Iowa Radio News

WINTERSET – One person was died after she was hit by a vehicle while walking onto Interstate 80 in Madison County on Thursday morning. The Iowa State Patrol reports 45-year0old Mandy Wendlend of Omaha was a pedestrian walking along the interstate before entering the travel portion of the roadway. She was struck by a Ford Transit. She was pronounced dead on scene. IOWA – Drought continues to spread across the state as a prolonged dry spell continues deep into the fall. The latest national report shows 83% of the state is now at least in moderate drought, and all 99 counties are at least abnormally dry. The severe drought rating in the state is now nearly 1/5th of Iowa’s land. After spotty showers and thunderstorms impacted some Iowans this week, additional rain may be coming by the middle of next week, according to the National Weather Service. Mainly communities near Iowa City and Cedar Rapids received 1-2″ of rainfall late Thursday.DES MOINES – Casey’s General Stores is paying just over $18 million for the naming rights to the new “Casey’s Center.” The current Wells Fargo Arena will be renamed by July 1st, 2025. Casey’s will pay $18.3 million over 10 years, according to the Des Moines Register. The contract was approved this week by the Polk County Board of Supervisors.

IDA COUNTY – A pair of traffic fatalities were reported by the Iowa State Patrol in crashes on Wednesday. A single vehicle incident occurred in Poweshiek County, as a loaded dump truck was westbound on Highway 85 and had a tire fail. The driver, 52-year-old Christopher Hudnut of Logan, lost control and was ejected from the vehicle. He died from his injuries. A three-vehicle collision resulted in the death of a Holstein man in Ida County Wednesday evening. Twenty-nine year old Joshua Fowler was driving a Chevy 1500 and rear-ended a Grain Trailer, which also collied with a northbound semi tractor. Fowler died from his injuries and two juveniles were seriously injured, including a young girl who was flown by helicopter to a nearby hospital. IOWA – Two Iowa men were sentenced over the past week for federal child pornography charges. The U.S. Department of Justice reports 34-year-old Eduardo Ibarra Mora of Altoona will serve just under ten years in prison for possessing dozens of photos and videos of minors engaging in sexual conduct on his phone and social media. Thirty-two-year Old Devin Lee Ortiz of Davenport was sentenced to 15 years in federal prison on Wednesday. Ortiz had 550 images of child sexual abuse while residing at a residential reentry center in Davenport, where he was serving time following a 2013 conviction for lascivious acts with a child in Scott County. IOWA – Showers and thunderstorms are expected to develop late this afternoon and into the evening. According to the National Weather Service, a few strong storms are possible, with large hail being the main severe weather threat. A few areas over parts of central and southern Iowa may receive one inch or more of rainfall.

DES MOINES – A statewide audit of 2.3 million voting records was conducted this year by Iowa’s Secretary of State. The office of Paul Pate released a statement showed 87 people self-reported they were not citizens after they voted and 67 who were not after registering to vote. Both are considered Class D felonies, and those names have been shared with the Iowa Attorney General’s Office. This represents less than a tenth of a percentage point of the total votes cast. The office used an Iowa DOT database to crosscheck voter registration in an attempt to find those who voted illegally. EAGLE GROVE – An Iowa man battling pancreatic cancer is spotlighting a shortage of medical equipment caused by the recent major hurricanes to hit the southwestern United States. KCCI-TV reports 27-year-old Jared Beecher travels from Eagle Grove to the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota and relies on being fed through an IV. However, a saline solution shortage caused by damage from Hurricane Helene has led to a situation in which Beecher’s home infusion company will not take him back if he’s admitted to the hospital. The family is concerned about the impact on a more widespread basis and if they will continue to receive weekly shipments of his total parenteral nutrition solution. IOWA – One case of e. Coli has been reported in Iowa as part of a nationwide outbreak believed to be caused by onions in McDonald’s quarter pounders. The Des Moines Register reports the menu item has been pulled from some stores in the state after 50 people were sickened across the country. The Centers or Disease Control and Prevention has not officially identified the ingredient responsible, but McDonald’s reported their initial investigation found it was related to onions from a supplier that serves three distribution centers. The restaurant has stopped using the beef and onions used for quarter pounders in several states.

SIOUX CITY – An investigation is under way after an officer-involved shooting incident in Sioux City Sunday evening. A press release issued by the police department states they responded to a call of a female who was allegedly threatened by a man with a loaded pistol. Upon response, the individual is accused of running from officers and pulling the firearm from his pocket, shooting at police. The department returned fire. Later in the evening, Sioux City Police attempted to apprehend the man with their SWAT team, only for the group to open fire after they claim the subject refused to surrender. The individual was transported with life-threatening injuries to a nearby hospital. No officers were injured and the case remains under investigation. IOWA – It’s “The Well” no more, at least by next July. The Iowa Events Center held a press conference on Monday to announced that their 20-year naming rights agreement will end with Wells Fargo, and the 17,000-seat arena will be known as the Casey’s Center, pending approval, starting July 1st, 2025. The venue is host to the annual state boys wrestling and boys and girls high school basketball tournaments and dozens of events each year, from concerts to Monster Jam to comedians to NBA preseason and NCAA postseason basketball games. The Polk County Board of Supervisors will vote on the proposed new name at their scheduled meeting today. IOWA – Row crop harvest remained ahead of average as Iowa’s farmers, according to the USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service. Field activities included harvesting corn and soybeans, fall tillage, and applying manure and fertilizer. Dry conditions resulted in field and equipment fires being reported during harvest. Topsoil moisture condition rated 41 percent very short, 40 percent short, and 19 percent adequate . For the second straight week, most of the state received no measurable precipitation. Harvest of the corn for grain crop reached 68 percent complete, five days ahead of last year and ten days ahead of the five-year average. Farmers in south central Iowa remained behind that mark, with just 50 percent of their crop harvested. IOWA – Fall colors are reaching their peak along and south of Highway 30 across the state of Iowa, according to the latest report from the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. The warmer, drier October has delayed the annual change across most trees in the state — even as peak viewing winds down in the northern tier of counties. A few chances for light rain in the next few days will do little to knock leaves of f of the trees, according to the National Weather Service, although brief wind gusts up to 20-25 MPH remain possible today as a cold front pushes through Iowa.

CALHOUN COUNTY – A suspect wanted for murder in Texas was found and arrested in northwest Iowa Sunday morning. A press release by the Calhoun County Sheriff’s Office indicates they responded to a call from a resident of Pomeroy who had kicked a man out of his house following a conservation in which that individual admitted to being on the run for killing his own brother. A Calhoun County deputy found 39 year old Kyle Andrew Coolack along a highway walking alone shortly after. Coolack has a warrant in Houston for an alleged murder that occurred in July 2022. IOWA – Nearly three-fourths of the state are now once again in moderate drought, according to the latest national report. The short term moisture shortage comes after one of the wettest springs and early summers on record for many Iowa communities — according to the U.S. Drought Monitor, the entire state was drought free three months ago. An extended period of above average temperatures and little-to-no rainfall in the autumn season has led to the conditions. The National Weather Service Climate Prediction Center shows warmer, drier air should still dominate most of the forecast until closer to Halloween, in which a shift to slightly above average precipitation is possible heading into early November. AMES – The Iowa State Cyclones remain a top ten team in the country after a late, come-from-behind win over UCF Saturday night at Jack Trice Stadium. The Des Moines Register reports the Cyclones football team dropped from 9th to 10th in the AP Top 25 poll after the 38-35 victory. Iowa State remains 7-0 on the season and 4-0 in the Big 12, now considered the best start in program history.