(Radio Iowa) – The state is accusing a southeast Iowa man of failing to check for underground utilities before hitting a natural gas line as he was digging a trench. Iowa’s “One Call” law requires anyone planning an excavation to provide 48 hours advance notice, so underground utility lines can be marked.

The state’s lawsuit accuses Eric Fortune, Junior, of failing to make the call and using equipment that hit and damaged a one-inch natural gas line in Fort Madison that’s owned by MidAmerican Energy. According to the lawsuit, Fortune tried to repair the gas line himself rather than report the breach.

The Iowa Attorney General’s Office has recently settled two other lawsuits with contractors who failed to follow Iowa’s “One Call” law.

(Creston, Iowa) – Police in Creston say a man from Missouri was arrested for Assault, Tuesday night. 46-year-old Ryan Michael Harris, of Newton, MO, was taken into custody at around 11:50-p.m. in the 1500 block of N. Lincoln St., in Creston. Harris was being held in the Union County Jail on $300 bond.

Authorities said also, a woman residing in the 100 block of S. Sumner Street in Creston, reported Aug. 14th, that her grandson’s Ninebot Kickscooter Max, Model G-30P, was missing. The scooter is black with gold trim around the wheels. The loss was estimated at $900.

The stolen scooter is similar to the one shown here

(Radio Iowa) – If you’ve been curious enough to taste Iowa-fried cicadas, you’ll have your chance this weekend. Ginny Mitchell, education program coordinator at the Iowa State University Insect Zoo, says one popular element of the annual “Bug Village” event is edible insects. Mitchell collected hundreds of the 13- and 17-year cicadas this spring which she plans to air-fry, sprinkle with seasoning, and serve to visitors to the Ames campus on Saturday.

Are insects “meat”? The issue of eating insects is subject of debate among vegetarians. Those who refuse to eat meat because of environmental reasons see the very small impact raising and eating insects has on the planet, so they may choose to consider insects as -not- meat, while other more strict vegans disagree. Whatever you call it, Mitchell says making a meal of insects can be extremely healthy.

While many of us may be hesitant to put an air-fried cicada in our mouths, no matter what sauce is on top, others are more adventurous. Mitchell has been studying — and eating — all sorts of insects for years and she plans to plate up a variety of cicada delicacies during the weekend event.

This spring, two broods of cicadas emerged in eastern Iowa (and across the Midwest) that had been slumbering underground 13 and 17 years. That simultaneous emergence only happens once every 220 years, so Mitchell took a four-day road trip to bag up hundreds of specimens of the six-legged creatures.

Others were using cicadas in tomato sauce over pasta, or even as a pizza topping. In addition to the edible insects at Saturday’s event in Ames, there will be a Bug Costume Contest and more than 150 species of living arthropods on display, with many available for hands-on inspection.

More info. at https://www.ent.iastate.edu/insectzoo/

(Radio Iowa)- A new state law to address chronic absenteeism requires notifying parents by certified letter if a student misses school for eight days in a semester. After additional absences, there must be an in-person meeting with a parent or guardian. Anne Discher, executive director of Common Good Iowa, says the most recent data shows absenteeism is remarkably widespread in Iowa schools.

Advocates of the new law say regular attendance at school is a habit that will carry over into adulthood — and much of what happens in a classroom cannot be learned through make-up work. According to a national group called Attendance Works, one in four Iowa students were chronically absent during the 2021-22 school year. Discher says that means they missed 10 percent or more of school days, for any reason.

Discher is hoping more recent data could show improvement, but she says some students just haven’t reconnected with school after the pandemic.

For younger students, like kindergartners, Discher says figuring out what’s happening with the parents is key.

Discher has a child in a Des Moines high school and she says before school started the family of every incoming ninth grader was offered an in-home visit from someone on the school’s staff.

Under Iowa law, if a student misses 20 percent of school days in a semester, a meeting of the student, a parent or guardian and the county attorney will be scheduled.

(Radio Iowa) – Iowa delegates to the Democratic National Convention cast their votes in a ceremonial roll call last (Tuesday) night. Party officials announced earlier this month that the Iowa delegation was unanimously supporting Harris as their party’s presidential nominee, but the chair of the Iowa Democratic Party’s Arab American Caucus voted present last night. All the other Iowa delegates supported the Harris-Walz ticket. Each state chose an upbeat dance tune for their time in the spotlight. Rita Hart, the chair of the Iowa Democratic Party, made the announcement as “Celebrate” by Kool and the Gang played.

Obama won Iowa in the 2008 and 2012 General Elections. Donald Trump carried the state in 2016 and 2020. Polls this year in Iowa have consistently shown Trump leading Joe Biden by a significant margin. Brian Jackson, a delegate from Solon, says having Harris at the top of the ticket could make a big difference.

Election Day is November 5th.