No injuries were reported to the drivers of two vehicles that struck cattle on the road in Union County, late Wednesday night. The Sheriff’s Office says at around 11:35-p.m., a 2002 Chevy pickup driven by 64-year old Dwight Ingram, of Winterset, hit a cow on N. Cherry Street (Union County Road P-33), causing $1,500 damage to the vehicle. The cow, owned by Richard Downing, of Creston, was valued at $3,000.

About 10-minutes later, a van driven by 21-year old Jonathan Zollman, of Bedford, was traveling on the same road at about the same location, when it struck three black angus cattle on the road. Damage to the 2002 Dodge Caravan was estimated at $3,500..or, a total loss. The cow and two calves were valued at $3,000.

Officials with the City of Atlantic say Roosevelt Drive, at the intersection with Olive Street, will be closed from Monday, June 22nd, through Friday, June 26th, for the purpose of street repairs. Local, through traffic is asked to used 14th and Roosevelt Streets.

Officials with the Adair-Casey Community School District say a Community Meeting will be held Tuesday, June 23rd, with regard to enrollment and financial information, a recent community survey, and options for the District’s future, as well as potential partners.

The meeting will be held in the Adair-Casey High School gymnasium, beginning at 7-p.m. The School Board says their number one priority is to “Continue to provide the best quality education for each student” in the District, and “the community’s input is important as future plans are made.”

An avian influenza support prayer supper was held in northwest Iowa’s Buena Vista County last night (Wednesday). Iowa Agriculture Secretary Bill Northey was among the attendees, sharing in a picnic of pulled pork sandwiches and salads in support of impacted poultry producers. Northey told the group of about 175 people that it’s vital for a community to pull together during difficult times like these.

Of the 77 confirmed cases of bird flu in Iowa poultry operations, 14 of them were in Buena Vista County. More than 31-million chickens and turkeys have been euthanized in Iowa in recent months due to the bird flu epidemic. The USDA provides an indemnity for euthanized birds and will cover some costs of disposal, but the federal government doesn’t give aid for loss of income. Some called the 2014-2015 Avian Flu Outbreak the biggest animal health emergency in U.S. history.

While attending the grand opening of an agronomy center in Buena Vista County on Wednesday, Iowa Agriculture Secretary Bill Northey discussed the ongoing lawsuit between Des Moines Water Works and three counties in northwest Iowa. The water utility says Calhoun, Buena Vista and Sac counties aren’t proactive enough in preventing agricultural runoff. Des Moines Water Works says it’s causing an excessive financial burden on the city to remove nitrates from the water supply. Northey says while he doubts a lawsuit is the answer, he also says the agricultural community needs to find a long-term solution.

“Society is going to demand that of us,” Northey says. “We want those nutrients to stay there. We’re motivated by it. We’re going to learn things that are going to make us better producers as we learn how that nitrogen mineralizes in the soil.” According to the Des Moines Water Work’s petition, in the summer of 2013, fall of 2014 and winter of 2015, nitrate levels in the Raccoon River reached record peaks.

Bill Stowe, CEO and general manager of Des Moines Water Works, alleges the drainage districts in the three northwest Iowa counties are violating the federal Clean Water Act. Stowe says the system to remove the nitrates costs $7,000 per day to operate.

(Radio Iowa)

Officials with the Museum of Danish America in Elk Horn, say they have several unique events planned to celebrate the longest day of the year and one of their temporary exhibits.

Each year, Danes mark the summer solstice with a celebration known as Sankt Hans Aften, or “St. John’s Eve.”

Museum of Danish America celebrating Sank Han Aften,

Before Christianity came to Denmark, Scandinavian peoples celebrated the longest day as a supernatural struggle between light and dark, heat and cold. Since the feast day of Saint John the Baptist occurred on June 23rd, near the date of the annual summer solstice, the Christian Church emphasized this celebration in Scandinavia. Today, the celebration typically involves bonfires late into the night and singing of traditional songs.

The museum’s main exhibit at the moment is Skål! Scandinavian Spirits, which tells of the history and traditions of drinking culture in Sweden, Norway, and Denmark. Programs have been planned that will join Midsummer and the exhibit’s topic into a fun series of events:

On Thursday, June 25 a free, public Brown Bag Lunch presentation will be given by Lexi, owner of Old Ballard Liquor Company in Seattle, Washington. Lexi lent her expertise on Scandinavian aquavit [Aqua-Veet] (a flavored spirit) to the exhibit and will share some of that knowledge with program attendees from noon to 1 p.m.

