The area’s top news at 7:06-a.m., w/KJAN News Director Ric Hanson

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The American Red Cross is preparing to respond as Hurricane Matthew slams into the southeast coast of the country.  Iowa Region Red Cross spokesperson, Kara Kelly, says national officials are checking with the states that are not in the path of the storm to line up help. “There is a major call for volunteers nationwide to go anywhere from South Carolina to Florida to help, so we are making those  opportunities available to folks. But at the same time….we still have a flooding operation happening in north and eastern Iowa and we still want to make sure we take care of folks at home too,” Kelly says.

Two Iowa volunteers from Ankeny may be heading out to help with the Hurricane recovery sometime today (Friday). She says they were actually scheduled to head out Thursday, but the airport in Orlando closed and they are not waiting. Kelly says if you are interested in volunteering for the Red Cross the first step is to register. “I would say now is the time to get signed up, because if it becomes a very significant operation — which we anticipate it could be —  we could start sending people pretty quickly. And sometimes that training could happen pretty quickly,” Kelly says.  “The best thing to do at this point is to go to Red-Cross-dot-org and sign up to get into the system. At the very minimum you can take some of those on-line trainings and then we will see what happens.”

She says it has been a significant amount of time since we’ve seen a hurricane of this magnitude. “We’re just asking people to be prepared if you’ve got friends or families in those areas. Make sure you contact them, you know where they are going to be, and hopefully they are heeding those warnings to evacuate,” Kelly says.

In Florida alone where some areas could get as much as 10 inches of rain, the Red Cross is prepared to open or support as many as 100 evacuation shelters and has more than 30 emergency response vehicles standing by. In South Carolina, the Red Cross plans to open or support 19 evacuation shelters and dozens of additional shelters are ready to open in Georgia and North Carolina.

(Radio Iowa)

Hillary Clinton’s daughter told a crowd in Sioux City late yesterday (Wednesday) afternoon that the country’s values “are at stake” in this year’s election. “I never thought I would see in my lifetime the almost normalization of hate speech that we are witnessing from the Republican nominee and his campaign,” she said. That was part of Chelsea Clinton’s answer to a woman in the crowd who said — while asking a question — that Hillary Clinton has been subjected to a “smear campaign” since the 1990s.

Chelsea Clinton, who is 36, told the crowd she doesn’t remember a time in her life when her mother wasn’t being attacked. And she asked Iowans to examine her mother’s record. “Mom’s been fighting for maternity and paternity leave for, literally, longer than I’ve been alive,” Chelsea Clinton said, getting laughter from the crowd, “and for early childhood education and for investments in our public education system and so much more that I know go really to the heart of our values as a country.”

More than 100 people attended the event in Sioux City. Chelsea Clinton also made a campaign stop in Dubuque yesterday (Wednesday). A spokeswoman for the Republican National Committee issued a written statement in response to the trip, saying Hillary Clinton’s “dishonesty and lies have demonstrated she is the wrong person to lead our country.”

(Radio Iowa)

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 3:40 a.m. CDT

AMES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa State University President Steven Leath says he’ll be more cautious after facing criticism over his use of university airplanes and a private $1.1 million land deal with his boss. Leath told the student government that he misjudged how both issues would be perceived. He said, “I’ve learned my lesson.”

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Four Iowa men and a woman from Nebraska will serve shorter prison sentences after President Barack Obama granted them clemency. Most of the 102 offenders in Thursday’s announcement committed drug crimes considered nonviolent. Among them, Rodger Lee Moran, of Des Moines, was serving life for selling methamphetamine. His sentence was shortened to 20 years and Kenny Siepker of Carroll had six years knocked off his 31 years.

ST. LUCAS, Iowa (AP) — The remains of a Navy chaplain have been returned to his hometown in Iowa nearly 75 years after he died during the surprise Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Chaplain Aloysius Schmitt was aboard the battleship USS Oklahoma when the Dec. 7, 1941, attack happened. The Telegraph Herald reports Schmitt helped other sailors escape the sinking ship before he died. The Navy announced in September that Schmitt’s remains had been identified.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The long-time secretary of a women’s sorority group that focuses on personal integrity and service to others has been sentenced to more than two years in prison for taking more than $1.6 million over 14 years from the organization. Andrea G. Baker of Elkhart was sentenced Thursday to 27 months in prison and ordered to pay $1.66 million in restitution to the Ames chapter of the Chi Omega Alumnae Association.

