WATERLOO, Iowa (AP) — Officials have identified a woman whose body was pulled from the Wapsipinicon River last month. The Courier reports that the Iowa State Medical Examiner’s Office confirmed the body found June 15 is that of 47-year-old Rhonda Apfel, of Waterloo.

Dr. Jonathan Thompson with the state examiner’s office says the cause of death hasn’t been determined and is pending further tests. Authorities had been looking for Apfel since May 28 near the river near Dunkerton. A motorcycle and other items belonging to Apfel were found inside the Bruggeman Wildlife Area outside Dunkerton.

Officials with the Union County Sheriff’s Office report the arrest at around 9:15-p.m., Monday, of 28-year old Trevor Jack Dillon Loudon. The Creston man was taken into custody at the Union County Law Enforcement Center, on a Union County warrant for theft 4th degree.  Loudon was being held in the Union County Jail on $1000 bond.

An eastern Iowa truck driver suffered minor injuries when the semi he was driving crashed at around 9:10-a.m. today (Tuesday), in Council Bluffs. According to Bluffs Police, the accident happened on Interstate 80 westbound, at mile marker 3.5.

A 2011 Peterbilt semi-tractor trailer fully loaded with meat products and operated by  43-year old David M. Raper, from Newton,  was westbound on I-80 when for unknown reasons the rig went out of control, and sideswiped a concrete barrier. The semi then hit a DOT portable electric sign on the shoulder of the interstate and continued into the grassy median where it went up an embankment.

The tractor-trailer overturned onto its side before skidding across four lanes of oncoming traffic on the I-80 eastbound and I-29 southbound split, where it struck a light pole. The rig finally came to a rest on the southwest shoulder of the I-80 eastbound and I-29 southbound split. Raper was transported by rescue to Jennie Edmundson Hospital, where he was treated for minor injuries and released. Police issued him a citation for failure to maintain control of a motor vehicle.

Bluffs Police officials credit two separate semi-tractor operators that were eastbound on I-80, and who observed the semi crossing the median into the oncoming lanes. Those drivers applied their brakes, stopping all the traffic behind them from continuing into the path of the out of control semi, possibly preventing multiple accidents or injuries.

Council Bluffs Police accident investigators were assisted by the Iowa State Patrol and will both be continuing their investigation. As of 2:15-p.m., the two far right lanes of the I-80 eastbound and I-29 southbound split remain closed, as well as the on ramp from the south expressway to the interstate until the towing company can remove the semi from the shoulder. All other lanes remain open for eastbound traffic.

The Adams County Sheriff’s Office says a call at around 5:30-a.m. Monday about a truck parked in the middle of 260th Street, near Nodaway, resulted in the arrest of a man on multiple charges. Deputies responding to the area saw a dark colored car leaving as they arrived. A traffic stop was conducted, but the vehicle took off.

Deputies noticed three people inside the vehicle, but only two were present when the car finally stopped. A K9 unit was called out the the location where the car was first seen, which was across from a farm home on 265th Street.

The K9 team picked up a track and found 30-year old Richard Dean Pierce, of Red Oak, laying in tall grass inside a bean field. Pierce was arrested for Burglary, Criminal Mischief, Trespassing, Theft, and on a warrant from Nodaway County, Missouri. His bond was set at $5,000.

Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller reports Consumer Protection Division representatives will travel to Harlan and Atlantic next week to provide “mobile office” access for Iowans with consumer-related questions or complaints. Division representatives will be on hand to provide information, answer questions, and assist with consumer protection matters, including complaints from consumers.

Staff members will be available on Tuesday, July 18 at these two locations:

• Harlan: 9:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. at the Shelby County Chamber of Commerce & Industry (1901 Hawkeye Ave., Suite 101), and,
• Atlantic: 1:30 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. at the Atlantic Public Library (507 Poplar St.)

Attorney General Tom Miller sends the mobile office to cities outside of Des Moines to assist Iowans with consumer issues. The outreach effort began last September when Miller traveled to Cedar Rapids and opened a temporary mobile office following a flood event. A Consumer Protection Division investigator provided flood victims with information on hiring a contractor, avoiding fraud, and the state’s price-gouging rule.

You do not need to reserve a time to speak with a Consumer Protection Division representative. If you are unable to visit the mobile office, you can still contact the division at 515-281-5926, call toll-free (outside the Des Moines metro area) at 888-777-4590, or email consumer@iowa.gov.

The State Patrol has released the name of a man killed in a crash that closed a section of Interstate 80 in eastern Iowa. The crash happened around 7:15 p.m. Sunday near West Branch when an SUV traveling westbound entered the median and struck a bridge support.

Seventy-three-year-old Neil Bell of Coralville died in the crash as he was thrown from the SUV which started on fire. The eastbound lanes of I-80 were closed for some time Sunday night due to the crash, which remains under investigation.

(Radio Iowa)

Officials say nearly three-thousand state employees who are members of a union are no longer be eligible for overtime pay. Governor Kim Reynolds says each state agency director must re-evaluate their budget and that includes allocation of overtime. “This actually gives them the opportunity to manage their resources and manage their departments,” Reynolds says. “I have full confidence in their ability to do so.”

The state’s collective bargaining agreement expired on June 30th. A spokeswoman for the Iowa Department of Human Services says it was only through the contract that these 28-hundred employees were paid for overtime. The president of the union that represents these workers says many are nurses who work at state institutions. AFSCME Council 61 president Danny Homan says it’s a “below the belt move” and some of them will be forced to work overtime without pay.

(Radio Iowa)

Members of the Atlantic Library Board of Trustees, Monday evening, appointed Diane McFadden as Interim Director of the Library. McFadden, who has served the Library for more than 20-years, is currently the Adult Services Librarian. She’ll take over after current Director Natalie Struecker’s serves through her last day on August 1st.

Board member Dee Bebensee told KJAN News that the Board, Monday, officially accepted Struecker’s resignation, which she had submitted at the end of June. Atlantic Mayor Dave Jones said during last week’s City Council meeting, that Struecker had accepted a position with the Cedar Rapids Library. The Board agreed to approve a job posting in Library Professional Resources and other media, in hopes of finding a permanent replacement for Struecker.

In other business, the Board approved the appointment of Gene Fischer and Greg Williams to the Library Board. They will replace Jim Crall and Hans Krengel.