The Atlantic Police Department will be partnering with the Cass County Sheriff’s Office, Atlantic, IA on Monday August 22nd for a special traffic enforcement project. Officers and Deputies will be focusing part of our enforcement in the city of Atlantic and part in the county. The Labor Day “Step Wave” is underway now, through September 5, 2022, with law enforcement agencies focused this “Step Wave,” on Impaired Drivers.

Always remember to plan ahead if you will be celebrating with an impairing substance. If you plan to indulge, plan for a sober driver to take you home. Call someone to give you a ride if you feel impaired! Is it your turn to be the designated driver? Take the role seriously and do not partake in alcohol or any other drugs.

The Mills County Sheriff’s Office reports two men were arrested Thursday, on separate warrants. 35-year-old Keegan Patrick Rooney, of Council Bluffs, was arrested on two Mills County warrants for Violation of Probation. He was taken into custody at the Pottawattamie County Jail and held on a $10,000 bond. And, 42-year-old Randy Dean Burton, of Glenwood, was arrested Thursday night on a Douglas County, Nebraska, warrant for Failure to Appear. Burton was being held without bond, in the Mills County Jail.

(8-a.m. News)

(Creston, Iowa) – Police in Creston, Thursday morning, arrested a woman wanted on a Union County warrant for Theft in the 4th Degree. 54-year-old Bertha Mayes, of Creston, was taken into custody at the Union County Law Enforcement Center, and later released on a $1,000 bond.

(Iowa DOT Roadside chat) – Many Iowa school districts open their doors for students next week, which means you’ll be seeing school buses loaded with our most precious cargo. Do you know when it is safe and legal to pass a school bus?

SCENARIO 1: YOU ARE TRAVELING ON A TWO- OR THREE-LANE ROAD

• Approaching the bus from the rear: When you see flashing red or amber warning lights, you are not permitted to pass the school bus and should be prepared to stop. Stop behind the school bus when the school bus stops and the stop arm is extended. Stop no closer than 15 feet from the rear of the bus and remain stopped until the stop arm is retracted and the school bus starts moving again. Proceed with caution.
• Meeting the bus from the front: When you see amber warning lights flashing you must slow your vehicle to no more than 20 mph and be prepared to stop. Stop in front of the school bus when the school bus stops and its stop arm is extended. Remain stopped until the stop arm is retracted. Proceed with caution.

SCENARIO 2: YOU ARE TRAVELING ON A ROAD WITH TWO OR MORE LANES IN EACH DIRECTION 

• Approaching the bus from the rear: When approaching from the rear, the rules are the same as for a two- or three-lane road. When you see flashing red or amber warning lights, you are not permitted to pass the school bus and should be prepared to stop. Stop behind the school bus when the school bus stops and its stop arm is extended. Stop no closer than 15 feet from the rear of the bus, and remain stopped until the stop arm is retracted and the school bus starts moving again. Proceed with caution.
• Meeting the bus from the front: When meeting the bus in one of the opposite two lanes (or more), you do not need to stop, even if the bus has stopped with lights flashing and stop arm out. The bus is not permitted to load or unload children who must cross this type of roadway unless there are official traffic control devices or law enforcement present. This is the only time you may pass a school bus that is stopped and has its stop arm extended.

Find out more at https://iowadot.gov/schoolbus/highway-safety/requiredstopping.

(Radio Iowa) – The annual Sergeant Floyd Memorial Encampment is taking place this weekend in Sioux City. Floyd was the only member of the Lewis and Clark party to die during the exploration of the land acquired in the Louisiana Purchase. Dan Whitlock is a member of the Sergeant Floyd tri-state chapter, which recreates what was known as the Corp of Discovery Expedition. “On the grass area there they’re going to pitch their tents and set up a campsite and it will be arranged as well as we can make it look similar to what the campsite might have looked like when the Corps was here. We try to make it as historically accurate as we can,” he says.

The encampment Saturday coincides with the actual date of Sergeant Floyd in August of 1804. Whitlock says a painted rock patterned after the freedom rocks in Iowa will be dedicated as part of this year’s event. “It’s technically not a freedom rock, because it’s a different depiction. We’re not depicting just the U-S military’s and honoring the soldiers that have been in conflict,” he says. “We’re showing images of different scenes of what took place on August 20 of 1804 when Floyd died was buried.”