ST. LUCAS, Iowa (AP) – The remains of a Navy chaplain have been returned to his home in Iowa nearly 75 years after he died during the surprise Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Chaplain Aloysius Schmitt was aboard the battleship USS Oklahoma when the Dec. 7, 1941, attack happened. The Telegraph Herald reports that Schmitt was among a group of sailors who discovered a small porthole as the ship was filling with water. Schmitt had the chance to escape but refused and hoisted others through the porthole and out to safety.

The battleship capsized within minutes, and Schmitt became the first chaplain killed during World War II. The Navy announced in September that Schmitt’s remains had been identified. A visitation and remembrance was held for the chaplain Wednesday in his hometown of St. Lucas, Iowa. His burial will be held in Dubuque, Iowa, on Saturday.

Sheriff’s officials in Adams County say 22-year old Jacob Jones, of Corning, was arrested today (Thursday) on a felony charge of Possessing contraband inside a jail, and a simple misdemeanor charge of Interference with official acts. His bond was set at $5,000.

On Wednesday, Jones was escorted into the Adams County Sheriff’s Office with his Probation Officer, for the purpose of conducting a random urine test. Once inside the jail, Jones allegedly attempted to pour clean urine from a bottle that he had concealed on his person, into the urine test cup, in an attempt to alter the test results.

Deputies noticed Jones’ attempt and seized the bottle before any liquid could be poured into the test cup.

SIOUX CITY, Iowa – Oct. 6, 2016 – Road construction work for the expansion of U.S. 20 in Ida and Sac counties will require closing the roadway to traffic between Ida County Road M-25 (near Galva) and U.S. 71 (near Early) from 6 a.m. Monday, Oct. 17, until late fall 2018, weather permitting, according to the Iowa Department of Transportation’s District 3 Office.

Motorists will be directed around the work zone on a signed detour using Ida County Road M-25, Ida/Sac County Road D-15, and U.S. 71 (see map).

C.J. Moyna and Sons Inc. was awarded the $45,778,318 road construction project.

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.

The Atlantic Police Department reports a man from Minnesota was arrested at a local motel in Atlantic, in connection with a series of sexual assaults perpetrated against a juvenile relative over a period of several years. 31-year old Shawn Michael Stransky was being held in the Cass County Jail, and will be extradited to Minnesota, as soon as next week.

Atlantic Police Chief Steve Green says his department assisted investigators from the Minneapolis and South St. Paul, MN Police Departments in the arrest, and in handling the execution of search warrants related to the case. The search was also executed at a residence in Atlantic where Stransky had stored some of his belongings.

Green said Stransky had lived in Atlantic for a short time, and was attempting to “Start a life away from his past crimes.” Green said also, “We are confident that no one in Atlantic had any knowledge or involvement in [Stransky’s] case.”

The grassland/field fire Danger rating will remain HIGH in Shelby County, until further notice. Emergency Management Coordindator Bob Seivert said Thursday (today), while some rain has fallen and more is likely, the amount of crops and vegetation in the fields is significant, and those elements can dry out in a matter of hours, creating a potential fast burning situation.

Adair County Auditor Mindy Schaefer says voters in the County will find a question on their Nov. 8th General Election ballot, with regard to how Township Trustees and Clerks are selected. In July, the Adair County Board of Supervisors passed a Resolution to put a question on the November 8, 2016 General Election Ballot asking if their Township Trustees and Clerk positions from should change from elected to appointed.

Currently 10 townships appoint the Trustees and Clerk.  Harrison, Jefferson, Lincoln, Richland, Union, Walnut and Washington in Adair County currently elect the Trustees and Clerk.  If township voters pass the question, it would change those offices to be filled by appointment, and the appointment would be for a four-year term.  When a vacancy occurs, the remaining position holders would choose a replacement, and then present that name to the Board of Supervisors for appointment.  If the remaining position holders were unable to find a replacement, the Board of Supervisors work to find the replacement.

The reasons for the proposed change is two-fold:  First, the same people tend to be elected each time the position comes up for election with no opposition for the office.  The change would no longer require that person to have his/her name put on the ballot. This would also save trying to fill the position by write-in when no one puts their name on the ballot; Second, the change Schaefer says, would save Adair County money.  The programming and ballot production costs are based on the number of ballot styles in the county. If all townships were to pass this public measure there would be 5 ballot styles.  This year the County has 13 ballot styles.

If passed, the people elected in 2014 would serve through 2018 and then, if they wanted to remain in the position, would be appointed at the first meeting in January 2019.  People on the ballot in 2016 would be appointed at the first meeting in January 2021.  If a vacancy occurs after the question is passed, the replacement person would be appointed.  Every four years the person would be re-appointed until they no longer want the position.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact the Adair County Auditor’s office at 641-743-2546.