Iowa Radio News

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – Icy roads caused many accidents in eastern Iowa after rain early this morning. Some accidents caused blockages or closures on major interstates and roadways. Reports are still coming in. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Two people were hospitalized in critical condition Monday after their reportedly stolen vehicle led police on a chase that ended in a crash in Des Moines. Police said the injured were also tied to an earlier drive-by shooting. The car that was stolen was left alone running. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A Des Moines mother drove to the school drop-off while drunk and nearly plowed into a group of elementary students, according to KCCI-TV. Heather Mapes, 43, is in jail. Mapes was drunk as she swerved into the bus lane at Garton Elementary School and narrowly missed hitting a group of students. Mapes was dropping off her 5-year-old daughter when she hit the curb. She then argued with school staff, and a bus driver stopped her from leaving the scene. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The Des Moines Police Department is investigating the case of a dog being shot with four arrows. A man found a stray pit bull and took it into his grandmother’s home, where it attacked her poodle. The man then shot the pit bull with four arrows. Both dogs had to be put down. DES MOINES, IA (IRN – Former President George H.W. Bush made his final journey to Washington, D.C., on Monday to lie in state after his death. KCRG-TV reports his death is sad news for Becky Beach, of Des Moines. Beach, who worked for and has been friends with the Bush family for 40 years, said she is mourning the death of her longtime friend. Beach says she was a 22-year-old college graduate when she volunteered in Iowa to help Bush run for president in the late 1970s.

CHICAGO, IL (IRN) – The Chicago Bulls have fired head coach Fred Hoiberg. The Iowa State Cyclone hoops legend, known as The Mayor, coached at ISU for five seasons after ending his NBA career due to a heart problem. Hoiberg was named Chicago`s head coach in 2015. In 2017, he guided the team to the First Round of the NBA Playoffs, where they were ousted by the Boston Celtics. CEDAR FALLS, IA (IRN) – Cedar Falls Police and the UNI Police Department responded to the scene of an armed robbery on Saturday. KWWL-TV reports a woman says a man with a handgun threatened her, then took her purse and ran. CLEAR LAKE, IA (IRN) – A bus crashed Friday night on Interstate 35 near Clear Lake. KIMT-TV reports the bus was carrying the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse men’s basketball team. Troopers believe ice is to blame for the bus leaving the roadway and hitting the guard wires. Of the 25 passengers, two were injured but are expected to be OK. AMES, IA (IRN) – As if getting a parking ticket wasn’t bad enough, the city of Ames is informing those who recently paid parking fines that their private information — including credit and debit card numbers — may have been stolen. Approximately 4,600 people may have been affected. IOWA (IRN) – Iowa State (8-4) is headed to San Antonio, Texas, to play in the Alamo Bowl on Dec. 28 at 8 p.m. The Cyclones will take on No. 13 Washington State (10-2). The Iowa Hawkeyes are heading back to Tampa. Iowa (8-4) will face Mississippi State (8-4) in the Outback Bowl on January 1. This is the first-ever meeting between Iowa and Mississippi State.

DUBUQUE COUNTY, IA (IRN) – The Dubuque County Sheriff’s Office and Key West Fire Department responded to a structure fire Saturday. Crews saw heavy smoke coming from the roof when they arrived on scene. The fire most likely originated in a chimney of the home and does not appear suspicious. No injuries were reported. But the home suffered $50,000 worth of damage. BETTENDORF, IA (IRN) – Staff at Pleasant Valley High School in Bettendorf are trying to figure out who left offensive graffiti in a bathroom at the school. WQAD-TV reports the graffiti consisted of a poem written in pencil that was offensive to those of several different races, sexual orientations, religious and ethnic backgrounds. A reward of $500 has been offered by the school for information leading to identifying the vandal. IOWA (IRN) – Saturday was the day medical marijuana advocates and patients had been waiting for, the first day it was legal to purchase medical cannabis in the state of Iowa. Advocates say they’d like to see the state expand the list of conditions that qualify for medical marijuana, and the elimination of the 3% cap on THC that can be in the product. AMES, IA (IRN) – David Montgomery ran for 145 yards and two touchdowns and No. 24 Iowa State barely survived a near-upset by non-scholarship FCS school Drake on Saturday, winning 27-24.

POLK COUNTY, IA (IRN) – A Polk County Sheriff’s Deputy was injured in a crash Friday after another driver went through a stop sign and t-boned the deputy’s patrol vehicle. The deputy and the other driver suffered minor injuries and were taken to the hospital for treatment. Charges are pending. MASON CITY, IA (IRN) – A man involved in a fatal crash is pleading guilty to homicide by vehicle by reckless driving in Cerro Gordo County. KIMT-TV reports Thomas John Parcher, 29 of Marble Rock, was driving in December 2017, when he went off the road and rolled several times. A passenger, Tonya Martin, 50 of Rockwell, was thrown from the vehicle and died at the scene. Parcher was tested and found to have a blood alcohol content of .136 after the crash. CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – The Cedar Rapids Police Department is making a push to have the cameras on Interstate 380 issue tickets to speeders again. The I-380 Automated Traffic Enforcement cameras continue to monitor traffic patterns, but they have been not issuing tickets in Cedar Rapids since April 2017. IOWA (IRN) – Data shows more farmers in Iowa are struggling to make ends meet, leading to a significant spike in farms declaring bankruptcy. According to numbers from the Iowa Farm Bureau, just five years ago in 2013, only four farms declared Chapter 12 bankruptcy. In 2017, the total number of bankruptcies climbed to 18 — the highest total since 2001.

PROMISE CITY, IA (IRN) – A Promise City man has avoided spending the rest of his life in prison for running a drug ring. KTVO-TV reports TImothy McClain was sentenced to nine years in a federal prison. A search warrant of McClain’s Promise yielded $225,000 in cash and nearly 200 grams of meth. In his plea deal, McClain acknowledged he was part of a multi-state drug ring. He admitted that in early 2017 he had come into possession of nearly four pounds of meth. URBANDALE, IA (IRN) – An Urbandale school worker died Thursday after she was struck by a car in a crosswalk in front of the high school, according to KCCI-TV. Dawn Ipson, a member of the nutrition services team at the school, was crossing the street when she was hit. MASON CITY, IA (IRN) – A railroad officer shot someone in Mason City Thursday. KIMT-TV reports one person was taken to the hospital with a gunshot wound. The Union Pacific employed officer is reported safe. The DCI and Union Pacific are investigating. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The Transportation Security Administration intercepted the 11th firearm at the Des Moines International Airport so far this year. Staff discovered a loaded Smith & Wesson Wednesday during an X-ray screening of a passenger’s carry-on bag. The gun reportedly had five rounds in it. Charges are pending. FAIRFIELD, IA (IRN) – A Canadian woman is thankful to be alive after spending more than three days stranded in her car when it became stuck in the mud on a rural Iowa road. The Des Moines Register reports Terry Harnish, 72, of Hubbards, Nova Scotia, was visiting friends on Thanksgiving when she took a wrong turn onto a dirt road outside Fairfield and became stuck. She was rescued Sunday after her car was discovered by a group of snowmobilers. She said, “I was a bit concerned. I knew my angels and God would save me, but I’m glad those boys came along.”