Photo: Katelyn Johnson

The City of Stuart is experiencing a growth spurt and a new water tower built in town caused a grammatical stir this week. As the water tower was being painted the town name appeared correctly on one side but not on the other. One side of the tower spelled out “START” and had a bit of a clip on part of the first T. Photos and videos of the misspelling went viral on social media in the area. The contractor later explained that the name wasn’t centered properly on that side of the tower initially and was going to be repainted. It has since been fixed up.

The town is expecting the construction of around 150 new homes and that is why the new water tower was going up. Current residents mostly got a chuckle out of the temporary snafu.

COUNCIL BLUFFS, IA – The U-S Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa reports Cass County (Iowa) man was sentenced Tuesday, for conspiring to distribute fentanyl causing serious bodily injury or death. 19-year-old Mason Blaine Loudermilk was sentenced in Council Bluffs US District Court, to 192 months (16-years) in prison. Loudermilk must serve a six-year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.

According to court documents, Loudermilk plead guilty to conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance. The investigation revealed that between August 2020 and May 2022, Loudermilk obtained fentanyl, in pill form, from a source in Omaha, Nebraska. In turn, Loudermilk distributed the pills containing fentanyl in and around Cass County (Iowa) causing several fentanyl overdoses, each overdose requiring medical attention to prevent death.

United States Attorney Richard D. Westphal of the Southern District of Iowa made the announcement. Agencies involved in the investigation include the Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement, Atlantic Police Department, Cass County (Iowa) Sheriff’s Office, Shelby County Sheriff’s Office, Southwest Iowa Narcotics Enforcement Task Force (SWINE), Council Bluffs Police Department, Iowa Division of Intelligence, Iowa State Patrol, Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation Crime Lab, Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Omaha Police Department.

Fentanyl has become the leading cause of drug overdose deaths in the United States. Counterfeit, fentanyl-laced pills often resemble pharmaceutical pill, but contain potentially lethal doses of fentanyl. Visit the Drug Enforcement Administration’s website to learn more about One Pill Can Kill.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – Rescue crews and law enforcement responded to the scene of a single-vehicle accident Wednesday evening, south of Atlantic. The page about the SUV accident at 620th (S. Olive St.) and Jasper Road, went out at around 7:13-p.m.  Two people were injured, one suffered from a head laceration. The other arm pain. A helicopter was dispatched out of Des Moines was asked to land at the Cass County Hospital. The vehicle license plate came back as being registered to a 2004 Jeep Liberty.

Atlantic Police, Cass County Sheriff’s Deputies, Atlantic Fire & Rescue along with Cass EMS. Additional information was not immediately available.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – Sheriff’s officials in Cass County, Wednesday, released information with regard to recent arrests.

On Wednesday, June 21st, deputies arrested 33-year-old Jeffrey Rowland, of Council Bluffs, on a warrant for Violation of Probation.  Rowland was transported to the Cass County Jail where he was booked and held.

On June 18th, Cass County deputies arrested: 44-year-old Daniel Anderson, of Adair, on a valid arrest warrant; and, 32-year-old Charles Masmar, of Waterloo, was arrested for OWI 1st Offense.  Both men were transported to the Cass County Jail where he was booked and held pending release on their own recognizance.

On June 17th, 28-year-old St Raed, of Council Bluffs, for Driving While Barred.  Raed was transported to the Cass County Jail where he was booked and held pending his later release on bond.

On June 15th, 59-year-old Connie Nichols, of Atlantic, was arrested on a warrant for Possession of a Controlled Substance.  Nichols was transported to the Cass County Jail where she was booked and held pending her later release on her own recognizance.

And, on June 13th, 43-year-old Nathan Hobbie, of Shenandoah, was arrested in Cass County for OWI 1st Offense.  Hobbie was transported to the Cass County Jail where he was booked and held pending his later release.

(Rural Carroll County, Iowa) – The Iowa State Patrol, Wednesday evening, released details about a fatal UTV accident that took place Tuesday afternoon, southeast of Carroll. The Patrol reports a 2017 Chevy Express van driven by 60-year-old Paul Heuton, of Carroll, was traveling north on Olympic Avenue at around 2:26-p.m., at the same time a 2022 John Deere Gator UTV operated by 62-year-old Randy Daniel, of Glidden, was traveling east on 230th.

When Daniel failed to stop at the posted stop sign prior to entering the intersection, Heuton took evasive action, but was unable to avoid striking the UTV on its passenger side.

