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Snow flurries in the forecast

October 7, 2009 By

Iowans had better enjoy the warm weather today, as it won’t be around long. Much of the state will see high temperatures in the 60s and even lower 70s this afternoon, but National Weather Service meteorologist Rod Donavon says a cold front is on the way, along with the possibility of snow.

“This will definitely be our warmest day mainly over the next week,” Donavon says. “We do have a cold front coming down during the day on Thursday and another shot coming down on Saturday and with that one, we’re looking at much colder temperatures for the weekend with highs in the 30s and 40s and with that, some of the precipitation could be changing to snow.” The forecast calls for a 20-to-30-percent chance of snow on Saturday across much of Iowa, though it should be mostly flurries. Donavon says if any snowflakes fly this weekend, they won’t likely stick around.

“The good thing about this time of year is our ground temperatures are still pretty warm yet, up in the 50s to around 60 and we’re not expecting real heavy snow,” Donavon says. “Right now, there might be some places that have some traces or light accumulations but overall, there shouldn’t be too much on the ground.”

If, by some fluke, Iowa does see a measurable snowfall this weekend, Donavon says it would likely set a new record. He says the earliest recorded accumulation of snowfall across Iowa is around October 17th and 18th while the average date of the first snowfall is around November 10th.

Filed Under: Weather

Experts say small towns can’t hold young college grads

October 7, 2009 By

Two experts who have followed the loss of population in rural America says it’s not realistic for small towns to think they’re going to reverse the trend of single, college-educated people under 35 moving away. Sociologist Maria Kefalas  has written a book on the subject. She says small towns should instead be matching community college grads to jobs that are in high demand.

Kefalas says the towns need nurses, dental hygienists, and “folks to work in this new green energy movement.” She says the towns need to really plan to match the high school and community college curriculum with the young people who are not going to college. Kefalas calls young highly educated Iowans the “high flyers” who will inevitably be attracted instead to cities. Creighton University economist Ernie Goss also advises communities to be more realistic about who’s going to stay in small towns and who isn’t.

“Getting single college educated — that’s with a bachelors degree — under 35 individuals to stay in a community, using resources for that is not wise. Those individuals have never stayed in small towns, never stayed in rural areas,” Goss says.

Goss warns that America will never return to the iconic small towns of the 50’s.

Filed Under: Business, Education

Olin anhydrous leak not an accident

October 7, 2009 By

A law enforcement official says Sunday night’s anhydrous ammonia leak that threatened an eastern Iowa town was not an accident. Jones County Sheriff Mark Denniston says it appears someone tampered with a lock on a tank and up to 850 gallons of anhydrous ammonia leaked out – forcing emergency crews to evacuate the entire town of Olin for almost five hours in the middle of the night. No one was injured. In 2005, the state used grant money to purchase thousands of locks for anhydrous ammonia tanks. Sheriff Denniston says the locks are effective…most of the time.

“We had kind of a downturn and I think that was a statewide downturn. Recently, within the last 9 to 12 months, things are picking up again,” Denniston said. Anhydrous ammonia is a common farm fertilizer, but it’s also a key ingredient for making methamphetamine. Denniston says it’s not clear how the criminals are getting around the lock.

“I’ve had Co-op people tell me they wish they knew who it was so they could show them how they’re getting around it,” Denniston said. “The lock will still be on the valve, but they’ll get the valve turned.” The locks are specifically designed by a company called Tanks-A-Lok. A local distributor for the company told KCRG-TV they’ve never heard of someone getting around the lock. Larry Lahr is with the River Valley Co-op in Olin, the site of Sunday’s leak.

“All our tanks have locks on, but they’re getting it out of there somehow,” Lahr said. Sheriff Denniston says he’d like lawmakers to consider harsher penalties for those caught tampering with anhydrous ammonia tanks. He says stealing a lottery ticket can be a felony, but causing what happened in Olin on Sunday night is only a simple misdemeanor.

Contributed Justin Foss, KCRG-TV, Cedar Rapids

Filed Under: Agriculture, Crime & Courts Tagged With:

Branstad committee formed for potential run for governor

October 7, 2009 By

One of former Governor Terry Branstad’s longtime associates has filed the paperwork to form an exploratory committee for a Branstad campaign for governor. Richard Schwarm, Branstad’s former law partner, is the one who filed the paperwork this morning, but Schwarm says the step isn’t a signal Branstad is, indeed, running for governor.

