(Atlantic, Iowa) – An event that’s taken place for more than 30-years in downtown Atlantic, returns Thursday evening to kick-off the holiday season. Bailey Smith, Executive Director of the Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce, says the Grand Lighting Ceremony wouldn’t be possible without the hard work and dedication of the City’s Street Department crew.

The LED lights are wired into the power grid operated by Atlantic Municipal Utilities.

They were able to get everything up and tested before the beginning of the week. The “Jolly Old Elf” (Santa), will flip the ceremonial switch to turn the lights in the downtown corridor “on,” but there are other activities planned leading up to the flip of the switch.

Santa will arrive by firetruck at around 5:30-p.m.

In years past, Santa has occasionally arrived by helicopter, but Smith says the conditions are often not conducive to flight, so they decided the safest option was having him delivered by Atlantic Volunteer Fireman, on a fire truck. The kids will be able to visit with him in Santa’s Cabin located in the downtown Atlantic City Park. Read more about what’s in-store for the holiday’s in Atlantic, at www.atlanticiowa.com.

Pick up your Christmas brochure from area retail businesses, like the Chamber on Facebook or follow on Instagram to find dates and details to celebrate Christmas in Atlantic. You can find a complete list of activities at www.atlanticiowa.com. Capture the Christmas magic with #MyAtlanticIA and post to the Atlantic Area Chamber’s Facebook page or Instagram (AtlanticIowaFan). Contact the Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce with any questions at chamber@atlanticiowa.com or call 712.243.3017.

(Radio Iowa) – A Webster County Detective is on administrative leave and is being investigated by the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigations. According to a letter issued to defense attorneys by the Webster County Attorney’s Office, the D-C-I is investigating Webster County Detective Tom Steck. According to the letter, search warrants related to an investigation on Detective Tom Steck were conducted on Wednesday, November 9th and he was placed on administrative leave from the Webster County Sheriff’s Office.

The letter was mandatory — it states that Detective Steck is currently the subject of a criminal investigation.

The Board’s of Supervisors in Adair, Cass, Montgomery and Shelby Counties will hold their separate, regular weekly meetings, Tuesday morning.

The Montgomery County Board of Supervisors get things rolling at 8:30-a.m., with a Canvass of the General Election votes. During their regular meeting, the Board will act on several matters, including:

• Setting the date for a public hearing for a Petition for Rezoning filed for a property at 2663 U Avenue, in Villisca, otherwise known as Lots 15 & 16 in south Villisca, and to change the zoning designation from Residential to Commercial.
• Setting the date for an upgrade of 222nd Street from a “Level B”- to a “Level A”- grade road.
• and, action on ISAC Soil Compaction, as necessary.

The Adair County Board meets at 9-a.m. at the courthouse in Greenfield. On their agenda, is: a Canvass of the 2022 General Election, and a report on the FY21 & FY22 Adair County Memorial Hospital Audits. Jeff Labarge with the Lions Club/Greenfield Main Street organizations, with regard to Holiday Decorations and a Courtyard Use Permit. Veteran’s Affairs Commissioner John Schildberg will discuss VA matters with the Board, and Adair County Engineer Nick Kauffman will present an Engineering Agreement pertaining to the SW Townline Road Improvements. Kauffman will also discuss adding the N33 Orient bridge replacement project to the current budget, and a repair proposal for the W31 Harrison bridge.

In Cass County, the Supervisor’s meeting begins at 9-a.m. at the courthouse in Atlantic. On their agenda is a canvass of the 2022 General Election results, and reports from Cass/Guthrie County Environmental Health Director Jotham Arber, as well as Cass County Engineer Trent Wolken. The Cass County Supervisors will act on passing a Resolution amending the County Five-year (Bridge/road) Construction Program, and on a approving a request to extend the Crooked Creek 5C pipe-replacement project contract’s specified completion date of Nov. 15, between Jorgensen Dirtworks LLC and the County.

And, the Shelby County Board of Supervisors will meet 9-a.m. Tuesday, at the courthouse in Harlan. On their agenda is:

• A report from the Wellness Coordinator on the Wellness participation program.
• Action on a Utility Permit: 2022-11-12 NIPCO.
• Safety Coordinator Jake Holloway will discuss and the Board is expected to take action on a County Employee seat belt policy and return to work policy.
• Shelby County EMA Coordinator Alex Londo, who will discuss a report on radios.
• Action on a 28-E agreement with the Iowa DOT.
• Action on a matter pertaining to West Central Development.
• and approval of a Resolution in support of a County-wide EMS system.
• The final order of business in the Shelby County Supervisor’s meeting, is a Canvass of the Nov. 8th, General Election.

(Davenport, Iowa) – The Iowa Department of Corrections reports 33-year-old Demon Deonte Daniels, who was convicted of Domestic Abuse Assault-3rd or Subsequent Offense in Scott County, failed to report back to the Davenport Work Release Center as required Thursday evening. Daniels is a black male, height 5’10”, and weighs 220 pounds. He was admitted to the work release facility on October 19, 2022.

Demon Daniels

Persons with information on Daniels’ whereabouts should contact local police.

