Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 3:40 a.m. CDT

DUBUQUE, Iowa (AP) — Some Dubuque parents are concerned about the end of an elementary school’s charter status, despite officials saying many of the school’s practices will remain in place. The Telegraph Herald reports that the Dubuque Community School Board voted in January not to renew Prescott Elementary School’s status as a charter school. Officials said they believed the school didn’t see significant improvement in student achievement during its 12 years as a charter.

MAQUOKETA, Iowa (AP) — A Dubuque man charged in the stabbing death of a Bellevue man has pleaded not guilty. The Telegraph Herald reports that 23-year-old Drew Mangler entered a written plea last week in Jackson County District Court. Mangler is charged with first-degree murder in the death of 59-year-old James Remakel. Police found Remakel’s body after being called to a house in Bellevue on Dec. 25, 2016.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — An Iowa maker of wind turbine blades has been fined nearly $155,000 for multiple workplace safety violations. The Des Moines Register reports that Iowa’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration levied the fines against TPI Composites for violations at its Newton plant. The citations support complaints from dozens of former workers who say TPI didn’t properly protect them from dangerous chemicals that caused them severe skin injuries.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Many cities in Iowa have implemented new restrictions on fireworks a year after the state allowed legal sales for the first time since 1938. Des Moines and Cedar Rapids both banned the use of fireworks after last year’s season. So have other large cities including Davenport, Waterloo, Iowa City, Ames, Dubuque and West Des Moines. Although cities can ban the use of fireworks, they can’t stop firework sales. Officials expect between 700 and 800 retail locations will sell fireworks this year.

Fremont County Sheriff Kevin Aistrope reports early this (Monday) morning, Deputies with the Fremont County K9 Unit stopped a vehicle at Old Highway 275 and 310th st in Hamburg, for a traffic violation. During the course of the stop the driver of the vehicle, 30-year old Christopher Wyland,of Hamburg, was found to be in possession of a controlled substance and drug paraphernalia.

Wyland, who was out on Pre-Trial Release from previous drug charges in Fremont County, was arrested and transported to the Fremont County Law Enforcement Center, where his bond was set at $1,000.

C Wyland

Clean-up continues in north-central Iowa after heavy rain on Friday and Saturday caused flooding and straight-line winds ad hail caused property and crop damage across Cerro Gordo and Floyd Counties Saturday afternoon. Mason City Mayor Bill Schickel. “We estimate that probably better than 50 percent of the 28,000 residents in Mason City experienced some type of water damage, mostly basement flooding, so there’s been a lot of people impacted by this,” Schickel says, “some very severely and then some much more of a minor situation.”

The mayor says there were evacuations on Saturday night. “We had a number of residents impacted by the flood along the Winnebago River and other parts of Mason City,” Schickel says. “We notified 90 residents for a voluntary evacuation. Our police, fire and emergency management personnel went door-to-door in Mason City in the neighborhoods along the Willow Creek.”

One resident sought shelter at the Salvation Army. Sandbags for homes and businesses are available at the city’s maintenance headquarters. As Mason City residents started the clean-up Sunday, they’ve been placing damaged items on the curb, including large things like freezers and sofas, but Schickel says garbage crews won’t be hauling those things away until the city is out of its state of emergency.  “Hopefully if we get out of the woods later on Monday or Tuesday, we can start looking at those clean-up kinds of things,” Schickel says.

Mason City’s water treatment plant and drinking water supply is safe and secure, according to city officials. Flood clean-up kits are available at the Mason City Fire Department. Cerro Gordo County Emergency Management director Steve O’Neil says any material that was touched by flood water should be removed. “Carpets, furniture — clean that outside. If you can’t clean it, please dispose of it. Otherwise rinse everything down (with) a bleach mixture and the instructions are with that are very important. There are some health risks as far as mold and if there happens to be sewage, there’s some other situations too.”

For example, water heaters and furnaces impacted by flooding should be inspected before put in back in use. A number of roads outside of Mason City have been damaged by flooding. Mason City’s police chief asked residents to stay off the roads if more than an inch of rain falls in the next 24 hours, as street flooding would likely throughout the city. The city’s operations manager is asking residents to reduce water use, as Mason City’s sanitary sewer plant has been running at capacity and suffered some minor damage from this weekend’s storms.

(Radio Iowa)

The Cass County Sheriff’s Department is expected to release details about a chase that wound its way through Atlantic late Sunday night. According to reports, the vehicle was pursued on Highway 6 through Atlantic, Wiota, Anita and onto eastbound Interstate 80 before the suspect was taken into custody about a mile east of the Casey exit. During the chase, speeds reached up to 100-miles per hour.

KJAN News spoke briefly with Deputy Tim Olsen at around 10:45-p.m. outside the Cass County Jail. He said they had just arrived at the facility and were still processing the information. No other details were immediately available.

WATERLOO, Iowa – Heavy rains from this weekend have caused flooding of the Cedar River; therefore, George Wyth State Park will be closing Sunday (Today) at 6:00 pm. The Cedar River is expected to crest on Wednesday and the main roads in the park are expected to be covered by water. Trails and other areas of the park may also be impacted by the flooding within the park. Park officials hope to have the area back up open for public use by next weekend.

Before you head out to any of the state parks, be sure to check for closures by visiting: http://www.iowadnr.gov/Places-to-Go/State-Parks/Alerts-and-Closures.

Heavy rain and downed trees limbs caused power outages in Atlantic Sunday afternoon. The Cass County Communications Center has received numerous calls about power outages. Loud zaps could be heard in the area of 6th and Mulberry Streets where a tree limb was coming into contact with the power lines. Power surges were observed at 3rd and Mulberry. All stop lights are out east of 7th and Olive Streets. Fire alarms were also going off at IWCC, probably as the result of the power surges.

AMU has been notified.