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Iowa early News Headlines: Mon., Sept. 8th 2014

News

September 8th, 2014 by Ric Hanson

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press

EAGLE GROVE, Iowa (AP) — Iowa troopers say a 33-year-old man has been fatally struck by a train after trying to drive around a railroad crossing. The Iowa State Patrol says Jesse Froehlich was killed Sunday near Eagle Grove. Troopers say two Union Pacific engines were traveling eastbound with no train cars attached when they hit his truck. Troopers say the crossing was lit and the drop-down crossing gates were operating when the collision occurred. They say Froehlich drove around the crossing guards. The Wright County medical examiner pronounced him dead at the scene. The state patrol is investigating.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Ethanol production has become a key issue in Iowa’s closely matched U.S. Senate race, with both candidates pledging support for an industry that is important to the state’s corn-powered agricultural economy. Democrat Bruce Braley and Republican Joni Ernst have both sought to assure voters they oppose a proposal from the Environmental Protection Agency that would reduce the amounts of ethanol that must be blended into gasoline.

SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) — Iowa landowners want to see the details of a proposed oil pipeline that would carry crude oil from North Dakota across the state to Illinois. Texas-based Energy Transfer Partners has said the 1,100-mile pipeline would likely cross 17 counties as it crosses from northwest to southeast Iowa. Energy Transfer Partners spokeswoman Vicki Granado says public meetings will take place across Iowa in December.

MACEDONIA, Iowa (AP) — The pilot of a crop-dusting helicopter is being treated for injuries after crashing in western Iowa this weekend. The helicopter crashed in a field near Macedonia after hitting a power line Saturday afternoon. Treynor Fire Chief Russ Maguire says the male pilot was out of the wreckage and conscious when paramedics arrived.

CLARION, Iowa (AP) — Authorities say a 5-year-old and a 19-year-old were killed when an Iowa man’s car collided with a semi shortly after the man took his two children in a custody dispute. The Mason City Globe Gazette reports the accident happened near Clarion Friday evening.