CLEAR LAKE, Iowa — The Iowa Department of Natural Resources confirmed the recovery of a body Thursday evening from Clear Lake in Cerro Gordo County. The individual, identified as Dennis Blume, 54, of Fonda, Iowa, was located around 5:30 p.m. after an extensive search.

Authorities received a 911 call at approximately 1:30 p.m. reporting an unoccupied fishing boat circling on Clear Lake. DNR Water Patrol officers responded quickly and made contact with the witnesses who reported the incident. The witnesses were able to stop the boat, which contained the victim’s belongings.

Emergency personnel from the Clear Lake Fire Department, Ventura Fire Department, and the Iowa DNR conducted a coordinated search using sonar equipment locating the boat owner’s body at 5:30 p.m. The Clear Lake Fire Department utilized underwater drone technology to recover the victim’s body from the lake.

The incident remains under investigation.

JOHNSON COUNTY, Iowa [KCCI-TV]  — Three more people have been diagnosed with measles in eastern Iowa, Johnson County health officials say. The three new cases are household contacts with the initial measles case, an unvaccinated child who was exposed during international travel, identified in Johnson County last week. The new cases include two unvaccinated children and one unvaccinated adult.

Johnson County Public Health officials say they are continuing to monitor individuals who were exposed after the initial case. There have now been six cases of measles identified in Iowa this year. In May, officials identified the first case of the disease in Iowa since 2019. Currently, there is a multistate measles outbreak across the United States. As of June 12, there have been nearly 1,200 confirmed cases of measles in the U.S. this year.

The Iowa Department of Health and Human Services says the vaccine is 97% effective against measles, but only 84% of 2-year-olds in Iowa are vaccinated — well below the 95% needed to prevent outbreaks.

Officials say anyone who has been exposed to a measles case and has symptoms should contact their medical provider or go to an emergency room, but tell them you have been exposed to measles ahead of arriving.

DES MOINES, Iowa [KCCI-TV] — One person is in custody after they “entered the stage area during event activities” Thursday afternoon during the National Speech and Debate Tournament at the EMC Expo Center in Des Moines. According to a news release from the Des Moines Police Department, the male’s “behavior prompted safety concerns and the immediate area was evacuated.”

Authorities say it happened just before 3 p.m. and officers working the event took the person into custody. “No weapons were seen or have been recovered at this time,” according to DMPD. “No injuries have been reported at this time.”  The area was safely cleared and participants were allowed back into the events center before 4 p.m. and the schedule resumed at 5:15 p.m.

It’s the 100th anniversary of the National Speech and Debate Tournament. Organizers expected more than 10,000 people from schools across the United States and around the world to attend the five-day event, which opened Monday and ends Friday.

Shelby Young with the National Speech and Debate Association provided the following statement:

This afternoon, an unidentified attendee entered the stage during the Humorous Interpretation Finals, interrupting the round. The individual has been subdued and removed from the premises. There were no weapons involved, and no threats were made. The hall was evacuated and there are no reported injuries. The rest of the venue has been swept for any potential threats by members of law enforcement. We understand the concerns people have, and we want to assure everyone that this is an isolated incident. 

(Grinnell, Iowa) – (updated/edited)  The driver of a pickup truck died and one other person was injured, during a collision this (Thursday) morning on Interstate near Grinnell. According to the Iowa State Patrol a semi carrying an oversized load blew a tire near mile marker 185 on eastbound I-80, at around 7:15-a.m.

The semi pulled-over and parked on the shoulder of the interstate. A Ford F-350 pickup serving as a pilot vehicle, was parked behind the semi on the shoulder. The driver of the pickup, 55-year-old Brenton Fregia, of Troutman, NC, was outside of the vehicle attending to the semi with a flat tire.

An eastbound semi struck the rear of the pickup and the disabled semi. Brenton Fregia was critically injured and later died at the hospital in Grinnell. A woman who was injured in the crash was also transported by Grinnell EMS to Unity Point Hospital in Grinnell.

(Creston, Iowa) – A collision early this (Thursday) afternoon in Creston between a car and a motorcycle caused a total of $5,500 damage, but no one was hurt. The Creston Police Department reports that at around 12:30-p.m., a Honda Accord driven by 33-year-old Stacia Mongar, of Creston, was stopped at the intersection of Prairie and Sumner Streets, when Mongar realized she forgot something at home.

She was in the process of backing her car up to a driveway to turn around, when her vehicle struck a 2019 Honda motorcycle, operated by 20-year-old Gannon Greenwalt, of Creston, was he was stopped behind the car. The car backed over the motorcycle, but Greenwalt was able to jump-off and avoid injury.

The report did not mention any citations being issued.