(Red Oak, Iowa) – Red Oak Fire Chief John Bruce, in update to our story Wednesday, said a fire that destroyed a home early Wednesday morning, was caused by an electrical failure. Chief Bruce says the cause was determined through a joint investigation between his department and the State Fire Marshal’s Office. The fire at 104 B Street, in Red Oak, began on the front porch, in the area of an outlet where an extension cord was plugged in. From there, the fire grew in size due to combustible material located on the front porch, and progressed until it breached the front windows. Once the windows were broken, the flames made their way into and throughout the residence. The investigation into the incident is now complete.

No injuries were reported during the blaze. Residents of the home were being assisted by the Red Cross.

Atlantic, Iowa – SHIFT ATL, a 501(c)3 nonprofit, along with the Atlantic High School Cross Country team, will be hosting their sixth annual Turkey Trot in Atlantic on Thursday, November 28, 2024, at 8:00 a.m. This year’s event will have both an in-person and virtual option to participate. The in-person event will include a 5K route and 1-mile route option, both leaving from The Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce at 102 Chestnut St, at 8:00 a.m. sharp! Attendees can grab some warm eats and drinks from inside the building post-race. The virtual event can take place at the registrant’s discretion.

Cost to register is $25, with the option to add on race-day gear, a t-shirt (race + shirt $40) or crewneck sweatshirt (race + sweatshirt $55). Orders including any of these items need to be submitted by Tuesday, November 12th in order to ensure items are here before race day. Registration for the race will continue until the day of the event. Proceeds from this year’s event will once again benefit the Atlantic Cross Country team as a “thank you” for their help in putting on this year’s Turkey Trot.

Shared Coach Ashley Mosier says “The proceeds from the 2023 Turkey Trot were a game-changer in enabling us to purchase wish-list items for our Cross Country program. Thanks to the participation of our community and avid “trotters”, we were able to invest in much-needed equipment like muscle rollers and pink out jerseys, which will be able to be worn every year at
our home meet in support of breast cancer awareness. These additions have significantly enhanced our athletes’ recovery and team spirit. We are excited to support this year’s Turkey
Trot, which allows us to continue building and improving the Atlantic Cross Country program.”

To get registered, visit getmeregistered.com/AtlanticTurkeyTrot or shiftatl.org/turkeytrot to view full event details! For more information about SHIFT ATL or the Turkey Trot, visit
facebook.com/shiftatl, www.shiftatl.org or email shiftatlantic@gmail.com.

(Radio Iowa) – Reports say at least three-million customers in central Florida are without power after Hurricane Milton slammed ashore last night, bringing heavy rain, flooding and multiple tornadoes. Des Moines-based MidAmerican Energy has a 70-member disaster response crew in western North Carolina, which was hit by Hurricane Helene a few weeks ago. MidAmerican’s Tina Hoffman says the Iowa crew is working with Duke Energy to restore power in the Asheville area. “Duke has asked our crews to stay and continue,” Hoffman says, “and we expect them to be there assisting for at least a couple of more weeks. Of course, the conditions can change.”

Many thousands remain without power following Helene and until they’re reassigned, Hoffman says the Iowa team will stay put in the North Carolina mountains. She says Florida will be able to get help elsewhere. “We have a process that we call mutual assistance,” she says, “so when one utility has customers who are outaged by major incidents, like we’re seeing now, this system allows us to work together and share what needs they have.”

Iowa utility workers in North Carolina prepare for their day. (MidAmerican Energy photo)

Reports say some 90,000 homes in Georgia and North Carolina remain without power after the earlier storm.

DES MOINES, Iowa – The Iowa Department of Public Safety’s Office of Drug Control Policy (ODCP) is seeking public comment on the State of Iowa’s application to the U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Assistance for an estimated $1,800,000 in FY 2024 Byrne Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) program funding.

ODCP intends to use JAG funding to strategically support drug and crime reduction priorities authorized by federal guidelines and outlined in Iowa’s Drug Control Strategy.  Those eligible to submit JAG grant applications to ODCP include local and state units of government, Indian tribes, and faith based and non-profit organizations that apply in collaboration with government agencies.

