w/ Ric Hanson

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (6.1MB)

Subscribe: RSS

The Shelby County Sheriff’s Office this (Friday) morning released the name of a man who died during a stand-off with authorities northeast of Shelby, Thursday. Sheriff Mark Hervey identified the man as 48-year old Larry Tiarks, of Avoca.

Hervey says the sheriff’s office was notified of a robbery at the Shelby County State Bank in Shelby, at about 11:45-a.m., Thursday. A deputy who was on-duty and in the City of Shelby at the time of the robbery, observed a vehicle leaving the city, that matched the description of the suspect’s vehicle. The deputy engaged in a pursuit, which traveled east of Shelby to the 200-block of Juniper Road.

The chase ended after Tiarks left his vehicle and entered a rural residence. Sheriff’s officials along with those from surrounding counties and the Iowa State Patrol established a perimeter around the residence. At around 4-p.m., the Iowa State Patrol Tactical Entry Team, using specialized equipment from the FBI, made entry into the home.

Tiarks was inside. The Sheriff says the man died from a self-inflicted wound. An investigation into the robbery is being conducted by the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation.

Among the agencies responding to the incident, was both Cass County K-9 units: Deputy Corey Larsen and his partner Mufasa, and Deputy Kyle Quist, along with his partner Kane.

Iowa State University climatologist Elwyn Taylor says the cooler temperatures and rainfall we’ve seen recently do not mean Iowa’s drought is finished. “It definitely has not broken yet, maybe has for a few locations, but for the most part it is still with us,” Taylor says. Some areas of the country though have seen the relief from dry conditions come. “The southeastern United States is done with their drought, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona — we won’t say done with the drought– but much moderated there and disappearing in places but still at strength in the Midwest and out into the Rocky Mountains,” according to Taylor.

Taylor says about 80-percent of Iowa’s rainfall comes from the Gulf of Mexico.  “We are seeing a flow of moisture, at least a moderate flow of moisture from the Gulf of Mexico,”Taylor says, “and it’s only about half the strength, or a little less than half the strength, and with that being weak we’re not seeing a real quick end to this”. While Taylor says factors influencing Iowa’s weather are moderating toward more normal temperatures and moisture in the immediate future, he expects the drought to continue into next spring in most areas.

(Radio Iowa)

A stand-off northeast of Shelby with a person possibly connected to the Thursday morning robbery of a bank there, ended with one-person dead, and no injuries to law enforcement. According to Shelby County Sheriff Mark Hervey, a man whom deputies had pursued following the bank robbery to a home in the vicinity of 200th and Juniper Streets, was found deceased inside the residence. His body was discovered after authorities made entry into the home just after 4-p.m., following a stand-off that lasted for more than 3 -hours. Hervey said there were no shots fired during the stand-off, either by the person in question or law enforcement.  The robbery which led to the incident happened at around 11:50-a.m., at the Shelby County State Bank, in Shelby.

Bank employees reportedly told investigating officers that the robber did not display a gun during the incident. It’s unclear how much, if any, money was taken during the robbery. Officers from at least five counties…including both Cass County K-9 units: Deputy Josh McLaren and his partner Mufasa, and Deputy Kyle Quist, along with his partner Kane…were on the scene, along with the Iowa State Patrol’s Tactical Team, agents with the FBI, Shelby County Sheriff’s Office, Harlan Police and the Iowa Dept. of Transportation’s Motor Vehicle Enforcement Division.

Additional details, including the man’s name are not available.

A person possibly connected to the robbery this (Thursday) morning of the Shelby County State Bank in Shelby, is thought to be barricaded in a home about three-miles northeast of Shelby. Numerous law enforcement agencies and emergency medical personnel are staged in the vicinity of 400th Street and Ironwood Road. The area is rural, with a large feedlot is located nearby. The incident occurred just before noon. Authorities have surrounded the home located in the area of 200th and Juniper Road. They have not attempted entry into the residence at this time. No other details are currently available.

This post will be updated as more information becomes available.

Authorities in Pottawattamie County have released more details on an accident which occurred early this (Thursday) morning, north of Griswold. Chief Deputy Sheriff John Reynolds said a deputy was dispatched just before 6:10-a.m. to the area of US Highway 6, in the area of 540^th Street for a single vehicle accident.

Upon arrival the deputy met with a Cass County Deputy already at the scene. The Cass County Deputy advised that the driver and single occupant of the vehicle had been transported to Cass County Memorial Hospital for minor injuries. The Driver was identified as 23 year old James Butcher from Atlantic.

Butcher told authorities that one wheel of his vehicle, a 2003 Dodge pickup, dropped off the pavement. The vehicle then crossed the center line and came to rest in the north ditch. No citations have been issued at this time. The incident however, remains under investigation.

Council Bluffs Police says a 63-year old woman was struck and killed early this morning while she crossed the street on her daily walk. Council Bluffs Police Sgt. Bob Sellers said Mae Zhang, of Council Bluffs was crossing the street from the north to the south when she was hit by an eastbound car driven by 21-year old Sarah Harris, also of Council Bluffs.  Zhang died at the scene. The accident happened at around 7:15-a.m. in a neighborhood just east of the Mall of the Bluffs. Sgt. Sellers says sunglare was likely a factor in the accident. Witnesses say the glare is most prominent when motorists traverse the hill in those hours just after sunrise.

The Atlantic Police Department reports an accident Wednesday afternoon on Chestnut Street caused about $1,500 damage, but no one was hurt. Officials say vehicles driven by Ryan Richie, of Clarinda, and James Adams, of St. Augustine, FL, collided in the 400 block of Chestnut, at around 3:15-p.m.

The accident happened as Adams was traveling south on Chestnut, and making a left turn into the northbound parking stalls. As he was making the turn, a vehicle driven by Richie was backing out, and collided with the Adams vehicle. Adams was cited for “Left Turn for Parking.”

John R. Whitaker, State Executive Director for USDA’s Iowa Farm Service Agency (FSA), announced Thursday, that continuous sign-up for the Highly Erodible Land (HEL) Initiative under the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) started on July 23rd, 2012. Iowa received a total allocation of 50,000 acres to enroll in the HEL CRP program. Offers will be accepted until either the state acreage allocation limit is reached or September 30, 2012 whichever occurs first.

Whitaker says “CRP is a voluntary program that shows the commitment that landowners have to protect environmentally sensitive land. This initiative will accept offers with a weighted average wind or water erosion rate of at least 20 tons per acre per year for new cropland or CRP acres that expire on September 30, 2012; however, existing grass stands that are not expiring CRP will not be considered eligible.”

Producers should stop by their local county FSA office to determine if their land qualifies for the Highly Erodible Land Initiative and to receive additional location-specific details. Landowners enrolled in CRP receive annual rental payments and cost-share assistance to establish long-term, resource conserving covers on eligible farmland. Incentive payments are not authorized under this initiative. New land contracts approved during this continuous sign-up initiative will become effective the first day of the month following the month of approval and are valid for 10 years.