“It does not signal any direction or process by Terry Branstad other than the fact that he had to be aware of that we needed to do the filing,” Schwarm says.  “He is spending his time focused on his responsibilities at Des Moines University.  He’s not involved.” 

[Read more...]

Filed Under: Business, Politics & Government Tagged With: , , , , ,

Fire deaths up with three months left in the year

October 7, 2009 By

There have been 38 fire-related fatalities in Iowa this year. Jessica Lown, spokesperson for the Iowa Department of Public Safety, says everyone is hoping that number will hold steady over the final three months of 2009.

“Especially considering in 2007 and 2006, we had 30 and 33 (fatalities) respectively for those entire years, ” Lown said. “So, already, we’re pretty high as far as we’re concerned and we want to put a stop to that real fast.” Nine of the 38 victims this year have been under the age of 18. In at least one case, the fire was started by a child playing with matches.

Lown says parents and guardians should be teaching their children about fire safety and how to escape fires if they do occur. “But, also about that all important lesson that fire is dangerous and fire implements should be seen as tools, not toys,” Lown said. Investigators say most fire fatalities could be avoided if the homes had working smoke detectors.

“The vast majority of homes in Iowa have smoke detectors in them, but they aren’t working,” Lown said. “They’re old, outdated (smoke detectors) or they don’t have batteries in them.” This week is designated as National Fire Prevention Week.

Filed Under: Fires/Accidents/Disasters

Expert says dialogue among agencies key in disaster response

October 7, 2009 By

A federal expert on preparing for disaster told Iowans who’re on the front line of response they need to continue planning and working on partnerships between agencies to be prepared for the proper response. Steve Saunders is a retired general and assistant administrator in the FEMA division responsible for preparedness.

Saunders says federal officials have learned from a variety of disasters from Hurricane Katrina to the floods and tornadoes in Iowa on what is needed to best prepare everyone to respond. Saunders says the good news is that all the pieces he believes are needed for a proper response are in place.

He says the bad news is they are all learned from a legacy of what has happened, and the challenge is to bring them up to speed and marry them up so they are effective collectively. Saunders says he can’t put a timetable on how far away they are from having everything in place. Saunders says improving the response across the board is not easy. He cites the military’s experience with tactics as an example.

He says it took 28 years in the Department of Defense to go from what they did in Vietnam to what they did in Desert Storm one. Saunders says that was 28 years for one entity, so it is a big job to make emergency response changes for every branch of government from the federal to the state and down to the local jurisdictions. He says it all has to be done with sometimes competing interests for money. Saunder says tight budgets have become an issue, but he says that shouldn’t keep emergency responders from training and preparing to be ready.

Saunders says most people will tell you that don’t have enough people or money. He says with the tough economy the though process should be how to best use the resources available to get the job done. Saunders says all entities have to keep talking about how to share the resources appropriately. Saunders reviewed a report on the flood recovery in Iowa and says the state has to look at changing the way it builds along waterways.

He says the state has to look at how to improve by building in different places. Saunders says it is a legacy issue too, as the state needs to determine how to build higher and better so it doesn’t flood again. He says it’s a problem, building along waterways, that many other places in the country share. Saunders spoke at the Governor’s Homeland Security Conference in West Des Moines.

Filed Under: Fires/Accidents/Disasters, Politics & Government

Iowa mother behind “Friendly Fire” book to be buried today

October 7, 2009 By

An Iowa woman who gained national attention in her efforts to find out about the death of her son in Vietnam will be buried today. Ninety-two-year-old Margaret “Peg” Mullen died last Friday of age-related causes.

Mullen was born in Pocahontas and later ended up living in La Porte City with her husband Gene. Mullen was thrust into the national spotlight when here oldest son Michael died in Vietnam in February of 1970. Mullen had trouble getting information from the government on how her son died.

Mullen eventually learned her son was killed by friendly fire. The book “Friendly Fire” about her experiences  was  turned into a television movie in 1980. Carol Burnett played Mullen in the movie and Ned Beatty played her husband.

The movie won an Emmy for best drama. Mullen remained and activist from then on and was inducted into the Iowa Women’s Hall of Fame in 1998. Mullens funeral is 10:30 today at St. Mary of Mount Carmel Catholic Church in Eagle Center. Burial in the church cemetery.

Filed Under: Human Interest, Military
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