(Radio Iowa) – A fourth Republican has entered the race to represent Iowa’s second congressional district in the U.S. House. Radio Iowa’s O. Kay Henderson reports.

State Representative Shannon Lundgren (R-Peosta) is running for the U.S. House. (Campaign photo)

(Radio Iowa) – A baby was turned over to the state earlier this month under the Safe Haven program. Radio Iowa’s Dar Danielson reports.

(Radio Iowa) – Many Iowa oak trees are producing a bumper crop of acorns this year. Aaron Steil, a horticulture specialist with Iowa State University Extension — says it’s a “mast year” for oaks.

The mast cycle is not unique to oak trees.

Steil says there is a theory of why trees do this and it’s related to the survival of the species.

In years when there’s an abundance of acorns, it’s also easier for humans to find viable seeds to replant.

In 1961, the legislature designated the oak as Iowa’s official state tree. There are a dozen species of oak trees found in Iowa.

(Red Oak, Iowa) – Police in Red Oak say a woman was arrested at around 8-p.m. Monday, following the execution of a search warrant at a location in the 1600 block of East Summit Street. 42-year-old Katie Lee Wagaman, of Red Oak, was arrested for Possession of a Controlled Substance/1st offense (A serious misdemeanor), and two-counts of Child Endangerment (both aggravated misdemeanors), after Police and officials with the Department of Human Services executed the warrant.

Wagaman was being held in the Montgomery County Jail and held on a $2,000 bond.

(Red Oak, Iowa) – A traffic stop a little after 7:30-p.m. Monday, in Montgomery County, resulted in the arrest of  a man wanted on a warrant out of Adams County, for 2nd Degree Arson. The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office reports 38-year-old Daniel Travis Gresham, of Red Oak, was arrested after deputies conducted a traffic stop in the 1800 block of North 6th Street in Red Oak.

Gresham was taken to the Montgomery-Adams County line and was being held in the Adams County Jail on a $10,000 cash- only bond.

( Atlantic, Iowa) — Officials with Cass Health have announced Michele Williams, RN was selected to receive the Hospital Hero award from the Iowa Hospital Association (IHA). Williams will be formally recognized in October at the IHA Annual Meeting in Des Moines along with 10 other recipients.

Williams started at Cass Health in 1997 and has worked as an RN since 2000. During her career, she spent more than a decade in both obstetrics and emergency care. Today, she works full-time in the Emergency Department and continues to provide back-up coverage to obstetrics when needed.

Williams was nominated by Cass Health and parents Maddy Peppers and Matt Petersen who credit Williams with saving the life of their infant son Harvey. Harvey was born on February 4th this year, and while still in the hospital, it was discovered that he had a large ventricular septal defect (VSD), which is a hole in the heart between the right and left ventricles. After a few days at Children’s Nebraska hospital, they were discharged home. But on the 19th, when he was only two weeks old, Harvey’s condition took a turn for the worse.

Michele Williams, RN (Cass Health photo)

At the Cass Health Emergency Department, Williams met the family at the door and began immediately assessing Harvey. With her obstetrics and emergency nursing background, Williams was the perfect person to provide care to Harvey and his parents. She initiated a code blue, started compressions, and choreographed the lifesaving medical care that ultimately saved Harvey’s life.

After the team stabilized Harvey, Maddy remembers that Williams came out of the room and went straight to her delivering a hug that Maddy said, “I will never forget that. I could feel her love for Harvey and for us.” Although this one moment stands out as particularly heroic, it’s certainly only one example of the effort Williams make for her patients, her team, and her community. She has selflessly volunteered with the Massena Rescue, which earned her the Spirit of Volunteerism Award at Cass Health in 2024. Dr. Autumn Keiser said, “Michele Williams embodies what it means to be a hospital hero—skilled, selfless, compassionate, and committed to both her patients and her colleagues.”

Since 2007, the Hospital Heroes program has celebrated employees who have acted courageously in a moment’s crisis or who have selflessly served their hospitals and communities throughout their careers. Hospital Heroes are nominated by their peers and award recipients are selected by a committee of health care executives.

The Iowa Hospital Association is a voluntary membership organization representing hospital and health system interests to business, government, and consumer audiences.

Iowa Ag Secretary Mike Naig visited the Sioux Honey Association in Sioux City Monday to meet with industry leaders and tour the Sue Bee honey plant.

Naig says bee health continues to be a concern in Iowa and across the country.

Naig says Iowa has a “Bee Check” program that’s designed to prevent pesticides and other chemicals from harming bees.

Naig says they encourage everyone to use “Bee Check” to help prevent any unwanted damage to bees and other pollinators.

(Radio Iowa) – The state has confirmed the second death from the Legionnaires Disease outbreak in Marshalltown. Radio Iowa’s Dar Danielson reports.

(Radio Iowa) – While the U-S-D-A’s September outlook predicts this year’s corn crop could set a record in Iowa and across the Midwest, economist Chad Hart at the Iowa State University Extension says the boost is largely due to more acres planted this year, not yields.

Hart says the U-S-D-A’s report in October will reveal how much disease and drought are affecting U-S corn production. While corn exports continue at a record pace, Hart says soybeans face a dire downturn and an uncertain future, as higher soybean yields are expected, but their destination is a big question mark.

The big gap is China, which has stopped all official purchases of American soybeans since February in retaliation for U-S tariffs. China had been buying up to 60-percent of all U-S soybean exports. Iowa Secretary of Ag Mike Naig says he’s advocating for market expansion with the Trump administration.

Soybean and corn prices remain well below production costs, with soybeans selling for about one-third of what they brought just a year ago.

(Creston, Iowa) – Three people were injured during a collision this (Monday) morning (Sept. 22nd) in Union County. According to the Union County Sheriff’s Department, a 2022 Jeep Compass driven by 25-year-old Devan Lee Dehass, of Creston, was traveling southbound on Adams-Union Avenue at around 7:24-a.m., when Dehass failed to see the stop sign at the intersection with 150th Street, due to thick fog.

The SUV pulled into the path of a 2021 Chevy pickup driven by 33-year-old Katie Leslie Myers, of Creston, as she was eastbound on 150th Street. The pickup hit the Jeep on its passenger side before the SUV went into the southeast corner of the intersection and rolled numerous times before hitting stacked, round hay bales. After hitting the bales, the Jeep came to rest on its wheels.

The pickup also went into the southeast ditch before coming to rest on its wheels just east of the intersection. Devan Dehass suffered suspected serious/incapacitating injuries, and was transported by Medic 1 ambulance to the Greater Regional Medical Center in Creston. Katie Myers complained of pain/possible injury, and was transported to the hospital by private vehicle.

A seven-year-old male passenger in the pickup also complained of pain/possible injury, and was transported by private vehicle to the hospital. All subjects were wearing seat belts. No citations were issued. Damage from the collision amounted to an estimated $40,000 (Both vehicles were totaled).