Sgt. Floyd encampment (Sioux City Public Museum photo)

Floyd was buried on a bluff overlooking the Missouri River where a monument to him now stands. Whitlock says the expedition rock is located further upriver. “After they were finished burying Floyd, they got in their boats, went upriver and camped overnight at Floyd River,” Whitlock says. “I think in my opinion — just based on what I’ve read — probably the planning for what to do next started there.”

The rock dedication is set for 10 a-m Saturday. A reenactment of Floyd’s burial will be held Saturday at 6 p-m at the Floyd Monument. The activities for the event are free on both Saturday and Sunday.

(Radio Iowa) – As we approach harvest time, new concerns are rising about Iowa’s worsening drought conditions. A statewide virtual meeting is planned for next week to help address those concerns and to survey options. Field agronomist Rebecca Vittetoe, with the Iowa State University Extension, says the online meeting is free for anyone to join. Vittetoe says, “It’s designed for crop farmers and livestock producers, as well as ag retailers, farm managers, ag lenders or anybody in general that is impacted by the drought conditions and would like to know more.” Multiple speakers are lined up to discuss a list of farmers’ worries, and there will be opportunities for anyone watching to use the chat window to ask questions.

“One of the big things at this stage is on the livestock side, thinking about how we’re going to be managing the livestock with the drought, and then also thinking about feeding, drought stress crops and forages,” Vittetoe says. “One of the big questions that we always get in a drought is nitrate concerns especially for chopping for silage.” There could be health concerns for livestock as there can be higher nitrate levels in lower portions of the corn stalk. There will be several field agronomists in the virtual meeting, along with beef specialists, a farm management specialist, and representatives from the Farm Service Agency.

Drought-stressed corn. (ISU Exstension photo)

“On the farm management side of things, it’s more so thinking about crop insurance,” Vittetoe says. “Then also there’s some different government programs available as well for producers, depending upon what level of drought that we’re in. Usually once we reach that D-2 drought, certain programs become available to producers.” Roughly 16 Iowa counties are in at least D-2 or severe drought, while parts of five counties are in D-3 or extreme drought. The meeting is scheduled for noon on Tuesday (August 23) and should last around 90 minutes.

No pre-registration is required. To join the meeting, visit: https://www.aep.iastate.edu/drought/view

(Radio Iowa) – Blood donation centers across Iowa are taking part in an effort next weekend to set a world’s record for most blood donors in a single day.

Danielle West, spokeswoman for LifeServe Blood Center, says as part of the Global Blood Heroes Day campaign, they’re urging people to sign up to donate a pint on Saturday, August 27th. West says donations are typically slow during the summertime though the need for blood is usually higher.

“With the Iowa State Fair and things like that, people are not thinking about giving, so hopefully, they’ll come in after that and come in on this day,” West says. “We do have a lot of great incentives for our blood donors in our online store. We have a great summer promotion t-shirt that people can get. So I’m hoping that this will bring people in or bring awareness to someone who’s maybe never thought about donating before either.”

The current record is around 33,000 blood donors in a single day and the campaign is aiming to shatter that record with 50,000 donors globally. West says she’s hoping Iowans will join in.  “There’s another community blood center in Iowa called ImpactLife and between ImpactLife and LifeServe, we cover about 99.9% of the state of Iowa as far as the hospitals we support,” West says. “So this is a real community blood center effort to hopefully get people into their community blood center which will support their community hospital.”

Donors in 20 countries across six continents are taking part in Global Blood Heroes Day on the 27th. All blood types are in short supply, West says, so they could use some help from all Iowa donors. “People assumed during the pandemic that we really felt the impact, which we did, but we are lower this year than we have been the last couple of years,” West says. “I think people are getting back to their normal lives and vacations and things that they’ve been holding off doing, and we’ve felt the impact with lower donor turnout.”

LifeServe has 11 Iowa offices in: Ames, Ankeny, Cedar Falls, Des Moines, Fort Dodge, Marshalltown, Mason City, Pella, Sioux City, Urbandale and West Des Moines. To schedule an appointment, visit lifeservebloodcenter.org or call 800-287-4903. ImpactLife, formerly the Mississippi Valley Regional Blood Center, has nine offices in seven Iowa cities: Burlington, Cedar Rapids, Davenport, Dubuque, Iowa City, Muscatine and Ottumwa. Contact ImpactLife at bloodcenter.org or call 800-747-5401.

