331 AM CDT FRI JUL 6 2012

AREA COUNTIES: CRAWFORD-CARROLL-GREENE-AUDUBON-GUTHRIE-DALLAS-CASS-ADAIR-MADISON-ADAMS-UNION-TAYLOR-RINGGOLD….

…EXCESSIVE HEAT WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 7 AM CDT SATURDAY…

AFTERNOON HIGHS TODAY WILL ONCE AGAIN REACH THE UPPER 90S TO LOWER 100S…A FEW DEGREES WARMER THAN THURSDAY IN MANY LOCATIONS. HEAT INDEX VALUES WILL REACH THE 105 TO 110 DEGREE RANGE BY LATE THIS AFTERNOON. THE COMBINATION OF HOT TEMPERATURES AND HIGH HUMIDITY WILL CREATE A DANGEROUS SITUATION IN WHICH HEAT ILLNESSES ARE LIKELY.

AN EXCESSIVE HEAT WARNING MEANS THAT A PROLONGED PERIOD OF DANGEROUSLY HOT TEMPERATURES IS OCCURRING. DRINK PLENTY OF FLUIDS…STAY IN AN AIR-CONDITIONED ROOM…STAY OUT OF THE SUN…AND CHECK UP ON RELATIVES AND NEIGHBORS AND PETS.

TO REDUCE RISK DURING OUTDOOR WORK…THE OCCUPATIONAL AND HEALTH ADMINISTRATION RECOMMENDS SCHEDULING FREQUENT REST BREAKS IN SHADED OR AIR CONDITIONED ENVIRONMENTS. ANYONE OVERCOME BY HEAT SHOULD BE MOVED TO A COOL AND SHADED LOCATION. HEAT STROKE IS AN EMERGENCY – CALL 911.

COUNTIES: MONONA-HARRISON-SHELBY-POTTAWATTAMIE-MILLS-MONTGOMERY-FREMONT- PAGE…

329 AM CDT FRI JUL 6 2012

…EXCESSIVE HEAT WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 9 PM CDT THIS EVENING…

HEAT INDICES WILL CLIMB TO AROUND 105 DEGREES THIS AFTERNOON AS HIGH TEMPERATURES TOP OUT AROUND 100 DEGREES. THE COMBINATION OF HEAT AND HUMIDITY WILL BRING AN INCREASED RISK OF HEAT EXHAUSTION OR HEAT STROKE TO THOSE WORKING OR PLAYING OUTDOORS AND FOR THE VERY YOUNG AND ELDERLY.

Officials with the Iowa Department of Transportation (DOT) say contrary to published reports, I-DOT has not established an online driver’s license renewal system. Reports that a system took effect July 1st are inaccurate. Senate File 2338, an Act relating to government operations and efficiency and other related matters, contained a provision authorizing the Iowa DOT to begin online driver’s license renewal effective July 1st,  however, that bill was vetoed May 25th.

Because online driver’s license renewal is more cost effective to administer and convenient for the public, the Iowa DOT says it remains committed to establishing such a system in the future, however, no firm date has been set. The Iowa DOT says it is presently exploring options that may permit establishment of such a system without necessitating revisions to the Iowa Code. When a system is made available, the Iowa DOT will notify the public.

Meanwhile, the Iowa DOT is making an increasing number of driver services available online. If you want to look at your driving record or receive an electronic reminder when it is time to renew your driver’s license, sign up today at: https://mymvd.iowadot.gov/.

A Page County man was arrested Tuesday evening on a federal warrant for being a felon in possession of a firearm. Clarinda Police Chief Keith Brothers says 34-year old Rodney Dean Adams, Jr., of Clarinda, was taken into custody without incident at his residence, at around 6:50-p.m.  He is currently being held in the Page County Jail without bond, awaiting extradition by federal authorities.  The federal arrest warrant for Adams, Jr., stems from an earlier incident that occurred on April 27th, 2012, in the 100 block of West Washington Street. Brothers says the Page County Attorney’s Office, The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and the Clarinda Police Department jointly investigated the incident which resulted in the man’s arrest.

Iowa State Executive Director for USDA Farm Service Agency, John R Whitaker today (Thursday),  announced that Administrator Bruce Nelson has made physical loss loans available for 21 Counties in Iowa.  Farm operators who have suffered major physical losses caused by hail, excessive rain, high winds, and tornadoes on April 14th, 2012, may be eligible for low-interest emergency loans.  

The Administrator’s Physical Loss Notification has been issued for five counties as the primary damaged area.  Among the primary counties are:  Fremont,  Montgomery, Page, and Union.  Sixteen Iowa counties are contiguous to the designated disaster area, making those producers also potentially eligible for the program based on the designation.  In the KJAN listening area, the contiguous counties include:  Adair, Adams, Cass, Madison, Mills, Pottawattamie, Ringgold and Taylor.  

The Farm Service Agency may make Emergency Loans to eligible family farmers which will enable them to return to their normal operations if they sustained qualifying losses resulting from natural disaster.  Physical loss loans may be made to eligible farmers to enable them to repair or replace damaged or destroyed physical property, including livestock losses, essential to the success of the farming operation.  Examples of property commonly affected include; essential farm buildings, fixtures to real estate, equipment, livestock, perennial crops, fruit and nut bearing trees, and harvested or stored crops.  

The applicant must be unable to obtain credit from other usual sources to qualify for the Farm Service Agency Farm Loan Program assistance.  The interest rate for emergency loans is 3.75%.  Each applicant applying for credit will be given equal consideration without regard to race, creed, color, marital status, or national origin.

