Author: Iowa Radio News

JOHNSON COUNTY, IA (IRN) – A person fell through the ice in rural Johnson County Thursday morning. KCRG-TV reports Swisher’s fire chief confirms rescuers responded to a report that someone fell through the ice at the Hawkeye Wildlife Area. After a brief search the subject was located and pulled from the water by personnel donning cold water rescue suits. When rescued the man was cold and wet but otherwise uninjured. He was identified as Jared Bushell, 25, of Hills.

STORM LAKE, IA (IRN) – A 30-year-old woman has been accused of stealing from a Storm Lake sign business when she worked there. KCCI-TV reports Rachel Wunder, of Storm Lake, is charged with theft. Police say she stole more than $3,300 from The Sign Shed & Graphics. Employees of the business reported that Wunder made unauthorized purchases and account withdrawals while employed there.

SLOAN, IA (IRN) – An apartment fire in the northwest Iowa town of Sloan kept crews busy all day Tuesday. KCAU-TV reports everyone got out of the building alive, but two women were taken to the hospital after they jumped from the second floor to escape the fire. Fifteen residents were affected. The building is a total loss.

DES MOINES (IRN) – State auditors say more than $13,500 was improperly spent from Garwin Ambulance Service funds since 2010. The Waterloo Cedar Falls Courier reports improper spending included cash withdrawals by Karen Boege, the ambulance service’s former secretary and payments to her husband, Steve Boege, the former ambulance service president. Garwin, a city of 525 people, is in Tama County. The Boeges resigned after the mayor requested a state audit.

DES MOINES (IRN) – Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller has a surprising statement that’s grabbing national attention, according to KCCI-TV. Miller is known for fighting with tobacco companies, but now says electronic cigarettes are safer than people claim, and can be helpful to people quitting tobacco. Public health officials disagree with Miller, saying e-cig use is harmful.

WATERLOO, IA (IRN) – An Iowa woman is breathing a little easier after she discovered a missile in her basement was inactive, or inert. KWWL-TV reports Carol Hora found the missile while cleaning her basement in Waterloo. She called police moments after finding it, and they were able to confirm it wasn’t a hazard. Hora says the missile must have been the property of her deceased husband.

CHEROKEE, IA (IRN) – A Cherokee woman tried to kill herself and a passenger by causing an auto collision. KCAU-TV reports that 29-year-old Melissa Ebert stated that she would kill both her passenger and herself prior to causing a head-on collision in September. Ebert was traveling with Damien Johnson when the two got into an argument. Ebert accelerated and veering directly toward an oncoming vehicle driven by Dustin Boll. Boll and Johnson were seriously injured. Ebert is charged with two counts of Attempted Murder, two counts of Serious Injury by Motor Vehicle, and 2nd Offense OWI.

KEYSTONE, IA (IRN) – An eastern Iowa man working in a grain bin has died. The Dubuque Telegraph Herald reports the accident happened Tuesday at a storage facility in Keystone. The Benton County Sheriff’s Office says that investigators think a wall of corn collapsed on the man while he was vacuuming corn into a semitrailer. The man’s name hasn’t been released.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Blood supplies in Iowa are at a critical low. KCCI-TV reports LifeServe Blood Center in Des Moines is asking for donors to give now after blood supplies for 110 hospitals have dipped to a critically low level. There is less than a one day supply of most blood types.

FAIRFAX, IA (IRN) – One person is dead and others were injured after a multi-vehicle accident in Linn County. KWWL-TV reports the crash happened Tuesday near Fairfax when a car crossed the centerline on a viaduct and ran into another car. Another vehicle swerved to avoid the accident, but crashed into the car driven by Terri Skalsky, who was killed in the accident.

WATERLOO, IA (IRN) – Waterloo police are investigating a report of gunshots Tuesday afternoon. KCRG-TV reports someone fired several shots at a group of people. Police said they weren’t aware of any injuries. They found a small amount of blood and several shell casings at the scene. No arrests have been made.

