Atlantic, IA — This past year presented many different challenges and obstacles that tested our strength and resiliency. The global pandemic forced us to cope with situations never before imagined, and many of us struggled with our mental health as a result. The good news is that there are tools and resources available that can support the well-being of individuals and communities.  Registered Nurse Karmen Roland, Senior Life Solutions Program Director for the Cass County Health System, says the pandemic has not made dealing with stress and depression any easier. Roland said “If you found that it impacted your mental health, you aren’t alone.

That’s why this Mental Health Month, Cass County Health System’s Senior Life Solutions team is highlighting what individuals can do throughout their daily lives to prioritize mental health, build resiliency, and continue to cope with the obstacles of COVID-19, by highlighting #Tools2Thrive. The website www.mhanational.org, Roland says, is a great tool to help you assess your mental health and create a plan to cope.

May is Mental Health Month was started 72 years ago by national organization, Mental Health America (MHA). Karmen says Senior Life Solutions wants to remind everyone that mental illness is real, and recovery is possible.

By developing your own #Tools2Thrive, it is possible to find balance between life’s ups and downs and continue to cope with the challenges brought on by the pandemic. For more information, visit www.mhanational.org/may or call CCHS Senior Life Solutions at 712-250-8100.

(Radio Iowa) – The Iowa House and Senate have unanimously voted to create a new crime for driving at an excessive speed and causing someone else’s death. Representative Jon Thorup of Knoxville, is a state trooper. “This bill increases the penalty for speeding 25 miles per hour or more in cases where such speeding results in the death of a human being,” Thorup said. “The penalty would become a Class C felony.”

According to the Iowa Sheriffs and Deputies Association, it’s difficult to appropriately charge a speeding driver involved in a fatal accident if prosecutors cannot prove the driver was intoxicated or intentionally targeting someone. The bill passed the House unanimously on March 23rd. It passed the Senate yesterday (Wednesday) on a 48-to-zero vote. The Iowa State Patrol issued 85 percent more tickets to drivers caught going 25 miles an hour or more over the speed limit in the first six months of last year compared to the previous four-year average.

(Radio Iowa) – Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley is among several members of Congress asking the U-S Army Corps of Engineers to make flood control its priority in managing the Missouri River. Grassley notes that it’s not the first time he’s asked the Corps to make the change, but he’s optimistic he’ll be heard this time. “I sure hope so,” Grassley says. “We’ve got a new administration in. I think they’ll look at it a little bit different with the government involvement. Of course, it’s almost 100% government involvement.”

Grassley, a Republican, joined the bipartisan group representing Iowa and three other states in signing a letter to the Corps this week. The federal agency’s failure to prioritize flood control in the past is being called a “real problem” by the lawmakers, as the waterway is a vital resource.  “The private producer benefits from it, both agriculture and manufacturing, whether it’s taking things down the river or up the river,” Grassley says. “It’s not just locks and dams, there’s a lot of other things that are involved, but I believe that we’re getting their attention.”

Flooded-Hamburg-on-April-2nd-2019-Photo-by-Fremont-County-Emergency-Management-

The letter encourages the Corps to simply follow federal law with the Missouri River as outlined in the Water Resources Development Act.  “It’s the best way to get your surplus crop to market,” Grassley says. “It’s pretty important economically.”

Congresswoman Cindy Axne, a Democrat, and Republican Senator Joni Ernst also signed the letter. On Wednesday, the Fremont County town of Hamburg, which was hit hard by Missouri River flooding in 2019, held a groundbreaking ceremony for a major project that will raise the levee eight feet.

The 8:06-a.m. newscast w/Ric Hanson.

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The Iowa Department of Public health Thursday, reported 763 new COVID-19 positive tests, and two additional deaths, bringing the statewide death toll during the pandemic, to 5,962. The health department reports 396,673 total positive tests since the start of the pandemic. The state’s 14-day and seven-day positivity rates are both down to 3.9%.

Hospitalizations across the state continue to slowly decline, from 192 Wednesday to 188 on Thursday. Iowa reports also: there are 45 patients in ICU; 36 people with symptoms of COVID were admitted to a hospital, and, 18 patients are on ventilators. In RMCC Region 4 (hospitals in western/southwest Iowa), there are 13 COVID patients hospitalized; three remain in an ICU; three people were admitted, and two people remain on a ventilator.

There remains also, one long-term care facility outbreak, with 19 positive cases and 17 recoveries among residents and staff at the faciluty. The state reports 2,321 care facility deaths since the pandemic began, that’s unchanged from Monday.

In the KJAN listening area, here are the current number positive cases by County; The # of new cases since yesterday {+} if any; and the total number of deaths in each county to date:
Cass, 1,458 cases; {+0}; 54 deaths
Adair, 982; {+2}; 32
Adams, 348 {+0}; 4
Audubon, 526 {+6}; 9
Guthrie, 1,290 {+2}; 29
Harrison County, 1,924; {+3}; 73
Madison County, 1,744; {+7; 19
Mills County, 1,782; {+1}; 21
Montgomery, 1,105;{+3}; 37
Pottawattamie County, 12,141; {+25}; 166
Shelby County, 1,365 {+2}; 37
Union County, 1,360; {+6}; 32

The broadcast News from 7:07-a.m., w/KJAN News Director Ric Hanson.

