Area Emergency Responders, firefighters, EMT’s, law enforcement and EMA personnel are being informed Due to current circumstances and social distancing the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) will be offering 4-hour long Ethanol Safety Webinars. The FREE webinars are instructed by a nationally accredited and professional instructor with an extensive background in emergency management/firefighting/hazardous materials response. The goal of these seminars is for attendees to gain a full ethanol and ethanol-blended fuel emergency response training experience that can be put to use immediately in the field.

The training program will include the following elements: Ethanol and Ethanol-Blended Fuels, Chemical and Physical Characteristics of Ethanol and Hydrocarbon Fuels, Transportation and Transfer, Storage and Dispensing Locations, Fire Fighting Foam Principles, General Health and Safety Considerations, and Storage and Pre-planning Considerations. Certificates of Participation will be awarded to all registered attendees once the webinar has been completed.

The RFA has conducted nearly 300 in person Ethanol Safety Seminars across the country.

Registration: https://www.transcaer.com/training/training-events/ethanol-emergency-response-webinars/10065

Sessions:

Tue, 12/08/2020 08:00 AM to 12:00 PM CDT
Wed, 12/09/2020 12:00 PM to 04:00 PM CDT
Wed, 01/27/2021 08:00 AM to 12:00 PM CDT
Thu, 01/28/2021 12:00 PM to 04:00 PM CDT
Wed, 02/24/2021 08:00 AM to 12:00 PM CDT
Thu, 02/25/2021 12:00 PM to 04:00 PM CDT
Wed, 03/24/2021 08:00 AM to 12:00 PM CDT
Thu, 03/25/2021 12:00 PM to 04:00 PM CDT
Wed, 04/21/2021 08:00 AM to 12:00 PM CDT
Thu, 04/22/2021 12:00 PM to 04:00 PM CDT

RFA also offers Ethanol Emergency Response – Train the Trainer webinars which is a pay-it-forward type of program. A single webinar can train a group of individuals who can then turn around and pass that information forward, equipping entire communities with the knowledge necessary to respond to any potential ethanol-related emergency.  The Train the Trainer courses are intended to develop instructors to lead operations level training. The instructors are responders who have an awareness level of hazardous material storage, handing, and emergency response. The learning objectives established are relevant objectives that the instructors must understand. The webinars are open to all professional individuals above the technical level of training who are interested in learning how to teach ethanol emergency response. However, the instruction is tailored toward ethanol production facility employees, ethanol safety professionals, railroad safety professionals, emergency responders, firefighters, police officers, emergency management professionals, etc. Certificates of Participation will be awarded to all registered attendees once the webinar has been completed.

Registration: https://www.transcaer.com/training/training-events/train-trainer-ethanol-emergency-response-webinar/10071

Sessions:

Wed, 12/02/2020 11:00 AM to 01:00 PM CST
Tue, 03/09/2021 11:00 AM to 01:00 PM CST
Thu, 06/17/2021 11:00 AM to 01:00 PM CST
Tue, 08/24/2021 11:00 AM to 01:00 PM CST

DES MOINES – The five state-operated Test Iowa sites and the State Hygienic Lab will be closed Thursday, Nov. 26, for Thanksgiving Day. The sites include:

Black Hawk County — 4121 Alexandra Drive, Waterloo
Linn County — Windstar Lines, 5755 Willow Creek Drive SW, Cedar Rapids
Polk County — 4475 NE 3rd Street, Des Moines
Pottawattamie County — Western Historic Trails Center, 3434 Richard Downing Ave., Council Bluffs
Scott County — North Park Mall, 320 W. Kimberly Road, Davenport

The Council Bluffs site will close two hours early today (Wednesday, Nov.25) at 2 p.m. This will allow test samples to be transported to the lab for processing overnight so individuals can be notified of results in a timely manner. All other sites will remain open until 4 p.m. on Wednesday.

The five sites will reopen for testing as usual on Friday, Nov. 27, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Individuals who wish to be tested at any site must first complete an online assessment at testiowa.com, and schedule an appointment. Locations and hours of operation for all test sites can be found at testiowa.com or coronavirus.iowa.gov.

More State and area news from KJAN News Director Ric Hanson.

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IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — A University of Iowa fraternity has been suspended for hazing, with a report citing verbal abuse and and an incident where new members were required to drink dangerously high amounts of alcohol. The university says the violations were by the Acacia Fraternity. The Cedar Rapids Gazette obtained an investigative report through a public records request. The suspension lasts through 2024. One allegation said that in the spring semester, new members were ordered to stay in the fraternity house attic until they consumed alcohol that included 60 to 90 cans of beer, along with vodka and a gallon of a drink called Jungle Juice. Several new members got sick.

(Norfolk, NE) – Troopers from the Nebraska and Iowa State Patrol Divisions are teaming up to keep travelers safe on both sides of the Missouri River this Thanksgiving. Both law enforcement agencies will conduct simultaneous Patrol operations on many thoroughfares in northeast Nebraska and northwest Iowa, as part of the effort. The high-visibility campaign is underway now through Sunday, Nov. 29th.

