Today (Monday) marks the beginning of Severe Weather Awareness Week in the state. National Weather Service meteorologist, Jeff Johnson says there weren’t many tornadoes in 2011. “In Iowa, we had what I would call a pretty normal year. We had 51 tornadoes, we average 47, that’s pretty close to normal,” Johnson says. “What was interesting about last year though, was that most of those tornadoes occurred on or before April ninth, so many of those tornadoes were early in the year in 2011.”

Johnson says it is too early to tell what type of year 2012 will bring for severe weather.  “A lot of people have been talking about the recent warm weather and if there is a correlation between that and active severe weather, and there really isn’t much of a correlation between an active severe weather season and the early spring warmth,” Johnson says. He says there’s also not much of a correlation between a warm summer after a warm spring. The National Weather Service has special theme days all week to teach Iowans the dangers of severe weather.

Johnson says the theme for today is flash flooding. “Which is the number one thunderstorm-related killer in the United States from weather, it’s not tornadoes, it’s actual flash flooding,” according to Johnson. He says Tuesday will talk about how to get a warning, Wednesday’s theme centers on tornadoes and there will be a statewide tornado drill, and finally, family preparedness is the theme on Friday.

Johnson describes the tornado drill scheduled for 10 a-m Wednesday morning: He says they will come out with a tornado watch at 10 and that will last for about an hour. “And then at about 10:15, give or take a few minutes, we will issue a tornado warning and it will go off over your weather radios, it will go out over the emergency alert system to the radio stations and many, many communities will be testing their siren systems at the same time,” Johnson says. He says this will be a good time for businesses to test their evacuation plans. You can find out more information on severe weather in Iowa at www.weather.gov.

(Pat Powers & Dar Danielson/Radio Iowa)

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press

Officials with the Iowa Lottery say 108,143 tickets sold in state won prizes in Friday’s world-record Mega Millions jackpot drawing, including two tickets that came within one number of having at least a share of the jackpot and won prizes of $10,000 each. The two tickets that each won a $10,000 prize matched four of the first five numbers drawn and the Mega Ball. They were both purchased in southwest Iowa, at Taylor Quik Pic, in Shelby; and Bucky’s Express, in Council Bluffs.

The winning numbers in Friday’s $640 million Mega Millions jackpot drawing were: 2-4-23-38-46 and Mega Ball 23. The Megaplier was 3. Three tickets nationwide matched all six numbers drawn to win a share of the jackpot.

In addition, someone who bought a Powerball ticket at a Council Bluffs supermarket won a $1 million prize in Wednesday night’s drawing. It’s the third $1 million-winning Powerball ticket purchased in Iowa in a little more than a month. The latest big-winning ticket, sold at Hy-Vee, 1745 Madison Ave. in Council Bluffs, came close to winning it all, matching the first five numbers but missing the Powerball in Wednesday’s drawing. The winning numbers in the $50 million Powerball drawing were: 11-16-29-50-58 and Powerball 33.

The Atlantic Coca Cola Center and Museum will open for the first time this year, next Saturday, April 7th. The museum’s hours will be from 1-3pm each Saturday thereafter. An official “Grand Re-opening” of the museum will take place later this summer.

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press

Atlantic broke a record high temperature set 44-years ago on March 31st (in 1968), when we hit 87-degrees today (Saturday).  The forecast calls for record high temperatures across the area Sunday, as well. In Atlantic, we could hit 90-degrees Sunday, which would break the record of 87, set as recently as 2003. Temps are expected to cool back into the upper 70’s, on Monday.

The Adams County Sheriff’s Office reports 19-year old Shelby Kate Evans, of Corning, was arrested late Saturday morning on a charge of Driving While Barred. Evans was brought to the Adams County Jail and held on a $2,000 bond.

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A distribution center that will send out an assortment of products to non-profit and charity groups is now open in the Omaha-Council Bluffs area. Cindy Hallberlin is president of “Good Three-Sixty” which is new to the region.”We provide the largest on-line product donation marketplace in the world creating a 360-degree circle of good,” Hallberlin says, “good for businesses, good for communities, good for the environment and most of all, good for the people in need across this country and internationally as well.” 

Hallberlin says those non-profit and charity groups register with Good360 and can then use the online catalog to obtain toys, clothing, hygiene products, office supplies, household goods and more. “We look a lot like eBay with one important distinction,” she says, “eBay connects those who have with to who want. Good360 connects those who have to those in need.” Hallberlin provides more detail about how it all works:

“So, you’re a charity, your searching through, you find a necessary product, you don’t have to pay for it,” she says. “You write a small administrative fee that covers the cost of shipping and handling. Then a few days later, the product arrives at your doorstep. How does that happen? Every day we work with 25-percent of the Fortune 100 companies, donors, generous companies donate products to us.” 

Those companies donate items that could come in large quantities and they will be shipped into the distribution center in Omaha. The large cartons, pallets and truckloads are then repackaged for shipping to member organizations. Good360 is partnering with one charity now that provides labor but they hope to expand and add to the workforce down the road.

(Matt Kelley/Radio Iowa)

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press