DES MOINES, Iowa – With an uncertain history, April 20th (more commonly known as “4/20”) has become synonymous with marijuana use and, in some circles, the date is a marijuana “holiday.”  To help keep drug-impaired drivers off the roads, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Iowa Governor’s Traffic Safety Bureau (GTSB) are teaming with state, county and local law enforcement to spread the message that drug-impaired driving of any kind is dangerous and illegal.  Drivers will see extra enforcement between April 19th and April 22nd to combat impaired driving.

Like drunk driving, drug-impaired driving is illegal nationwide. According to NHTSA, between 2009 and 2018, of those drivers killed in crashes and tested for marijuana, the presence of marijuana had nearly doubled. In 2018, 46% of drivers who were killed in crashes and were tested for drugs, tested positive. This is why it’s so important to spread this lifesaving message: If You Feel Different, You Drive Different. Do you think driving while high isn’t dangerous? It has been proven that THC can slow reaction times, impair cognitive performance, and make it more difficult for drivers to keep a steady position in their lane.

Those who plan to use marijuana on 4/20 should have a plan in place and refrain from driving.  Here are a few tips to help keep everyone safe:

•    If you have used an impairing substance such as marijuana, do not drive. Passengers should never ride with an impaired driver. If you think a driver may be impaired, do not get in the car.
•    If you are drug-impaired, pass the keys to a sober driver who can safely drive to the destination. It is never okay to drive while impaired by any substance.
•    Do you have a friend who is about to drive while impaired by drugs? Take the keys away and arrange to get them home safely. Don’t worry about offending someone — they’ll thank you later.

By working together, we can save lives and help keep America’s roadways safe. Share the lifesaving message:

IF YOU FEEL DIFFERENT, YOU DRIVE DIFFERENT.

(Creston, Iowa) – Police in Creston report four arrests took place over the past week. At around 5:06-a.m. today (Monday, April 18), 51-year-old Frederick Ray Jones, of Des Moines, was arrested by the Creston K9 Unit, for Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. Jones was transported to the Union County Jail, cited and released.

At around 12:10-a.m. Saturday, 42-year old Ronnee Colleen Abel, of Creston, was arrested at Lincoln and Manor Drive, thanks to the assistance of Creston Police K9 “Baxo.” Abel was charged with Possession of Drug Paraphernalia, Poss. of a Controlled Substance/Marijuana – 1st offense, and Poss. of Methamphetamine – 1st offense. Her cash or surety bond at the Union County Jail was set at $2,300.

Friday afternoon, 34-year-old Julian Albert Rex Allison, of Afton, was arrested at the Union County Law Enforcement Center, on a Union County warrant for Violation of Parole. He was being held in the jail without bond.

And, Thursday night, Creston Police arrested 43-year-old Robert Todd Jackson, of Creston, for Violation of a No Contact Order, and on a Union County warrant for Possession of a Controlled Substance. He was later released from the Union County Jail.

Creston Police said also, a man residing in the 600 block of N. Birch Street reported on April 8th, someone damaged his garage door. The damage was estimated at $100.

(Radio Iowa) – The Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission has completed its annual review of financial audits of all the casinos. Racing and Gaming administrator, Brian Ohorilko, says the audits did not turn up any issues. He says the facilities are facing an issue that has been common to most businesses. “We did hear some common themes during those presentations from the facilities many of the facilities had noted that they’re having a very difficult time finding employees in all segments of their operations,” Ohorilko says.

Ohorilko says they’ve had to adapt to the lack of staff. “Inability to find employees has caused situations where maybe restaurants would be closed on certain days or may be closed earlier than they would like, and so we’re still seeing a lot of issues from an employment standpoint,” he says. Ohorilko says there are some areas where they cannot cut back.

“It does put a strain on certain positions like security and in other areas where compliance is and so those are things that that commission continues to monitor and the industry is really still doing a good job given the circumstances,” according to Ohorilko.

The Racing and Gaming Commission reviewed the audit reports at their meeting last week.

(Radio Iowa) – Efforts are underway to try to save the retired Navy vessel named for the five Waterloo brothers who died together in World War II when a Japanese torpedo struck the U-S-S Juneau. “The Sullivans” — a Navy destroyer — is a floating museum in the harbor at Buffalo, New York. Paul Marzello is president and CEO of the Buffalo and Erie County Naval and Military Park. He discovered The Sullivans was sinking last Wednesday due to a breach in the hull. “Anyone on our board of directors, any staff member, any volunteer, any veteran who’s connected to the ship knows what adversity is all about. They’ve been here in times of war. This is something that’s a blip on the screen to the them,” he said. “We will right this ship. It will not go down.”

Marzello spoke at a news conference this weekend. The vessel is listing to its side and multiple news organizations quote the U.S. Coast Guard estimate that there’s a million gallons of water inside the ship. Marzello says it’s unclear what caused the breach.  “We are taking it extremely seriously to make sure we are taking in all the measures to correct her as soon as possible,” he says. “What we will need is a bunch of hands to clean up once we do rightsize her, so that will be our next plan of attack once we figure out what the problem is.”

On Friday, efforts to pump water out were halted as diesel was discovered in Buffalo’s harbor. This weekend divers and equipment began maneuvering inside the vessel to remove contaminants like fuel and oils from inside, to prevent the materials from reaching Lake Erie. The Buffalo News reports a Navy architect and experts from a salvage company will arrive at the site today (Monday) to assess the situation. Buffalo’s mayor says efforts to save the U-S-S The Sullivans will take time.

The five Sullivan brothers died on November 13th, 1942 and the Navy destroyer named in their honor was in service in World War II and the Korean War. It was decommissioned in 1965 and in Buffalo since 1977.

(Hamburg, Iowa) – An investigation into a March 20th personal injury accident in Fremont County, resulted in the arrest on April 13th, of 32-year Ashley Frost, of Hamburg. The Fremont County Sheriff’s Office reports Frost was taken into custody for OWI/1st offense, and Reckless Driving. She was also cited for No SR-22 Insurance, Violation of her restricted license (by having no ignition interlock), and a stop sign violation.

Ashley Frost

(Original report follows):

On March 20th at approximately 7:30-p.m.,  Fremont County Deputies were called to the 1900 Block of Park Street in Hamburg, for a report of a possibly intoxicated female driving recklessly in the yard of a church.

The vehicle, a 1998 Dodge Dakota, driven by 32-year-old Ashley Frost, of Hamburg, Iowa, fled the scene prior to deputies’ arrival. Witnesses advised the vehicle was traveling at an extreme high rate of speed southbound on Washington Street at E Street, where it collided with a southbound 2021 Dodge Ram, operated by Charles Mincer of Lake Toxaway, NC. Frost’s vehicle then left the roadway, entering a culvert at Washington and D Street.

Mincer and his passenger were treated and released at the scene. Frost was transported to Grape Community Hospital with serious injuries.

(Cass County, Iowa) – Two semi tractor-trailer’s collided on Interstate 80 in Cass County, Saturday morning, but no serious injuries were reported, and no one was transported to the hospital. The accident happened at 7:58-a.m. on I-80 eastbound, near the Elk Horn exit (Mile marker 55). Atlantic Fire and Rescue and Cass EMS were dispatched to the scene, where one semi was in the south ditch, and the other stopped on the shoulder of the road.

No other details are currently available.

ATLANTIC, Iowa – April 15, 2022 – In cooperation with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Omaha District, the Iowa Department of Transportation’s District 4 Office will be closing Iowa 333 between Interstate 29 and Hamburg from 8 a.m. to 9 a.m. on Sunday, April 24, to allow for an inspection of the levee closure structure.

