An American Red Cross chapter serving eastern Nebraska and southwest Iowa is accepting nominations for the 2012 Heroes in the Heartland event.

These awards honor individuals from 30 counties in northeast Nebraska, southwest Iowa and the Omaha area who have saved another person’s life during the past year or who have positively impacted the quality of life in the Heartland Area in other ways.

Past honorees have ranged in age from 9 to 92 and have represented all walks of life and almost every conceivable circumstance.

The categories of awards given are Lifetime Hero, Good Samaritan, Call to Action, Commitment to Community, Disaster Relief and Public Servant Hero.

Nominations must be turned in to the Heartland Chapter in Omaha by Nov. 4. The awards will be presented on March 14.

–AP

A crash in Ringgold County has led to the death of a Mount Ayr man over the weekend. Konner Evan Klommhous of Mount Ayr was pronounced dead at the scene of the one vehicle incident over the weekend.

Another man involved in the incident sustained serious injuries. Erik Joseph Freed of Redding was transported to Ringgold County Hospital and then flown to Iowa Methodist in Des Moines.

No other details are available as the incident remains under investigation.

A collision between a car and a semi Sunday afternoon resulted in the death of a Carroll County woman. The Iowa State Patrol says 83-year old Irene Kathryn Klahn, of Carroll died, when her 2002 Buick Century crossed the center line of Highway 71 and collided with a semi tractor trailer. The accident happened about 3 miles north of Exira, as Klahn was traveling north on 71. The Patrol says the driver of the semi, 42-year old Michael Miller, of Buckeye, Az, swerved onto the shoulder of the road to avoid the crash, but the car hit the semi neat its fuel tank. The car then spun around and ended up on the east shoulder. The semi came to rest in the west ditch. Klahn, who was wearing a seatbelt, died at the Audubon County Memorial Hospital. The accident remains under investigation.

The final list of candidates to file for City offices in Red Oak have been announced, following the 5-p.m. Thursday deadline to return nomination papers. In Red Oak,  five candidates are in the running for mayor: Bill Billings, Junior, Larry Brandstetter, Bill Haufle, James A. Johnson and Jeff VanScoy.

Incumbent Mayor Ted Schoonover had announced earlier this year he would not be seeking reelection, since he was appointed to the auditor’s post in Montgomery County. Brandstetter is currently Red Oak’s 3rd Ward councilman. Two candidates look to fill his seat: Councilman At-Large Larry Barnett and Steve Fenn.

And, with Barnett looking to take over the 3rd Ward seat, three candidates have filed to run for his at-large spot on the Council, including Dennis Jones, Jeanice Lester and Russell Williams. Another incumbent, Roger Waggener, faces a challenge for re-election to his 1st Ward seat, from John Haidsiak and Scott Keith.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) – Omaha police say a third suspect has been arrested in the shooting death of an Omaha man. Fifty-year-old James Asmus was found dead on Sept. 2 in a south Omaha garage. Police say 25-year-old Jason Hanan, of Omaha, was arrested on Friday for first-degree murder and use of a weapon to commit a felony. He’s being held on no bond in the Douglas County jail.

Two Iowa men are also charged in Asmus’ death.  Anthony Good Jr. and Corey Brooks, both of Council Bluffs, face charges of first-degree murder, use of a weapon to commit a felony and being felons in possession of a firearm.

ANKENY, Iowa (AP) – Funeral services are being held today (Saturday), for an Iowa State Patrol trooper who died in a fiery crash south of Indianola. Forty-three-year-old Mark Toney died when his patrol car left U.S. Highway 65, landed in a field and burst into flames on Tuesday. The crash remains under investigation. Toney was born in Murphysboro, Ill., and grew up in Ankeny. His funeral is at 10 a.m., at the Northview Middle School in Ankeny. Burial will be at Ankeny Memorial Gardens Cemetery. Toney’s death was the first in the line of duty for the patrol in almost 21 years.

Another public worker, Shelby firefighter Michael Collins, of Minden, was killed last Sunday when he was hit by a car while directing traffic on Interstate 80 in Pottawattamie County.Services for Mike Collins were held Friday, during which the 41-year old father of two was remembered as a dedicated volunteer fire fighter, who always put himself before others.