WEBSTER CITY, IA (IRN) – Family members of the 6-year-old girl killed in a Christmas Day car crash said they are thankful to all who have supported them during a time of tragedy. 20-year-old Ruth Tomlinson drifted across the center lane and struck a truck head-on near Webster City. Justin Henry, his fiance and their three children were in the truck. “I saw the Jeep coming at us. I was just waiting for it to go back to its lane, it just never did,” Henry said. 6-year-old Payton died in the crash. A GoFundMe page for the family has raised more than $27,000.

IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – Hawkeye fans now have even more to cheer about this week. WHO-TV reports the Iowa men’s basketball team defeated previously-unbeaten No. 1 Michigan State by a score of 83-70 on Tuesday night. The Hawkeyes never trailed in the game at Carver-Hawkeye Arena and held a double-digit lead the entire second half. The last time Iowa beat a No. 1 ranked team was in 1999 when they defeated the defending-champion UConn Huskies at Madison Square Garden.

HORNICK, IA (IRN) – The state auditor announced Tuesday that an audit on a western Iowa town of fewer than 230 people found nearly $134,180 of improper and unsupported disbursements. WHO-TV reports the audit was requested by Hornick city officials after the new city clerk identified concerns of finances processed by two former city clerks between July 2003 and June 2014. No charges have been filed, but the investigation continues.

SIOUX CITY, IA (IRN) – A federal appeals court is upholding lengthy prison terms for two Sioux City brothers convicted in the armed robbery of two drug dealers. KCCI-TV reports
the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday upheld a life sentence issued to 24-year-old Jamal Dean and a 30-year term for his older brother, Levon Dean Jr. The brothers traveled together from Nebraska to Iowa and conspired to rob local drug dealers.

DES MOINES (IRN) – The Iowa Department of Agriculture announced Tuesday that the order canceling all live bird exhibitions due to avian influenza will be lifted on January 1, 2016. The Department issued the order prohibiting poultry exhibitions on May 21 in the midst of the outbreak of the avian flu. Iowa is now considered free of the virus. Over 31 million birds were affected in Iowa.

IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – Iowa City is considering a mandate for apartment buildings to recycle. The Iowa City Press Citizen reports the issue could go before City Council in early 2016.
While landlords have been required to provide trash services since the late 1970s, the city has not updated its code to include recycling. The change would affect more than 1,000 apartment and condominium buildings in town.

IOWA (IRN) – Iowans are recovering from Monday’s major snowfall. The National Weather Service reports the winter storm that impacted nearly all of Iowa yesterday will depart today. Snowfall totals of 5 to 7 inches were common. The town of Otho in Webster County received 10.5 inches of snow. Any additional snowfall accumulations should be minor. Quiet weather and seasonal temperatures are expected for the remainder of the week.

DUBUQUE, IA (IRN) – A 14-year-old boy was injured after he was pinned under a car following a one-vehicle crash in Dubuque. KCRG-TV reports Caleb Sweat was ejected from a vehicle that lost control Monday morning. The car, driven by the boy’s father, 45-year-old Jason Sweat, entered a ditch and rolled. The boy was hospitalized with injuries to his legs. Weather conditions attributed to the crash.

WATERLOO, IA (IRN) – Waterloo Police are investigating a shooting early Sunday that sent one man to the hospital. The Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier reports police were called to UnityPoint Health-Allen Hospital about 2 a.m. Sunday where Gary Lynn Lewis Jr. was being treated for a non-life threatening gunshot wound. Police said Lewis did not cooperate with investigators, and the investigation continues.

DES MOINES (IRN) – Monday’s snowstorm was a challenge for many Iowans, but some young men in Des Moines were delighted to see it. WHO-TV reports the teens are members of the Forest Avenue nonprofit group, and make money for group activities by doing lawn care and shoveling snow in one of the roughest neighborhoods in town. Ralph Chiodo is founder of the group, and the goal is to teach the teens how to start and run a business. “I am in awe of these 13-year-old boys,” says Chiodo, “I wish I had their discipline and work ethic back when I was 13.”

