(Council Bluffs, Iowa) – Officials with the Council Bluffs Police Department report Officers responded to a call received at around 1:30-p.m. Friday from the Thomas Jefferson High School Resource Officer. The SRO said unauthorized subject had apparently entered the school.

The School Resource Officer was shown a photo of a male subject and the school was placed in a hold status. As a result, there was a heavy police presence to the school, and the area surrounding it.

After a thorough search of the school and a review of surveillance footage it was determined the individual in question did not enter the school, and no unauthorized parties were located during the search.

(Des Moines, Iowa) – Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds has issued a disaster proclamation for Allamakee and Muscatine Counties in response to the Mississippi River flooding. The governor’s proclamation today (Friday)  activates the Iowa Individual Assistance Grant Program and the Disaster Case Management Program for Allamakee and Muscatine Counties.

The Iowa Individual Assistance Grant Program provides grants of up to $5,000 for households with incomes up to 200 percent of the federal poverty level. Grants are available for home or car repairs, replacement of clothing or food, and temporary housing expenses. Original receipts are required for those seeking reimbursement for actual expenses related to storm recovery. The grant application and instructions are available on the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services website at https://dhs.iowa.gov/disaster-assistance-programs. Potential applicants have 45 days from the date of the proclamation to submit a claim.

The Disaster Case Management Program addresses serious needs related to disaster-related hardship, injury, or adverse conditions. Disaster case managers work with clients to create a disaster recovery plan and provide guidance, advice, and referral to obtain a service or resource. There are no income eligibility requirements for this program; it closes 180 days from the date of the governor’s proclamation. For information on the Disaster Case Management Program, contact your local community action association or visit www.iowacommunityaction.org.

The governor issued a disaster proclamation on April 25 that made the Iowa Individual Assistance Grant Program and Disaster Case Management Program available to residents in Clayton, Clinton, Dubuque, Jackson, and Scott counties.

(Radio Iowa) – City staff in Dubuque are preparing for the Mississippi River to crest this weekend. John Klostermann has been in Dubuque’s Public Works department for 47 years and has been its director since 2016. His department has been preparing for this flood since February, but he says their work is built on decisions made half century ago. ) “It’s not something we just decided to do this year or last year,” he says. “It’s been building every year since it was dedicated in 1973.”

Klostermann says it’s normal for SOME of the 17 gates that form the city’s flood wall to be used during spring flood season. “All the gates have been closed and that’s only the third time since the levee system was constructed and completed in 1973 that we’ve closed all the gates,” he says, “so it’s an unusual type event.”

While the river will be at flood stage for another week or so, the National Weather Service anticipates the water cresting in Dubuque at 24-point-four feet on Saturday and then slowly coming down.

(Radio Iowa) – Iowa’s Supreme Court has ruled the Iowa Utilities Board should have considered whether operating coal plants is economical when it approved an emissions control plan from MidAmerican Energy in 2020. Environmental advocates sued the Iowa Utilities Board for rejecting a report that said retiring some coal-fired power plants would be the most cost-effective way to meet state and federal pollution standards.

The report suggested electric generation from wind turbines and solar installations could replace the power being produced at MidAmerican coal-fired plants near Sioux City, Council Bluffs, Ottumwa and Muscatine. The Iowa Utilities Board ruled that evidence was irrelevant. The Iowa Supreme Court ruling says the board is required by law to consider cost effectiveness, so the board must now redo its review of MidAmerican’s emissions control plans.

Governor Reynolds recently appointed two new members to the three-person Iowa Utilities Board — and their terms start Monday.

(Radio Iowa) – Members of Iowa’s Congressional delegation are praising a move by the Biden administration to issue a last-minute emergency waiver to allow the sales of E-15 gasoline during the summer driving season. Congresswoman Ashley Hinson, a Republican from Marion says she is glad to see the waiver happen. “This is great news. It’s gonna save families money at the pump. It’ll help with as I said energy security in our country and of course, supporting our Iowa economy,” Hinson says.

