Author: Iowa Radio News

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The Iowa Department of Public Health on Monday released new statistics on COVID-19 in the state. The IDPH reports four deaths and 257 new cases in Iowa. That brings the statewide total to 3,159 positive cases and 79 deaths.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A large increase in the number of confirmed cases of the illness caused by the novel coronavirus was reported by state officials on Sunday. 389 new cases of COVID-19 were confirmed by the Iowa Department of Public Health, the largest single-day increase of the pandemic in Iowa so far. The state’s total number of cases stands at 2,902. A death was reported of an older adult, aged 61 to 80, from the disease in Muscatine County. The state’s total number of fatalities from COVID-19 is at 75.

BLACK HAWK COUNTY, IA (IRN) – On Sunday, the Black Hawk County Conservation Board closed a resource area after people defied a proclamation by Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds. The board closed the Cedar River Natural Resource area because people continued to not follow guidelines regarding “no congregating.”

POLK COUNTY, IA (IRN) – The Polk County Sheriff’s Office says a death investigation is underway in Grimes. Authorities found a 35-year-old woman dead at the home upon arrival Sunday. The woman’s 46-year-old fiancé made the 911 call.

BUCHANAN COUNTY, IA (IRN) – A Buchanan County deputy is in serious condition after a car chase ended in a crash. According to the Iowa State Patrol, the chase started Saturday afternoon when Kevin Kraphl, 29, hit a pedestrian in Oelwein with a truck and drove away. Kraphl was later seen driving east of Oelwein by a conservation officer. When the officer attempted to pull over Kraphl, he refused to stop and started a chase that went through Fayette and Buchanan Counties. Kraphl’s truck hit a patrol vehicle driven by Buchanan County Sheriff’s Deputy Dan Walter. Deputy Walter was airlifted to the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics and is in serious condition. Kraphl again tried to get away, but was quickly arrested by Iowa DNR Conservation Officer Dakota Drish.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The Iowa Department of Public Health on Saturday reported new COVID-19 statistics. The IDPH reported 10 deaths and 181 new COVID-19 cases. That brings the total to 74 deaths and 2,513 positive cases in Iowa.

JOHNSTON, IA (IRN) – Another care facility has a coronavirus outbreak. According to the Polk County Health Department’s website, six people at Bishop Drumm Retirement Center in Johnston have been diagnosed with COVID-19. This is now the tenth long-term-care facility statewide to report an outbreak.

IOWA (IRN) – The Carson King Foundation is launching a fundraiser to raise money for nonprofits that help children and families whose mental health has been impacted by the pandemic. King is known for his viral sign that earned millions of dollars for the University of Iowa Stead Family Children’s Hospital. He is teaming up with “Iowa love” T-shirts for the fundraiser.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The Iowa Department of Public Health on Saturday reported ten deaths and 181 new COVID-19 cases. That brings the total to 74 deaths and 2,513 positive cases in Iowa. The deaths were reported in Appanoose, Linn, Louisa, Muscatine, Polk and Tama counties.

WATERLOO, IA (IRN) – Nineteen elected leaders in Black Hawk County called on the Tyson Fresh Meats plant in Waterloo to shut its doors to slow what they said is an outbreak inside the facility. KCRG-TV reports they said a recent jump in COVID-19 cases was because a number of employees at the plant are testing positive and there is a higher rate of people not coming into work.

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – Linn County has refrigeration trucks ready to serve as make-shift morgues to handle an increase in COVID-19 deaths. KCRG-TV reports Linn County Medical Examiner Donnie Linder said he is especially aware of the threat of the virus after spending the past week treating patients in hard-hit New Orleans. New Orleans has more than 20,000 confirmed cases with nearly 1,200 deaths across Louisiana.

ANKENY, IA (IRN) – A Des Moines chiropractor turned himself in on Friday after being accused of sexually abusing six children. KCCI-TV reports the Ankeny Police Department began investigating 39-year-old Joshua Hanisch in March after it was notified by the Iowa Department of Human Services of possible abuse.

AMES, IA (IRN) – With the pandemic closing Iowa businesses, theaters are looking for a way to make some income, without opening their screens to visitors. WHO-TV reports in Ames, the North Grand Cinema decided they would invite people to come by for buttered popcorn, or theater candy and beverages. The event was successful, and will be held again today.

IOWA (IRN) – Iowa students and teachers will not return to their classrooms this spring. Governor Kim Reynolds announced Friday that schools will remain closed the rest of the school year due to COVID-19. Schools will be required to continue offering online programs. There will be no spring sports seasons. They will further assess the situation on summer sports as things progress. Reynolds said Iowa’s COVID-19 cases have not yet peaked. Reynolds also waived the August start date for schools so districts can make local decisions.

IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – More than 60 employees at the University of Iowa Health Care campus in Iowa City have tested positive for COVID-19, according to the Gazette. Of the 64 employees infected to date, four tested positive Thursday.

TIFFIN, IA (IRN) – Authorities have obtained search warrants as they investigate the suspicious death of a 15-year-old boy whose body was found over the weekend in a lake near Iowa City. The Gazette reports that the Johnson County Sheriff’s Office is not commenting on what led authorities to look in Coralville Lake for Noah Herring, who was last seen in nearby Tiffin on April 7.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The Iowa Department of Public Health released new COVID-19 statistics today. There have been four deaths and 191 new cases in Iowa. The increase in positive cases is the largest single-day increase yet. That brings the total to 2,332 confirmed cases, and 64 deaths.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds refused to say Thursday whether she was asked to join with other Midwest governors in coordinating the reopening of their state economies. The governors of seven Midwestern states announced they had agreed to work together to restart their economies amid the coronavirus pandemic, following similar pacts in the Northeast and West Coast. The Midwest agreement includes Illinois, Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Wisconsin, Minnesota and Kentucky. Five of the governors are Democrats and two are Republicans.

WATERLOO, IA (IRN) – Tyson Foods in Waterloo is a new hotspot for COVID-19 cases. KGAN-TV reports city and county leaders in Black Hawk County are frustrated. Sheriff Tony Thompson, who is also the Black Hawk County Emergency Management Director, says leaders took their own tour of the plant in recent days, and claims not enough was being done to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

IOWA (IRN) – U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst will release a memoir, titled “Daughter of the Heartland: My Ode to the Country that Raised Me,” on May 26. The Des Moines Register reports Simon and Schuster, the publisher, bills the book as a “candid, down-to-earth memoir” that recounts Ernst’s life from farm girl to her time in Kuwait as an officer in the Iowa Army National Guard to serving as Iowa’s first female U.S. senator.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The Iowa Department of Public Health reported four deaths and 96 new COVID-19 cases in Iowa Wednesday. That brings the total number of deaths to 53, and the total number of positive cases to 1,995.

COLUMBUS JUNCTION, IA (IRN) – Tyson has confirmed that two of its Columbus Junction plant employees died due to COVID-19. Gov. Kim Reynolds announced her efforts to provide resources for food plants Wednesday afternoon. The governor said the state is sending enough materials to test 900 more people this week at the plant, which has suspended operations for two weeks after more than 160 workers tested positive.

CORALVILLE, IA (IRN) – An Iowa Department of Corrections worker is under quarantine after becoming the first person connected to the state’s prison system to test positive for the novel coronavirus. The staff member, a correctional officer at Iowa Medical and Classification Center in Coralville, tested positive last week after experiencing symptoms April 8 and 9.

IOWA (IRN) – Creditors have been garnishing Iowans’ income and freezing their bank accounts during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the Des Moines Register. As one example, in Iowa City, a health care worker on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic had her bank accounts frozen because of student loan debt.