Atlantic, Iowa — Officials with the Southwest Iowa Planning Council (SWIPCO) are welcoming a new Grants Specialist. Mary Auten will work to ensure that complex rules established by state and federal funding agencies are followed to maximize the impact of investments in our communities, reduce the administrative burden on our member communities, and increase the likelihood of future funding into our region.

Auten said in a press release, “I have spent most of my career doing work that many other companies can do, and I am excited for the opportunity to fulfill a specific need for our communities that helps people and communities directly. I understand how important it is to maintain compliance with programs and regulations, and I am happy I get to help people and our southwest Iowa communities thrive by using the skills I have gained throughout my career.”

Mary Auten

Auten lives in Casey (Iowa). She is a graduate of Coon Rapids high school and completed her degree through William Penn University. She spent most of her career working in banking and insurance and most recently she was with Wells Fargo home mortgage. SWIPCO Executive Director John McCurdy said “Almost all of the programs that we work with at SWIPCO come with an enormous amount of rules attached. They should, because they are public funds. But, they can be hard for our communities to follow, so it’s great when you can add someone like Mary to your team who has a wealth of experience working on complex administrative problems, with a great attention to detail, and also the passion for the region that you’ve got to have to be successful in this type of work.”

(Atlantic, Iowa) – The Atlantic Police Department reports numerous arrests and/or citations took place over the past few weeks. Most recently:

• Last Saturday (Nov. 12), 35-year-old Rinanten Amo, of Atlantic, was arrested for Public Intoxication, and, 23-year-old Logan Russell, of Atlantic, was arrested for OWI/1st offense, and Driving While License denied or revoked.
• On the 7th, 24-year-old Ason Pisalil, of Atlantic, was arrested for Disorderly Conduct.
• On Nov. 6th, 28-year-old Nicholas Renner, of Atlantic, was arrested for Domestic Abuse Assault, Possession of a Controlled Substance (Marijuana), and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia.
• 75-year-old Rose Henderson, of Anita, was cited into court and then released November 4th, on a charge of Theft in the 4th Degree (Shoplifting); and, 36-year-old Sapas Ramisin, of Atlantic, was arrested for Public Intox. and Disorderly Conduct.
• Atlantic Police arrested 31-year-old Dillon Harry, of Orient, on Nov. 3rd. He was charged with OWI/1st offense.
• On Nov. 1st, 39-year-old Darryl Gillett, of Orlando, FL, was arrested for Public Intox.; and, Laura Jurchen was cited into court for Assault causing bodily injury, and then released at the scene.
• And finally, on October 18th, Atlantic Police cited Stephen Foote, of Atlantic into court, for Criminal Mischief in the 5th Degree.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – The Atlantic Police Department report a man was cited following a three vehicle accident Friday morning at 7th and Walnut Streets. Authorities say a vehicle driven by Case Arnold, of Atlantic, was traveling east on 7th Street at around 7:33-a.m. and approaching the intersection with Walnut Street. His traffic light was red. A Chevy Malibu driven by Chelsey Christensen, of Atlantic, was southbound on Walnut with a green traffic light, and an SUV driven by Richard Whetstone, of Atlantic, was northbound on Walnut, waiting on a red light to change green. Police says Arnold ran the red light and struck the Christensen car in the intersection and pushed that vehicle into the stopped SUV. 

The Chevy HHR Arnold was driving eventually struck a tree at 705 Walnut and came to rest. Case Arnold was transported by Cass EMS to Cass Health, for treatment of non-lifethreatening injuries. Christensen suffered non-lifethreatening injuries also, and went to the hospital in a private vehicle. Arnold was cited for Failure to Provide Insurance, Failure to Obey a Traffic Control Device, and having no valid Driver’s license. Damage to the primary crash vehicles was estimated at $15,000 each, while the Jeep SUV sustained about $3,000 damage.

(Radio Iowa) – Six people were killed in Texas after two historic military planes from the Commemorative Air Force collided midair and crashed Saturday during a Dallas air show. One of the planes was a B-17 bomber known as “Texas Raiders” that flew into Sioux City in July for the 80th anniversary of Sioux Gateway Airport. Larry Finley, director of Sioux City’s Mid America Museum of Aviation and Transportation, says the two pilots and the bomber’s crew members were all well trained. Finley says, “They’re all very experienced pilots and they are pilots for the Commemorative Air Force but they’re also pilots generally in commercial and military aviation, so they are a very experienced group.”

The restored World War Two-era bomber collided with a P-63 Kingcobra, a vintage fighter plane. Videos shot by spectators at the event show the Kingcobra fly into the bomber, causing them to immediately crash to the ground and explode. The National Transportation Safety Board had taken control of the crash scene and Finley says the investigation will be slow and methodical. “That can take a month or two for preliminary results from the NTSB, and then their final report may not be out for one to two years as far as the actual cause of the accident,” Finley says. “They have to go back and look at whatever parts are left that they can evaluate to see if it was a mechanical failure, or was it a human error.”

Commemorative Air Force “Texas Rangers” B-17.

Finley says Texas Raiders was one of just ten B-17s still in existence and just a couple of them were air-worthy.) “There were only three of the ten B-17s that were still flying. It was one of three that had returned to the air post-COVID,” he says. “They had pulled everything off from these air shows for almost two years.”

In July, the Texas Raiders flew for a week in Sioux City, with over a hundred people booking flights on the vintage aircraft.