The Danish Windmill’s Welcome Center in Elk Horn is just one of eight area attractions that will serve as stops planned for a specially wrapped motorcoach that will travel nearly 2,100 miles promoting more than 60 tourism destinations in 33 counties and 46 communities across the state in an “Epic Iowa Road Trip.”

The effort, a partnership among the Central Iowa Tourism Region, Eastern Iowa Tourism Association, Western Iowa Tourism Region and the Iowa Tourism Office, is meant to showcase and recognize Iowa’s travel destinations. The Epic Iowa Road Trip will take place May 2nd- through the 10th. Iowa Tourism Office Manager Shawna Lode says “Travel is big business in Iowa, as traveler spending here exceeds $7 billion annually. This trip will highlight Iowa’s thousands of tourism destinations and the people who manage them. Along the way, we want to inspire people to choose Iowa as a vacation destination.”

The tourism bus will be in Manning, Hamlin, Elk Horn, Avoca and Council Bluffs on Friday, May 9th, and in Council Bluffs, Beebeetown, Missouri Valley, at the Loess Hills National Scenic Byway, and two locations in Sioux City, on Saturday, May 10th. Stops those two days include, but are not limited to, the German Hausbarn, Darrell’s Place, the Danish Windmill, Farmall-Land in Avoca. (For the list of places and times, go to http://www.traveliowa.com/epiciowaroadtrip.

Shirley Phillips, Western Iowa Tourism Executive Director says the road trip makes for a great venue to showcase the diverse range of tourism options in Iowa, and is a way to say “Thank you,” to members of the tourism industry for their hard work.

The Iowa Tourism Office will share frequent accounts of the Epic Iowa Road Trip on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, its blog, Pinterest, Google+, Flickr. Videos will be posted to the Iowa Tourism Office’s YouTube channel. Iowans are encouraged to share their own Epic Iowa Road Trip pictures by using the hashtag #EpicIowaRoadTrip on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

Tourism in Iowa generates more than $7.6 billion in expenditures, employs 64,400 people statewide and generates $328 million in state taxes. The Iowa Tourism Office is part of the Iowa Economic Development Authority. For more information about Iowa tourism, visit www.traveliowa.com, call 800.345.IOWA or stop at any Iowa Welcome Center.

The Page County Sheriff’s Office reports a College Springs man was arrested early this (Friday) morning, for Violation of a No Contact Order.

Kevin Allen Long

Sheriff Lyle Palmer says the communications center received a call regarding 38-year old Kevin Allen Long, who was asleep in the residence at 411 Galesburg Avenue, in College Springs. Long lives at 504 Grove Street, in College Springs, and has a valid protection order against in place between himself and the resident at the Galesburg address.

Long was placed under arrest and brought to the Page County Jail, where he was being held without bond, pending an appearance before the magistrate.

Members of the CAM and Nodaway Valley School District’s Boards of Education will hold a joint meeting Monday evening, in Fontanelle. The special meeting takes place at 7-p.m. in the Nodaway Valley Middle School Media Center. During the session the two Boards will hold discussion with regard to the sharing of a superintendent.

They will then enter into a closed session for negotiations before adjournment.

The Atlantic Police Department says only minor injuries were reported following one of two accidents Thursday. Officials say a passenger in a vehicle driven by Monte Rubel, of Atlantic, complained of minor pain, but refused medical treatment. They were injured when Rubel’s vehicle collided with a vehicle driven by Raymond Gardner, of Escanaba, MI. The accident happened at around 3:40-p.m., as Gardner was backing out of a private drive near 14th and Olive Streets. Damage amounted to $7,500. Gardner was cited for Unsafe entry onto a roadway.

The other accident happened at around 10:30-a.m., Thursday, at the intersection of 7th and Olive Streets. Officials say vehicles driven by Everett Shepherd, of Aztec, NM, and James McCabe, of Marion, IA, collided as both were headed westbound on 7th Street. When McCabe stopped for the red traffic light, his vehicle was hit from behind by the Shepherd vehicle. The accident caused $3,600 damage. No citations were issued.