The campaign will focus on major highways in both states, including (In Iowa): Highways 20 and 75, and Interstate 29. All motorists are urged to follow traffic safety laws during their travel, including following the posted speed limits, avoiding distracted or impaired driving, and always wearing a seat belt. Motorists in either state can call *55 on their cell phone, or 800-525-5555 to reach the State Patrol Helpline for their respective state.

Police in Creston report the arrest at around 1:50-a.m. today (Wednesday), of 26-year old Andrew Palmer, from Creston. Palmer was taken into custody at McKinley/Spillway, for Driving While Revoked, Open Container, Failure to provide proof of SR-22 insurance. He was cited and released at the scene. And, at around 11:40-a.m. Tuesday, 33-year old Jessica Swietlik, of Creston, was arrested on a Union County warrant for Violation of a Protection Order. She was being held in the Adams County Jail, while awaiting bond.

The area’s latest and/or top news stories at 7:06-a.m. From KJAN News Director Ric Hanson.

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Iowa’s Coronavirus dashboard today (Wednesday), shows a record 47 additional deaths are attributed to COVID-19 since Tuesday’s 10-a.m. report, for a total of 2,271. The previous record of 40 deaths was reported Nov. 18th.  There are two more deaths to report in Cass County, for a total of 21, and one more in each of Adair, Adams, Mills, Pottawattamie and Shelby Counties.

Deaths reported on an individual day can be affected by delays in completion of death certificates and other factors, but the data from the state Department of Public Health on Wednesday makes clear Iowa is continuing to see an increase in deaths from the virus. Johns Hopkins University says the seven-day rolling average of daily deaths in Iowa has risen over the past two weeks from nearly 16 deaths per day on Nov. 10 to 28 deaths per day on Nov. 24. In the month of November alone, 555 people in Iowa have died of COVID-19.

The number of deaths attributed to a pre-existing condition statewide are at 1,321, while deaths at Long-Term Care facilities amount to 1,023. Six more long-term care facilities report COVID-19 outbreaks, bringing the total to 149. Those care facilities report 4,604 positive cases and 1,899 recovered. Cass County’s three LTC facilities have a total of 207 confirmed positive cases and 123 recovered.

Officials say there have been 3,435 new confirmed, Positive cases of the virus reported since yesterday, for a total since the pandemic began, of 218,947. Cass County has 30 new, Positive cases of COVID, for a total of 785.

Hospitalizations have fallen from 1,351 yesterday to 1,305 today. There are: 269 patients in intensive care (6 less than Tue.); 198 patients admitted in the last 24 hours, up 33 from a day earlier, and there are 150 people on a ventilator, five less than Tuesday. In western/southwestern Iowa: there are 64 COVID patients in the hospital (down from 71 Tues.); 19 are in an ICU; six people were admitted to a hospital, and eight people are on a ventilator.

The state’s data shows that 1,185,853 Iowans have been tested for coronavirus. Test results received yesterday amounted to 7,167, with 5,551 coming back Negative and 1,576 Positive. Iowa’s statewide 14-day positivity rate continues to decline, now at 19.1%. That’s down from 19.7% a day earlier. The Individual Positivity rate is 18.5%. Cass County’s Positivity rate is at 20.3%. Union County has the highest rate in southwest Iowa, at 24.2%. Audubon County is the lowest, at 11.1%.

The IDPH says 122,047 Iowans have recovered from the virus. In the KJAN listening area, here are the current number positive cases in each county, along with the 24-hour change in case numbers {+#}; the number of persons recovered, and the total number of [deaths] (if any), since the pandemic began,

• Cass, 785 cases {+30}; 497 recovered; 21 deaths
• Adair, 422 {+7}; 195; 8
• Adams, 161 {+6}; 83; 2
• Audubon, 285 {+2}; 160; 1
• Guthrie, 725 {+17); 403; 15
• Harrison County, 1,024; 691; 28
• Madison County, 662 {+14}; 371; 4
• Mills County, 999 {+6}; 422; 7
• Montgomery, 438 {+9}; 202; 10
• Pottawattamie County, 5,925 {+58]; 3,403; 67
• Shelby County, 735 {+8}; 437; 6
• Union County,  734 {+24}; 279; 6

Fremont County Sheriff Kevin Aistrope reports his Deputies, along with the Fremont County K9 Unit, arrested a Pottawattamie County man on numerous charges Tuesday, following a traffic stop on Interstate 29.

Steve Knight booking photo (Courtesy Fremont County S/O)

Aistrope says 52-year old Steven Joseph Knight, of Council Bluffs faces charges that include:

• 2 Felony counts of Theft in the 2nd Degree.

• 3 counts of Possession of Drug Paraphernalia.

• Operating (a vehicle) without the Owners Consent.

• Possession of Burglary Tools.

• and, Driving While Suspended

In addition, Knight was cited for:

• An insufficient Number of Headlights; Fail to Maintain Minimum Speed; Failure to Carry Registration Card; Failure to Provide Proof of Insurance; Having No Valid Commercial Driver License, and Violation of Hazardous Materials Transportation Regulations. He was being held in the Fremont County Jail on $12,900 cash bond.