DES MOINES – Gov. Kim Reynolds issued a disaster proclamation today for Lucas and Monroe counties in response to severe storms and tornadoes Aug. 20 and continuing.

The governor’s proclamation allows state resources to be utilized to respond to and recover from the effects of this severe weather and activates the Iowa Individual Assistance Grant Program for qualifying residents, along with the Disaster Case Management Program, for Lucas and Monroe counties.

The Iowa Individual Assistance Grant Program provides grants of up to $5,000 for households with incomes up to 200 percent of the federal poverty level or a maximum annual income of $41,560 for a family of three. Grants are available for home or car repairs, replacement of clothing or food, and temporary housing expenses. Original receipts are required for those seeking reimbursement for actual expenses related to storm recovery. The grant application and instructions are available on the Iowa Department of Human Services website. Potential applicants have 45 days from the date of the proclamation to submit a claim.

Disaster Case Management is a program to address serious needs to overcome a disaster-related hardship, injury or adverse condition. Disaster case managers work with clients to create a disaster recovery plan and provide guidance, advice and referral to obtain a service or resource. There are no income eligibility requirements for this program; it closes 180 days from the date of the governor’s proclamation. For information on the Disaster Case Management Program, contact your local community action association or visit www.iowacommunityaction.org.

Iowa residents of counties impacted by the recent severe weather are asked to report damage to help local and state officials better understand the damage sustained. Damage to property, roads, utilities and other storm-related information may be reported. This information will be collected by the Iowa Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management and shared with local emergency management agencies.

The Page County Sheriff’s Office reports the arrest Thursday of a Tarkio, MO man. Deputies arrested 25-year-old Brandon Nelson Yost of Tarkio, MO on a Page County Warrant for Burglary 3rd Degree, a class D Felony. Yost was found to be hiding in an apartment at 707 8th Avenue in Shenandoah. He was taken to the Page County Jail and held on $5,000 bond pending further court appearances.

Page County Sheriff’s Officials also report an arrest from Monday. Deputies arrested 26-year-old Taylor Kae Dukes of Clarinda on a Warrant for Animal Running at Large / Failure to appear for Magistrate court. Dukes was arrested at the Sheriff’s Office and posted $300 bond and was released pending further court proceedings.

CDC is providing consultation to state health departments about a cluster of pulmonary illnesses possibly related to e-cigarette product use, or “vaping,” primarily among adolescents and young adults. Many states have alerted CDC to possible (not confirmed) cases and investigations into these cases are ongoing. In addition, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is working with CDC and state health officials to gather information on any products or substances used and providing technical and laboratory assistance. FDA encourages the public to submit detailed reports of any unexpected tobacco- or e-cigarette-related health or product issues to the FDA via the online Safety Reporting Portal.‎ While some cases in each of the states are similar and appear to be linked to e-cigarette product use, more information is needed to determine what is causing the illnesses.

Latest Information

• 153 possible cases of severe lung illness associated with e-cigarette product use were reported by 16 states (CA, CT, FL, IL, IN, IA, MN, MI, NC, NJ, NM, NY, PA, TX, UT, and WI) from June 28, 2019, to August 20, 2019.
• No deaths have been reported.
• CDC and states have not identified a cause, but all reported cases have e-cigarette product use or “vaping.”
• Available evidence does not suggest that an infectious disease is the principal cause of the illness.
• Investigators have not identified any specific product or compound that is linked to all cases.
• In many cases, patients reported a gradual start of symptoms including breathing difficulty, shortness of breath, and/or chest pain before hospitalization. Some cases reported mild to moderate gastrointestinal illness including vomiting and diarrhea and fatigue as well.
• In many cases, patients have acknowledged recent use of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC)-containing products while speaking to healthcare personnel or in follow-up interviews by health department staff; however, no specific product has been identified in all cases, nor has any product been conclusively linked to illnesses.
• Even though cases appear similar, it is not clear if these cases have a common cause or if they are different diseases with similar presentations. The State Departments of Health are investigating the possible cause of the illness by testing patient specimens and e-cigarette products. State-specific epidemiologic investigations are ongoing.
• The Wisconsin and Illinois departments of health have asked CDC for assistance investigating the illnesses in their states. The investigation is ongoing and more information will be shared as it is available.