(Radio Iowa) – A new report shows Iowa led the nation in the amount of wind power that came online during April, May and June. Nearly 60 percent of the electricity being generated in Iowa comes from wind turbines and solar installations. Jeff Danielson is a vice president of the Clean Grid Alliance. “The wind is at Iowans’ backs is the message,” Danielson says. Iowa has a trifecta when it comes to so-called clean energy, according to Danielson.

“The future is bright and our batteries are charged up and ready to go because both solar and investment and battery storage investment — Iowa is an attractive place for investment in those two as well.” According to the Clean Grid Alliance, Iowa ranks third in the nation for its capacity to store renewable energy in battery facilities. There’s currently some push back on proposed wind farms near Algona, Shenandoah and Sioux City.

MidAmerican has said its proposed wind farm in Woodbury County won’t move forward if county supervisors update an ordinance requiring more space between wind turbines and homes. Danielson says that resistance isn’t unexpected, as property owner often have strong opinions about what is being built around them. “We’re confident that Iowans see the value and the wisdom of clean energy over the long haul and still today the vast majority of projects are approved,” Danielson says. “The business environment is still really positive in Iowa.”

Landowners who agree to have a turbine on their property, as part of a company’s larger wind farm project, are paid a yearly stipend. Yearly payments are also part of large scale solar installations. “Wind and solar farms in Iowa are long term relationships with the individual land owners,” Danielson says. “It’s actually a farmer’s value added business. It’s another way to diversity their revenue.” That differs from negotiations for the proposed carbon capture pipelines, which involve a one-time payment for property easements.

This is American Clean Power Week. Governor Reynolds signed a proclamation about solar power this week. According to the industry, solar panel related investment last year topped 187-million dollars.

(Radio Iowa) – A Story County man is facing several charges after a homemade explosive device was found at his home. Story County Sheriff’s deputies went to the Ledgestone Meadows mobile home park in Story City where 29-year-old Tyler Hammond lives after seeing an online video of him shooting at traffic signs with a rifle while driving. Deputies found the homemade explosive device during their search and evacuated the mobile home park until the Fire Marshal’s Office disabled the explosive device.

Hammond was charged with having a weapon as a domestic abuse offender, reckless use of a firearm shooting across a highway, and driving under suspension. The Sheriff’s office says additional charges are pending.

(Radio Iowa) – The Democrat running to be Iowa’s top election official says Governor Reynolds and her fellow Republicans in the legislature have made it far more difficult to vote by mail or vote early at a county auditor’s office. “When you’re delivering government services, it’s supposed to be about making things convenient. It’s supposed to be making your product and service more accessible. That’s not what the 2021 laws did.” That’s Joel Miller. He’s been Linn County’s Auditor for over 15 years.

“We used to have 40 days of early voting in 2016. Now we have 20,” Miller says. “It used to be the deadline to submit an absentee ballot request to a county auditor was three days before the election. Now it’s 15 days before the election.” Miller says 101 Linn County voters missed that deadline to vote early in the June Primary and half of them wound up NOT voting. Other county auditors saw a similar drop off according to Miller. “That can have huge ramifications this fall,” Miller says. Miller is challenging Republican Secretary of State Paul Pate’s bid for reelection. Miller questions why Pate is spending resources on his Iowa Businesses Against Trafficking initiative.

“I am against human trafficking. I’m sure you’re against human trafficking, but there’s an office to combat human trafficking within the Department of Public Safety that’s been there almost 10 years,” Miller says. “Go look up the duties of the Secretary of State. You will not find any duties related to human trafficking…Yes, he’s bringing visibility, but he’s wasting tax dollars.” Miller made his comments on the Des Moines Register’s Political Soapbox at the Iowa State Fair.

The Secretary of State’s office is where businesses in Iowa register their trade names and earlier this year Pate says he aims to build a statewide coalition of businesses who share the goal of ending human trafficking in Iowa. An Iowa Republican Party spokesman says Pate’s record of safe and secure elections speaks for itself, as turnout has been increasing alongside new election integrity measures.