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The Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Office reports 38-year-old Albert Edward Joseph, of Council Bluffs, turned himself-in to authorities, Wednesday morning. Joseph was wanted on a warrant for Violation of Parole. He was transported to the Pott. County Jail and turned over to Corrections staff. Other individuals were transported Wednesday from various jurisdictions to the Pott. County Jail, to be held on local and/or State charges. They include:

• 24-year-old Victor Antonio Inigo, of Omaha, who was being held on $10,000 bond on felony offenses that include Criminal Mischief in the 2nd Degree, and Eluding.
• 27-year-old Sterling Svend Holley, of Grand Island, NE., was being held in the Pott. County Jail on $2,000 bond, for Operating a Motor Vehicle without Consent.
• 61-year-old Frank Cappellano, of Council Bluffs, was transported to the Pott. County Jail under a State of Iowa felony warrant for Harassment in the 1st Degree by threatening. Bond was set at $2,000.
• and, Sarah Jeanette Croson, age 22, of Council Bluffs, was transported from Douglas County Corrections in NE. to the Pott. County Jail, with regard to a State of Iowa warrant for Violation of Parole.

(Radio Iowa) – Governor Kim Reynolds first mentioned a week ago during a Fox News forum that she wants the legislature to ban transgender athletes from competing in girls sports and Reynolds says she’s still working with G-O-P legislators to decide what the state has the authority to do. “I think it’s an issue of fairness. Do we have women’s and girl’s sports or not? So I believe that,” Reynolds says. “…I have had conversations with the leadership. We’ve looked at various languages. We want to make sure that we try to get it right.”

Reynolds suggests Iowa girls could lose out on college scholarships if they’re competing against transgender athletes who were born male, but identify as female. “That’s a part of the discussion,” Reynolds says. “They have a right to compete and to be entitled to scholarships and they should be able to compete with girls.”

Iowa Safe Schools Executive Director Becky Ritland says it’s frustrating that the governor is bringing this up late in the session. “In the state of Iowa, we have had zero cases of a transgender student participating in sports in an unequal way or using any sort of advantage to advance their athletic career,” Ritland says.

Ritland says the governor’s effort sends a message to trans youth that they don’s belong and that’s bad for their mental health. Five other states have passed laws on the topic this year. South Dakota’s Republican governor vetoed part of a ban that applied to girls sports in college over concerns the N-C-Double-A would cancel tournament games scheduled in South Dakota. Des Moines has been picked to host first and second round games in the N-C-Double-A men’s tournament in 2023.

(Radio Iowa) – The Iowa Senate has sent the governor a bill to ban state and local governments in Iowa from issuing I-D cards that show they got a COVID-19 shot. Senate President Jake Chapman, a Republican from Adel, opposes the idea of so-called “vaccine passports. “We will protect Iowans from being forced by tyrannical governments to inject their body with chemicals that they may or may not wish to have,” Chapman says.

A month ago, Governor Reynolds called on legislators to pass the bill. Iowa employers may still ask employees if they’ve been vaccinated, but the bill forbids businesses, non-profits and other institutions from requiring customers and visitors to provide proof they’ve been vaccinated. Chapman was the only senator to speak before votes were cast yesterday. “Iowans don’t want to be forced to have a chemical injected into their body to be able to go to a baseball game, to go to the grocery store, to live their lives.”

The bill provides an exception so hospitals, nursing homes and other health care facilities may ask patients and visitors whether they’ve had a Covid shot. Thirty Republicans and two Democrats voted for the bill. The Senate’s Democratic leader has suggested the odds the state would ever issue vaccine passports are about equal to the chances he’ll be the Green Bay Packers quarterback and the bill’s not needed.

(Greenfield) The Adair County Board of Supervisors held a special meeting Wednesday evening in Greenfield, with regard to Solar Energy Systems Ordinance #38. The Board heard from eight persons either in-person or on the phone, who had three-minutes each to express their views and/or concerns. The first to speak was Matt Ott, Project Developer with Mid-American Energy. He had concerns over what he called “excessive setbacks” proposed by the Ordinance.

He included the five-mile airport setback as well.

Ott said Mid-American was also not happy with the 400-acre cap.

Tammy Baier started to speak about her feelings on the subject, but then someone hacked into the conference call with a program where people were discussing child pornography accusations. Board Chair Steve Shelley apologized for the interruption, and County Auditor Mandy Berg reminded callers their phone numbers show up on caller ID, and they will be dealt with appropriately. While other City/County Government conference calls, Zoom or other type meetings open to the public have been hacked into across the country over the past year, as well, this was the first time it has happened in Adair County. Once the interruption was dealt with, Baier continued with her comments.

Lyle Beane said Mid-American does not have a good track record for being “good neighbors,” as evidenced by the installation of their wind turbines.

After Supervisor Shelley read the Ordinance as written, Board voted to approve the first reading and waived second and third readings of Ordinance #38, prior to passing 3-to 2, a Resolution by 2021-38 (to that effect), as written. Supervisors Steve Shelley and John Twombly voted against accepting the resolution.

Board member Jodie Hoadley said the Resolution was needed to protect the County from Mid-American dishonesty.