KJAN News can be heard at five minutes after every hour right after Fox News 24 hours a day!
Keep up-to-date with Fox News Radio, Radio Iowa, Brownfield & the Iowa Agribusiness Networks!
KJAN News can be heard at five minutes after every hour right after Fox News 24 hours a day!
Keep up-to-date with Fox News Radio, Radio Iowa, Brownfield & the Iowa Agribusiness Networks!
More State and area news from KJAN News Director Ric Hanson.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (3.7MB)
Subscribe: RSS
Anita Rescue and Wiota Fire were dispatched this morning to a two-vehicle collision with rollover accident west of Wiota, at 655th and Whitepole Road. The call went out at 7:48-a.m. According to the report, one vehicle was on the road while the other rolled into the ditch. Additional details are currently not available.
Another crash was reported in the Omaha area on eastbound I-80 near the I-480 split. That crash was reported around 7:30 a.m. The Nebraska Department of Transportation reports that the center two lanes are closed. Avoid the area and use an alternate route if possible.
The Creston Police Department reports the arrest at around 8:50-p.m., Tuesday, of 40-year-old Aaron Riepe. The Creston man was arrested at his residence on a Union County Warrant for the charge of Violation of Probation. Riepe was being held in the Union County Jail awaiting bond hearing.
The area’s latest and/or top news stories at 7:06-a.m. From KJAN News Director Ric Hanson.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (5.4MB)
Subscribe: RSS
Here are the latest COVID-19 numbers from the Iowa Coronavirus dashboard (as of 10-a.m. today, Wednesday): There are 1,276 more Positive test results back from the labs since 10-a.m. Tuesday, for a total of 109,573. And, 31 more Iowans have died from the virus, for a total of 1,576. Pre-existing conditions accounted for 1,053 of the deaths.There was one more COVID-related death in Guthrie County, for a total of 15.
The data show 911,681 tests have been completed to-date, with 5,367 results coming back since Tuesday’s report. Negative test results received since yesterday amount to 4,670 (for a total of 800,452), with 647 positive test results. The IDPH says 84,641 Iowans have recovered from the effects of COVID-19. The state says 12% of individuals have tested positive, and the 14 day rolling average positivity rate is 9.7%. There are currently 14 Iowa counties reporting a positivity rate greater than 15% over the last 14 days, down from 15 the previous day. Taylor County has the highest rate at 21.4%. Cass and Harrison counties are tied with a 21.1% rolling positivity rate. Public schools in these area counties….Taylor, Cass,Harrison, Carroll and Crawford, are among several across the State eligible to apply for a waiver to provide 100% virtual learning.
In the KJAN listening area, there are : 23 more Positive cases in Cass County. for a total of 340; 41 more in Pottawattamie County; eight more cases in Adair and Harrison Counties; seven each in Shelby and Union Counties; six more in Mills County; five new cases in Audubon County; four in Guthrie County, and three each in Adams and Montgomery Counties.
Hospitalizations continue to rise, from 501 yesterday to 534 today. That’s the second highest daily rate on record for the pandemic. Intensive Care Unit numbers are up from 122 to 134. Officials say 90 people with COVID symptoms were admitted to an Iowa hospital, since Tuesday, compared to 71 yesterday. And, there are 49 patients on a ventilator, compared to 45 yesterday. Hospitals in western/southwest Iowa report 48 people with the virus are in a hospital facility, compared to 41 yesterday. There are 15 people in an ICU, compared to 14 Tuesday, nine persons were admitted, compared to eight the previous day, and one person remains on a ventilator.
There are 68 Long Term Care facility outbreaks in Iowa, three more than on Tuesday. The IDPH reports: 1, 709 patients/staff at those facilities have tested positive for COVID; 692 patients/staff have recovered, and LTC deaths are up 10, to 786.
In the KJAN listening area, here are the current number positive cases in each county, along with the 24-hour change in case numbers {+#}; the number of persons recovered, and the total number of [deaths] (if any), since the pandemic began,
(Radio Iowa/KJAN) With less than two weeks until the polls close on Election Day, the pace of EARLY voting in Iowa is way ahead previous records. More than 827-thousand Iowans asked for an absentee ballot so they could vote early either in-person at their county auditor’s office or by mail. The Iowa Secretary of State’s website shows nearly 571-thousand Iowans have already voted. Fifty-three percent of them are Democrats, 30 percent are Republicans and the remaining 16 percent are registered as “no party” or independent voters.
The latest voter REGISTRATION data shows there are about 13-thousand more registered Republicans than Democrats in Iowa. For the past few decades, independent voters had been the largest voting block in Iowa, but they’ve been surpassed this year by voters aligning with the two major parties. The Cass County Auditor’s Office, Tuesday, reported they still have 639 ballots that were mailed out that need to be returned. Remember the postage is already paid, you can drop it in the mail or you can walk them into Auditor’s office.
