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Construction worker dies in accident at NE Hamilton Elementary School

April 2, 2010 By

A construction worker from Clarion is dead after a wall collapsed after noon today at the Northeast Hamilton Elementary School construction site in Blairsburg. The victim is identified as 57-yeard-old David Thompson.

A cement block wall that was under construction was blown over by a wind gust and fell on Thompson who was killed by the impact. There was no school today at Northeast Hamilton due to Good Friday.

The Hamilton County Sheriff’s Department, Occupational Safety and Health Administration and the State Fire Marshall are investigating the incident.

By Pat Powers, KQWC, Webster City

Filed Under: Education, Fires/Accidents/Disasters

Guard wires credited with saving woman in accident

April 2, 2010 By

Council Bluffs police say a crash on Interstate 80 on Thursday could have been much worse had it not been for the guard wires that separate east- and westbound traffic. Police Sergeant Patrick Norris says a woman driving an S.U.V. suffered a diabetic reaction, lost control of her vehicle and hit the dividing wires in the median.

Norris says, “If they weren’t here, she would’ve crossed over traffic and certainly it would’ve been a much more serious accident than it was.” The woman was airlifted to the hospital. There’s no word on her name or condition.

By Karla James

Filed Under: Fires/Accidents/Disasters

Cedar Rapids mayor says “security” a high priority

April 2, 2010 By

The mayor of one of Iowa’s flood-weary cities says his primary objective is giving residents of Cedar Rapids a sense of “security.”

Mayor Ron Corbett took the helm of Cedar Rapids city government at the beginning of January — about 18 months after flood waters swamped 10 square miles of the city. “If we have another major flood like that it would kill the psychology and the whole reinvestment. I mean, we have a window of opportunity to try and get this flood protection system, to give people that sense of security, the sense that they can move back and they can invest,” Corbett says. “That’s why we’re going to push hard for a flood protection system and we’re working with the Army Corps of Engineering to get it done.” 

Corbett, a former state legislator, surprised some of his fellow Republicans when he backed a move to pay those who’re working on flood recovery projects in Cedar Rapids the “prevailing wage” in Linn County.  ”We needed to — we had the highest unemployment rate in the community. Labor is an important part of Cedar Rapids’ history. Most of these neighborhoods that were flooded were…middle or lower income and these folks need to get back to work. All they want to do is get up in the morning, make a good living and take care of their families,” Corbett says.  “And I have to look at the entire town of Cedar Rapids. I don’t have the shackles of a partisan label on me. I’m a nonpartisan guy trying to take care of our town.”

Corbett rose through the ranks in the legislature to become the youngest Republican to be elected House Speaker, a position he left in 1999.  Corbett says he’s “no longer that close to the party structure” and does not intend to endorse candidates in party primaries, like the current race among three Republicans who want to be Iowa’s next governor.  “We need partnerships in both parties at all levels of state government and it’s incumbent on me to have as many friends as I possibly can get,” Corbett says.

Corbett made his comments this morning during taping of the Iowa Public Television program, “Iowa Press,” which airs tonight at 7:30.

Filed Under: Business, Fires/Accidents/Disasters, Politics & Government, Weather Tagged With: ,

Lawyer says West Burlington bar owner considering options in smoking ban case

April 2, 2010 By
No smoking sign.

Sign required by law in bars under the Smokefree Air Act.

The lawyer for the bar owner at the center of the smoking ban lawsuit says they will decide sometime next week whether to appeal the Des Moines County ruling upholding the ban.

Darwin Bunger represents Larry Duncan, who sued after his liquor license for Otis Campbell’s Bar and Grill in West Burlington was suspended for violating the smoking ban.

The lawsuit in part claimed the exemption to the law for state-licensed casinos was unconstitutional. Bunger told Radio Iowa one of the key points he sees in the ruling is the judge said the state has a right to allow smoking in casinos because of the money the casinos bring the state.

[Read more...]

Filed Under: Business, Crime & Courts, Health & Medicine, Politics & Government Tagged With:

Audit finds over $500,000 stolen from Cedar Rapids schools

April 2, 2010 By

The State Auditor says a special investigation of the Cedar Rapids School District turned up over $587,000 in stolen funds by a former accounting clerk. Auditor David Vaudt says a confidential informant tipped off police and they then requested the state audit that found clerk Janet May at the center of the problem.

Vaudt says the clerk was making cash withdrawals from the district’s bank account with the excuse that the money was needed for change for events at the school. He says she then would take fees intended for registration and transportation to cover the withdrawals. May was fired in September of 2009 and died in November from cancer.