909 AM CDT FRI APR 25 2014…CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS TODAY…
AREA COUNTIES: POTTAWATTAMIE-MILLS-MONTGOMERY-FREMONT-PAGE-

A RED FLAG WARNING IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 PM CDT THIS EVENING FOR WIND AND LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY FOR SOUTHEAST NEBRASKA AND SOUTHWEST IOWA.

* WINDS…SOUTHWEST 15 TO 25 MPH WITH GUSTS UP TO 30 TO 35 MPH.

* RELATIVE HUMIDITY…AS LOW AS 15 TO 25 PERCENT.

* IMPACTS…CONDITIONS WILL BE FAVORABLE FOR FIRES TO START EASILY AND SPREAD QUICKLY. ALL OUTDOOR BURNING SHOULD BE AVOIDED.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS…

A RED FLAG WARNING MEANS THAT CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS ARE EITHER OCCURRING NOW…OR WILL SHORTLY. A COMBINATION OF STRONG WINDS…LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY…AND WARM TEMPERATURES CAN CONTRIBUTE TO EXTREME FIRE BEHAVIOR.

STORM LAKE, Iowa (AP) – A drug suspect sought by Arizona since 1997 has been arrested in the northwest Iowa city of Storm Lake. Police say 40-year-old Jesus Carlos Soto was arrested Wednesday at a construction site. He’d been working under another name. The warrants alleged possession of narcotics for sale and possession of marijuana for sale and were issued by Maricopa County authorities.
Maricopa County investigators tipped Storm Lake police on Wednesday that the FBI suspected Soto may be living in Storm Lake.

Soto remained in Buena Vista County Jail on Friday. He’s being held without bail, awaiting extradition to Arizona.

w/ Ric Hanson

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Persons looking for something to do Saturday in Cass County, have opportunities to get outside and enjoy the forecast mild conditions. The Cass County Conservation Board is holding two event events. The first, is a Wildflower Walk at the Pellett Memorial Woods, beginning at 9-a.m.  Join Naturalist Lora Kanning for a walk through the early Spring wild flowers, where you will learn their names, uses and history. Pellett Memorial Gardens is located one-half mile north and three-quarters of a mile east of the KJAN Studios, on North Olive Street.

The second event Saturday, runs from 10-a.m. until Noon, also at the Pellett Memorial Woods. It’s a Wildflower Geocaching Walk, where GPS units and guides will be available to help you locate early Spring wildflowers. Please pre-register by calling 712-249-2372, to obtain a GPS unit.

Above normal rainfall was received over the last two weeks in Iowa, with the statewide average was 2.3 inches, as compared to the normal 1.7 inches. However, in its latest Water Summary Report, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources notes more, slow steady rains are needed to bring us out of the drought. The National Drought Monitor indicates improvement in all categories of drought conditions across the state over the past two weeks. Over 35 percent of the state continues to be rated in moderate drought, and just over 5 percent is rated in severe drought. Nearly 60 percent of the state, however, is now shown without drought or just abnormally dry. Those driest areas continue to be two small locations in west-central and southeast Iowa.

The DNR says that although shallow groundwater levels in southern central, eastern and northeastern Iowa have benefitted from the rainfall, parts of southwest and northwest Iowa received very little rain and shallow groundwater levels are much lower than the previous April. Water supply operators in northwest Iowa are seeing reduced production, dropping water levels and historically low levels.

Stream flow has improved statewide, but remains below average. Northeast Iowa remains the wettest, while northwest Iowa is the driest. Groundwater conditions are still low across much of the state, but normal spring rains should continue to bring improvement.
Compared to a year ago, shallow groundwater levels are one to four feet lower in Johnson, Jefferson, Lucas and Montgomery counties, and the same or slightly higher in Marshall, Fayette, Crawford and O’Brien counties.

Compared to two years ago, shallow groundwater levels are 2 to 12 feet lower in Crawford, O’Brien, Jefferson, Johnson, Lucas and Montgomery counties.

w/ Ric Hanson

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