Severe storms rumbled across Western Iowa for the second straight night on Friday and strong winds were responsible for damage and utility outages across the area this time around.

Structure damage has been reported at numerous locations including the Glenwood area in Mills County as well as near Shelby.  Downed trees and tree limbs were a common occurrence throughout the storm path as well.

Menard’s Distribution Center near Shelby. Photo courtesy Michele McConnell Andersen.

Mid American Energy was still reporting at 7:00am on Saturday that approximately 2,100 customers were without power in the Council Bluffs and Southwest Iowa region.  Alliant Energy reported just around 150 customers without services at 7:00am as well.

The Red Oak Police Department responded to a two-vehicle accident at about 10:39pm on Friday night. No one was injured in the accident that occurred at the intersection of North Broadway Avenue and West Walnut Street in Red Oak.

It was determined that a 2001 Buick LeSabre driven by 19-year-old Megan Ann McCall of Villisca did not yield long enough at a stop sign and pulled out in front of a 2008 Chevy Impala driven by 34-year-old Michelle Lee Szymarek of Red Oak.  The Impala struck the front right side of the LeSabre after being stopped at a stop sign in a parking lot headed west towards West Walnut Street.  The LeSabre had to be towed from the scene and sustained an estimated $5,000 damage. The Impala was able to be driven to a nearby residence and also sustained an estimated $5,000 damage.

Some photos of damage taken along I-29 near the Highway 34 intersection (west of Glenwood). Photos courtesy Quinn Hall, from Red Oak.

DEWITT, Iowa (AP) — Authorities have charged a man with two counts of murder in the deaths of his parents, whose bodies were found in the eastern Iowa city of DeWitt. The Clinton County Sheriff’s Office on Monday charged Gavin Glasz with two counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of 51-year-old Brian Paul Glasz and 54-year-old Michelle Renee Glasz. They were found dead Tuesday in their DeWitt home.

Clinton County Sheriff’s deputies were sent to the home after Brian Glasz didn’t show up at work. Deputies found Gavin Glasz outside and later discovered the body of Brian Glasz in a laundry room and the body of Michelle Glasz in the basement. Both were wrapped in blankets and had died of “multiple sharp force injuries” and strangulations. Brian Glasz also suffered blows to his head.

DeWitt was jailed on a $1 million bond.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The Iowa Supreme Court has ruled that two men who committed felonies as juveniles and were sentenced to more than 17 years in prison without parole must be resentenced. The court concluded in a 4-3 opinion that long juvenile sentences without the possibility of parole should be uncommon.

The ruling means Christopher Roby, of Waterloo and Jarrod Majors, of Bedford, are likely to be paroled. Both were sentenced to more than 17 years without parole, Roby for sexual abuse and Majors for attempted murder.

The case sets Iowa apart from most other states in its practice of telling judges that mandatory minimum prison terms for juveniles should only be short sentences and should be rare after careful individual review based only on evidence and expert testimony.

Council Bluffs Police say a truck driver from Nebraska was cited following a fiery accident early this (Friday) afternoon on Interstate 80. Authorities say 74-year old Lester Fox, of Ashland, NE., was driving a semi tractor trailer eastbound on I-80 at around 12:25-p.m. near mile marker 1, when the rig left the road and struck a collapsible attentuator and several Jersey barriers.

Upon impact, one of the semi’s fuel tanks ruptured and a large fire ensued. Fox was able to escape from the cab of the truck. He was transported to Mercy Hospital and treated for minor injuries. Police cited Fox for Failure to Maintain Control of a Motor Vehicle.

During the incident, traffic was re-routed to I-480 into Iowa, as I-80 was closed for about 3-hours.

The next session of “Healthy U” at the Cass County Memorial Hospital in Atlantic, is  is scheduled for noon on Thursday, June 22nd. Dr. Mike Woods will present on Female Pelvic Medicine.

