(Red Oak, Iowa) – Police in Red Oak say two people were arrested on separate OWI charges, Sunday. At around 3:15-a.m., 21-year-old Jose Hunter Portales, of Red Oak, was arrested following a traffic stop in the 1400 block of N. 4th Street, in Red Oak. Portales was charged with OWI/1st offense. Bond at the Montgomery County Jail was set at $1,000. And, at around 9:45-p.m. Sunday, Red Oak Police arrested 40-year-old Michael Scott Stafford, of Red Oak, for OWI/2nd offense. His bond was set at $2,000.

(Des Moines, Iowa [KCCI] – Children will be required to testify in person to face their alleged abusers during child abuse trials, according to a new ruling the Iowa Supreme Court handed down Friday.

In the State of Iowa v. Derek Michael White, the court ruled White’s original criminal trial violated his constitutional right to confrontation by allowing the two children to accuse him of harming them to testify remotely using a closed circuit television.

The right to confrontation guarantees that those accused of a crime are allowed to confront the person alleging their guilt in court, even if that person is a child. White will have his case retried, this time requiring the children to testify in person.

However, people who work with survivors of abuse say that requirement could have disastrous effects for victims. Urbandale-based attorney and child therapist Annie von Gillern said she is also concerned about how having a child testify in court could complicate cases.

DES MOINES, Iowa — Authorities in Iowa have identified two people from Texas who died in a crash Saturday in Polk County. According to an Iowa State Patrol crash report, a Honda SUV traveling eastbound on Interstate 80 near 2nd Avenue (mile marker 134) hit a guard rail before leaving the road and coming to a stop in a creek.

Rose A. Engel, 58, of Cookville, Texas, was pronounced dead on the scene. William L. Engel, 65, of Cookville, Texas, was transported to a Des Moines hospital where he later died.

The crash is still under investigation.

WATERLOO, Iowa (KCRG) — Two police officers were shot while responding to a report of a man with a gun Sunday just before 8:30 a.m. Officers responded to the 200 block of Manson Street. Officials say the investigation ended with two officers being shot in the 1200 block of E 4th Street, and the suspect dead.

The Waterloo police officers who were shot were taken to a local hospital. There has been no update on their condition. The Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation is investigating the incident.

(Radio Iowa) – State Climatologist Justin Glisan says the spring of 2024 has been the eighth wettest spring in Iowa since 1872 — the first year weather records were kept for the State of Iowa. Glisan says it’s been a roller-coaster of weather for the past six months.

“You look at the severe weather season we’ve had — 116 tornadoes, when we average about 44 per year…You think of the hail and high wind events, also,” Glisan said. “The set up we’ve been in has been a drought buster, though, with all these thunderstorms. We’ve had a record amount of rainfall, particularly in spring, but also in May — the sixth wettest May on record.”

A warmer than normal winter — and especially January’s blizzard — had a role in setting the stage for a wet spring. “We had that epic amount of snow pack,” Glisan said. “It actually insulated the surface, didn’t allow arctic air to get down deep, so the frost level really wasn’t there.” Glisan says it let the melting snow sink into the soil and early spring rains were able to soak in as well. The combination ended drought conditions throughout the state — after 204 consecutive weeks of drought. Glisan says it’s difficult to forecast severe weather far in advance, but warmer and wetter conditions heading into this past spring did signal there would be thunderstorms.

“If we look at the climate model and getting out several decades in that April, May, June time-frame, we are seeing the ingredients coming together more often to support severe weather, at least in the spring,” Glisan says, “kind of ebbing off into the summertime.” Glisan, though, points to long term forecasts that indicate Iowa is likely to see warm and wet conditions, so more thunderstorms this week. While there have been 116 tornadoes so far this year, only seven of them happened in June, which is typically the month when the most tornadoes strike in Iowa.

Glisan made his comments during a weekend appearance on “Iowa Press” on Iowa P-B-S.

DES MOINES –  As much as we love fireworks, drifting smoke can cause breathing problems for some. Brain Hutchins, Iowa Department of Natural Resources Air Quality Supervisor, says whether you are attending a display or celebrating in your backyard, sensitive populations are advised to take precautions. “First, if your family or friends suffer from asthma, respiratory difficulties, or heart disease; it’s important for them to stay upwind, a safe distance from fireworks smoke,” Hutchins says. “The elderly and children are also vulnerable to high levels of smoke.”

Sensitive people are most likely to have trouble breathing when air is stagnant. With no breeze, fine particles can be trapped near the ground and build to unhealthy levels. Smoke contains fine particles and gases, which can be hard on the lungs. Fine particles in fireworks’ smoke come from black powder used to shoot fireworks skyward along with metals that produce brilliant colors.

In 2020, Davenport, Des Moines and Muscatine recorded fine particle levels exceeding national standards on the Fourth. Des Moines exceeded the standard again the following day. Fine particle levels stayed below national standards on days surrounding the Fourth of July in 2021, 2022 and 2023. Learn more about fine particles (PM2.5)  and how fireworks displays can affect sensitive populations.

