At least one person was transported to the Cass County Memorial Hospital in Atlantic, Saturday evening, following a collision on east Seventh Street near the north entrance to Wal-Mart. An SUV and small Ford passenger car were involved. The call came in at around 4:43-p.m.

Atlantic Fire and Rescue, Medivac Ambulance, Atlantic Police and the Cass County Sheriff’s Office responded to the scene. No other details were immediately available, but a person loaded into the ambulance was conscious and breathing following the crash.

Ric Hanson/Photo

ROCKWELL CITY, Iowa (AP) — The City Council in Rockwell City has voted to provide health insurance to the family of a police officer killed in the line of duty in 2013, fulfilling a pledge to ensure coverage for five years after the officer’s death. The Fort Dodge Messenger reports the council voted Monday night to pay the insurance costs for Amanda Buenting and her two children. The move meets a promise made by officials to provide health insurance coverage for five years after the death of officer Jaimie Buenting, who was killed in a September 2013 standoff.

Buenting thanked the council and community for “standing behind its promise of five years of insurance even when they had to buy an individual policy.” Mayor Phil Heinlen couldn’t immediately say how much the decision would cost.

One person suffered serious injuries during a rollover accident Saturday morning, in Adair County. The Iowa State Patrol reports 19-year old Chase Anthony Maas, of Menlo, was driving a 2003 Chevy S-10 pickup southbound on Marion Avenue near 210th Street, when for reasons unknown, Maas failed to stop at the intersection.

The pickup went off the road and overturned into the north ditch, rolling over before coming to rest in the driver’s side. Maas, who was not wearing his seat belt, was transported by Adair Rescue to the Adair County Memorial Hospital in Greenfield, before being flown by LifeFlight to Mercy Hospital in Des Moines.

The accident, which happened at around 5:30-a.m., was under investigation.

CLEAR LAKE, Iowa (AP) — A chilly plunge by more than 200 people into Clear Lake in north-central Iowa recently raised about $10,500 for area charities. The Mason City Globe Gazette reports that the money from the annual Polar Bear Club event will go to support the area chapters of Toys for Tots and the Make-A-Wish of North Iowa. This year’s event, which is held during the annual Christmas by the Lake, brought in less money and fewer dippers than the past two years, despite warmer conditions. Last year, the event raised $13,000 with more than 300 individuals participating.

The 13 candidates running for governor who gathered at a forum this past week agree there is a need for more long-term care options for mentally ill Iowans. Three of the candidates support reopening the state-run Mental Health Institutes in Clarinda and Mount Pleasant. Nearly all agree the insurance companies managing care for Medicaid patients have created “chaos” for those dealing with a mental illness. John Norris of Des Moines was one of the seven Democratic candidates at the event. “The governor needs to admit failure,” Norris said. “That’s a part of being a leader.”

Republican Governor Kim Reynolds recorded a brief video message that was played during the event. “Today, Iowa’s mental health system is serving more Iowans in more modern ways, with better services in more local home and community settings than ever before,” Reynolds said. Former Iowa Democratic Party chairwoman Andy McGuire, a doctor who’s running for governor, scoffed. “I don’t know what state she’s living in, but it’s not the state I’m living in,” McGuire said.

Nate Boulton is a state senator from Des Moines who’s also seeking the Democratic nomination for governor. ““We have a serious mental health crisis in this state and we need to have serious conversations about answers,” Boulton said. Boulton would reopen the state Mental Health Institutes. Democrat Fred Hubbell says the emphasis should be on boosting community-level services. “Mental health shows up differently in every family, in every neighborhood, in every community,” Hubbell said.

Brent Roske, an independent candidate for governor, says it’s time for a single-payer health care system that will cover treatment for mental illness. “We need to look at this as something that we expect, just like police, fire, K-12,” Roske said. “It’s a benefit of citizenship and it has to be addressed now.” The forum opened with a moment of silence, to recognize Iowans who are struggling with mental illness or an addiction. Jake Porter of Council Bluffs, a Libertarian running for governor, told the crowd that “years ago” he contemplated suicide. “None of this is going to change until we address the stigma behind addressing mental health,” Porter said.

More than four-hundred people attended the forum on Tuesday night. It was organized by The Des Moines Register and hosted by Des Moines University and the Iowa Hospital Association.

(Radio Iowa)