCRG says the reports released Thursday by service meteorologists in Des Moines and Davenport in Iowa and La Crosse, Wisconsin, covered the potential for river and lake flooding in their respective coverage areas through the end of May.

They cited the general lack of snowpack in much of Iowa and said stream levels and frost depths also were near normal for this time of year.  The meteorologists noted that their predictions could change with the weather. The weather service offices are scheduled to update their spring flooding outlooks on March 5.

The 8-a.m. Newscast w/KJAN News Director Ric Hanson.

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The Atlantic Police Dept. reports two men were arrested Thursday, on drug charges. 20-year old Austin Eblen, of Atlantic, and 21-year old Andrew Laughlin, of Neola, face charges that include Possession of a Controlled Substance/Marijuana, Possession of Drug Paraphernalia, and Gathering where Marijuana is Used. Both men were booked into the Cass County Jail.

A woman from Creston was arrested Thursday afternoon for Violating the terms of her probation. Creston Police say 30-year old Tara Squibbs was taken into custody at the Union County Law Enforcement Center, and later transferred to the Ringgold County Jail, where she was being held pending a bond hearing.

And a Creston woman reported to police that someone backed their vehicle into her garage at 605 S. Walnut Street. The incident, which happened sometime between Noon Tuesday and Noon Thursday, caused $1,100 damage.

(7-a.m. News)

The 7:06-a.m. report from KJAN News Director Ric Hanson.

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A woman from Shenandoah was arrested Thursday afternoon in Montgomery County, on drug charges. Mongtomery County deputies, in cooperation with the Fremont County Sheriff’s Office, arrested 43-year old Tiffani Jo Bredberg on Delivery of Methamphetamine and Possession of Meth, charges. Her arrest came during a narcotics operation at 7th Avenue and 8th Street, in Villisca. Bredberg was being held in the Montgomery County Jail on $100,000 bond.

And, at around 12-a.m. today (Friday), 21-year old Drew Dale Goodrich, of Creston, was cited for Driving While Suspended, following a traffic stop in the 2500 block of M Avenue, in Montgomery County. The stop was initiated because Goodrich was driving a Dodge Ram pickup without license plates. Goodrich was released on the citation. His truck was towed.

A union leader says employees at the state-run Mental Health Institutes in Clarinda and Mount Pleasant have been told lay-off notices are going out soon and the facilities will close a few weeks before the current state budgeting year ends on June 30th. Governor Branstad says he’s “not sure about the details” of layoffs at the two institutions. “But I do know that we can’t continue to just throw money at a broken system where we don’t have accredidation and we don’t have psychiatrists,” Branstad says. “We need to devise and develop a modern system that provides the best possible mental health services that we can provide.”

Senator Mark Segebart, a Republican from Vail who used to be a Crawford County Supervisor, says he’s “not against” what Branstad envisions, but Segebart says counties aren’t ready to “make the jump” yet and provide the services that the Mental Health Institutes have provided. “All we’ve really heard all year is ‘Don’t close ’em. We don’t have another option out there to send people to,’ and if you want to get in a room with a bunch of sheriffs, you’ll find that out real quickly,” Segebart says.

County sheriffs in southern Iowa say they’re either spending far more transporting people with acute mental illness to the two Mental Health Institutes in northern Iowa that are accepting patients, or they’re putting patients in local emergency rooms until space in a hospital psych ward opens up. Senate Democratic Leader Mike Gronstal says the governor’s “unilateral approach” without consulting with legislators is a concern. “We’re listening to mental health professionals and public safety people in this state and all of the indications we’re getting from those folks is they think it’s very unwise to close critical institutions in this state without having developed a plan for treating people that currently go to those facilities,” Gronstal says. “So dumping those folks on the street, hoping for better outcomes we think is a mistake.

Danny Homan is president of AFSCME Council 61, the union that represents many of the workers at the two Mental Health Institutes that are being closed. “Before you should shut down an MHI, you should have the community infrastructure in place,” Homan says. “We do not.” Homan says the first round of layoff notices will go this Monday for employees at the Mount Pleasant Mental Health Institute and for employees in Clarinda the first round of layoff notices are expected April 20th. Homan says employees were told this past Tuesday that the Clarinda M-H-I will close on or before May 18th and the Mount Pleasant facility will close around June 11th.

The two state-run facilities in southern Iowa are no longer accepting patients and officials are trying to transfer those who currently are being treated in Clarinda and Mount Pleasant to private facilities.

(Radio Iowa)

A woman who was a passenger in a van that went out of control and caused a multi-vehicle crash last Friday night (Feb. 13th), has died. Sgt. Darren Bud, with the Council Bluffs Police Department says 84-year old Bertha Weinfurtner, of Carter Lake, died Thursday night (2/19) at Nebraska Medicine, as a result of the injuries she suffered in the head-on crash. that happened in the 1600 block of West Broadway Street in Council Bluffs, at around 10:15-p.m., Friday.

That accident happened when the driver of the minivan, 77-year old Meredith Robinson, of Omaha, blacked out as his vehicle was traveling eastbound on west Broadway. The van  crossed into the westbound lanes of traffic and struck a Hyundai Elantra, driven by 51-year old Cassondra McCaune, of Des Moines. Her car spun around and hit a westbound Honda CRV, driven by 59-year old Mary Horan-Cummings, of Council Bluffs.

Horan-Cummings was not injured in the crash. Cassondra McCaune suffered critical injuries. Three other people in her car, all of whom are from Des Moines, were injured, as well. 29-year old Heather McCaune and 16-year old Kala McCaune, both suffered minor injuries. 63-year old Robert McCaune, suffered critical injuries. All four were transported to Creighton CHI in Omaha for treatment.

Meredith Robinson suffered minor injuries also. Witnesses indicated that speed may be a factor in the crash, which remains under investigation.

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press

WATERLOO, Iowa (AP) — Jurors have entered deliberation after attorneys delivered their closing arguments in the trial of an Iowa woman accused of killing her husband and his girlfriend more than 30 years ago. The Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier reports both the prosecution and defense made their closing statements Thursday in Waterloo in the murder trial of 54-year-old Theresa Supino, who was arrested in March in connection with the 1983 slayings of Steven Fisher and Melisa Gregory. Their bodies were found on the Copper Dollar Ranch northwest of Newton.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A House panel has approved a bill that would help Iowa abuse victims keep their home address confidential. Members of a public safety subcommittee approved the bill yesterday. It now moves to a full committee for consideration.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A House panel has approved a bill that would add fine arts to Iowa’s mandated education curriculum for K through 12 students. An education subcommittee approved the bill Thursday. It now advances to a full committee for review.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — West Des Moines plans to provide about $3.5 million to build an aquifer storage facility that Des Moines Water Works says will add 3 million gallons of water capacity on peak usage days. The Register reports that Des Moines Water Works will own and operate the facility, which will also be used to cool Microsoft’s new data center.