(Radio Iowa) – Three people were injured in a massive explosion in Le Mars today (Wednesday) that destroyed one house and left a second heavily damaged by fire. Fire Chief Dave Schipper says the explosion happened around 6:35 a-m. “It was called in actually by an Assistant Fire Chief who was on his way to station one and was just four blocks to the north of here when he witnessed the explosion and the debris landing in the street,” he says. One of the victims is seriously injured.
“All three of those were treated by Le Mar’s Fire Rescue and transported to Floyd Valley Hospital one to Mercy in Sioux City, and that person since has been life-flighted to St Elizabeth’s Burn Center in Lincoln with some severe burn injuries,” Schipper says. Schipper says the early investigation points to a possible gas leak as the cause of the explosion. He says the blast rattled several city buildings.
KLEM photo via RI
“We have several structures around the area houses that have been damaged either windows or doors or things blown off the walls,” he says “Station one sits about five blocks from here — it actually had some things blown off the wall at the fire station.” The house closest to the explosion suffered the most damage.
“We had a serious fire in the second structure we had structural integrity that was not safe for our firefighters to enter,” Schipper says. He says the second home was demolished because of the damage. Both homes that were destroyed were rental properties owned by the same landlord. A third home caught fire — but the fire was quickly put out.
(Cass County, Iowa) – A jury in Cass County District Court took less than an hour today (Wednesday) to deliberate their verdict in the case an Atlantic man who was facing charges of Attempted Murder, Arson 1st Degree and Assault Causing Bodily Injury. According to reports, 30-year-old Anthony Rey Asay was found not guilty of assaulting Dave Thomas, and then setting a house on fire at 106 Cedar Street on May 4th while Thomas was still inside.Asay’s trial began Tuesday afternoon. Following the verdict announcement, Asay was released on his own recognizance subject to pretrial release, so that he may travel to Pottawattamie County and address charges there. He faces a trial back in Atlantic on August 2nd, and charges that include Willful Injury Causing Bodily Injury, Assault Causing Bodily Injury and Possession of a Controlled Substance. His pre-trial conference on those charges is set for July 25th at 9-a.m.
(Walnut, Iowa) – Authorities say one person died when a train collided with a grain truck at around 2:30-p.m. today, near Walnut. KETV in Omaha reported the accident happened near 500th Street and Rosewood Road.
Officers received reports of a semi-truck colliding with a rail train and the train dragged the semi approximately 100-150 yards, according to authorities. When first responders arrived on the scene, the truck was on fire — “fully involved,” according to law enforcement.
The Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Office said the train was traveling eastbound and the grain truck was traveling southbound. Law enforcement was still on the scene as of 4:30–p.m., investigating the accident. The intersection is closed at this time, according to authorities.
(Atlantic, Iowa) – The Atlantic School District’s Board of Education met this (Wednesday) afternoon in the High School Media Center. The Board moved to approve the following Resignations: Matt Smith, Boys Head Soccer Coach; Joseph Brummer, Head Baseball Coach, and Julie Hansen, Washington Paraeducator. They also approved Contract Recommendations for:
Chase Roller, Asst. HS Wrestling Coach
Michaelin Juhl, Volunteer CHeerleading Coach
Adam Roberts, Vol. Archery Coach
Laurie Fell, WA Grade Level Teacher
Mikade Thompson, HS Night Custodian.
Here is what Superintendent Steve Barber reported to the Board (These notes are provided courtesy School Board Secretary Sarah Sheeder):
“We continue to work on filling positions for next year. As mentioned last month, we will continue to actively pursue qualified candidates to serve our students in Atlantic until we are able to get them all filled. This could be before the first day, during the first semester, at the beginning of the next semester or not until next year. Here is some progress that has been made:
Third grade position: We are recommending Mrs Fell, a retired Atlantic teacher, to serve one year in the kindergarten classroom and Ms. Miller to fill our vacant third grade position.
Title I at Schuler: Continue to look for a viable candidate. If unable to find, we will use our Washington Elementary Title teachers to work with those Title I students. Washington does have some student teachers this year, so they could be potential candidates for this opening once they become licensed.