Aquavit

Then, on Friday, June 26 and Saturday, June 27th, Lexi and Deb Christensen Larsen, Development Manager at the museum and an aquavit do-it-yourself expert, will hold two aquavit workshops. From 2- 5 p.m., workshop participants will learn about the history, production, and traditions of Scandinavian aquavit and also learn how to flavor their own. For registration and other details for the workshops, contact Tova Brandt at 712-764-7001 [or tova.brandt@danishmuseum.org.]

Finally, a Sankt Hans Aften Celebration sponsored by Shelby County State Bank and Hy-Vee will be held from 6 – 10 p.m. on Saturday, June 27th. Activities for the celebration include a fire-roasted hot dog supper beginning at 6 p.m., live old-time country music from 7-9 p.m., bicycle jousting for kids and adults from 7-9 p.m., and a showing of a family-friendly Danish film “Antboy” at 7 p.m.

“Antboy”

The film centers around 12-year-old Pelle, who accidentally gets bitten by an ant and develops unimaginable superpowers. The film is in Danish with English subtitles and is 77 minutes long. It will be shown in the Bro Dining Room. The traditional lighting of the Sankt Hans Aften bonfire will be held at sunset – approximately 9 p.m. All Sankt Hans Aften activities are free will donation and are open to the public. Scandinavian heritage is not required to have a good time!

For more information about these activities, visit danishmuseum.org or call (712) 764-7001.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – The former bookkeeper of a western Iowa farming cooperative is admitting she embezzled roughly $1.4 million over six years. Kathy Joan Cullen, who worked 27 years for the 21st Century Cooperative in Cass County, pleaded guilty Wednesday to filing a false tax return.

Under a plea agreement with prosecutors, she admitted that she wrote nearly $1.4 million in checks to herself from 2008 to 2013 and deposited the funds in her personal bank account. The plea agreement says the state and federal government lost $553,000 in tax revenues as a result. In 2009 alone, she embezzled $300,000 from the cooperative, which she didn’t report as income.

The agreement calls for her to pay restitution to the cooperative. Cullen was released after Wednesday’s hearing in Des Moines. Sentencing is Oct. 1st.  Filing a false tax return carries a maximum term of three years imprisonment, up to a $100,000 fine, and up to one year of supervised release.

The case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, and the Cass County Sheriff’s Office. The case was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa.

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

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Three people were arrested on separate charges Wednesday, in Creston. Authorities say 37-year old Lindsey Frey, of Creston, was arrested on OWI/3rd offense and Driving While Suspended, charges. She was later released on $5,000 bond. 21-year old Evin Scadden, of Creston, was arrested on a Union County warrant for Probation Violation. Scadden was being held at the Union County Law Enforcement Center, while awaiting a bond hearing. And, 28-year old Christopher Colburn, of Creston, was arrested Wednesday for Domestic Abuse/Simple Assault. He was also being held in the Union County LEC while awaiting a bond hearing.

The Creston P-D said also, a Mitchellville woman reported on Tuesday, that sometime between 1-and 2:30-p.m., Tuesday, someone stole her purse containing cash and jewelry. The items were taken from a vehicle in the Creston McDonald’s parking lot. The loss was estimated at $300.

The 7:07-a.m. report w/KJAN News Director Ric Hanson

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DES MOINES, Iowa – A legal challenge has been mounted against the U.S. Department of Transportation, claiming proposed new agency rules don’t do enough to protect Iowans and others across the country who live along oil train routes. The environmental lawfirm Earthjustice is representing the groups that filed the administrative appeal.

Attorney Kristen Boyles says a problem is the recently-announced standards for tank cars have a phase-in time which the organizations believe extends too far into the future. “This allows inadequate, explosive oil trains to stay on the rails for another 10 years,” says Boyles. “That’s a huge problem for anybody who lives anywhere near a railroad, or has a town where rail lines go through.”

Boyles says another reason for the challenge is the organizations aren’t convinced the proposed rules do enough to ensure emergency responders know when trains are coming through their area – or what’s on them. “We believe there should be more information, not less, so people can be prepared for what looks like the inevitability of more explosions and oil spills,” she says.

Rail companies have said releasing more route and cargo details could compromise national security, and let competitors know too much about their business. As of this spring, it’s estimated between 20 and 30 oil trains cross Iowa state each week, each carrying at least one million gallons of volatile crude oil.

(Iowa News Service)