Those unable to avoid areas of dense smoke should limit outdoor activity and contact their health care provider if experiencing difficulty breathing.

(COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa) – Flood warnings for counties located the Missouri River in Iowa and Nebraska have been extended now, until Wednesday. Minor to moderate flooding is expected to continue. Originally, the Missouri River was expected to have crested late Saturday in the Omaha area. The National Weather Service Sunday, said while all sites are expected to crest by early next week, repeated rounds of rain could lead to river levels remaining elevated for longer than currently forecast.

Emergency management officials say around half a dozen homes in the immediate Honey Creek area have been flooded, and so have around a dozen properties in the Goosehaven area—although most of those are not permanent homes.

At this time, EMA Director Doug Reed said there’s no indication when residents will be able to get back to their homes because the forecast keeps changing for when the river crests. After that, they’ll have to wait for the water to drain out, and then assess the damage to roads.

(Eagle Grove, Iowa) – A single-vehicle accident Saturday night in northern Iowa’s Wright County resulted in two people being transported to the hospital  with serious injuries. According to the Iowa State Patrol, a 2014 Toyota Camry driven by 19-year-old Yefri Anthony Lopez, of Clarion, was traveling north on Wright County Road R-33 at around 8:35-p.m., when the car veered off the road and into the east ditch.

The vehicle rolled over and came to rest on the driver’s side. Lopez was ejected during the rollover. He was not wearing a seat belt. His passenger, 25-year-old Joel Cifuentes, of Clarion, was trapped in the passenger seat of the vehicle. Both men were transported to separate hospitals for treatment.

Cass EMS, Atlantic Rescue and Law Enforcement were called to the scene of a motorcycle accident this (Saturday) evening, on Atlantic’s north side. The accident was reported at around 6:37-p.m. It occurred in the Schildberg Campground area near the playground.

A female was said to have suffered a head injury. She was transported to Cass Health (CCMH). Additional information is currently not available.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – Many people were caught off-guard this (Friday) evening, when the tornado siren blew in Atlantic. There was no prior warning from the National Weather Service. Instead, Cass County Emergency Management Coordinator Mike Kennon said he too, was surprised when he received word from Marne Fire Chief Josh Krause, that he had observed a funnel cloud south of Marne, west of Atlantic.

Photo courtesy Jeremiah Bruning, of Atlantic, taken just west of Atlantic on June 28th

The sirens in Marne and Atlantic were set-off a little before 8-p.m. Kennon said he saw a lot of rotation in the clouds, a rope tornado that primarily maintained its form as a funnel cloud, but others saw the twister connect with the ground. Its movement was very slow, Kennon said.  The first warning from the National Weather Service was issued at 7:55-p.m.

“That was only the beginning,” he said. “Lewis had a lot of rotation in the clouds, so we set-off the sirens.” There were also reports of a funnel east of Atlantic. “A lot of people were watching it closely,” Kennon said, as “We were really prepared for setting those sirens off again if something came down.”

The sirens were then set-off for the communities of Wiota and Anita. Kennon said he stopped in Wiota. “I believe everybody in town was out watching the rotation as it spun on the south side of town.” He reported there  was also a funnel cloud or two by Lake Anita.

Funnel cloud taken from West 29th Street at 8:01 p.m. Friday night SW of Atlantic (courtesy Brett Altman)

Another Tornado Warning was issued for NE Cass County and NW Adair County, at 8:47-p.m.  There have been no reports of damage, as the weak tornadoes were mainly in the rural areas. Kennon said “There were a lot of people in their yards and a lot of people out, parked along the edge of the roads,” looking for rotation, and tornadoes on the ground. “With the sunset the way it was, you could really see what was going on, for sure.” Kennon says unless you are a trained storm spotter, being outside in the storm is “Not something I would recommend.”

Photos courtesy of Zach Ploen & Evie Scott, west of Anita at around 9:30-p.m. Friday

One of the questions KJAN was asked on our Facebook page, was why there was no “All Clear” siren given after the danger appeared to have passed. He said “It’s been some time since we’ve had an All-Clear. The reason for that was…in general, people don’t know what the “All-Clear” means. It’s just a siren that’s going off, so they take it as another warning of some kind.” He recommends have a way to receive emergency messages, whether it’s by radio, NOAA Weather Radio or phone app, so that you can get information and know when it is safe to get out of your shelter. (Sign-up HERE for emergency alerts on your cell phone, in Cass County).

Mike Kennon reminds area residents tornadoes can form any time of the year, including during the month of December, as was the case on December 15, 2021, when 63 tornadoes touched down that day, making it the biggest single-day tornado outbreak in Iowa’s recorded history, according to the Weather Service. His advice: “Be weather aware.”