More Iowa families are living in poverty, but more Iowa children have health insurance according to new data from the 2010 census. Noga O’Connor, a researcher with the Iowa Policy Project, reviewed the data – which shows just four percent of Iowa’s kids are without health insurance.  “More children in 2010 were covered than in ’09 and ’08. The data here doesn’t tell us exactly the cause behind the improvement, but it’s just good to know there are fewer children in Iowa who do not have health insurance,” O’Connor said. Child poverty rates are up, but O’Connor believes more parents know about public insurance programs, which could help explain the increase in children with health insurance. Just five states have better child coverage rates than Iowa. Overall, nearly 1 in 11 Iowans were without insurance in 2010. The census data also shows Iowa’s poverty rate rose to 12.6 percent from 11.6 percent two years earlier. Median household income in Iowa dropped to $47,961 from $49,454 in 2008. The numbers are even bleaker for many of Iowa’s neighboring states. “But that’s only partial consolation, since the fact that we’re doing better than other states doesn’t completely overshadow the fact that the state is struggling today financially,” O’Connor said. Iowa’s poverty rate for 2010 was the second lowest in the region – only Minnesota’s was lower.

The final list of names of the candidates appearing on the November 8th ballot for both City and County government positions in Cass County have been announced. Cass County Auditor Dale Sunderman says there is no candidate for the 4-year Mayoral term in Anita, and three persons running for two, four-year seats on the City Council. They include Jeff Bohnsack, Thomas Harris and Angel Lea McCollough.

In Cumberland, Nancy Virginia Couglin is the lone candidate for Mayor, and Sandra Armstrong is a candidate for one of two seats on the City Council. There is no candidate for the other seat. In Griswold, Victoria Jones is in the running for Mayor, and there are just two candidates for three open seats on the City Council. That includes Lisa Cook and Larry Mundorf. The residents of Griswold will also vote on whether or not to approve the establishment of a Capital Improvements Reserve Fund, which would mean the levying of taxes of up to 67.5-cents per thousand dollars of taxable valuation per year, for a maximum of 20-years, beginning with the fiscal year ending June 30th, 2013. The levy would be used to fund flood mitigation efforts, procedures and strategies in the City of Griswold.

In Lewis, Don Cohrs is running for Mayor. Three people, including incumbent Duane Scott Anderson, Sarah Cohrs, and Bethany Nichols, are running for the three, four-year seats on the City Council. In Marne, incumbent Mayor Randy Baxter is running unopposed for re-election, while six people are running for five open seats on the Council. They include incumbents James Hoffman, Lanny Kite, Dennis Preister and Angela Redler, along with challengers Alan Cranston and Randy Henningsen. In Massena, no candidate has filed to run for Mayor, and three persons have filed for the three seats on the Council, including incumbent Linda Reineke, and newcomers Adam McCunn, along with Gloria Waters. In Wiota, Kathryn Havens is the lone candidate for Mayor, while Erik Johnson, Jon Schwarte, Ray Zellmer and incumbent Lamar Spies are in the running for two seats on the City Council.

In Atlantic, two City Councilpersons will not be running for re-election on November 8th. According to City Clerk Deb Wheatley-Field, four-term Councilperson Pat Simmons has decided not to seek re-election to her 3rd Ward Seat.  Ashley K. Hayes faces no challengers for the seat being vacated by Simmons, who has served a total of 16-years on the City Council. And, Councilman Kern Miller has decided not to seek re-election in the 1st Ward. Miller served three consecutive terms on the council. Running unopposed for Miller’s seat, is Chris Jimmerson. Atlantic 4th Ward Councilperson Linda Hartkopf and At Large Councilman Dana Halder, are both running for re-election in November, and are unopposed for their seats. Two women are running for seats on the City’s Parks and Recreation Board. Incumbent Mary Strong seeks re-election, while Jolene Smith looks to fill a seat being vacated by Board Chair Nancy Frederickson, who will not be running for re-election.

The list of candidates who will appear on the November 8th ballot for the Cass County District 2 Board of Supervisors seat – which was created by the death of Supervisor Chuck Kinen – includes Gaylord Schelling, who was nominated by convention, and, Don Lappe, Pat McCurdy, Jeff Richter, and Kathy Somers, all of who were nominated by petition.

Only minor injuries were reported following a semi-tractor trailer rollover accident just before 1-a.m. Saturday, in Cass County. According to dispatch reports, the accident happened off Interstate 80 westbound, between the interstate and the Marne exit.  The semi had apparently rolled onto its side into the ditch. Its driver complained of minor back pain, but otherwise appeared to have been uninjured.

Marne Fire and Rescue along with Medivac Ambulance crews, responded to the scene. No other details are currently available.

The Iowa Department of Transportation (DOT) is announcing that it plans to reopen Interstate 29 from milepost 55 in Council Bluffs to milepost 71 near Loveland (I-680 interchange) at 7 p.m. today (Friday). The 16-mile stretch of interstate has been closed since June 9 due to the Missouri River flooding.

The DOT says significant work has been accomplished over the last few weeks to quickly reopen the road, including removal of tons of debris and hazardous materials, scraping the sludge from the roadway surface and hauling it away, power washing the pavement, testing the subsoil for stability, checking for voids under the pavement, and making repairs.