An official with the Cass County Memorial Hospital says visitors to Cass County Health System have a new tool to assist them in finding their way around the main building. Sara Nelson, Public Relations Director, says just inside the front entrance, next to the information desk at the base of the staircase, is an information kiosk. Nelson says a new “wayfinding” system was added to the kiosk this week.

Cass County Memorial Hospital Auxilian Eileen Denne demonstrates the new wayfinding system on the kiosk in the CCMH Atrium. (Sara Nelson/photo)

Visitors can use the touch-screen directory to select any service or department in the building. When they make a selection, a map with a route line will appear, along with written directions to their destination. The maps can then be printed right at the kiosk. Nelson says they know visitors and patients have been confused about where to go in light of the relocation of so many departments over the last year, so “Being able to view and print a map should help people find their way more easily.” The kiosk is located next to the information desk so the volunteers can assist visitors if necessary.

To get started, just touch the screen anywhere and the home page will come up. Select the top button “How do I get there?” to open the wayfinding directory. Select the first letter of the destination, L for Laboratory, and a list of all the L destinations will appear. Select the destination, Laboratory, and the map will appear with written directions below.

Nelson said while the new system is designed to be user friendly, it doesn’t mean visitors can’t ask for help. She says their “Staff and volunteers are always happy take you where you need to go!”

The Powerball jackpot has pushed to an estimated 550-million dollars after no winning tickets were sold for Wednesday’s drawing. Iowa Lottery spokesperson, Mary Neubauer, says a number that big grabs everyone’s attention. “When the jackpot gets to this level, it just becomes that thing that everybody’s talking about. Everybody wants a shot at it, so now we see not only regular players buying tickets, but occasional players and first-time players jumping in,” Neubauer says. A record Powerball jackpot of 587-million dollars was won in November. Neubauer says the switch from a one-dollar to a two-dollar ticket for Powerball has helped create bigger jackpots more often.

“It’s all designed to keep delivering those big jackpots, but also the chance to win other sizable prizes as well,” according to Neubauer. “So, we’re always looking at ways to maybe tweak the game and change the game to make it better, because over time people don’t want the same old thing, they want the opportunity to try for something that is maybe a little different or new, so we’re always looking at that to see what we can do.” Another thing that’s helped push the jackpots up is the addition of California — the country’s most populated state — to the game. Neubauer says there’s a mistaken view that a bigger state has better odds of having the winning numbers.

“I’ve heard some people saying ‘Oh well now that that California is in we don’t stand a chance, nobody else is ever going to win,’ but in fact the odds in Powerball haven’t change. The odds of winning the jackpot are still the same now that were before California is in,” Neubauer says. “And it goes back to that concept of why Powerball started in the first place. With with more states playing the game, the jackpot grows more quickly, and gets bigger faster. And that’s ultimately what people want from Powerball.” Not only is the Powerball jackpot growing, the Mega Millions jackpot is an estimated 190-million dollars for tonight’s (Friday) drawing at 10 o’clock. Iowa is one of the state’s that sells both games and Neubauer says the results are showing they aren’t competing against each other.

She says the old saying that “a rising tide floats all boats” is what they are seeing with the Powerball and Mega Millions jackpots. If you beat all the odds and picked the winning numbers for both games, you’d win and estimated combined jackpot of just over 746-million dollars. Neubauer cautions that you should be reasonable. “It just takes one ticket to win, you don’t have to buy two, five, 10, you just have to buy one to get in on the fun. Don’t count on winning, just do it for fun,” she advises. Neubauer says the fun is dreaming what you might do with the money if you do win. The Mega Millions drawing is tonight. The next Powerball drawing is 9:59 p-m on Saturday. In Iowa, you can buy a ticket for Saturday’s drawing up until 8:59 p-m that day.

(Radio Iowa)

Police in Council Bluff reported late Thursday night, that a boy who went missing earlier that afternoon, was found in Council Bluffs.

Ricky Lee Komor, Jr.

11-year old Ricky Lee Komor, Jr.,  was taken into custody and brought to a local hospital for a welfare check, only. He was not injured.

Authorities says the boy left his home around 4 p.m. Thursday and made a comment about possibly harming himself. Police said Komor had also told his friends about trying to walk to Carter Lake to find his father.

Gas prices in Iowa have increased around 20-cents a gallon in the last 24 hours. Gail Weinholzer, spokesperson for Triple-A (AAA) Iowa, said Thursday that unleaded regular fuel is averaging $3.76 a gallon statewide. “That is 16-cents more than the national average and 23-cents higher than this day last year,” Weinholzer says. Iowa normally has gas prices well below the national average. The sudden rise in gasoline prices across the Upper Midwest is blamed on the closing of two refineries for major repairs.

Weinholzer says the two closed refineries are located near Chicago and are among the biggest in the U.S. One is owned by BP and the other by Exxon Mobile. The refineries are not expected to restart operations until after Memorial Day. “We probably won’t see price relief until the middle of June at the earliest and perhaps as late as the Fourth of July,” Weinholzer says. “Once a refinery restarts, it takes a while for them to ramp up production.” It’s not unusual for a refinery to schedule maintenance during the spring or fall switch to new blends of gas, according to Weinholzer.

“What is irregular is that two refineries would close for such an extended period of time,” Weinholzer says. “However, you have to keep in mind that they are owned by two different companies so they don’t sit down, put their calendars side by side, and decide when their respective refineries need to have their maintenance work done.” Because the refineries are both located in the Chicago area, the price spike in limited to Iowa and surrounding states.

“In fact, of the top 10 states in the country for average price, six to seven of them are in the Upper Midwest and Upper Great Lakes region,” Weinholzer says. She expects gas prices in Iowa will climb even higher by today (Friday). But, Weinholzer believes prices will remain below $4 a gallon.

(Radio Iowa)