(Council Bluffs, Iowa/KJAN) – The holiday travel season is upon us. Americans will be making their way over the river and through the woods…to see distant – and not so distant relatives, by plane, train and automobile. If you’re traveling on the road to make your destination, be advised law enforcement agencies across the State will be watching to ensure drivers obey the rules of the road, and making it there and back, safely. Last year in Iowa, 11 people lost their lives on the State’s roads between November 15^th and the 28^th, which is the holiday traveling time-frame. State Patrol Trooper Ryan Devault with District 3 in Council Bluffs , says to-date, there have been 302 fatalities statewide since the beginning of the year.

Devault says seat-belts save lives. Since the beginning of the year also, 27 traffic-related deaths have occurred in the nine-county region Post 3 covers south of I-80 in southwest Iowa. That’s one more than the number of fatalities that occurred last year. The Iowa State Patrol, Governor’s Traffic Safety Bureau (GTSB), and other law enforcement agencies across the State, are working together to keep the Thanksgiving travel tradition alive, but reminding motorists of some simple tips.

The number of reckless, impatient and aggressive drivers have been increasing since the COVID virus began to wane and more motorists take to the road. Trooper Devault says over 90 crashes involve some sort of bad driver behavior, such as weaving in-and-out of traffic, tailgating and brake-checking other drivers.

Inattentive driving is another factor in many crashes. There are number of things that can make a driver want to take their eyes off the road, including conversations with people inside your vehicle. Devault offers this piece of advice…

And, of course, if your holiday plans involve an alcoholic beverage or two, don’t drive impaired.

In 2020, one-person was killed every 45-minutes in a drunk or impaired driver crash on the nation’s roads.

(Radio Iowa) – The La Nina weather pattern will influence Iowa’s climate for the winter ahead, likely bringing wetter and colder-than-normal temperatures. It’s the third winter in a row for La Nina, but observers do -not- expect it to make a fourth appearance. Meteorologist Doug Kluck, the climate services director for the central region of the National Weather Service, says they see La Nina fading early next year. “As time goes on, into the spring, we see a lessening of the chance of La Nina to sustain itself,” Kluck says, “better chances for something we call neutral, sort of in between La Nina and El Nino, that are chances for that kind of middle period.” Kluck says they expect cooler, wetter weather for the region during December.

“There’s better chances, leaning towards below-normal temperatures across the far north, really, the entire area except for Colorado,” Kluck says, “and then for us, it’d be the Missouri Basin being above-normal in terms of chances for precipitation.” Kluck says the expectation for December through February is similar. “We have that below-normal temperatures extending from the Great Lakes west to the coast. That’s a very, very, very strong La Nina-esque picture,” Kluck says. “That’s precipitation above-normal across the northern tier and Ohio River Basin. A lot of those places need the water, and so we hope they get it.”

With La Nina fading, Kluck says the expectation is for more normal weather trends across North America.

(Red Oak, Iowa) – A traffic stop in Red Oak early this (Monday) morning, resulted in an arrest. According to Red Oak Police, Officers stopped a vehicle for a traffic violation in the area of 2nd and Nuckols Street at around 12:32-a.m.  Upon further investigation, they determined 44-year-old Chad Michael Hill, of Red Oak, had a suspended license through the State of Iowa. Hill was taken into custody and held in the Montgomery County Jail on a $491.25 bond.

An accident in Montgomery County Sunday night west of Villisca, resulted in the driver being flown to a hospital. The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office reports Deputies were notified at around 9:30-p.m. about a crash in the 2700 block of 265th Street. Upon their arrival, they found a pickup truck in a field to the south of the roadway, fully engulfed in flames. The driver, Kyle Pack, of Villisca, was located at a nearby residence, suffering from his injuries.

Pack was transported by rescue personnel before being flown to a trauma center. The pickup was a total loss. The crash remains under investigation. Red Oak Rescue, Villisca Fire and Rescue and Montgomery County Communications assisted in handling the incident.