English Language Arts: Hire a long term substitute that is highly qualified for the first semester, while actively finding a replacement. Mrs. McKay has been working with colleges and have identified some possible replacements with students who are graduating at semester.
English Language Arts: Hoping to find another qualified candidate to fill this position. If unable, Mr. Aden, Mrs. Mckay and myself are looking at ways with our current staff to meet the demands at the high school.
Math: Continue to pursue a candidate and look at other potential individuals with good math background who could fill in as we are searching for a replacement. ESL teacher: Continue to look for a replacement.
HS/MS Media Specialist: Use Mrs. Dickerson to meet our legal obligations and communicate with colleges who offer a Master’s Level Librarian Program.
Plan to move furniture:
All the new furniture for the Middle School will be installed and put into the appropriate rooms by July 22, 2022. Right now some of the old school furniture is replacing furniture in some of the other buildings. Once that step is complete, Mr. Peck will inventory what is still available and then ask the Board to approve a process where this inventory is made available to community members. We would then ask to dispose of the remaining furniture.
Bull creek renovation on the Green Space:
Part of the plans in renovating the Bull Creek project is to enlarge the retention pond on the Green Space in front of the Middle School. If we get a heavy rain this pond backs up and the water discharged is polluted. By deepening and making it larger there is more control of the discharged water. I am working with Snyder’s [Engineers] and the City on a Memorandum of Understanding that they are responsible for maintaining the Prairie Grasses and WildFlowers that the plan has specifications for.
Mr. Barber said also, with regard to COVID mitigation in the District’s buildings, they will operate under a “Communicable Disease” policy.
And, Mr. Barber mentioned the District is set to benefit from a generous gift from the estate of Jo Ann Runyon, who passed away May 5th.
In other business, the Atlantic School Board approved four IASB Legislative Priorities they would like the Iowa Association of School Boards to lobby for during the next legislative session. They chose: 1) Mental Health; 2) Teacher Recruitment/Licensure; 3) School Safety, and 4) Market-Competitive Wages. The Board then acted on approving Spring 2023 Coaching Contract Recommendations for the following:
Head Boys Golf: Ed DenBeste; Head Girls Golf: Kathy Hobson
Head Boys/Girls Tennis: Mike McDermott
Head HS Girls Track: Matt Mullenix; Asst. HS Girls Track: Derek Hall; Head Boys HS Track: Abby Becker; Asst Boys HS Track: Matt Best & Bryce Smith.
MS Boys Track: Bryce Casey; MS Girls Track: Taylor Williams
Head HS Girls Soccer: Dan Vargasson; Asst. HS Boys Soccer: Mark Anderson.
In the final order of business, the Board approved the plans, specifications, form of contract and estimate of cost, for the Achievement Center Roof Improvement project. The lowest bid of $214,564, came from Elevate Roofing, out of Denison. The District has worked with that company, previously. Their bid came in well under the Cost Estimate of $248,000.
(Council Bluffs, Iowa) – The Council Bluffs Police Department today (Wednesday) said the Carroll Kuemper baseball team lost their charter bus for a short time (Tuesday) night. CBPD located the bus and arrested the person driving it. The suspect was identified as 42-year-old Jamar Hill, of Omaha. He faces charges that include Theft in the 1st Degree, and Driving While Suspended.
The incident began at around 9:24-p.m., when the 2000 motor coach bus was stolen from the parking lot of 915 N. 21st Street. Officers located the bus three minutes later and conducted a traffic stop in the 1700 block of W. Broadway. Hill, the driver, was taken into custody without incident.
Officials noted the bus had been chartered by Carroll-Kuemper for a baseball game being played at Council Bluffs Thomas Jefferson’s Baseball Field. The bus was returned to the owner, and…by-the-way: Carroll-Kuemper won the game 6-2.
(Greenfield, Iowa) – The Adair County Board of Supervisors, this (Wednesday) morning, heard from County Engineer Nick Kauffman, who spoke with regard to an updated cell phone policy allowance in the Secondary Roads Department Benefit Policy handbook.
Kauffman presented also, a Bridge Weight Limit Resolution for Adair County. He told the Board they have changed postings on the following bridges:
North 35 Summitis now a legal bridge.
