One person was transported to a hospital in Des Moines Wednesday, following a single-vehicle accident on Interstate 80 in Adair County. According to the Iowa State Patrol, 35-year old Benjamin Mark Newton, of St. Paul, MN, was taken by Stuart Rescue to Mercy Hospital in Des Moines, after the 2000 Chevy Blazer he was driving left westbound I-80 near the Greenfield Exit and entered the north ditch, spun around and came to rest facing east, in the ditch. The accident happened at around 9:30-p.m.

A fire at an apartment complex in Harlan Wednesday night gutted the building and left about a dozen people homeless, but no major injuries were reported. One person did however, suffer from smoke inhalation. The blaze at 707 Durant Street, broke out just after 6-p.m.

Harlan Fire Chief Roger Bissen told our sister-station KNOD in Harlan, that seven area fire departments were called to help control the flames, including Atlantic (which sent its aerial unit and six firefighters), Avoca, Defiance, Earling, Elk Horn, Kirkman and Westphalia. Bissen said the fire began on the east side of the 1st floor, and quickly spread to the rest of the house. The main reason the fire spread so quickly he said, was because of the age of the building. “This old of a structure you deal with a balloon type structure so there isn’t a break in between floors.” The building, which is located very near the Harlan City Hall, is 102-years old.

Bissen said he thinks there were about 5 tenants inside at the time. , Authorities said the dozen occupants in the apartment building were temporarily relocated to the Settle Inn in Harlan. Volunteers with the American Red Cross provided food, clothing and additional shelter, as needed.

Monetary donations and clothing items can be delivered to: Terry Irwin at 608 Dodge Street in Harlan; West Central Community Action on the east side of the square in downtown Harlan; or, the Town and Country Credit Union 1414 Chatburn Avenue in Harlan.

(All photo’s are courtesy the Harlan Newspapers)

Harlan Apartment Fire Video 11-28-2012

(Video Courtesy Atlantic Fire Chief Mark McNees)

The Page County Sheriff’s Office said Wednesday, that charges are pending against a Clarinda man, as an investigation in underway into the neglect of cattle in rural Page County. Sheriff Lyle Palmer says the investigation, which remains ongoing, began Saturday, following a report of animal neglect at 2773 X Avenue. During the course of the investigation over a period of several days, authorities consulted a veterinarian, who determined 17 cows, 1 bull and 15 calves, which were located on property owned by Kiel Martin Brittain, of Clarinda,  were severely malnourished.

The animals were seized. Additional information will be released by authorities when charges are filed.

The Page County Sheriff’s Office reported Wednesday, that an Essex man wanted on a warrant out of Adair County, was arrested Tuesday at the Pierce Creek Campground. Officials say 36-year old Daniel Elmer Bright was wanted for Failure To Appear on a traffic charge. Bright was brought to the Page County Jail and was unable to post a $2,000 cash bond. He was held in the jail until deputies from Adair County could arrange for him to be transported to the jail in  Greenfield.

A public hearing will take place Friday afternoon in Atlantic, with regard to the approval of a “Contract for Private Development” agreement between Cass County and Fagen (Fay’gen) Farms, for their acquisition of property in the County, for the purpose of securing a developer to construct a second generation bio-fuels facility, renewable energy facility, or agricultural related facility on the site. The hearing takes place at 1:30-p.m., during a meeting of the Cass County Board of Supervisors, and will be followed by a vote on the matter a little bit later on during the afternoon session.

In other business, the Board is expected to discuss the Amendment of a Zoning Ordinance with regard to Permitted Uses within Districts, such as Light and Heavy Industrial , and an Amendment of the Division/Subdivision Zoning Ordinance.  They will also act on remove certain parcels from Amaizing Energy ‘Urban Renewal Area/TIF district’, and they discuss, as well as possibly take action on, the re-location of the Cass County 911 Center from the center of the jail to the third floor of the Cass County Courthouse.

If approved, the 911 Center would move into space currently occupied by the Cass County 911 Director and Cass County Emergency Management Coordinator. The move would result in the assignment of the former Cass County Conservation Board offices to the Cass County Public Safety Commission and Cass County Emergency Management Agency for use as administrative offices and the assignment of the two small offices currently used by Juvenile Probation and the Cass County Engineers Office, for renovation into one room, to be used as an equipment and server room for the Cass County 911 Center.

The Supervisors are also expected to vote on pooling funds with regard to the County’s role in the State’s Mental Health Regionalization process. They may also discuss an update of the Cass County Division/Subdivision Ordinance.