(Radio Iowa) – The Iowan who’s on the panel that will decide if Iowa’s Democratic Party Caucuses go first in 2024 says Iowa is key to winning the presidency. Scott Brennan is a member of the Democratic NATIONAL Committee’s Rules and Bylaws panel. It meets in early December to discuss which states vote first as the party picks its 2024 presidential nominee.  “We can’t let the Midwest become a Republican monolith,” he says. “…North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Iowa, Missouri — if they all turn red, we can’t elect Democratic presidents because the Electoral College math does not work.”

Brennan says there’s a basic argument for keeping the traditional line-up of early voting in Iowa, then in New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina. The Democratic nominee has won the POPULAR vote in seven of the last eight elections. “Why would you mess with success? Why risk it to satisfy some vague belief that we need to do something different when in fact we’ve won the popular vote time after time?” Brennan asks. As the kick-off event of past presidential elections, Brennan says the Iowa Caucuses have given candidates a way to connect with rural, working class voters.

“You have to be able to talk to folks like folks in Iowa,” Brennan says. The delayed results from the party’s 2020 Caucuses results put Iowa Democrats in what Brennan describes as “a bit of a pickle,” but he emphasizes the party is abandoning its complicated Caucus Night rules and will instead use a mail-in system to determine who wins the 2024 Caucuses. “We needed to update the Caucuses,” Brennan said, “and this is a good way to do it.” President Biden could be a wildcard as national party leaders gear up for a decision that may change the presidential nominating process.

Biden, who says he intends to seek reelection, has not publicly said whether he favors changes. “He is likely going to get some sort of challenge,” Brennan says. “He’s not going to just get a cake walk to the nomination, but we have not heard from the White House at all.” If the D-N-C’s Rules and Bylaws Committee recommends changes, it will then be up to the full Democratic National Committee to ratify the new plan in late February or early March. That would give the party less than a year to plan for a new system.

Brennan made his comments on this weekend’s “Iowa Press” on Iowa P-B-S.

(Arispe, Iowa) – A single-vehicle accident southeast of Arispe, Sunday evening, resulted in possible/unknown injuries to the driver of a 2018 Dodge Charger. According to the Union County Sheriff’s Office, 20-year-old Levi Joshua Henry, of Ellston, was traveling east on 270th Street at around 7:16-p.m., when a deer came out of the north ditch and entered the roadway.

Henry attempted to swerve for the deer, causing the car to enter the north ditch. While in the ditch, Henry said his foot apparently got stuck on the gas pedal. The car exited the ditch and went across Redwood Avenue and into the east ditch, where it hit a utility pole and a barbed wire fence. The pole sustained no significant damage, but damage to the fence – owned by David Cheers, of Afton, was estimated at $250.

When it struck the pole and fence, the Charger’s airbags deployed. Henry complained of pain in his ankle/foot. He was checked out by medics but not transported to the hospital. Damage to the car was estimated at $12,000. It was a total loss.

The Griswold, Exira-EHK and Audubon School Boards are set to hold separate, regular meetings, Monday evening.

The Griswold School Board meeting gets underway at 5:30-p.m. Here’s what’s on their agenda under New Business:

8. SBRC Application For Increasing Enrollment, Open Enrollment, Out And LEP Instruction Beyond Five Year (D.R.)

9. Approval Of Budget Guarantee Resolution (D.R.)

10. Consider Approval Of 2023-2024 Corner Conference Agreement (D.R.)

11. Consider Establishing A Joint Board Meeting With The Lenox CSD (D.R.)

12. Consider Approval Of Noble Initiative Easement (D.R.)

13. Board Policies – First Reading (I) – 507.9, 507.9R1, 508.1, 508.2

14. Consider Resolution To Maintain Current Director Districts (D.R.)

15. Discussion On Facilities Walk Through (I)

In Elk Horn the Exira-EHK School Board meeting begins in the Exira-EHK Conference Room, at 6-p.m. Their session begins with a Public Hearing on Transferring funds from the Home School to Flex Fund. “This hearing is on a resolution to expend funds from district’s Flexibility Account for any general fund purpose. These funds, in the amount of $80,000.00, were unexpended and unobligated from Home School Assistance Program.”

