United Group Insurance

Law focuses on accessibility issues at state parks

Ag/Outdoor, News

May 17th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Radio Iowa) – Lawmakers have directed the Iowa Natural Resources Commission to review how accessible state parks are to people with disabilities and recommend improvements. Governor Kim Reynolds signed the bill into law at Big Creek State Park. “It’s hard to imagine a better way to experience the natural beauty Iowa has to offer than by making a trip to one of our many outstanding state parks,” Reynolds says. “Every Iowan, regardless of physical ability, should have the opportunity to experience them first hand.”

The bill passed the legislature unanimously. Representative Adam Zabner, a Democrat from Iowa City, made the proposal in January.”It was because I’ve heard from so many Iowans about challenges finding outdoor opportunities that are accessible,” Zabner said.

The new law directs the Iowa Department of Natural Resources to come up with a list of opportunities for persons with disabilities in state parks and public recreation areas and put that list on the department’s website. “Iowa is such a beautiful state and I know that access to the outdoors can be transformative,” Zabner said. “This time of year, all I want to do is get out to Lake Macbride in Johnson County, so very, very excited that we were able to get this done.”

Iowa Department of Natural Resources director Kayla Lyons says new construction projects at the parks over the past dozens years have met Americans with Disabilities Act standards. Over the past five years, engineering interns traveled to all state parks with D-N-R staff to audit accessibility issues. “We want to provide facilities and experiences for everyone,” Lyons says. “…With more accessible facilities, better information on our website about accessible trails, bathrooms, fishing piers and other items.”

The agency has purchased an electronic track chair that will help Big Creek visitors with limited mobility get around the park. “It will be available to anyone now, free of charge to anyone. It’s on a first come, first served basis through our concessionaire here at Big Creek. It’s the only one we have so far, but hopefully we’ll have more in the future,” Lyons says. “We’re excited to have the combination of the track chair and our infrastructure improvements to address accessibility in our state parks.”

A grant from the Ford Motor Company’s Bronco Wild Fund paid for the track chair and a person named Jack used it to move from sidewalks to grassy areas and the beach after the bill signing ceremony. Senator Annette Sweeney, a Republican from Iowa Falls who led senate debate of the bill, says it shows how making state parks accessible will open up new adventures for some Iowans.  “With this bill being definitely a bipartisan bill, we got to work together because we believe all Iowans should be able to enjoy our great outdoors,” Sweeney said.

The legislature appropriated 250-thousand dollars to finance some of the fixes, including sidewalk and curb repairs, needed to make state park facilities more accessible to people with disabilities.

Skyscan Forecast for Atlantic & the Nishna Valley: Friday, May 17, 2024

Weather

May 17th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

Today: Sunny, with a high near 84. South wind 5 to 15 mph, with gusts to around 20 mph.
Tonight: Clear, with a low around 57.
Tomorrow: Sunny & breezy. High near 83. South winds becoming N/NW @ 10-20.
Tom. Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 54.
Sunday: Partly sunny & breezy w/a 40% chance of showers & thunderstorms. High near 82.
Sun. Night: Showers and possible thunderstorms. Low around 59.
Monday: P/Sunny w/a 50% chance of shwrs & tstrms. High near 81.
Tuesday: P/Sunny w/a 70% chance of shwrs & tstrms. High near 77.

Thursday’s High in Atlantic was 78. Our Low this morning, was 49. Last year on this date, the High in Atlantic was 84 and the Low was 49. The Record High for May 17th was 92 in 1908 & 1939. The Record Low was 32 in 1912 & 1973. Sunrise: 6:00. Sunset: 8:34.

Riverside Bulldogs Baseball Season Preview with Coach Cole Chapin

Sports

May 16th, 2024 by admin

The Riverside Bulldogs are coming off a 12-2 loss in the second round of the Class 1A-Region 8 playoffs last season.

The Bulldogs have 25 guys out for baseball and are coached by Cole Chapin.

Coach Chapin had this to say about their season ending loss to West Harrison from last season.

Chapin says the Bulldogs will be returning everyone from last years team.

Chapin said on most days the Bulldogs get about 15 guys at practice with other spring sports going on.

Coach Chapin commented on what team’s goals for the season.

Riverside baseball team will open up their regular season when they travel on the road to take on Missouri Valley in Western Iowa Conference regular season game. The first pitch of that game will be thrown at 7:30 p.m.

AHSTW Vikings Baseball Season Preview With Coach Trey Brix

Sports

May 16th, 2024 by admin

The AHSTW Vikings baseball Vikings baseball team is coming off a season ending 10-2 loss to Shenandoah in the first round of the Class 2A-Region 8 playoff bracket.

The Vikings lost only two players to graduation from last season and 26 players are out this season. AHSTW will be coached by Trey Brix.

Coach Brix said the Vikings team found ways to work hard over the offseason.

Brix commented on adding a good number of 8th graders to the roster.

The Vikings are going to rely on two seniors.

Brix elaborated on what his teams goals are for the season.

The Vikings next game will be Friday May 17th when they will take on Stanton Vikings in a non-conference game. First pitch of that game will be at 7:30 p.m.

Iowa State talks preparations for 2025 football opener in Ireland

Sports

May 16th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

Iowa State athletic director Jamie Pollard predicts 12 to 15 thousand Cyclone fans will travel to Ireland for the 2025 football opener. ISU will play Kansas State August 23rd of 2025 in Dublin.

Pollard says it will be a great showcase for the entire university.