The State of Iowa’s JAG application to the U.S. Department of Justice is posted for public viewing on ODCP’s website.  Comments on the application may be sent to:

Office of Drug Control Policy, Pape State Office Building

215 E. 7th Street, 5th Floor

Des Moines, Iowa 50319

You may also email comments to wiggins@dps.state.ia.us.  Public comments will be accepted through November 8, 2024.  Eligible Iowa organizations interested in submitting an application to ODCP for a future JAG grant will also find those instructions at the ODCP website or by calling ODCP during business hours at 515.805.4141.

(Iowa Capital Dispatch) – The state of Iowa, where nursing homes have compiled one of the nation’s worst records for staffing-level violations, has joined 19 other states in suing the Biden administration to block the implementation of new staffing requirements. According to the Iowa Capital Dispatch, the lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Iowa, seeks to overturn the nursing home staffing requirements approved earlier this year by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. In their petition, the 20 states and more than a dozen industry associations argue that the new staffing requirements pose “an existential threat to the nursing home industry as many nursing homes that are already struggling will have no choice but to go out of business. And the main victims will be the patients who will have nowhere else to go.”

The lawsuit is in response to CMS’ decision in April to finalize new minimum staffing standards that will require homes to conduct assessments of their residents’ needs and provide 3.48 hours of direct nursing care per resident, per day. The rule also requires the homes to have a registered nurse available 24 hours per day, seven days a week. Earlier this year it was reported that Iowa nursing homes have the sixth-worst record in the nation for staffing-level violations. Data from CMS show that 14% of the state’s 422 nursing facilities were cited for insufficient staffing in fiscal year 2023. That was more than double the national average, which was 5.9%. Only five other states — Hawaii, Michigan, Montana, New Mexico and Oregon — had a worse record of compliance with the sufficient-staffing requirement. Des Moines’ Fleur Heights care facility compiled Iowa’s worst record of compliance.

Image from the Association of Healthcare Journalists

Federal data suggest many care facilities already meet the new standards, but industry officials allege nursing homes will need to hire an additional 27,000 full-time registered nurses and 78,000 full-time certified nurse aides, at a cost of more than $7 billion, to meet the requirements. The lawsuit alleges the new requirements, which apply only to homes that accept taxpayer money through Medicaid and Medicare funding for resident care, are “not even close to lawful.” Congress, the lawsuit points out, chose not to take action on complaints regarding the rule on “sufficient” staff.s.

Another point of contention referenced in the lawsuit is the new rule’s lack of recognition for the use of licensed practical nurses. The plaintiffs argue that the rule creates an incentive for facilities to fire LPNs and replace them with less skilled certified nurse aides. The rule “pressures long-term care facilities to replace experienced LPNs” with less-qualified new hires, the lawsuit alleges. The lawsuit seeks a declaration by the court that CMS lacks the authority to impose the new requirements as well as orders vacating and setting aside specific requirements such as the 24/7 requirement for a registered nurse.

The defendants, CMS and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, have yet to file a response to the lawsuit.

JOHNSTON, Iowa — The Iowa National Guard says a large contingency of its soldiers is set to join the effort to help Florida recover from Hurricane Milton. Soldiers from the 1168th Transportation Company are preparing for a hurricane deployment. The company’s soldiers are based in Perry, Audubon, and Marshalltown. The deployment will involve military vehicles capable of driving through flooded roads and communities and assisting in transporting essential supplies.

The number of soldiers being deployed was not immediately released. More details about the deployment are expected to be released today (Thursday).

Iowa National Guard soldiers are already on the ground helping with Hurricane Helene recovery in North Carolina. Among other operations, guard members have been using a Chinook helicopter to deliver food and water to flood victims in western North Carolina.

(Radio Iowa) – Attorney General Brenna Bird says Iowa is part of a multi-state settlement with Marriott International over a long investigation into a data breach of its guest reservation database. Marriott has agreed to strengthen its data security practices, offering its guests new protections. They will pay 52 million dollars to the states — including 594-thousand to Iowa.