Current E-P-A guidelines prohibit the sale of E-15 from terminals in about two-thirds of the country after April 30th. Senator Joni Ernst tweeted that the hard work in pushing for the waiver paid off — and it’s time to permanently approve the use of E-15 throughout the year. Hinson agrees.

“I want to say thank you to the administration for taking this necessary step that we’ve all been advocating for,” Hinson says. “I think you’ve heard me say a time or two that I think we need the all of the above energy strategy, so I will continue to push for EF-15 to be sold year-round permanently so that our hard working farmers and producers have much-needed certainty.”

Senator Chuck Grassley says the Triple-A survey finds the 15 percent blend of ethanol in gas costs about ten cents less a gallon than the E-10. Grassley says it’s a way to help drivers with high gas prices. Congresswoman Hinson says the E-15 waiver comes on the heels of the negotiations that kept five key biofuels tax credits from rolling back. She says the entire Iowa delegation was in lockstep as they pushed House Speaker Kevin McCarthy to keep the credits.

“I think it was very critical that we had an open line of communication, and he could understand where we were coming from as a delegation. I think it was very clear that in those conversations, multiple conversations over the course of the last week, leadership did realize we were not going to cave,” Hinson says. She says they had to make it clear how important biofuels are.

“We made the point about this is about our economy in Iowa, this is about jobs. This is about protecting farmers, and we should not be moving forward on this policy to take Iowa farmers for granted in the process,” Hinson says. “So again, the whole idea of delegation remaining in lockstep and ensured our success.”

Governor Kim Reynolds released a statement that calls the waiver “a huge win for Iowa farmers and our ethanol industry and proves that even our biggest adversaries can’t ignore the advantage biofuels brings to our country’s economy and national security.”

(Radio Iowa) – The lead meteorologist at the National Weather Service office in Johnston says it’s unlikely the rest of Iowa will experience the kind of flooding that’s hit the 10 counties along the Mississippi River. Brad Small says almost all of the flooding in eastern Iowa is caused by melting snow the fell in Minnesota and Wisconsin, “which is somewhat unusual because a lot of our spring floods are kind of a cumulative thing that started in the fall with maybe a wet fall and then we had a big winter of snowfall and then spring rains started and this is kind of unique that it’s almost entirely driven by the snow pack,” Small says.

“We’re actually kind of low on our rivers in central Iowa and the Missouri is quite low, too.” Drought conditions exist in many areas of western Iowa and Small says it would take a lot of rain to change that. There have already been more than two dozen confirmed tornadoes in Iowa so far this spring. That includes 11 that hit the state on March 31st. Donna Dubberke, the meteorologist in charge at the National Weather Service office in Johnston, says storm spotters are important in identifying where tornadoes are forming.

“They fill in some of the gaps, so it’s ‘ground truth,’” Dubberke says, “and it lets us in real time calibrate what we’re seeing with the technology to what’s actually occurring.”

Dubberke and Small made their comments during taping of “Iowa Press” which airs tonight on Iowa PBS. The five National Weather Service offices that provide forecasts and weather warnings for Iowa are located in Omaha; Sioux Falls, South Dakota; Johnston, the Quad Cities and La Crosse, Wisconsin.

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (April 28, 2023) – Villisca, Greenfield and Creston are set to benefit from Alliant Energy’s tree planting program. They are among 51 Iowa communities (see full list below) that will receive funds from a program developed in partnership with Trees Forever. Grants are designated for communities to plant a diverse mix of trees to aid energy efficiency as well as replace trees destroyed by the emerald ash borer.

The grants, which total $165,370, will help communities plant trees in public places like local parks, schools, libraries, community buildings and streets. Trees provide more shade and cool the air, helping lower overall energy costs. A diverse tree population also helps build resiliency against tree diseases to create a healthier ecosystem.

