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Head-on crash in eastern IA leaves 1 dead, 1 injured

News

June 2nd, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Bellevue, Iowa) – A head-on collision this (Sunday) morning in eastern Iowa’s Jackson County left one person dead and another injured. According to the Iowa State Patrol, a 2019 Ford SUV was traveling north on Highway 52 north of Bellevue, at around 3:30-a.m., when it crossed the center line and collided with a 2001 Chevy passenger car that was traveling southbound.

The names of both crash victims was being withheld by the Patrol, pending notification of family. Multiple agencies assisted at the crash scene.

Drake University, CBS News partner on character education programming

News

June 2nd, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Iowa Capital Dispatch) – Drake University and CBS News will work together to provide educational lessons on having good character to teachers free-of-charge through a new partnership. The collaboration will bring together CBS News’ “Kindness 101” series and the Character Counts program, housed within the Robert D. and Billy Ray Center at Drake, according to a news release. Both are centered around teaching about good choices and character.

Developed in 1992 by the Josephson Institute, Character Counts is aimed at instilling six pillars of good character — caring, citizenship, fairness, respect, responsibility and trustworthiness. Character Counts moved to Drake in 2019.

CBS News Correspondent Steve Hartman will work with Drake University to create educational programming centered around good character. (Photo courtesy of Drake University)

In a news release, Drake University President Marty Martin said “We are proud to partner with CBS News to bring new, inspiring resources to educators through Kindness 101. We seek to transform lives and strengthen communities, and our Kindness 101 partnership provides a unique and powerful platform to achieve those goals.”

The programs will develop short videos containing lesson plans and activities surrounding pillars of good character for K-12 teachers. They will be available and free for K-12 teachers to utilize at Kindness101.com starting in August.

“Kindness 101” is a video series created by CBS News Correspondent Steve Hartman and his children during the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the news release stated, covering stories of people demonstrating kindness and character and featuring sections from Hartman’s “On the Road” series. It is now a weekly series that airs as part of “CBS Mornings.”

“This has been a dream of mine for a very long time,” Hartman said in the release. “The people I’ve met ‘On the Road’ have given me so many important life lessons. I’m beyond grateful to now have this opportunity to share those lessons with school children across the country.”

Greenfield woman’s cat rescued from the rubble of her home

News

June 2nd, 2024 by Ric Hanson

GREENFIELD, Iowa [WHO-TV] – When an EF-4 tornado rolled into Greenfield Iowa, it carved a swath of destruction, taking out some 153 homes. Cheryl Ringer, of Greenfield was watching the news coverage, warning of the tornado, when she heard the sirens sound. She headed for the basement. Ringer told WHO-TV in Des Moines, she grabbed most of her cats when the storm hit and headed for the basement. When the tornado hit, she was struck on the back and trapped in the rubble.

After about 15-minutes, she saw daylight and stuck her hand out through the debris, which allowed her to be spotted and rescued.

She was pulled out of the debris, and was ok, but one of her 5 cats, “Danny,” a seven-year member of her family, was missing. A wildlife trail cam got a picture of Danny in the ruins of the house. So Amy Heinz, with AHeinz57 Animal Rescue, who worked to keep demolition crews from hauling the debris of the house, so the injured animal could be located.

Danny the cat was eventually found, and Cheryl has relocated to an apartment.

Iowa DNR seeking Chronic Wasting Disease Ambassadors in southern Iowa

Ag/Outdoor, News

June 2nd, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Des Moines, Iowa) – Officials with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) are seeking Chronic Wasting Disease Ambassadors in southern Iowa, for a collaborative education program between the agency and Iowa State University (ISU) Extension and Outreach, that seeks to help Iowans address the challenge of chronic wasting disease.

Hunters, landowners, and conservationists interested in learning more about chronic wasting disease are encouraged to attend a course offering June 11, 18, and 25 at the Rathbun Fish Hatchery, in Appanoose County.

The course will cover best practices for preventing spread of the disease, how to collect tissue samples for testing, and how to educate others within their community, all in an effort to better educate Iowans on how to manage a healthy deer herd and slow the spread of the disease. The goal of the program is to develop a small, connected, and well-educated network of local leaders to effectively communicate about the management and mitigation of chronic wasting disease.

“Partnerships are key to the effective management of chronic wasting disease,” said Tyler Harms, biometrician for the Iowa DNR and co-organizer of the course. “We need hunters, landowners, and interested conservationists working together to slow the spread of this disease.”

The course includes three in-person meetings from 6-9 p.m. and two online lessons completed between the in-person sessions. In-person sessions will include instruction and hands-on exercises related to the ecology of chronic wasting disease, sampling for the disease, and effective communication strategies. Participants will also have the opportunity to network with area wildlife biologists. Graduates of the course will be given resources to help spread the word regarding effective chronic wasting disease management in their communities.

Registration is available at https://iastate.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_ebL4dhDJanzAbFs or by contacting course facilitator, Adam Janke, at ajanke@iastate.edu or 515-294-7429 and is open until the week before the course starts, or until the class is filled (25 participants). There is no cost to participate. A light meal and refreshments will be served at each of the three sessions.

