Iowa Radio News

CASS COUNTY – An Atlantic man was pronounced dead Wednesday in an apparent drowning. KCCI-TV reports bystanders found 53-year-old Ysota Rekis underwater for a significant amount of time at Lake Anita State Park. The Cass County Sheriff’s Office says those people attempted CPR, but Rekis was pronounced dead at a nearby hospital. JESUP – A man was killed when a lawnmower rolled off of a trailer and pinned him to the ground. KCRG-TV reports the Buchanan County Sheriff’s Office received a report Thursday afternoon in Jesup of the incident. Emergency crews were unable to save the man before freeing him from the situation. IOWA – The Iowa American Civil Liberties Union is requesting the Iowa Supreme Court re-hear the case on Iowa’s six-week abortion ban. A 4-3 decision in June directed a district court to lift an injunction that prevented the bill from being implementing and restricting nearly all abortions in the state, according to the Iowa Capital Dispatch. Both the ACLU and Planned Parenthood are asking the court to put in place a higher legal standard for abortion laws. DES MOINES – A Des Moines man is charged for accusations of neglecting livestock. The Des Moines Register reports the Animal Rescue League of Iowa received a report of a thin horse pulling a carriage around downtown in June. Those who made the accusation said the horse had a visible ribcage due to malnourishment. Des Moines Police have charged the owner with livestock neglect.

DES MOINES – A group including landowners, lawmakers, and municipal governments is appealing to the Iowa Utilities Commission for reconsideration of giving permission for a carbon capture pipeline. KCRG-TV reports the IUC granted Summit Carbon Solutions the power to use eminent domain for construction. Summit claims the project will eliminate four million cars’ worth of emissions and that 75% of landowners have signed voluntary agreements. IOWA – A law banning most abortions in Iowa could take effect as soon as Friday, according to KCCI-TV. The Iowa Supreme Court reversed a lower court ruling putting a temporary block on the six-week ban in June. Planned Parenthood believes the new law could ban 97% of abortions in Iowa. The law will take effect as soon as the district court receives the case from the Iowa Supreme Court. DES MOINES – The Legislative Services Agency has released its state salary database for fiscal year 2023, and it’s no surprise at the top. For more than two decades, Iowa Hawkeyes Football Coach Kirk Ferentz is the top salary in the state, according to the Des Moines Register. Men’s Basketball Coach Fran McCaffery came in second ahead of Cyclones’ counterparts Matt Campbell and TJ Otzelberger.    

CENTERVILLE – One person was found dead after going missing at Lake Rathbun near Centerville. KCCI-TV reports the California man was a frequent fisher at the space and his boat disappeared on Sunday. Police found the individual Tuesday. Officials are not releasing the name in the near term. URBANDALE – Cleanup continues today in the Des Moines metro after a derecho spawned near the city before trecking east well into Indiana. The National Weather Service conducted a damage survey and initially declared an EF1 tornado formed just south of Interstate 80-35 in Urbandale near the Grimes exit and stayed on the ground through the Drake Neighborhood of Des Moines to just south of Interstate 235. Estimated wind speeds topped out near 100 MPH. DES MOINES – Three finalists have been chosen for best new food at the Iowa State Fair. WHO-13, the TV station judging the competition, announced that Iowa’s Sm’Oak’ed Roll (sushi) from Watcha Smokin BBQ, a bacon cheeseburger egg roll from Winn & Sara’s Kitchen, and a lobster corn dog from Destination Grill were the choices. Fairgoers will get to vote on their top choice in August. Eight other finalists will be available for purchase at the fairgrounds August 8th through the 18th.    

IOWA – A tornado dropped down in Des Moines near Drake Stadium and widespread tree damage in eastern Iowa was the result of a derecho that stretched from central Iowa into the Great Lakes region on Monday. Several reports of wind gusts over 80 MPH were reported and multiple communities will be cleaning up following the widescale weather event that also caused brief flashing flooding in some locations too. Much more pleasant, calm weather is on the way in the near-term, according to the National Weather Service. KNOXVILLE – One person died and another was injured when minivan crashed into a nursing home building in Knoxville. The Iowa State Patrol reports a Chrysler Town and Country driven by 86-year-old Doris McCombs was traveling through the parking lot at Accura Healthcare and struck the side of one of the buildings, crashing through the wall and into the room of a resident. Rebecca Richardson, 70, died from her injuries after being struck by the minivan. The building was evacuated during the peak heat of Monday afternoon. IOWA – Governor Reynolds  announced that applications are now being accepted for state housing programs she launched during a press conference last week. The State Disaster Recovery New Housing Grant Program provides financial assistance for the development of new housing for sale or rent in counties eligible for FEMA’s Individual Assistance under a federal disaster declaration. It offers developers grant funding of up to $1 million per project to assist in the development of housing units for sale and rent, with a preference given to single-family detached units, duplex and townhouse style developments. The program will be administered by the Iowa Economic Development Authority.  

MILWAUKEE – The chair of the Iowa GOP will speak at the Republican National Convention to introduce former President Donald Trump, just two days removed from an attempted assassination in Pennsylvania. Jeff Kaufmann is set to give one of the first speeches at the event that will see Trump accept the nomination for a third consecutive general election. Kaufmann does not plan to change his speech, which will come ahead of the first public appearance of Trump since the attack. OSKALOOSA – An NPR report shows a continued decline of rural obstetrics services in Iowa. At least 41 hospitals have closed their labor and delivery departments in the past 25 years. In some Iowa counties, birth rates have dropped by 75% since their peak in the 1960s. The trend mirrors national concerns in rural areas, where more than half of medical facilities lack the ability to provide care for newborns. IOWA – Powerful thunderstorms could bring an end to a three-day heat wave in Iowa. The National Weather Service anticipates severe weather impacting primarily the eastern half of the state, with storms capable of producing winds up to 80 MPH in some locations. This will break a three day streak of heat index values as high as 110 degrees.