The pelvic floor is a group of muscles and other tissues that form a sling or hammock across the pelvis. In women, it holds the uterus, bladder, bowel, and other pelvic organs in place so that they can work properly, and the pelvic floor can become weak or be injured. Dr. Woods will discuss symptoms and treatments.

Dr. Woods is board certified in obstetrics/gynecology as well as a new subspecialty, Female Pelvic Medicine and Reconstructive Surgery (FPMRS). He was among the first in the United States to earn the FPMRS certification, and is currently the only board-certified FPMRS specialist who lives and practices in southwest Iowa.

Dr. Mike Woods, MD, FACOG

Healthy U is a free educational lunch series at Cass County Health System held monthly in Conference Room 2. The public is invited and welcome to attend, but reservations are required as lunch is provided for all attendees. Call 712-243-7479 to reserve your seat.

Sheriff’s officials in Shelby County report a man and woman were arrested following an accident early this (Friday) morning, in Elk Horn. A Shelby County Deputy arrested 34 year old Stephanie Ann Carrier, of Carter Lake, for Public Intoxication. Her arrest was the result of an investigation into an accident in Elk Horn along Highway 173. Carrier was transported to the Shelby County Jail and later released by the magistrate, on her own recognizance.

34 year old Michael Richard Carrier, also of Carter Lake, was transported by Elk Horn Rescue to Myrtue Memorial Hospital. After being cleared by medical professionals, Carrier was transferred at around 2:20-a.m., to the Pottawattamie County Jail for outstanding warrants charging him with Theft in the 2nd Degree and Criminal Mischief in the 4th Degree (for Destruction/damage or vandalism of property).

Iowa businesses boosted their employment last month and Iowa Workforce Development spokesperson Cory Kelly says the jobs improvement in May is the first for the state since February. “The state added 5,500 jobs, so the economy is showing signs of optimism,” Kelly said.

The 55-hundred jobs added in May helped offset losses of 35-hundred jobs over the previous two months. The unemployment rate in May stayed at 3.1 percent for the third straight month. Iowa has one of the lowest jobless rates in the country. “We are seventh nationally, tied with Vermont and Wisconsin,” Kelly said.

Iowa’s unemployment rate one year ago was 3.8 percent. The U.S. unemployment rate in May dropped to 4.3 percent. In Iowa, the trade and transportation sector led private industries in job gains last month. Kelly says trade and transportation added 2,400 jobs due to hiring in both retail and wholesale trade.

Manufacturing was a close second in May job gains. “Manufacturing added 2,300 jobs this month to help ease some of the recent losses plaguing this sector,” Kelly said. Meanwhile, Iowa’s leisure and hospitality sector shed 1,200 jobs in May. “Leisure and hospitality led job losses this month, down for the fourth straight month,” Kelly said. “Those declines are almost entirely focused in accommodations and food services.”

The new Workforce Development report shows the number of unemployed Iowans increased to 52,900 in May. The current estimate is 11,200 lower than one year ago. The total number of working Iowans decreased to 1,636,400 in May. That’s 3,400 lower than April and 100 higher than one year ago.

(Radio Iowa)

A 73-year-old state legislator from southeast Iowa died at his home this (Friday) morning. State Representative Curt Hanson of Fairfield had served in the Iowa House since 2009, shortly after retiring as a teacher. He taught drivers ed at Fairfield High School for 43 years and was nationally recognized for his work. House Minority Leader Mark Smith called his fellow Democrat “an exceptional public servant” who was a model of “thoughtful” and “diplomatic” representation for his constituents. Hanson was born in 1943 and grew up on a farm near Swea City in northern Iowa’s Kossuth County. He had lived in Fairfield for 52 years and is survived by his wife, Diane, two adult children and five grandchildren.

The governor will set a date for a special election in the southeast Iowa district to select Hanson’s replacement. A special election will be held in southwest Iowa on June 27th to fill a House seat that had been held by Greg Forristall, of Macedonia. Forristall died of cancer in May.

(Radio Iowa)