West 8 Grand River was posted 14 tons. Re-rating as a one lane bridge allows us to remove the weight limit. It is now a “legal” one lane bridge.
North 1 Summerset was a legal bridge. It is now posted for 26 tons.
The Resolution was approved as presented. In other business, the Adair County Board of Supervisors approved a Child Abuse Prevention Grant Draw-down in the amount of $1,252.76, and they acknowledged receipt of the SICOG Housing Trust Fund report.
(Glenwood, Iowa) – The Mills County Sheriff’s Office report three arrests occurred, Tuesday. 62-year-old Thomas Oscar Anderson, of Red Oak, was arrested at the Montgomery County Jail, ona Mills County warrant for Failure to Appear, on an original – Possession of a Controlled Substance, charge. His bond was set at $25,000.
36-year-old Thomas Joseph Deveney, of Omaha, and 32-year-old Elizabeth Rene Lynette Evans, of Council Bluffs, were arrested Tuesday night near Hilman Road and Highway 34. Deveney was charged with Violation of a No Contact Order (Held without bond). Evans was charged with Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. ($300 bond)
(Glenwood, Iowa) – The Glenwood Police Department reports one arrest. On Tuesday, Officers arrested 47-year-old Stacey Barrett, of Glenwood. She was taken into custody for Driving Under Suspension, with her cash or surety bond set at $300. Barrett was also, later charged with Possession of Contraband in a correctional institution. The charge carries a $5,000 or surety bond.
(Radio Iowa) – In a follow-up to our previous report, the State of Iowa is ramping up public awareness efforts in response to an influx of fake prescription drugs laced with fentanyl that have shown up in the state. Public Safety Commissioner, Steven Bayens says the pills are produced mainly in Mexico. “The pill presses used by the cartels can create nearly flawless reproductions of common prescription drugs. As a result, even our own agents are now trained to treat every prescription pill they encounter, like it contains fentanyl,” Bayens says.
Bayens says the procedures for mixing what goes into the pills is not as sophisticated as the production process — and that leads to pills that are deadly. “The Drug Enforcement Administration has found that four out of every ten counterfeit pills submitted to their lab contains a lethal dose,” he says. “If we apply that data point to Iowa, more than 28,000 lethal doses of fentanyl had been seized. In the first six months alone.” Bayens says the amount of fentanyl that is lethal can fit on the lead of a pencil. Too much fentanyl creates what is called a ‘hot batch.” He says you can help by reporting the discovery of the fake pills.
Steven Bayens, Iowa Public Safety Commissioner
“The quicker we can identify a hot batch has made its way into a community. The quicker we can alert health officials, educate the public and begin enforcement action designed to stop its deadly effects,” according to Bayens.”We would also encourage citizens to call and would cut our narcotics tip hotline to report suspected drug activity. Every tip that comes into the hotline that is submitted to us by an anonymous email is distributed to one of our 17 field offices throughout the state.”
He says the pills are dangerous to handle, and you should not try to dispose of them yourself. Bayens says it’s also important for the lab to review the pills to try and determine their makeup. Anyone that finds a counterfeit pill is encouraged to call the Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement anonymous tip hotline at (800) 532-0052 or dneinfo@dps.state.ia.us and in the case of an emergency, call 9-1-1. Bayens says the most common pills are designed to look like the powerful painkiller oxycontin. “They’re smaller blue pills that are marked with M 30. And that’s actually the pharmaceutical markings for oxycontin. And so the vast majority of what we’re seeing right now and the vast majority of the seizures have appeared to be oxycontin. They’re stamped blue roughly the same size and have M 30 inscribed on them,” he says.
Governor Kim Reynolds says the state is planning to target young people to try and educate them more on the issue. “The Iowa Department of Health and Human Services will be deploying an extension of its public health multimedia campaign targeting preteens to young adults, which is currently focused on suicide prevention to include new messaging about the dangers of fentanyl,” Reynolds says.
The focus on fentanyl comes after overdose deaths in Cass and Shelby counties uncovered a fentanyl distribution ring in western Iowa and eastern Nebraska. For 24-hour confidential support and for more information on fentanyl and counterfeit pills, or for resources on opioid or other substance use disorders, visit www.YourLifeIowa.org.