(Radio Iowa) — It may be harvest season, but Iowa’s chestnut trees don’t have much to offer as a year of wet weather decimated the crop. Tom Wahl of Red Fern Farm in Louisa County has about a thousand chestnut trees which usually produce a lucrative crop on his diverse farm. This year, his chestnut trees produced nothing and a few of his trees, in the wettest soil, died. Wahl is confident things will average out next year. Wahl says, “Typically what chestnuts do when a weather event prevents them from producing a crop one year, they produce a double-crop the following year.”

That won’t quite make his business whole, but it will go a long way. Statewide, the Iowa State University Extension estimates a chestnut harvest of less than one-third normal. Weather events over the past 12 months caused havoc on many of Iowa’s tree crops. Heavy fall rains, an abrupt November freeze, another hard frost after an early thaw and then spring flooding threatened apple, peach and chestnut trees over and over again. Wahl grows dozens of different fruit and nut trees. “We have no chestnut harvest this year,” Wahl says. “We had one, out of approximately 1,000 bearing trees, we had one single tree that had what looked like more-or-less a normal crop on it.”

Wahl says another 15 trees had a few nuts, but most had none. A small number of peach trees in the state also lost almost everything, according to the I-S-U Extension, though many varieties of apples did okay.

(Thanks to Amy Mayer, Iowa Public Radio)

KEOKUK, Iowa (AP) — A judge who presided over the trial of a man charged with murder in southeast Iowa must now decide whether he’s guilty. The nonjury trial of Adam McCain ended Thursday. He’s been charged with first-degree murder, accused of killing his former girlfriend, 27-year-old Calove Sackman. Authorities have said McCain stabbed Sackman once on Feb. 5 in Keokuk, got into his vehicle and ran her over, and then got back out and stabbed her several more times.

Defense attorney James Beres in his closing argument that the slaying was not premeditated and that McCain had a bipolar disorder and other problems that would make him compulsive.
Prosecutor Jonathan Stensvaag said McCain had told Sackman if she ever left, he’d kill her and her children. It’s not clear when the judge will announce her verdict.

MANCHESTER, Iowa (AP) — A former chief executive officer of a northeast Iowa hospital has pleaded guilty to theft. Delaware County District Court records say 61-year-old Lon Butikofer entered the plea Tuesday. His sentencing is scheduled for Dec. 3. Butikofer was accused of stealing nearly $257,000 from January 2009 through March 15, 2017, by failing to properly record personal trips as vacation or paid time off and by seeking reimbursement for the expenses.

Another former executive at Regional Medical Center in Manchester, 53-year-old Mike Briggs, has been accused of similar actions. He’s pleaded not guilty to a theft charge and is scheduled to begin trial Dec. 4.

Sheriff’s officials in Pottawattamie County report a call about a possible burglary in Oakland Thursday night, resulted in an arrest. 30-year old Scott David Wilson, of Oakland, was taken into custody for Public Intoxication. His bond was set at $300. And, an investigation into a pickup truck parked in the intersection of W. Kanesville Blvd. & N. 2nd Streets, in Council Bluffs, resulted in the arrest Thursday night, of 21-year old Trevor Kenneth Henderson, of Council Bluffs. Henderson was taken into custody at around 11-p.m. for OWI/1st offense. His bond was set at $1,000.

More State and area news from KJAN News Director Ric Hanson.

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(Radio Iowa) — The Iowa Department of Transportation is making the transition into its winter operation phase. Winter operations director, Craig Bargfrede, says they will gradually refit equipment from construction maintenance work to be ready for winter.  “The garages have to balance having the ability to go out and treat should we get and early season storm — and to be able to continue do other maintenance activities that are appropriate for this time of year,” Bargfrede explains. “So there’s a certain percentage of the equipment in each one of the garages that they’ll have outfitted and ready to go.”

The D-O-T has 101 maintenance garages across the state that house 902 trucks, 42 motor graders, 27 tow plows, and 11 heavy-duty, self-propelled snowblowers. “A lot of the garages are doing the overall maintenance, checking equipment and making sure everything is functioning properly. Installing blades, doing all of the calibration on our sanders that we need to do to be ready once winter hits,” Bargfrede says. The department buys salt during the spring and summer when prices are lower to have it ready for winter use. “Garages have been receiving salt over the summertime and getting the sheds filled and ready to go. So, at this point in time we’ve got plenty of the supply on hand and on the ground and ready to go once those first storms hit,” he says.

While you might buy a one pound bag of salt for your driveway — the D-O-T buys truckloads.”Overall statewide we’re somewhere just over 222-thousand ton of salt,” Bargfrede says. They spread salt and sand and also use 28 million gallons of salt brine to treat the roads during the winter. The department has more than one-thousand full-time employees — and Bargfrede says they are also searching for some more people to work this winter. “We’re looking for just over 600 seasonal employees to be able bring on statewide to help augment our fulltime staff. It’s really a key part of our winter operations to be able to have that level of augmentation of our full-time staff in order to meet what our requirements are,” Bargfrede says.

