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Tornado death toll for 2008 moved up to 13

January 26, 2009 By

The tornadoes that hit Iowa in 2008 are now blamed for 13 fatalities. Meteorologist Jeff Johnson says the National Weather Service has adjusted it’s official records after just recently learning of the November death of a Parkersburg resident.

Johnson says the tornado that struck Parkersburg and New Hartford on May 25 is now credited with 9 deaths, instead of 8. Ruth Knock died on November 7 from complications of injuries she suffered in the storm. She was 61.

Johnson says his office heard about Knock’s death from a television network that’s producing a show about the Parkersburg tornado.

"We found out about from The Weather Channel," Johnson said. "We did some checking (and confirmed) the person passed away from injuries resulting from the tornado."

Another tornado on June 11 killed four boy scouts at a campground in western Iowa’s Harrison County. The 13 tornado related fatalities in 2008 equals the total number of deaths in Iowa from tornadoes between 1980 and 2007.

Filed Under: Fires/Accidents/Disasters, Weather

Council Bluffs man dies of heart attack after Slipknot concert

January 26, 2009 By

A Council Bluffs-area man has died after collapsing at a Slipknot concert in Council Bluffs. Twenty-nine-year-old Cory Nickels collapsed on the concourse of the Mid-America Center Sunday night.

Friends say that Nickels was not feeling well when the concert ended around 10:30. After he collapsed, emergency medics performed CPR and then he was rushed to a nearby hospital where he died.

Nichols suffered a heart attack and friends say his family had a history of heart problems. Council Bluffs authorities say about 30 people were treated for injuries during the concert, most related to mosh pit dancing. 

Filed Under: Recreation & Entertainment

Iowa women offer $1 tickets for game

January 26, 2009 By

The Iowa womens basketball team hopes a deal on tickets will help boost attendance for tonight’s game against Michigan. It’s called "Buck night" and fans can purchase tickets for one dollar.

Coach Lisa Bluder says they want to create a good atmosphere for the Big Ten Network, as Monday night is not normally a night to draw a big fan group. Bluder says the dollar night is an opportunity to see them play at a reasonable cost.

Iowa is looking for it’s fourth straight win and takes on Michigan team that has stumbled to a 2-6 Big Ten record after posting a number of impressive wins in non-conference play. She says Michigan is a balanced team with great shooters and a lot of experience. 

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: ,

Paves sees jersey retired by Blackhawks

January 26, 2009 By

San Jose Sharks forward Joe Paves was in Waterloo over the weekend where his jersey number eight became the fifth to be retired by the Waterloo Black Hawks. Pavelski helped turn the franchise around and in 2004 led the Black Hawks to a national championship and was named U.S.A. Hockey’s junior player of the year.

Pavelski says this is the place where it all started as he saw this is where hockey became serious for him and he saw what he could do. Pavelski says there were a lot of good players on those teams. He says he didn’t accomplish things by himself and the players on the team helped him get where he is.

Pavelski says he was proud to be part of the turnaround for the franchise. He says there were a lot of questions when he came in about what would happen and things fell into place and he had "one of the times of my life." Pavelski went on to star at the University of Wisconsin before embarking on a professional career. 

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Vilsack says Ag Department will lead climate change debate

January 26, 2009 By

In his first news conference as U.S. Ag Secretary, former Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack promised the U.S. Department of Agriculture would be the "national leader in climate change" debate.

"This, of course, will involve conservation, greater efficiency with the energy we have and expanded opportunities in biofuels and renewable energy," Vilsack said as he read from prepared remarks.

Vilsack said he’ll focus on expanding research and development and pursue the development of "additional" biofuels and energy sources.

"We need to make sure that the biofuels industry has the necessary support to survive the recent downturn, while at the same promoting policies that will speed up the development of second and third generation feedstocks for those biofuels that have the potential to significantly improve America’s energy security and independence," Vilsack said.

Vilsack was Iowa’s governor from January, 1999, to January of 2007 and during that time the number of ethanol plants in Iowa grew significantly. According to Vilsack, ethanol producers are "under particular strain" today. "There will be a premium on ethanol producers who are efficient and effective in the management of the facilities," Vilsack said. "U.S.D.A. has a role, I believe, in helping to develop and promote best practices that will increase and enhance management efficiencies which in turn will allow more of these producers of ethanol to stay in business."

President Obama has said he hopes to double "renewable energy" production in the U.S. and Vilsack, Obama’s ag secretary, is promising the U.S.D.A. will be front and center in the promotion of renewable energy. "We need to create additional demand for advanced biofuels and renewable energy," Vilsack said. "Working with farmers — for example — to determine how best they could to change their operations to embrace renewable energy and fuel in their operation; working with rural communities to encourage the same."

Vilsack predicts the economic stimulus package will include proposals directly aimed at renewable fuels, on top of already existing tax credits and government loans which are available for expansion of the industry. "It’s important for the U.S.D.A. to aggressively promote these efforts," Vilsack said.

"I think we’re in a position to begin the march, which President Obama has laid out, of creating new ‘green collar’ jobs. It can and should and I believe ought to begin in rural America and I think U.S.D.A. is prepared to do this." Vilsack said Obama recognizes the U.S. is in difficult times and there’s a need for a government action to boost the economy. Vilsack, like Obama, warns that "it’s going to take a while for us to turn the corner."

 

Filed Under: Agriculture, Politics & Government Tagged With:

Smoking rates drop, lung cancer deaths remain high

January 26, 2009 By

While the number of smokers in Iowa has continued to drop, the health impact on those who quit hasn’t caught up yet. Peggy Huppert of the Iowa chapter of the American Cancer Society says a new report from the Centers for Disease Control shows the number of smoking-realated deaths hasn’t dropped as quickly as the smoking rate.

Huppert says the smoking rate in Iowa has gone down by 22% over the last two years, but she says there’s a long time between when people stop smoking and we see the results. She says it can take 20 to 30 years before we start to see a drop in lung cancer deaths. The C-D-C report says smoking accounts for 44-hundred Iowa deaths each year. Huppert says lung cancer is the number one cancer killer of Iowans.

"Unfortunately once lung cancer is diagnosed, it has a very high mortality rate," Huppert says. She says there’s not a good screening process for lung cancer and it is tough to treat, but she says it is preventable by not smoking. Huppert says the report shows the need to not let up on smoking reduction efforts.

Huppert says smoking is a very tough habit to break, as she says nicotine is more addictive than heroine. She says while 80% of smokers want to quit, the average smokers attempts to quit eight times before they’re successful. Huppert says the state needs to continue directing resources to programs to help people stop smoking. Huppert says in addition to the smoking deaths, tobacco use costs the state over one billion dollars in annual healthcare bills. 

Filed Under: Health & Medicine Tagged With: ,

Two women die in weekend fires

January 26, 2009 By

Fires claimed lives in Cedar Rapids and Keokuk this weekend. Firefighters in Cedar Rapids battled three major fires this weekend, including a house fire on Sunday afternoon that turned fatal.

A woman in her 50s who lived alone in the house died. Her name has not been released. A Cedar Rapids couple and their two sons escaped another house fire on Sunday morning, but the fire killed the family’s dog and two cats. Another fire on Saturday damaged a home on the city’s southeast side.

No one was home at the time. All three fires in Cedar Rapids remain under investigation. A Keokuk woman died Sunday morning from injuries suffered in a fire Saturday night. Eighty-three-year-old Nelda Barbee was pulled out of her burning apartment by neighbors. Ten other apartments in the building had smoke or water damage. The cause of the fire remains under investigation. 

Filed Under: Fires/Accidents/Disasters
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