The inspection will be completed rain or shine. However, if there is lightning in the area during the inspection time the inspection will be rescheduled for the following Sunday. During the one-hour road closure, motorists can access Hamburg and I-29 by traveling on U.S. 275 and Iowa 2.

The Iowa DOT reminds motorists to drive with caution, obey the posted speed limit and other signs in the work area, and be aware that traffic fines for moving violations are at least double in work zones. As in all work zones, drivers should stay alert, allow ample space between vehicles, and wear seat belts.

(Radio Iowa) – Honor flights for local military veterans to fly to Washington D-C. to visit the memorials honoring their service and sacrifice will begin again next month. All expenses are paid for those veterans through donations, and the Sioux City Musketeers hockey team presented a check Thursday to sponsor the next 84 World War Two, Korean and Vietnam veterans making the flight to the nation’s capital. Travis Morgan along with team owner Lloyd Ney presented a check for 85-thousand700 dollars to honor flight representatives in Sioux City

“We were able to raise almost 90-thousand dollars in jersey sales during last year and this year to sponsor one of the greatest causes you could possibly ask for,” he says. Vietnam veteran, Richard Storm of Sioux City flew on the last honor flight back in October. He served in Vietnam for one year starting in March of 1970. “When we got off the plane until we got on the bus, the entire concourse was lined with volunteers, welcoming us back, cheering, and sorry, I get a little teared up here, I told my children and my grandchildren this is the welcome back we never got,” Storm says.

Storm says after coming home from his Vietnam service he was looked at differently than he is today, so he did not talk about his service for years. “For years and years, I mean, I never said anything about my service and never told my children about it. I never showed them pictures, didn’t join veterans groups until maybe, probably about 15 years ago, just never was involved,” Storm says. ” And I would say in the last 10 years, you know, it’s been an honor to be a Vietnam veteran. We’re a brotherhood, and we’ll be all I think for the rest of our lives.”

This will be the 9th Midwest honor flight, and it will leave on May 14th.

CLIVE, Iowa — A southwest Iowa man has now won two big lottery prizes in two years. Today (Friday), Delbert Littleton, of Atlantic, claimed the first of eight top prizes of $100,000 available in the “Power 10X” scratch game. In June 2020, he had won a prize of $25,000 a year for life in the Lucky for Life lotto game, and chose to receive his winnings in the lump-sum option of $390,000.

As with his first win, Littleton said he was in his kitchen when he realized this week that he’d hit big. “It kind of took my breath away,” he said. “My heart started racing. I went into the living room and had to sit down for a second. And once I collected my thoughts, I went ahead and called my wife on the phone. And I had to pull the phone away from my ear because she yelled as soon as I told her!”

When he realized he won big in 2020, Littleton said he and his wife danced for joy in the kitchen. This time, he startled their dog a bit. “He probably thought I was crazy because I was just running around,” Littleton said. “He got up real quick and his ears perked up and he just looked at me. He probably thought something was wrong.”

The 64-year-old Littleton, who works at an assisted-living facility, said he bought some tickets in the Power 10X game because it was new. He ended up with three winning tickets in a row: A $20 winner that he redeemed for two more tickets in the game. One of those was a $10 winner and the other won a $100,000 prize.

Power 10X is a $10 scratch game that just began sales on April 5. Its tickets feature green-and-yellow graphics of arcing electricity. Prizes in the game range from $10 up to $100,000. Littleton bought his $100,000-winning ticket at Murphy USA, 1903 E. Seventh St. in Atlantic.

After his 2020 win, Littleton said that he and his wife, Jodi, followed through on their plans to buy a new house and get new vehicles. With this win, he has concrete plans again. “I’m getting kind of tired of doing the push mower thing,” he said “So I’m going to get a riding lawnmower. And the rest, we’re going to be able to take more in vacation this year and the rest of it, just stash it like we did the first time.”

Littleton said he considers this win “a little icing on the cake.” “It gives me a nice perspective on retirement,” he said. “It makes the thought of retirement a little more relaxing.”