CDC notified U.S. healthcare systems and clinicians about the illnesses and what to watch for via a Clinician Outreach and Communication Activity (COCA) Clinical Action Message. For information about a specific state, contact that state’s health department.

For information on electronic cigarettes visit: www.cdc.gov/e-cigarettes

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — An Iowa agency issued more than 5,800 professional licenses to private security employees without conducting background checks to determine whether they were eligible, auditors said Thursday.

The failure means that some applicants with disqualifying criminal records were granted credentials to work as private bail enforcement officers, private investigators and business security guards. Some of them may still be working in those fields, a report from State Auditor Rob Sand suggested.

Since the problems were discovered a year ago, the Iowa Department of Public Safety has revoked about 25 licenses that were granted to people who had felony or aggravated misdemeanor convictions that should have disqualified them, Commissioner Stephan Bayens said. Nearly 600 other current license holders still have not undergone required FBI background checks, and the department is working to get those completed in coming months, he said at a news conference.

The investigation found lax oversight among security workers who hold positions of trust and work with law enforcement to ensure public safety, Sand said.

“Those individuals were able to be employed despite no background check having been conducted,” he said.

Iowa law requires anyone who operates a private security business to obtain a license from the department, and their employees must apply for ID cards and carry them while on duty. To be eligible, applicants are required to be at least 18 years old, have no prior felony or aggravated misdemeanor convictions, and have no history of alcohol or drug abuse, mental illness or violence.

Applicants first face an Iowa-specific background investigation. If they pass, their fingerprints are sent to the FBI for a nationwide check.

Bayens said a department clerk responsible for issuing licenses, Joseph Sheehan Jr., conducted the Iowa background checks and rejected those who failed. But he then often failed to submit their fingerprints for the FBI check even though he indicated in some internal records that he had. Bayens said he didn’t want to speculate as to Sheehan’s motivation, but investigators have not found evidence that Sheehan received any improper financial benefit.

The audit found that 5,817 private security licenses were granted from July 2016 through August 2018 without the required national background check. It’s likely even more licenses were improperly granted in previous years but that investigators didn’t look farther back, according to the report.

Sheehan, who had worked full-time for the department since 2005, was fired last November for several policy violations. Two listed phone numbers for Sheehan, 60, had been disconnected.

The problems were exposed after a security guard with an extensive criminal history from other states applied for a gun permit in Linn County. A sheriff’s deputy told a state agent that the man should not have qualified for his security guard license, given his past.

The agent reported the concerns to the department’s Program Services Bureau, which oversees the security licenses and found discrepancies in how Sheehan handled the application. The department launched an investigation and Sheehan was placed on leave in August 2018. The department began completing national background checks on thousands of licensees and asked the auditor’s office to investigate.

The audit found that the department had failed to ensure that companies were promptly returning revoked licenses as required by Iowa code, which means that some ineligible workers may still be using them. The licenses also do not have an expiration date, which the department should consider changing, auditors said.

Bayens said the findings of the criminal investigation have been turned over to the Polk County attorney’s office, which didn’t immediately return a message seeking comment.

NEMAHA, Iowa (AP) — A volunteer firefighter and another man have been accused of setting fire to a corncrib in western Iowa’s Sac County so the firefighter could respond with his department and help put it out.

Sac County court records say 25-year-old Brent Mack and 18-year-old Alexander Lilly have been charged with arson. A 17-year-old girl has been charged with conspiracy to commit a felony. The records don’t list the names of any attorneys for them. All three live in Newell.

The Nemaha and other departments responded early Monday morning to battle the blaze a little more than a mile (1.7 kilometers) north of Nemaha. Suspicions grew after another firefighter found Mack had arrived first at the station even though Mack lived at least 15 minutes away in Newell.

The court records say Mack later told investigators that he, Lilly and the girl had driven around the area, looking for a place to set a fire, and settled on the corncrib. It was a total loss.