MINDEN, Iowa (AP) — Authorities say the driver of a grain hauler died after the truck slammed into an unoccupied house in Minden in southwest Iowa. The Pottawattamie County sheriff’s office says emergency crews found 53-year-old Calvin Leaders, of Underwood, unconscious in the truck after the accident Friday morning. He died at a local hospital.

Chief Deputy John Reynolds says the grain hauler, which was empty, left the road and hit the house shortly after 7 a.m. No one was home at the time. Reynolds says it’s unknown if Leaders may have suffered a medical condition. An autopsy is pending.

In an update to our story earlier this morning about a semi crashing into a home in Minden, the Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s office this (Friday) afternoon, said the driver of the semi has died. Officials say at around 7:18-a.m., deputies were dispatched to 210 Lincoln Street in Minden, where they found a 2003 Peterbilt semi tractor trailer had left County Road L-66 from Lincoln Street, on the east side of the road, and collided into the front of a residence. No one was in the home at the time.

The unidentified driver of the semi was unresponsive when the initial 9-1-1 call was made. The driver’s brother arrived on the scene and began CPR prior to the arrival of Minden Rescue. Rescue personnel continued CPR, and the man transported to Mercy Hospital in Council Bluffs, where he was pronounced dead about an hour after the crash. The Pottawattamie County Medical Examioner’s Office will schedule an autopsy to determine the cause of death, but officials say at this time, it’s possible the crash was related to health complications.

The house sustained visible damage to the walls and windows amounting to about $10,000, while the semi, registered to Charles M. Leaders Trucking, in Minden, sustained an estimated $30,000 damage.

The Sidney Police Department reports Mills County man was arrested Thursday on a sexual abuse charge. 19-year old Zane S. Lord , of Glenwood, faces a charge of Sexual Abuse in the 2nd degree. The charge was the result of an investigation into an incident which allegedly occured in Sidney. Lord was being held in jail without bond, pending an appearance before the magistrate.

An investigation into the alleged incident was conducted by the Sidney and Tabor Police Departments, along with the Fremont County Sheriff’s Department.

Sheriff’s officials in Page County say three people were injured, with one being seriously hurt, during a crash Thursday evening, north of Clarinda. The accident happened at around 6:30-p.m. on 140th Street, just east of J Avenue. Officials say a 1997 Ford Explorer was broken down on the very narrow shoulder of the road and was being jump started by a 2002 Chevy pickup that was parked nose-to-nose with the Explorer.

As a 2001 Hyundai Accent driven by 52-year old Clarence Holste, of Bridgewater, topped the hill, he was blinded by one headlight of pickup, which was also partially on the roadway. Holste wasn’t sure which way to go, so he swerved onto his own shoulder and ended-up hitting the rear of the Explorer. The impact shoved the SUV into the pickup.

Holste suffered non-incapacitating injuries, and was transported to the Shenandoah Memorial Hospital, by Shenandoah EMS. The driver of the Explorer, 62-year old Sharon Montross, of Clarinda, suffered possible injuries, and was transported by Clarinda EMS to the Clarinda Regional Health Care Center. A front seat passenger in the Explorer, 36-year old Heidi Montross, of Clarinda, was seriously injured and flown by LifeNet helicopter to Creighton University Hospital, in Omaha. A report on her condition is not available. No citations have been issued. The Holste vehicle was totalled in the crash, while damage to the Explorer and pickup totaled a little over $5,600.

w/ Ric Hanson

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (8.9MB)

Subscribe: RSS

One person was in listed extremely critical condition after a semitrailer truck crashed into a house in Minden, this (Friday) morning.  Pottawattamie County dispatchers said the semi hit the house at 210 Lincoln Street about 7:15 a.m.  Emergency responders worked to resuscitate one person. The victim was taken to Mercy Hospital in Council Bluffs.

Sheriff’s Department spokesman Sgt. Dwayne Riche, said the semi was an empty grain-hauler traveling northbound on County Road L-66 from Iowa Highway 83 when it left the roadway to the east and struck the residence. There was no one inside the structure when it was hit,  and the semi didn’t pass through the home, but did knock down some exterior walls.

Pott. County Sheriff Jeff Danker told KJAN News it appears that the driver of the semi suffered from a medical condition, possibly a heart attack, prior to the crash. The name of the driver has not yet been released.

w/ Ric Hanson

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (6.2MB)

Subscribe: RSS

Missouri Valley, Iowa (AP) – Federal wildlife reuges that straddle the Missouri River north of Omaha, in Iowa and Nebraska, have been scheduled to re-open to the public next month. The DeSoto and Boyer Chute National Wildlife Refuges will re-open on January 2nd. Much of the flood damage at DeSoto has been repaired, but the visitor’s center will remain closed for more work. Some hiking trails will not be available.

DeSoto will be closed for the Jan. 11th-Jan. 18th deer hunt, and people will need to use the U.S. Highway 30 entrance to reach the refuge. Visitors to Boyer Chute will have to park at the main entrance gate and enter the refuge on foot. Silt deposited by the floodwaters will prevent driving access to Boyer Chute, indefinitely.

Members of the Cass County Compensation Board met Thursday night at the courthouse in Atlantic, and voted unanimously to approve a recommendation to the Board of Supervisors, for a 2.5-percent across the board increase in pay for County officers (Attorney, Auditor, Recorder, Sheriff and Treasurer). The Compensation Board also voted to give Board of Supervisor’s Chair Duane McFadden a $1,000 salary increase. The Board of Supervisors, however, have the final say in the matter, and may act to adjust the percentage and figures as they see fit.

Prior to approving the increase, the Compensation Board discussed current statewide salary increases, which Board Chair Erich Wickman said ranged anywhere from zero to three-percent. They also considered the Consumer Price Index (CPI), which Wickman said indicated the economy was not “real strong,”  and was not a “real surprise.”

Last year, the Compensation Board approved a 2-percent across the board increase, but none was allowed in the year prior.

Police in Harlan say 26-year old Elijah Fecht, of Harlan, was arrested last Saturday (Dec. 10th), on two-counts of 2nd Degree Theft, and one count of Trespassing, in association with scrap metal and equipment reported missing from Superior Midwest Foods. Officials say Fecht was observed allegedly taking stainless steel scrap and equipment from the business. When he was found, Fecht was in possession of the allegdly stolen pieces. Authorities were also called to S.M.F. four days earlier, when employees became aware of the missing items.

And, the Harlan Police Department reports two other men, 45-year old Darvin Grant, of Sumrall, MS, and 37-year old Brian Ramaker, of Central City, NE, were arrested December 10th. Grant was charged with Public Intoxication, while Ramaker faces charges of indecent exposure and urinating in public. The charges were the result of an investigation into a disturbance in front of 1022 6th Street, in Harlan. Both men were brought to the Shelby County Jail. Ramaker was later cited for his offenses and released.