In Creston, The Creston Chapter of the FFA was awarded a $4,640 grant for shade tree planting downtown, on the campus of Southwestern Community College, and Union County Fairgrounds. Greenfield Chamber/Main Street & Development  received a grant for $3,000 to plant trees in Public Right-Of-Ways (ROW), and the Villisca Lions Club received a grant for $1,000, for Community tree planting in the ROW throughout the town, with the help from the Lions Club, Community Betterment group, and students.

“Our commitment to improving the environment and supporting the communities we serve is unwavering,” said Julie Bauer, Executive Director of the Alliant Energy Foundation. “The grants awarded will not only help communities achieve tree restoration goals and improve energy efficiency, but they will provide benefits for generations to come.”

In addition to the funds, communities also receive educational and tree-planning support from Trees Forever. A tree expert helps communities select the best species for their area and create a care and maintenance plan to make sure the new trees have long and healthy lives.

“This is a remarkable partnership that fulfills so many of the core tenets of both Trees Forever and Alliant Energy,” says Kiley Miller, President and CEO of Trees Forever. “Trees Forever specializes in empowering people and communities to become involved in the work of conservation. These projects are community-led and accomplished with local volunteers. With some expert guidance, individuals are making a positive difference in their home towns with a greener, more energy efficient future.”

The Community Tree Planting Program is part of Alliant Energy’s One Million Trees initiative, which aims to plant one million trees by the end of 2030. In collaboration with organizations focusing on public forest restoration and preservation, urban forestry, and non-profit partners, the initiative is dedicated to tree-planting efforts in communities and rural areas across Iowa and Wisconsin.

Trees Forever administrates and facilitates tree planting programs. Alliant Energy has been working with Trees Forever since 1990, and together they have planted over 1.1 million trees and provided $7.9 million in grants.
Several communities have planted or are planting trees this spring; others will plant in the fall. To learn more about the program, visit alliantenergy.com/onemilliontrees.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – Atlantic firefighters were called to battle a blaze Friday afternoon shortly after 1:00 pm., Friday. When they arrived, a recreational vehicle parked in the driveway behind the house at 214 W. 14th Street. Thick black smoke was visible for several blocks before firefighters arrived.

According to Atlantic Fire Chief Tom Cappel, the owner of a 2001 Dutchman RV had just plugged the vehicle’s water heater in for the first time this season. The fire was observed shortly thereafter. And, while the damage was too extensive to determine the exact cause of the blaze, Cappel says the water heater is suspect.

The fire caused extensive damage to a nearby Ford Ranger pickup, and rendered unsalvageable a riding lawn mower. Firefighters used foam to snuff out the flames. They were on the scene for about 30-to 45-minutes.

No injuries were reported.

CRESTON, Iowa – April 28, 2023 – If you travel on Interstate 80 at night, there’s an upcoming closure that may impact your route. The Iowa Department of Transportation’s Creston Construction Office reports DOT crews will be painting lines on the pavement on the north- and southbound on ramps for westbound Interstate 80 at Jordan Creek Parkway (exit 121) from 10 p.m. Sunday, April 30 to 1 a.m. Monday, May 1, weather permitting. The ramps will be closed while we are painting.

During these ramp closures, you’ll be directed to a marked detour to 60th Street where you’ll turn around and go westbound on I-80.

(Waterloo, Iowa) – A car traveling the wrong way on Highway 218 in Waterloo early this (Friday) morning, collided head-on with a semi tractor trailer. The accident happened at around 2:15-a.m. at mile marker 185. The Iowa State Patrol reports the 2013 Dodge Charger driven by 26-year-old Jordan Welch, of Waterloo, was traveling south in the northbound lanes when it struck a 2020 Freightliner semi, driven by 50-year-old Ray Mount, of Manly (IA). As a result of the impact, the car became engulfed in fire.

The semi was forced through the concrete median barrier and into the southbound lanes of Highway 218. Welch was flown by AirCare helicopter to the UIHC in Iowa City. The crash remains under investigation. The Patrol was assisted at the scene by Waterloo Police, Fire & EMS, Iowa DOT Motor Vehicle Enforcement personnel, the Iowa DOT and a wrecker service.