The Cass County Sheriff’s Office this (Thursday) morning, identified the victim of a drowning Wednesday night in the Nishnabotna River, near Lewis. Sheriff Darby McLaren said the woman was 31-year old Nicole Roberts, of Lewis. Roberts was last seen at around 9-p.m. in the river, just south of the “rock cut,” a popular picnic area along the West Nishnabotna River near Cold Springs Park, Southwest of Lewis.

The Cass County 9-1-1 Center received a 9-1-1 call at 9:14-p.m. Wednesday, from a person who reported a possible drowning. Divers from the Midwest Regional Dive Team responded, and recovered Roberts’ body at 11:24-p.m. Memorial services for Nichole Roberts will be held 11-a.m. Monday, July 9th, in the chapel at Hockenberry Family Care Funeral Home, in Atlantic.

Authorities in Cass County do not recommend persons swim in the river area of the rock cut. The currents are very unpredictable, and the river is very deep at that location. The area is over three-quarters of a mile from the nearest access road, which makes access to the area by emergency responders, problematic.

Responding to the scene of the incident Wednesday night, was: The Cass County Sheriff’s Office; Lewis, Griswold and Atlantic Fire Departments; Griswold Rescue; Medivac Paramedic Ambulance; Cass County Emergency Management; the Iowa State Patrol, and the Midwest Regional Dive Team. The team consists of members from Cass and Ringgold Counties, along with personnel from the Red Oak and Clarinda Dive Teams.

The Red Oak Police Department reports two teens were arrested early this (Thursday) morning, in connection with recent burglaries. Officials say an unnamed 17-year-old male and a 14-year-old male were both arrested without incident, at around 4- a.m.  The older teen was being held in the juvenile detention center in Council Bluffs, while the 14-year-old was released to the custody of a parent. No other details are available. 

The Red Oak P-D says also, 45-year-old Kevin Wayne Triplett, of Red Oak, was arrested Wednesday evening following a traffic stop. Triplett faces Possession of a Controlled Substance and Drug Paraphernalia charges. The man was being held in the Montgomery County jail on $2,000 bond.

The Atlantic Police Department reports a Villisca man, 23-year old Derek Cooper, was arrested Wednesday. Cooper was taken into custody on charges of Driving Under Suspension and having no SR-22 Insurance. He was booked into the Cass County Jail and held pending an appearance before the magistrate.

w/ Ric Hanson

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In an update to a story we posted on KJAN.com and our related social media sites Thursday night, divers late that same evening recovered the body of a female who drowned while swimming in the West Nishnabotna River near Cold Springs State Park south of Lewis, in Cass County, Wednesday night. Cass County9-1-1 Director Rob Koppert told KJAN News a 31-year old western Iowa female was out with some friends and family in an area known as the “Rock Cuts.”  He said the woman “apparently got herself into a situation where she couldn’t get herself out of, and unfortunately drowned.” The incident was reported to authorities at around 9:15-p.m., Wednesday. Her body was recovered at around 11:24-p.m. The woman’s name has not yet been released. Koppert said early this (Thursday) morning, that they were still looking into getting ahold of the victim’s relatives. He said it’s likely the name will be released sometime before noon today.

The area known as the “Rock Cuts” is popular destination for family picnics and swimming during the summer, but it is very remote, and has dangerous currents. Koppert said “Unfortunately, where the Rock Cuts are….because of the currents, it’s awfully deep there…about 30-to 40-feet deep.”  The currents can create a whirlpool effect, and create a “Very dangerous situation,” even if  you are very good swimmer.” The same site was also where a four-year old Atlantic boy drowned in July, 2005.

Koppert said families with children need to keep eyes on them at all times. He said if you are going to go to the Rock Cut area, keep in mind it is very accessible only on foot or with an ATV. Rescuers have issues getting to the scene, because it is three-quarters of a mile from the nearest access road, and they can’t easily bring their vehicles and equipment to the area fast enough to effectively safe the life of a drowning victim. Because the remoteness of the site complicates rescue efforts,  Koppert recommends people not swim in the area, at all.

A few hours before the Cass County incident, three children, ages nine and seven, drowned while swimming in the Iowa River, near Marshalltown. Marshalltown Police Chief Mike Tupper says the two girls, one 7 and the other 9, and one 7-year-old boy found Wednesday night, were family members. Authorities searched the river for more than three hours after they were separated from others who were swimming. Tupper said the search effort there was also hampered because of the difficulty in rescuers getting to the location in the river where the children went under the water.  Tupper says drought has left the river shallow, and difficult to launch a rescue boat. There are places where it’s only ankle deep, but other pockets of 12-plus feet of water. No names have been released in connection with that incident. Last month, another child drowned in the same river about two miles away.

On Sunday, a Council Bluffs man died after jumping out of a boat in a Sarpy County, NE, lake, and failed to resurface. The body of 34-year old Michael Hartsook was recovered at around 7:30-p.m. Tuesday, by some of the same members of the Midwest Regional Dive Team who searched the West Nishnabotna River Wednesday night for the latest drowning victim. The dive team is comprised of members from Cass and Ringgold Counties, along with the Red Oak and Clarinda Fire Departments. Also aiding in the Cass County Rescue efforts, was the Cass County Sheriff’s Office, Atlantic Fire & Rescue, Lewis 1st Responders, Griswold Rescue, Medivac Paramedic Ambulance Service, Cass County Emergency Management, the Iowa State Patrol.

(Posted 2:20-a.m.)