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Iowa early News Headlines: Tue., Jan. 6th 2015

News

January 6th, 2015 by Ric Hanson

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press

FORT MADISON, Iowa (AP) — An inmate at the Iowa State Penitentiary has died of natural causes. The state Department of Corrections says 76-year-old Leonard Eugene Berg was found unresponsive Sunday during a routine check of his living unit. Medical staff pronounced him dead a short time later. Officials say Berg died of natural causes from coronary artery disease.

CORALVILLE, Iowa (AP) — Officials say a man has escaped from a work release facility in eastern Iowa. The state Department of Corrections says 28-year-old Dylan Scott Frink was placed on escape status Sunday after failing to return to a work release facility in Cedar Rapids. He had been on an authorized temporary furlough. Frink is serving a lifetime supervision sentence following a discharged sex abuse conviction in Linn County. He was placed on work release in September.

OKOBOJI, Iowa (AP) — Authorities say two men were hospitalized after the snowmobiles they were riding in northwest Iowa fell through ice. Arnolds Park/Okoboji Fire and Rescue say they received a report Sunday afternoon of two snowmobiles that fell through ice on East Okoboji Lake. Responders found two men in the water. One man was clinging to the edge of ice, while the other man was holding on to a piece of floating ice. Both men were taken to a hospital for minor injuries.

WATERLOO, Iowa (AP) — Authorities are investigating the cause of a house fire in Waterloo that hurt one person. Battalion Chief Mike Jenn with Waterloo Fire Rescue says the fire was reported early Sunday. A man inside the house escaped with burns, but additional information about his condition is not available. He was taken to a hospital. Officials say the cause of the fire is under investigation.