STORM LAKE, Iowa (AP) — A longtime employee of Tyson Foods in Storm Lake has died of coronavirus as an outbreak centering around the pork processing plant devastates the region. An attorney representing his estate says 60-year-old Ken Jones died last week after spending about two weeks in a hospital. Jones, a resident of Alta, was a maintenance employee who worked at the plant for 12 years.

He leaves behind a wife and two children, one adult and one 9-year-old. Tyson announced last week that 591 employees at the Storm Lake plant have tested positive for the virus out of more than 2,300 who were tested.

The Atlantic Fire Department was called to fully involved barn fire south of town this (Wednesday) afternoon.

Photo courtesy Atlantic Fire Chief Tom Cappel, as submitted by a passer by at the scene.

The call about the fire at 62706 610th Street came in at 3:49-p.m.  Atlantic Fire Chief Tom Cappel said when firefighters arrived on the scene, the barn “Was basically close to being on he ground.” Another, nearby barn had a small fire underway, as well. An older boat and an old lawn mower were being stored inside the barn. Both were consumed by the flames.

Ric Hanson/photo

Ric Hanson/photo

No one was home at the time of the incident. There were no injuries. Lewis Fire was also called-up for mutual aid. Initial reports indicated an electrical wire was sparking in the area due to the high winds, but Cappel said as of late this afternoon, the cause of the blaze was unknown.

Ric Hanson Photo

(Radio Iowa) — Democrats say they’re concerned Republican legislators are giving Republican Governor Kim Reynolds too much leeway on state budget matters. Republicans on the House Appropriations Committee have advanced what they’re calling a “status quo” spending plan for the next state fiscal year. Representative Chris Hall of Sioux City is the top-ranking Democrat on the committee.

“In 16 pages, the legislature is entirely abdicating its responsibility to make a budget,” Hall says, “and it allowing for the governor’s office and executive branch to have an unheard of amount of authority, whether we are in emergency times or not.” Hall says legislators punting the tough spending decisions to the governor.

“We are entirely trusting the governor and Department of Management to make these decisions without any fall back or check should the legislature disagree with those funding decisions,” Hall says. Representative Gary Mohr, a Republican from Bettendorf, says the plan does not abdicate the legislature’s responsibility.

“In a dire financial situation of what we’re been through the last six months, we feel it makes total sense to just pass a status quo budget, so we feel we’re on solid footing of we’re making the decisions,” Mohr says. “We’re deciding where the money’s coming from and we’re deciding where it’s going.” Mohr is chairman of the House Appropriations Committee.

The Cass County Board of Supervisors met at 9-a.m. Tuesday during an electronic and in-person session, during which they recessed to conduct the canvass of the June 2, 2020 Primary Election.  According to the meeting minutes provided by Auditor Dale Sunderman, after canvassing the returns of each voting precinct in the county, the following candidates were declared as the nominees to the respective listed offices and will appear on the GENERAL ELECTION BALLOT November 3, 2020.

REPUBLICAN                             DEMOCRAT

Dist. 1 SUPERVISOR:  Stephen S. Green           No Nominee

Dist. 4 SUPERVISOR:  Steve Baier                     No Nominee

Dist. 5 SUPERVISOR:  Bernard Pettinger          Russell Joyce

COUNTY AUDITOR:      Dale Sunderman         No Nominee

COUNTY SHERIFF:      Darby J. McLaren          No Nominee

COUNTY ATTORNEY:     Vanessa Strazdas       No Nominee

In other business the Board approved applications and granted Retail Cigarette/Tobacco/Nicotine/Vapor Permits for FY2021 to Hansen Valley Oil, rural Atlantic; 21st Century Cooperative C Store, rural Massena; and Dollar General Store, rural Griswold.

They Board also voted to allow/disallow new Business Property Tax credit applications as recommended by the Assessor in accordance with Code of Iowa, for taxes collectible FY2020-21. And, they approved having Gronewold, Bell, Kyhnn & Co.  for providing the annual Cass County financial audit for fiscal year ending June 30, 2020.

AYRSHIRE, Iowa (AP) — A newly-released state audit points to improper spending of thousands of dollars in public money by a former northwestern Iowa city clerk. State Auditor Rob Sand said Wednesday that his special investigation turned up more than $10,000 in improper and unsupported spending from September 2018 through February of this year. That included more than $9,000 in unauthorized checks issued to former Ayrshire City Clerk Alesha Olson.

Sand recommended city officials perform independent reviews of bank reconciliations and bill paying, among other things. Sand says copies of the audit have been filed with the Palo Alto County Sheriff’s Office, the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, the Palo Alto County Attorney’s Office, and the Iowa Attorney General’s Office.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Black Lives Matter protesters rallied inside the Iowa Capitol building, today (Wednesday), shouting “I can’t breath” and “Justice now” in an effort to convince lawmakers and the governor to take action on issues of racial inequality. A group of about two dozen protesters on Wednesday peacefully but loudly gathered in the public space between the main entrances of the House and Senate.

Sen. Brad Zaun, a Des Moines Republican, met with the group’s leader and promised to work on issues the group raised. Protesters also banged on the office door of Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds and asked for a meeting. They were disappointed when they were told by staffers to schedule a meeting.

The Cass County Sheriff’s Office reports 25-year old Kray Mathew Lukehart, of Atlantic, turned himself in to the Cass County Jail, Tuesday. Lukehart was wanted on a Sheriff’s Office warrant for Theft 3^rd Degree (Aggravated Misdemeanor). Lukehart was released later that day on his own recognizance.

(Radio Iowa) — Governor Kim Reynolds says she had no problem with Secretary of State Paul Pate sending absentee ballot request forms to every registered voter in April — a move which led to record turn-out for last week’s June Primary. “He sent our requests for an absentee ballot, so I think that was fine,” Reynolds says. A bill scheduled for debate in the Iowa Senate today (Wednesday) would forbid the secretary of state from doing that in the future. The measure also forbids county auditors from sending out absentee ballot request forms AND it would limit the consolidation of polling places on Election Day.

The governor is not sending a public signal of whether she approves of these changes. “It’s been a long-standing practice of mine not to comment on legislation until I see it in final form and this applied to that as well,” Reynolds says, “so I know they’re having conversations and they’re discussing and I’ll wait and see where that ends up.” More than half a MILLION Iowans voters in the June 2nd primary, the vast majority by mail-in ballots.