Action items include but are not limited to: The election of a Board President and Vice President; Establishing meeting date, time and location; the purchase of a school bus; the resignation of long-time Football Coach Tom Petersen, and Human Resources/Administration Assistant, Dara Svendsen, and action on hiring Paige Gaskill as Asst. Girls Basketball Coach, and Jennie Irlbeck as Shared District Administrative Asst.

And, in Audubon, the School Board will Elect new officers (President & V.P.), and act on the following:

5.0 ACTION ITEMS

5.01 Appoint Ahlers-Cooney as Legal Counsel for the Board

5.02 Appoint the Audubon County Advocate Journal as Paper of General Circulation

5.03 Appoint Carla Christensen as Board Secretary/Treasurer

5.04 Appointment of Committee Members

5.05 Approve Policy Review – 800 Series

5.06 SBRC MSA Request – Open Enroll Out Students

5.07 SBRC MSA Request – Support for Limited English Proficient Students Beyond 5 Years

5.08 Approve Local Government Risk Pool Renewal for FY24

5.09 Approve Resolution to Continue Participation in the Instructional Support Program

5.10 Approve Change Orders for Building Project

5.11 Approve Auditorium Ceiling Replacement Project

5.12 Personnel

6.0 Communication & Updates

6.01 School Board Convention Review

6.02 Building Project Update

6.03 Financial Trend Data

6.04 Principal’s Reports

(Bedford, Iowa) – An arrest was made Sunday in connection with a house fire that seriously injured a woman from Bedford. According to the Taylor County Sheriff’s Office, the fire occurred at 1871 Orange Avenue, in Bedford. The incident was discovered at around 2:46-a.m.  A woman living in the residence was able to escape, but suffered serious injuries. She was treated by Taylor County EMS before being flown to a burn center for treatment.

Sheriff’s Deputies began an investigation into the origin of the fire, which led to the belief that it was caused by an act or arson.  As a result of their investigation, 68-year-old Ellis Houk, of Kellerton, was arrested on a charge of Arson in the 1st Degree. Additional charges are pending. Houk was located and is being held in Texas, awaiting extradition to Taylor County on a no bond warrant.

The Taylor County Sheriff’s Office thanks the following agencies for their assistance: Sharpsburg, Gravity, Bedford and New Market Fire Departments; Taylor County EMS (Bedford and Lenox); Air Evac; and the Adams and Ringgold County Sheriff’s Offices.

*All persons charged with a crime are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

(Rural Union County, Iowa) – A man from Taylor County suffered possible, unknown injuries during an accident Saturday evening in Union County. The Sheriff’s Office reports 54-year-old Mitchell Louis Bond, of Sharpsburg, was driving a 1999 Dodge pickup southbound on the High and Dry Road, when, according to Bond, he saw a deer in the middle of the road. Bond said when he swerved to avoid hitting the animal, he crashed his vehicle into the east ditch, causing front end damage.

A Deputy who questioned Bond discovered the man was under the influence of alcohol. He reportedly had bloodshot, watery eyes and the odor of an alcoholic beverage coming from his person. Bond consented to testing and a Data Master Test, the results of which indicated a Breath Alcohol Content (BAC) of .287%, or more than three-times the legal limit of .08%.

No citations were issued.

(Mongtomery County, Iowa) – A traffic stop northeast of Elliott at around 4:05-a.m. today (Sunday), resulted in the arrest on drug charges, of a man from Adams County. The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office reports Deputies conducted the traffic stop on 100th Street and O Avenue. As a result of an investigation, 43-year-old Joshua James M. Mullen, of Corning, was arrested for Possession of Methamphetamine/3rd offense, a Class-D Felony, and Interference with Official Acts, a Simple Misdemeanor.

Mullen was transported to the Montgomery County Jail, where his bond was set at $5,000. Red Oak Police and the Cass County (IA) Sheriff’s Department assisted during the traffic stop.