The UTV rolled and entered the northeast ditch, along with the Express van. Randy Daniel was transported  by ambulance to the Carroll County Hospital, where he died from his injuries. He was not wearing a seat belt. Another person was injured, but the Patrol’s report did not indicate that person’s name or age. It’s also not clear which vehicle that person was a passenger in.

Carroll County EMS and Carroll County Sheriff’s Office assisted at the scene.

The Guthrie County Sheriff’s Office reports no one was injured during a single vehicle accident on Tuesday afternoon. Deputies responded to the accident on Wagon Road at 2:26 p.m.

After investigation it was determined that a 2007 Buick Lucerne driven by 70-year-old Vernon Arthur Pote of Stuart was southbound on Wagon Road and went off the road onto the west shoulder and lost control. The car went into the cable barrier causing damage to the car and barrier before coming to a stop.

Pote was not injured in the accident and following a field sobriety test was charged with OWI First Offense and Failure to Maintain Control.

Damage to the car was estimated at $1,500 and damage to the cable barrier was estimated at $6,000.

Iowa Congressman Zach Nunn is hoping to insert guaranteed federal investment in broadband infrastructure in the next Farm Bill.

Nunn, a Republican from Bondurant, is co-sponsoring a proposal with lawmakers from Minnesota and Illinois that would make the U-S-D-A’s ReConnect pilot program permanent. Since 2018, the pilot program has been providing grants and loans to extend high speed internet to rural areas.

Five years ago, President Trump’s ag secretary redirected 200 million dollars in agency funds to a pilot program and it has continued in the Biden Administration, but congress has not voted to make these U-S-D-A loans for broadband permanent. Nunn says Iowa currently has the second slowest internet speeds in the country and that’s unacceptable.

And Nunn says slow internet speed can be a health issue, as rural Iowans who have telemedicine appointments with a doctor who’s miles away can’t get a reliable connections.

Nunn says broadband is also critical for precision agriculture — farm equipment connected to the internet so it adjusts planting and fertilizer applications based on field maps. A U-S-D-A report in 2021 found 30 percent of U-S farms had either no or very slow internet.

COUNCIL BLUFFS, IA – A Council Bluffs woman was sentenced June 15th for possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance. 33-year-old Amanda Marie Sprinkel was sentenced to 60 months in prison following her plea of guilty to possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance. Sprinkel must serve a four-year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.

According to court documents, on September 20, 2022, Southwest Iowa Narcotics Enforcement Task Force executed a search warrant on a home in Council Bluffs. Amanda Sprinkel was located sitting in a vehicle in the driveway of the Council Bluffs residence. Officers witnessed Sprinkel throw an object on the driver side floorboard. A backpack was found containing 62 grams of suspected methamphetamine. A search of Sprinkel’s phone would later show messages negotiating narcotic transactions and other messages arranging and discussing narcotic sales.

United States Attorney Richard D. Westphal of the Southern District of Iowa made the announcement. The Southwest Iowa Narcotics Enforcement Task Force investigated the case

The Audubon School Board met for their regular meeting on Monday in the Elementary Work Room. The two major topics during the meeting were website upgrades and the progression of facility projects.

The board approved an agreement with Apptegy to update the district’s website and develop and app that the public will be able to use to get calendars, lunch menus, and other information from. Superintendent Eric Trager said they hope this will upgrade the user experience and provide a good face from the school to the public.

Mr. Trager said some work has been completed on some outdoor facility maintenance.

He also said that their main building construction project continues to progress on time right now.

The next regular meeting for the Audubon School Board will be Monday, July 17th at 7:00 p.m. in the Elementary Workroom.

The Adair County Board of Supervisors met in their regular session on Wednesday morning at the Adair County Courthouse. During the meeting they discussed the county handbook which will be approved at their end of the month meeting. Sheriff Jeff Vandewater pointed out that the family leave policy is slightly different for his department compared to the general handbook due to the nature of having overnight shift employees. The board agreed the policy appeared to be fair.

Sheriff Vandewater also made a request to push some vehicle purchase funds over to fiscal year 2024 due to production delays on vehicles they are waiting for.

The board moved to approve the fund shift. In other news the VA board asked for the re-appointment of John Schildberg to the VA board.  That request was also approved.

The board also decided to table approval of the secondary roads benefit policy until their next meeting. They also approved contract and performance bond for W14 Jefferson Bridge project.