United Group Insurance

PAULA HEATH WATZ, 79, of Branson, MO, an Exira native (4-16-2023)

Obituaries

April 5th, 2023 by Jim Field

PAULA HEATH WATZ, 79, of Branson, MO, an Exira native died Thursday, March 30, 2023.  A Celebration of Life for PAULA HEATH WATZ will be held on Sunday, April 16, 2023 from 1:30 pm to 3:30 pm at Cremation of the Ozarks in Hollister, MO.

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Donations in Paula’s name may be made to the Humane Society of Branson, MO.

Paula was an All-State basketball player at Exira High School and was a member of the first Iowa All-Star Basketball Team.  She also participated in the first Iowa Girls State Track Meet.

PAULA HEATH WATZ is survived by:

Husband:  David Watz

Siblings:  Sherry Reeves and Linda (Dale) Nelson.

Sons:  John (Kendra) Helsel and Heath (Heather) Helsel

8 Grandchildren

4 Great-Grandchildren

Mills County Sheriff’s Office report, 4/5/23

News

April 5th, 2023 by Ric Hanson

(Glenwood, Iowa) – The Mills County Sheriff’s Office reports two arrests: At around 1-a.m. today (Wednesday), 45-year-old Shannon Don Spangler, of Lincoln, NE., was arrested at the Lancaster County, NE. Jail, on a Mills County warrant for Failure to Appear. His bond was set at $10,000. And, Monday evening, 57-year-old David Duane Berry, of Council Bluffs, was arrested for OWI/2nd offense, following a traffic stop on I-29 at mile marker 31. ($2,000 bond)

Adair County Board of Supervisors actions for April 5, 2023

News

April 5th, 2023 by Ric Hanson

(Greenfield, Iowa) – The Board of Supervisors in Adair County, today (Wednesday), took action on a handful of matters. The Board acknowledged receipt of the 2022 SICOG (Southern Iowa Council of Governments) Annual Report. And, they approved a 10-cent per hour longevity wage increase for Dana Hoakison, a 10-year employee of the Adair County Sheriff’s office.

The Board then heard from Val Cameron w/ISU Extension & Outreach, with regard to a Child Abuse Prevention Month Proclamation and placing of signs and pinwheels in the Courtyard. The Supervisors approved placement of the pinwheels as requested.

Pinwheels for Child Abuse Prevention (File Photo)

The Board received a Quarterly report from Adair County Attorney Melissa Larson, who said she’s been keeping busy with an increasing caseload.

County Engineer Nick Kauffman presented to the Adair County Supervisors Resolutions for the Local Option Sales Tax and Bridge ratings. The Board approved both with Board Chair Steve Shelley signing-off on the paperwork. The Supervisors also approved a Contract and Performance Bond with Gus Construction for the N-25 Grand River Culvert Project.

And, Kauffman updated the Board with a weekly report on the Secondary Roads Department Maintenance and Activities.

Storms bring baseball-sized hail and at least one tornado

News, Weather

April 5th, 2023 by Ric Hanson

(Radio Iowa) – A survey team from the National Weather Service is looking over the damage from a tornado that touched down in south-central Iowa last (Tuesday) night near Knoxville and Pleasantville. Meteorologist Donna Dubberke, at the Weather Service office in metro Des Moines, says there were multiple reports of funnel clouds and tornadoes in Marion and Warren counties, but it appears it was a single twister that reached the ground. “At this point, we think it’s just one,” Dubberke says. “Once we get out, today is a lot about piecing all those puzzle pieces together to see exactly how it developed and from the video and what we’ve seen, it looks like it was one.”

There are dozens of reports of hail during last night’s storm from locations scattered across a wide section of Iowa, damaging the siding and roofs of houses, smashing windows and ruining vehicles. “Pretty much diagonally, from the southwest corner of the state up to the northeast, there were hail reports,” Dubberke says. “Some of the larger hail reports were up to three inches in diameter which is very large, so baseball size and larger. The Osceola area had quite a bit, Davenport had some reports of that as well.” The Quad Cities reported peak wind gusts of 90 miles an hour, straight-line winds which broke off tree limbs and caused power outages. Despite the wreckage, last night’s storms were not as severe as last Friday’s barrage.

Funnel cloud near Melcher Dallas. Photo by Tim Johnson, submitted to the National Weather Service.