SOUTH SIOUX CITY, NE – A man wanted on Iowa and South Dakota warrants has been arrested in northeast Nebraska. The Des Moines Register reports 19-year-old Zachary Frye of Sioux City was arrested Saturday afternoon in South Sioux City, Nebraska after a chase that began in Woodbury County, Iowa. The passenger in the vehicle told police he pulled the emergency brake to stop the vehicle. Charges against Frye include felony eluding, willful reckless driving and several drug counts. The passenger was not arrested.

CHICAGO, IL (IRN) – An Iowa woman was killed early Monday in an Illinois bus crash according to WHO-TV. A Burlington Trailways bus was traveling near Chicago when the driver lost control and struck a construction sign. A Des Moines woman, 21-year-old Nicole Underwood, was killed in the crash and four others were sent to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries. Officials are unsure what caused the 53-year-old bus driver to lose control.

MAURICE, IA (IRN) – A northwest Iowa day care operator has been charged with child endangerment involving a toddler in her care. KCCI-TV reports 32-year-old Dianna Winder also was charged last week with assaulting the 15-month-old boy at her home daycare in Maurice. No details about how the injuries occurred have been released.

DES MOINES (IRN) – A shooting late Sunday night in Des Moines left one man dead and a woman injured. KCCI-TV reports police responded to the south side of the city to a report of a shooting. They found the man and woman suffering from gunshot wounds. The male victim was deceased. The female victim was taken to a local hospital where she is receiving treatment. There have been no arrests. This is the 21st homicide of 2015 in Des Moines.

CEDAR FALLS, IA (IRN) – Four people face charges after a series of home burglaries in Cedar Falls on Sunday morning. KCRG-TV reports Ny’Jawon Alexander, Corion Pursley, Jacane Campbell and a 17-year-old boy attempted to break into a residence shortly before 5 a.m. Witnesses told police the four were driving a silver Honda Pilot. Arrests were made when officers stopped a vehicle matching the description.

MEDIAPOLIS, IA (IRN) – Authorities say 131 piglets and 10 sows were killed in a fire at a southeast Iowa hog confinement Thursday. The Hawk Eye in Burlington reports that the fire at the Nelson Brothers Farm northeast of Mediapolis was caused by a shorted-out exhaust fan. Firefighters extinguished the blaze within minutes.

CEDAR FALLS, IA (IRN) – While most people celebrated Christmas inside, the Jensen family of Cedar Falls went a significantly colder route. KWWL-TV reports Austin Jensen and his dad took to the Cedar River Friday, water skiing up and down the river. While this year’s warm weather kept the ice away, water temperature was a chilly 33 degrees. This was their first Christmas on the river, and the family doubts it will become a tradition.

FORT DODGE, IA (IRN) – A 6-year-old girl has passed away after her family of five was involved in a crash on Christmas morning, according to WHO-TV. A Jeep Wrangler crossed the centerline near Fort Dodge and hit Justin Henry’s pickup head on. In the vehicle with Henry was his fiance Brooke and their three young children. 6-year-old Payton died. Brooke and the middle child, Hayley, sustained concussions. The youngest child, 6-month-old Rowyn, suffered a broken femur. The condition of the driver of the jeep is unknown.

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – Emergency responders worked to help free a car from the Cedar River in Cedar Rapids late Saturday night. KCRG-TV reports the driver swerved to avoid hitting a deer and ended up in the water. Fire fighters used a boat to help rescue the driver. He faces hypothermia, and possible citations.

NEWTON, IA (IRN) – Police in Newton are asking for your help locating a missing 12-year-old girl. WOI-TV reports Charlene Rachelle Brown was last seen at a residence in Newton. The girl is described as female, 5’2”, with brown hair and brown eyes. She was last seen wearing blue and white flannel pajamas.

CEDAR FALLS, IA (IRN) – A Cedar Falls family who lost their home two months ago didn’t have gifts under their Christmas tree this year. The Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier reports that the family of Chris Martin and Bettina Fabos is OK with that. The family lost everything to the fire, but were able to get out of the house safely. Fabos says “what we’ve learned from the fire is that things don’t matter at all. Your loved ones matter.”