IOWA (IRN) – Iowa teachers are fed up with the increasing number of violent fights at school. According to the Iowa Department of Education, 650 students were expelled or removed from school due to fights that caused injuries in the 2020-2021 school year. Mike Beranek, president of the Iowa State Education Association, says teachers are overwhelmed from breaking up fights and also getting hurt themselves. IOWA (IRN) – Hospitals in Iowa remain strained due to COVID-19 hospitalizations. There are 788 COVID-19 patients hospitalized throughout the state on Monday, according to the Iowa Department of Public Health. Industry experts say health care workers are quitting the medical field due to burnout, and hospitals in Iowa face worker shortages. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – After the murders of two staff and hostage-taking at the Anamosa State Penitentiary, the Iowa Department of Corrections contracted an evaluation to be done in an effort to improve the safety and security of its facilities. Key findings in the report show massive overcrowding at the state’s prison facilities. The report also found high numbers of staff shortages. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The price tag for a new Des Moines International Airport terminal is climbing, and now metro cities are being asked to kick in more money. The airport terminal is set to open its doors about four years from now. However, the airport has only raised about half of the $575 million it needs. AMES, IA (IRN) – Cyclone great Breece Hall is going pro, and that’s not all. On Monday, he confirmed he will skip this year’s bowl game as he gets ready for the NFL Draft, where he is projected to be one of the first running backs taken. He’s making the trip to Orlando with his team, but he won’t play. Iowa State and Clemson will face off on Dec. 29 in Orlando at the Cheez-It Bowl.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A man was shot in the knee on the east side of Des Moines. The victim checked himself into a local hospital with a gunshot wound early Sunday morning. Police say they don’t know who shot him or why. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The number of confirmed cases of the highly transmissible omicron variant of the coronavirus has increased to 18 in Iowa. The variant has been detected in Black Hawk, Jefferson, Johnson, Linn, Polk, Scott and Story counties. WEST DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The West Des Moines-based supermarket chain Hy-Vee intends to expand into four new states and build its third distribution center in Nashville, Tennessee, while opening more than 20 new stores in the next four years.The Tennessee distribution facility will initially service seven new stores in Indiana, Tennessee, Alabama and Kentucky, in 2023. KNOXVILLE, TN (IRN) – An Iowa-based convenience store chain has completed the purchase of 40 stores from Knoxville, Tennessee-based Pilot Corporation. Casey’s General Stores, Inc. announced in a news release that it had closed the sale as part of a three-year strategic plan to add 345 new stores nationwide. DURHAM, N.C. (IRN) – No. 2 Morningside beat No. 3 Grand View 38-28 to win its third NAIA football championship in four seasons on Saturday.

RIDGEWAY, IA (IRN) – A single-vehicle crash in rural Winneshiek County killed two teenagers and seriously hurt three others Friday night. Two were killed in the rollover crash, while the remaining three in the vehicle were taken to a nearby hospital via air ambulance with serious injuries. WEST DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The West Des Moines-based supermarket chain Hy-Vee intends to expand into four new states and build its third distribution center in Nashville, Tennessee, while opening more than 20 new stores in the next four years.The Tennessee distribution facility will initially service seven new stores in Indiana, Tennessee, Alabama and Kentucky, in 2023. KNOXVILLE, TN (IRN) – An Iowa-based convenience store chain has completed the purchase of 40 stores from Knoxville, Tennessee-based Pilot Corporation. Casey’s General Stores, Inc. announced in a news release that it had closed the sale as part of a three-year strategic plan to add 345 new stores nationwide. DURHAM, N.C. (IRN) – No. 2 Morningside beat No. 3 Grand View 38-28 to win its third NAIA football championship in four seasons on Saturday.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The Polk County Health Department announced a case of the COVID-19 omicron variant detected in Polk County Friday. Since then, the state announced 18 omicron cases in sevem counties. IOWA (IRN) – Five West Des Moines students and six Sioux City students have been charged with making terroristic threats against schools on Friday. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Gov. Kim Reynolds’ office on Friday announced a new system for handling open record requests, a day after three media organizations filed a lawsuit that alleges she has repeatedly violated the state’s open records laws by ignoring requests for government records, some for more than a year. The new system is supposed to be faster. IOWA (IRN) – The National Weather Service in Sioux Falls confirmed two additional tornadoes Friday night following Wednesday’s severe weather outbreak. This brings the statewide total from Wednesday up to 21 tornadoes. If this number holds steady, it would be the 6th biggest tornado outbreak in Iowa state history.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The National Weather Service has confirmed the intensity of five tornadoes in Iowa during Wednesday’s storms. The tornado that stretched from Atlantic to Exira was an EF-2 tornado and stretched 26.1 miles. Near Harcourt and Duncombe was an EF-2 tornado that extended 26.7 miles. An EF-2 tornado from Bayard to Jefferson traveled 24 miles. The tornado between Fansler and Winkelmans was an EF-2 and traveled 17.4 mph. The tornado near Lakeview has not been identified yet, but traveled 18.8 miles. The tornadoes all had winds between 115 mph and 120 mph. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Wednesday night’s storm system that brought widespread damage and tornadoes to Iowa is officially being declared a derecho. The National Weather Service has confirmed 13 tornadoes hit Iowa. Six of them were considered strong, with winds of up to 120 mph. Behind the initial line, winds gusted up to 74 mph. That’s the highest non-thunderstorm wind gust ever recorded in Des Moines. IOWA (IRN) – Iowa schools are responding to nationwide, anonymous social media threats that are being shared on social media outlets–mostly on Tik Tok. The general threat toward all U.S. schools declares Dec. 17 as “American School Shooting Day.” WEST DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – West Des Moines police on Friday announced five students will be charged in a series of threats made at Stilwell Junior High. Since Dec. 10, police have been investigating several social media and spoken threats of possible violence. According to police, two students have been charged with felony terrorism and three more have been charged with first-degree harassment. WARREN COUNTY, IA (IRN) – A Warren County man is in the hospital after accidentally rupturing an underground propane tank in his front yard. The Northern Warren Fire Department responded to an explosion in the Greenbrier subdivision west of Maffitt Lake just after 6 p.m. Thursday. The man was attempting to clear fallen trees from his yard with a skid loader when the machinery struck the propane line buried beneath the grass. CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – Law enforcement in eastern Iowa arrested three people on Wednesday after they allegedly stole clothing from Old Navy in Evansdale and made a run for it. The driver refused to stop and a chase ensued, with speeds exceeding 100 mph. Stop sticks were deployed to stop the vehicle.