Vaudt says the district didn’t have proper checks and balances in place to prevent the theft, and then missed signs that it was taking place. Vaudt says the district did see that the transportation and registration fees were not as high as they had budgeted, which should have been an alert, but he says they instead kept lowering their estimates instead of trying to find out why they weren’t collecting as much as they should have.

Vaudt says the school district can correct the problem with better procedures. He says the Cedar Rapids district is large enough that with proper segregation of duties and oversight they could solve the problem. Vaudt says they also needed proper numbered receipts to keep better control over the money. The theft of the money took place from 2003 through 2009.

The Cedar Rapids School District released this statement in response to the report:

Fiscal integrity is a District priority and we are very concerned that this situation has occurred. We are committed to public accountability and improved District operations. District administration realizes the significance of this theft and its influence on the trust the community places in the school district. We look forward to the opportunity to restore the community’s trust and confidence.

To that end, we took immediate steps. Within 30 days of learning of the embezzlement, the District conducted an internal review of Accounting Department functions, worked with bank officials to implement better banking controls between the District and depository bank, developed an Accounting Department restructuring plan that better segregated duties, and added the positions of Internal Auditor and Accounting Supervisor to further safeguard District finances.

The District continues to review internal procedures. Administration will be presenting the information to the Board of Education for their input and further direction.

The District also utilizes a Financial Integrity Hotline, launched in 2007, to provide for anonymous submission of information regarding financial concerns. A District Audit Committee has been in place since the 1997-1998 school year and meets quarterly to review District financial matters.

The financial loss to the District is fully insured, less a $10,000 deductible that the District will attempt to recover from Ms. May’s estate. Funds received from the insurance will be restored to the appropriate budget accounts. Additionally, District administration will recommend to the Board of Education that the insurance amount credited to the District’s General Fund be used for property tax relief for the fiscal year 2011 property tax rate.

We appreciate the State Auditor’s acknowledgement of District staff in cooperating and assisting with the investigation. Recommendations from the State Auditor’s Office will continue to guide District efforts to further improve internal controls. The community can be assured that we will become even more vigilant in protecting District financial assets.

Filed Under: Crime & Courts, Education

Creighton survey shows solid economic growth in Iowa, Midwest

April 2, 2010 By

Both Iowa and the Midwest are seeing solid, encouraging economic growth, according to a survey. Creighton University economist Ernie Goss says it’s the sixth time in the past eight months that Iowa’s Business Conditions Index rose above growth neutral, meaning, the economy is expanding.

“The leading economic indicator for the next six months was up to its highest level since May of 2006,” Goss says. “That’s very good news and it’s much like the news we’re getting from the national surveys.” Every month, Goss and his team interview supply managers and business leaders from Iowa and eight other Midwestern states.

“These supply managers are sort of the canaries in the coal mine,” Goss says. “In other words, when they see things positively, see new orders up, sales and employment and other factors up, generally it spills over into the rest of the economy in the months ahead. So it was a good report for the month of March.” On the downside, Goss says interest rates will soon be rising.

“Both long-term and short-term,” Goss says. “Mortgage rates are going to be headed higher, automobile loan interest rates are going to be headed higher. The Fed is going to be raising rates. There are bubbles out there in prices, in certain commodity prices. It hasn’t shown up yet in the CPI, the consumer price index, but it’s going to.” Based on the survey of supply managers in Iowa over the past several months, Goss says he expects a boost in manufacturing and overall job gains in Iowa for the first and second quarters of 2010.

However, he predicts the increases will be very modest with unemployment rates remaining above six-percent for the rest of 2010, as workers begin to re-enter the work force.

Filed Under: Business

Gas prices could get to $3.00 a gallon again

April 2, 2010 By

Gas prices in Iowa have climbed to their highest level in nearly a year and a half. Gail Weinholzer with Triple-A Iowa says a gallon of regular unleaded fuel is averaging $2.75. That’s the highest mark since October 2008. Iowa’s still five-cents below the national average, but prices have been on a steady climb over the past month.

“Crude is selling for more than $82 a barrel, so that’s forcing up some prices we’re seeing at the pump,” Weinholzer said. “We also expect a bit of a bump yet this spring due to the switch from the winter to the summer grade fuel.” The start of the summer driving season is still several weeks away and that increase in demand will likely lead to another price hike.

“I think there’s certainly a strong likelihood that we’ll pop $3.00 a gallon as an average across the country and maybe in Iowa as well prior to the Memorial Day weekend,” Weinholzer said. On Thursday, the average price for a gallon of gas in Des Moines and Sioux City was $2.68, while Waterloo, Cedar Rapids and Davenport were around $2.76 – according to Triple-A’s survey.

Filed Under: Business Tagged With:
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