Officials say also, Saturday October 24th is the last day to request a ballot be mailed to you. The Cass County Auditor’s Office is open this Saturday October 24th from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. for you to come in and vote. They said also “We have broken our 2016 record and currently have over 3000 ballots!!”
(Radio Iowa) – Most of the Wilson Island State Recreation Area along the Missouri River has reopened to the public after being closed for 19 months due to flooding — but the campgrounds won’t reopen until mid-April. Michelle Reinig, a supervisor in the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, says the number of campsites will be reduced — to eliminate the most flood-prone camping areas. “We hope we can live with the river and still provide access to the resource and the public recreation, being good stewards of taxpayer dollars,” Reinig says.
Most of the 544 acre recreation area is now open for hunting, hiking and bird watching as well as fishing in the Missouri River. Reinig says the river levels fluctuated during the NINE MONTHS that floodwaters remained in the area. “Everytime the flood waters come up and then they recede, it cuts back into the bank and it deposits new sand and silt elsewhere, so it creates new fishing holes along the riverfront there,” Reinig says. “…Let’s face it, it’s along the Missouri River and people are drawn there because of the river attraction, but then we don’t control the river and Mother Nature, so the river’s going to continue to be the ‘Mighty Mo’ and it’s going to flood again.”
There’s no fee to use the ramp in the recreation area that gives boats access to the river. Wilson Island, which is near the town of Missouri Valley, was originally a sand bar that developed around 1900. It’s named after George Wilson, a former Iowa governor and U.S. Senator. Some accounts indicate the Lewis and Clark Expedition camped in the area in 1804.
Officials with the Harlan Police Department report just two arrests over the past week. On Sunday, 41-year-old Jason Robin Conway Emery, of Shelby, was arrested following the execution of a search warrant. Emery was transported to the Shelby County Jail where he was charged with Theft 4th. And, on Oct. 14th, 52-year-old Brian Alan Sorensen, of Harlan, was arrested on an active warrant. Sorensen was transported to the Shelby County Jail.
Atlantic School District Superintendent Steve Barber, Tuesday, released the District’s latest COVID-19 data. In his statement, Barber said “We continue to see positive cases and quarantined individuals, yet we have not experienced a breakout in any of our buildings. Our absenteeism rate for students not quarantined is around 1% daily, which is really good. We serve our quarantined students remotely, as each student has a device and internet is available to ensure that all have access. Our staff continues to work hard at using the technology tools to enhance these experiences.”
He said also, “As a school district, we were fortunate to make it nearly four weeks before we were notified of a positive case requiring our nursing staff and Cass County to identify close contacts and quarantine those identified. Since then we have had staff and students who have tested positive that required us to inform those affected that they must quarantine. I realize that quarantine presents a lot of difficulties for parents, students, and staff and it is amazing to me how cooperative and understanding many have been when they receive a call from the school and/or Cass County Health. Our data shows that this practice has been successful in preventing spreading within the school.”
“From day one,” Barber says, “we have gathered both school and county data to help us make decisions or modifications as we hold health and safety our top priority. Starting on September 24, the week following our first case, we have kept data on the number of positive cases in the district as well as the number of students and staff quarantined. These data points have been recorded each week at the same time to help make decisions.”
The Superintendent says “As new information becomes available to us in regards to COVID-19, we revisit and reassess how we can enhance the mitigation strategies that we have in place to help overcome the negative consequences associated with COVID-19 and maintain a high level of safety and health while our students are in our care.”
Date | Positives not recovered (staff/students) | Quarantined
(staff/students) |
Cass Co. % positive (14 days) |
9/24 | 6/5 | 18/123 | 7.80% |
10/1 | 2/1 | 11/67 | 10.40% |
10/8 | 1/2 | 3/35 | 8.30% |
10/15 | 2/2 | 6/56 | 11.10% |
(The above information, Barber says, will be updated to the public each month to protect confidentiality of students and staff.)
Red Oak Police report two men were arrested on separate charges, Tuesday night. At around 7:30-p.m., 50-year old Kevin Wayne Watkins, of Red Oak, was arrested on a warrant for possession of a controlled substance/2nd offense. Watkins was being held in the Montgomery County Jail on $2,000 bond. And, at around 10:50-p.m., 42-year old Matthew Larry Eichelberger, of Elliott, was arrested following a traffic stop in Red Oak. Eichelberger was charged with Driving Under Suspension, and was being held in the Montgomery County Jail on slightly more than $566 bond.