“With widespread areas certainly, for the hail and a lot of several rounds of storms,” she says, “so it was longer-lasting in some ways but did not have quite the intensity that the one on Friday had.” That previous storm spun off at least 16 tornadoes and left 18 Iowa counties declared disaster areas, with at least nine people injured. Dubberke says the storms should be gone for a while now and calmer, springtime weather is ahead. “The rest of this week and into the weekend, it looks nice, a warming trend,” Dubberke says. “Today, it’ll be the coldest day, then warming a little bit each day, and tomorrow and Friday, we should have some nice sunshine. Next chance of rain is on Sunday and as of right now, it doesn’t look all that impactful.”

Temperatures through the weekend are forecast to warm into the 60s and 70s, with 80s likely next week.

Ernst, Grassley Offices to Host Academy Virtual Informational Nights

News

April 5th, 2023 by Ric Hanson

RED OAK, IOWA – U.S. Senators Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) and Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) have announced that their offices will hold joint United States Service Academy Virtual Informational Nights on Monday, May 1 and Tuesday, May 2, for Iowa students interested in applying to one of our nation’s military academies. Every year, Ernst and Grassley each nominate 10 students to the academies.

Academy representatives will be available to answer any questions about the application and nomination process. The five academies are the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, U.S. Military Academy at West Point, the U.S. Naval Academy, the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, and U.S. Air Force Academy.

Attendees must RSVP to receive meeting information. To contact Senator Ernst’s office, please email Brenda_Safranski@ernst.senate.gov or call (515) 284-4272. To contact Senator Grassley’s office, please email academy_nominations@grassley.senate.gov or call (515) 288-1145. Click here to view the Academy Nomination application.

Sheeder resigns as Atlantic CSD SBO/Board Secretary

News

April 5th, 2023 by Ric Hanson

(Atlantic, Iowa) – Atlantic School District School Business Official (SBO)/School Board Secretary Sarah Sheeder has announced her resignation. She submitted her resignation on Monday. Sheeder said she has accepted a position at AC/GC schools, as a shared School Business Official.  Her contract was approved by the Guthrie Center Board of Directors Tuesday night. Her resignation letter is shown below. Sheeder is the second person in the ACSD Administration to resign. Superintendent Steve Barber has announced his resignation, effective at the end of the current school year.

Heartbeat Today 4-5-2023

Heartbeat Today, Podcasts

April 5th, 2023 by Jim Field

Jim Field shares a reminder that with spring outdoor digging projects comes the requirement to get in touch with Iowa One Call or dial 811 before you dig.

Play

House fire in Red Oak Tuesday, 1 injured

News

April 5th, 2023 by Ric Hanson

(Red Oak, Iowa) – A law enforcement officer suffered minor injuries during a residential structure fire Tuesday evening, in Red Oak. Red Oak Fire Chief John Bruce the blaze at 1903 200th Street was reported at around 6:49-p.m.

The first crews at the scene reported a heavy fire coming from the north side of the residence, with the blaze extending to the first floor. Firefighters conducted defensive exterior ground operations before moving inside the structure to suppress the fire. Three adults and one child evacuated the home without injury.

The law enforcement officer was injured while assisting with a hose hook-up to the fire hydrant. The officer was treated and released from the hospital.

Photo courtesy the Red Oak Fire Dept.

Chief Bruce said the fire begin with wind driven embers from a fire pit located about 10 yards to the north of the residence. Those embers ignited the vegetation along a fence line, and started the northwest portion of the first floor on fire. The blaze eventually breached the first-floor windows, and entered the residence. The home sustained extensive fire, smoke, and water damage.

Mutual aid was requested from the Stanton and Elliott fire departments. Additional entities at the scene included Essex Rescue, Officers with the Red Oak Police Department, Montgomery County Sheriff’s Deputies, MidAmerican Utilities, and the American Red Cross. Montgomery County Communications was also a part of the emergency response.

Cass County Extension Report 4-5-2023

Ag/Outdoor, Podcasts

April 5th, 2023 by Jim Field

w/Kate Olson.

Play

Atlantic School District Superintendent announces his resignation

News

April 5th, 2023 by Ric Hanson

(Atlantic, Iowa) – Officials with the Atlantic Community School District today (Wednesday) announced Superintendent Steve Barber has made the decision to resign as superintendent from the Atlantic Community School District effective June 30, 2023. The Board of Education said in their statement that they “would like to thank Mr. Barber for his years of service and commitment to the District. He has been a dedicated and conscientious leader who was committed to seeking improvement in all aspects of District operations and student achievement.

We wish Mr. Barber well in his future endeavors as we are already considering the next steps in the process of selecting our next superintendent. During this transition, we will seek community input and will keep our staff and the public updated throughout the process.”

No reason was given for Mr. Barber’s decision to resign.