Iowa State coach Matt Campbell did not hesitate to accept the invitation to play in Ireland.

It also means one of the biggest games in the Big-12 race will be played in August.

Governor assessing closures of three eastern Iowa HyVee

News

May 16th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Radio Iowa) – Governor Reynolds says she’s reviewing the situations in Cedar Rapids, Davenport and Waterloo where HyVee stores are closing for good next month and will take a look at options that might address the situation. Reynolds was in Cedar Rapids Wednesday for a bill signing ceremony. The governor and Cedar Rapids Mayor Tiffany O’Donnell spoke briefly about the closure of a HyVee in a downtown neighborhood.

“I told the mayor that we would do everything we could to work with them and take a look at, you know, where’s the food bank, where’s the opportunity…maybe we could have some type of a scaled down food mart for them,” Reynolds says. “I haven’t had a chance to sit down with HyVee yet to understand where the movement is, but our number one goal is to make sure that the constituents, the individual residents have access to food.”

The City of Cedar Rapids provided HyVee nearly a million dollars in incentives to build a new store across the street from an older, smaller HyVee. HyVee has said that location, which opened in 2002, has consistently failed to meet financial goals over the past several years. HyVee has made a similar statement about the stores in Davenport and Waterloo that will close. Advocates for residents in the neighborhoods around the three stores warn once those HyVees close, there will be no access to affordable, fresh food in those areas. Reynolds says there may be creative solutions.

“Maybe it’s a bus line that they don’t have in place where they can get on and get to one of the existing grocery stores,” Reynolds says. “…It might be as easy as that until they can figure out maybe a more long term solution.”

In June of 2018, a HyVee in Des Moines was temporarily closed after flash flooding hit the store. HyVee set up a free busing system to give customers in the neighborhood rides to and from another HyVee.

Random power outages in Cumberland & Massena blamed on a substation

News

May 16th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Des Moines, Iowa) – A spokesperson for Alliant Energy, today (Thursday), said residents in Cumberland and Massena who have experience numerous, seemingly random outages of power for two or more hours, since Sunday, shouldn’t have to worry about that much longer.

Alliant Senior Communications Director Melissa McCarville tells KJAN News, “There was an equipment issue at the substation in the area. Our crews isolated the situation and are resolving it. We do not expect any further issues.”

McCarville added, “As always, we encourage our customers to contact us and report if they experience an outage. Alliant Energy Help Center can be reached by calling 1-800-ALLIANT (800-255-4268) or online at alliantenergy.com/outage.”

Iowa’s drought conditions continue to recede

Ag/Outdoor, News, Weather

May 16th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Radio Iowa) – The latest report out today shows the amount of drought in Iowa continues to shrink.

The U.S. Drought Monitor shows nearly 53% of the state is now drought free. That compares to September when the entire state was in some sort of drought, and the start of this year when only about three percent of the state had no drought conditions.

The driest conditions remain in a line from Mitchell County at the northern border down through 23 other counties in northeast and central Iowa. Those counties all have some level of severe drought.

With bird flu hitting cattle, Grassley calls for agencies to better communicate

Ag/Outdoor, News

May 16th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Radio Iowa) – The recent crossover outbreaks of avian influenza in cattle in several states have Iowa beef and dairy producers on alert and U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley is calling for better communication from multiple federal agencies on the topic.

Grassley says with bird flu outbreaks in cattle in Kansas, New Mexico and Texas, he wants to ensure the U.S. Department of Agriculture. is working hand-in-hand with the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in sharing information with each other and with the public.

“It’s fair to assume we could have the same bureaucratic problems that we have throughout government on any issue, not just avian flu,” Grassley says, “and that is, each department operates like a silo. There’s not the proper cooperation on any issue.”

Back in 2015, a widespread outbreak of avian flu forced the slaughter of more that 43-million birds in 15 states, including nearly 30-million just in Iowa, the nation’s top egg producer. Egg prices bounded some 120-percent over the course of just a few weeks.

“In 2015, when the avian flu first hit birds in Iowa, there weren’t any protocols in place,” Grassley says. “And now when we have break out in poultry, we don’t worry too much about it. We know that the Iowa Department of Agriculture knows what steps to date.”

Grassley and several colleagues from both parties have sent a letter to the three agencies, urging them “to strengthen and coordinate public information-sharing” to ensure producers — and the public — are being fully informed about outbreaks.

“Now, I’m not saying that that isn’t happening in the case of avian flu and the three agencies that we wrote to,” Grassley says, “but we want to make sure that we’re on top of it, so we don’t be in the same place with dairy cattle that we were with poultry in 2015.”

In their letter, lawmakers said previous outbreaks have benefited from a “consortium strategy” where the USDA brought together experts in epidemiology and animal health research to lessen the potential economic and societal cost of the spread.

Hearing impaired pedestrian struck and killed Thu. morning in Burlington (IA)

News

May 16th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Burlington, Iowa) – A man who authorities say was hearing impaired, was struck and killed by a garbage truck this (Thursday) morning, in eastern Iowa. The Iowa State Patrol reports a 2016 International garbage truck driven by 65-year-old Dale Deitrick, of Mediapolis, was backing southbound on Isabell Avenue, in Burlington.

49-year-old Brian Whittaker, of Burlington, was crossing the street, when he was hit by the truck. The accident happened at around 10:08-a.m.

Whittaker was transported by Burlington Fire/Rescue to a hospital in Burlington, where he died from his injuries.

The accident remains under investigation.