He says many of the added winter workers come from other occupations that are seasonal. “Construction is a large area,” He says.”We do in the rural areas have a lot of farmers that once they are done with the harvest, then they come out and help us plow, drive truck and do the things we need to do from a maintenance standpoint as well.” Bargfrede encourages anyone who is interested to check out their winter work opportunities. He says the best thing to do is to go to the D-O-T webpage and look under the careers heading. “Otherwise you can stop into your local garage and contact your local garage supervisor and they would be able to give you information as well,” Bargfrede says.

Bargfrede says he gets asked all the time when he expects the first snow — and says he doesn’t have a crystal ball to predict that — he just wants his crews ready when it hits.

(Radio Iowa) — Iowans will soon be preparing their little ghosts and goblins for trick-or-treating and a registered nurse who’s the spokeswoman for the Iowa Poison Control Center has a few advance tips for avoiding trouble. Poison information specialist Tammy Noble says those colorful glowsticks can be helpful with visibility but it’s not recommended that they be left within reach of tiny hands. “The problem with glowsticks is, sometimes kids will put them in their mouth and they’ll bite into it,” Noble says. “That liquid that’s in the glowstick itself gets in the mouth and causes a burning, stinging sensation and usually the kids will start crying right away.”

She says calls about glowsticks were the number-one subject in October of last year to the Sioux City-based poison center. Another potential Halloween hazard is the use of dry ice in punchbowls at parties. It creates a spooky fog but Noble says dry ice can also create a risk. “Basically what that is is solid carbon dioxide and it’s very, very cold,” Noble says. “It’s actually 109-degrees below zero. If you’re using dry ice, definitely make sure you’re wearing gloves when you’re handling it. Otherwise, touching it to bare skin can cause frostbite injuries.”

Never place dry ice in a person’s glass as it could seriously hurt their mouth as they tip back the drink. Noble also suggests using dry ice only in a well-ventilated area. Window clings can pose a choking hazard, should wee ones get a hold of them and try to eat them. Noble also urges caution if you’ll be painting on a scary face. “Halloween makeups can be irritating to the skin if they’re left on for long periods of time,” Noble says. “It’s a good idea to test that on the child’s skin. Maybe not on the face but in an inconspicuous area like on the arm just to be sure they’re not going to react to it.”

Another hazard is the silver, button-sized batteries found in light-up costumes, toys and decorations. Those batteries can cause serious internal injuries if swallowed. The Iowa Poison Control Center is open around the clock at 800-222-1222.

AMES, Iowa – Oct. 18, 2019 – A long-range plan for public transit in Iowa is currently under development. This plan supports the State Transportation Plan, Iowa in Motion 2045, in helping efficiently plan and manage resources for an effective statewide public transit system within Iowa’s multi-modal transportation system. A key part of the plan update is collecting public input. Public feedback is being sought on potential strategies and action items, which will help form the overall system vision and the types of investments and strategies to consider. A survey has been developed to gather more specific public opinion on what the future of public transit should look like in the state. The survey will open from Friday, Oct. 18 through Friday, Nov. 1.

This survey will build on the results of input received from transit agencies and stakeholders, and initial internal analysis of the public transit system. Survey questions focus on how people want to live and travel in the future and what they think of particular transit strategies. The survey and information concerning the plan are available online at https://iowadot.gov/iowainmotion/Modal-Plans/Public-Transit-Plan. Please revisit this website regularly to stay informed throughout the planning process. Input from the survey will be used to help shape the investment strategies included in the plan.

The area’s latest and/or top news stories at 7:05-a.m. From KJAN News Director Ric Hanson.

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ATLANTA (AP) — Coca-Cola reported strong third quarter sales as it makes strides with new drinks like Coca-Cola Plus Coffee and no-sugar drinks. Revenue jumped 8% to $9.51 billion, edging out Wall Street expectations for $9.48 billion, according to a survey by Zacks Investment Research. The Atlanta-based company continues to book double-digit volume growth with drinks like Coca-Cola Zero Sugar. Coke also experienced double-digit growth in 7.5-oz. mini cans.

The company announced that Coca-Cola Energy and Coca-Cola Energy Cherry – a flavor exclusive to the U.S. – and their zero-calorie counterparts will be available in 12-oz. cans nationwide starting in January 2020. Coke said that the launch is part of its ongoing effort to keep pace with the changing and diversifying tastes of consumers.

Coke today (Friday) reported net income of $2.59 billion, or 60 cents per share. Earnings, adjusted for one-time gains and costs, were 56 cents per share, which is in line with projections from industry analysts. Earlier this month rival PepsiCo Inc. reported third-quarter results that beat Wall Street expectations. Shares of Coca-Cola Co. rose 1.5% before the opening bell.