Chronic wasting disease is always fatal to deer and has been found in wild deer in 23 Iowa counties. To learn more about the disease and its management in Iowa, including ways to help slow the spread of the disease, go to www.iowadnr.gov/cwd.

National Prescription Drug Take Back Day data released

News

June 2nd, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Washington, D.C) – Officials with the U-S Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) announced on Friday, the results of the most recent, National Prescription Drug Take Back Day. According to the report, this spring, DEA and law enforcement partners collected 670,136 pounds of unneeded medications at collection sites across the country. Since 2010, DEA, along with its partners, has collected nearly 18.6 million pounds of old, unwanted prescription drugs.

In Iowa, 66 law enforcement agencies participated in the event. There were 68 collection sites which gathered a total of 5,077-pounds of unwanted prescription drugs, for an All-Time Total of 207, 201-pounds.

National Details:

  • Total Law Enforcement Participation: 4,607
  • Total Collection Sites: 4,869
  • Total Weight Collected:  670,136 lbs. (335 tons)
  • Total Weight All Time: 18,570,487 lbs. (9,285 tons)

If you missed DEA’s National Prescription Drug Take Back Day, don’t worry! You can drop off your old, unneeded, or unused medications at one of the 17,000 pharmacies, hospitals, and businesses working to help clean out medicine cabinets throughout the year. In addition, many police departments provide year-round drop boxes.

In southwest Iowa, the list of drop-off sites (within 50-miles of Atlantic) can be found HERE. Additional information can be found HERE.

May 2024 Weather Data for Atlantic

Weather

June 2nd, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Atlantic, Iowa – KJAN) – Weather data for the month of May, 2024, in Atlantic, shows we were just slightly warmer than average, and much wetter. The Average High last month of 75 was nearly 2 degrees above the norm, while the average Low was 49 (which was typical for May ). Precipitation last month amounted to 7.39-inches, which was a little more than 3-inches above normal. The data was compiled at KJAN, the official National Weather Serving reporting site for Atlantic.

Looking ahead, we find the Average High for the month of June in Atlantic, is typically 83 degrees, while the Low should average out to be around 59. Precipitation typically amounts to 4.98  inches.

Lenox man arrested for OWI in Montgomery County

News

June 2nd, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Red Oak, Iowa) – A traffic stop at around 2:40-a.m. Sunday (Today, June 2nd) in Montgomery County resulted in the arrest of a man on an OWI charge. The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office reports 19-year-old Nathan Adam Vangelder, of Lenox, was taken into custody and booked into the Montgomery County Jail, where he was being held on a $1,000 bond.

Fatal motorcycle accident in eastern Iowa Saturday night

News

June 2nd, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Waterloo, Iowa) – A motorcycle accident Saturday night in Black Hawk County claimed the life of one person and resulted in injuries to another. The Iowa State Patrol says  a 2023 Harley Davidson motorcycle was traveling north on Interstate 380 in Waterloo at around 10:15-p.m., when the machine left the road and struck a barrier wall in the median.

The motorcycle then slid across the interstate onto the outside shoulder. The names of the accident victims were being withheld pending notification of family.

The crash remains under investigation. The Patrol was assisted at the scene by Waterloo Police, along with Waterloo Fire and EMS.

Skyscan Forecast for Atlantic & the Nishna Valley: Sunday, June 2nd, 2024

Weather

June 2nd, 2024 by Ric Hanson

Today: A 40% chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly after 10am. Mostly cloudy & breezy. High near 80. S/SE winds 10-to 25 mph. New rainfall amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible. Severe storms are possible later this afternoon into this evening with damaging wind gusts, large hail, and locally heavy rainfall possible. Additional strong to severe storms will arrive late in the evening into the overnight with gusty winds, perhaps a tornado or two, and locally heavy rainfall possible.

Tonight: Showers & thunderstorms. Some of the storms could produce heavy rainfall. Low around 63. S/SE @ 10-25 mph. New rainfall amounts between three quarters and one inch possible.
Monday: Partly sunny w/a 30% chance of showers and thunderstorms. High around 83. S/SW @ 10 mph. New rainfall amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.
Monday Night: A 40% chance of showers and thunderstorms. Low around 63.
Tuesday: An 80% chance of showers and thunderstorms. High near 82. S/SW @ 10-20. New rainfall amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible.
Tue.Night: A 60% chance of showers and thunderstorms. Low around 54.
Wednesday: Sunny, with a high near 82.

Saturday’s High in Atlantic was 80. Our Low this morning was 57. Last year on this date, the High in Atlantic was 86 and the Low was 61. The record High for June 2nd was 100 in 1934. The record Low was 36 in 1907. Sunrise: 5:48. Sunset: 8:48.

Marshalltown Police investigate a fatal shooting

News

June 1st, 2024 by Ric Hanson

The following is a news release on Saturday, June 1, 2024, from the Marshalltown Police Department: