Thousands of Iowans will be camping and building campfires this Memorial Day weekend and throughout the summer. The Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) encourages campers to buy firewood from where they will burn it instead of bringing it from home.

“Moving unseasoned firewood around the state can threaten the health of our forests by spreading insects like emerald ash borer (EAB), oak wilt, and other pests that live in firewood,” explains Tivon Feeley, DNR Forest Health Forester.

Plenty of firewood is available locally to your favorite state or county park. Ask a park ranger or campground host where you can get local firewood. Make sure you burn all of your firewood at your campsite; don’t leave it or transport to a new area.

The Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship requires all firewood sold or acquired in Iowa to have the county and state of harvest location on the label of packages and the delivery ticket for bulk firewood.

Learn more about the importance of using local or certified heat-treated firewood at www.dontmovefirewood.org/.

DES MOINES (Iowa DNR News) – — Fawning season has officially arrived, which means Iowans will see lots of deer on the move. From now until late June, DNR field staff across the state will receive many phone calls and emails regarding “abandoned deer.” But in reality, most of the wildlife reported to DNR field staff are not really abandoned at all. And while the people who attempt to “rescue” these babies have the best of intentions, they are doing more harm than good. Fawning season traditionally begins during the last week of May and peaks in the first couple of weeks in June before gradually tapering off.

Does are secretive about the birthing process and will venture out from normal use areas looking for a secluded spot to deliver this year’s crop of fawns in peace. “These spots can be anything from an open hay field to a field terrace to the flowerbed in your backyard,” says Jim Coffey, forest wildlife research biologist with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR). “This seclusion process is a driving force in protection for the lanky, wavering fawn. Fawns will be left alone while the doe returns only to nurse. This is normal deer behavior,” he said.

“The doe searches out an isolated location where she feels safe and, on occasion, those places may leave us scratching our heads wondering what the doe was thinking. But she chose that location because it made sense to her,” Coffey said. “The worst thing someone can do at this stage is to ‘rescue’ the fawn. The mother is likely nearby and watching you. Leave it be, or if you did handle the fawn, return it to where you found it and walk away.”

Fawning season typically runs from late May through most of June

The Iowa DNR will not be rehabilitating or commingling fawns with other deer to avoid the potential of spreading chronic wasting disease – or other disease – to new areas. This emphasizes the point of leaving ‘abandoned’ fawns be. The spindly legged newborn fawn is designed with a few survival tools built in – its spots are cryptic camouflage that emulates the sunlight spots projected onto leaf litter of the forest floor and its lack of movement the first two weeks helps to reduce scent patterns. This combination is the fawn’s best chance at survival until it is capable of following the doe.

Fawning season also coincides with an increase in deer vehicle collisions. “There is a lot of movement this time of year that relates to the social structure of deer. The doe is on the move looking for the safe isolated place to have the fawns.  Additional movement comes from last year’s fawns that are now isolated teenagers starting to venture out to find new space. These yearlings have to make their own decisions for the first time, encounter other adult deer and build new social structures,” Coffey said. “This movement behavior can occur during all times of the day. Once it settles out, the active movement time will return to dawn and dusk.

“The key to remember is that for the next month deer may not be acting like we think deer should act, stay alert while driving at any time of the day.” Drivers are reminded to drive defensively, avoid distractions, slow down, and provide safe distance between vehicles.  Don’t veer for deer! If a driver does hit a deer, drivers can get a salvage tag for the meat by calling either the local conservation officer or local law enforcement agency. The salvage tag is free and is required to legally possess the meat. Salvaging requires that the entire deer be removed from the roadway.

(Des Moines, Iowa) – Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds has ordered all flags in the State to be lowered to half-staff from sunrise to noon on Monday, May 26, 2025, in honor of Memorial Day. She has also directed the National League of Families POW/MIA flag also be flown on the Capitol grounds for the entire day.

Flags will be at half-staff on the State Capitol Building and on flag displays on the Capitol Complex. Flags will also be at half-staff on all public buildings, grounds and facilities throughout the state.

Individuals, businesses, schools, municipalities, counties and other government subdivisions are encouraged to fly the flag at half-staff for the same length of time as a sign of respect.

(Radio Iowa) – Governor Kim Reynolds says she and her staff are assessing legislation that would establish new regulations for carbon pipelines. “There’s a whole lot of passionate advocates on both sides of this issue,” Reynolds says, “so I have been meeting with stakeholders on both sides. We started that this week. We’ll continue that next week.” The governor has until June 14th to make decisions on ALL the bills that cleared the legislature this year. Reynolds says for at least another week she plans to continue what she describes as listening sessions with advocates of the bill and those who are asking her to veto it. “I’ll make an informed decision based on the conversations we’ve had,” Reynolds says, “but we’re still in the midst of doing that.”

The governor says almost every meeting has led to additional research by her legal counsel and other staff to learn more about the details of the bill and its impact. “We’ve reached out to some individuals to have them come in, so I’m getting a good view of both sides of the issue,” Reynolds said, “and just talking to me about what the impact of the bill means to them.”

Reynolds made her comments during taping of the “Iowa Press” program that airs tonight (Friday) on Iowa P-B-S. After four years of action on pipeline-related bills in the House, this is the first year the Senate passed one to the governor’s desk.

(Radio Iowa) – A provision that would have given federal officials control of pipelines did not make it in the budget bill that passed the U-S House. Iowa Congresswoman Ashley Hinson says it was a concern. “My stance is the same. It always has been. I am always leery of eminent domain and I want to ensure that land owners’ rights are protected,” Hinson says. The Republican from Marion says there was a pipeline provision she supported. “It did include some permitting reform for natural gas. President Trump has been very clear that he wants to make sure we are energy dominant. And so I think those are provisions that everybody could build consensus on and get behind,” she says. The bill is now in the hands of the Senate and Hinson says she hopes they keep the provisions that help small businesses.

“I hope that they keep all of the successful Trump tax cuts that we made permanent in the bill. I hope all that stays. I’m hearing from my colleagues across the Rotunda that they support those as well,” Hinson says. “You know, when I look at the wins in this bill, the no tax on tips, no tax on overtime, you know, the historic tax relief for seniors. Unleashing American energy, I think all those things are certainly President Trump’s priorities. They are my priorities, and I think that they are, you know, Republican Senate priorities as well.”

Hinson says the Speaker of the House has talked with his counterpart in the Senate in hopes of quickly moving the bill ahead. “Number one, I think because we do have a very narrow majority in the House and it’s a delicate balance to make sure we get the policies through the house and then again the Senate, but also for the American people, delivering this relief as soon as possible is of the utmost importance,” Hinson says.

Hinson made her comments during a conference call with reporters.

(Iowa Dept. of Natural Resources) – Officials with the Iowa DNR say the popular Iowa online interactive fishing atlas has been updated to include DNR managed lakes, community fishing ponds, hundreds of miles of Iowa rivers including the Mississippi and Missouri rivers, and miles of trout streams. New search features allow anglers to search by waterbody and quickly zoom in to find lake contours, fishing structures, river bends, and trout stream riffles with aerial imagery.

The mobile-friendly atlas will sync with your current GPS location to help you navigate a river segment and find specific lake contours, fish structure locations, and amenities such as fish cleaning stations.  DNR Fisheries Biologist Lewis Bruce says “Anglers preferring a paper map can easily create a custom map with the new print tool. You can print a small area of a lake or an entire river segment to identify fish structures in lakes or a trout stream segment.”

Iowa Fishing Atlas (Screenshot)

Go to https://programs.iowadnr.gov/maps/fishingatlas to plan your next fishing adventure. You can also find the fishing atlas on the free Go Outdoors Iowa App. “Anglers can view the fishing atlas on both desktop computers and mobile devices,” said Lewis. “Making it the perfect tool for every angler throughout all fishing seasons.”

(Creston, Iowa) – The Creston Police Department reports the arrest on Tuesday afternoon (May 20), of 38-year-old Melissa Kay Stephenson, from Creston. Stephenson was taken into custody at the Union County Law Enforcement Center, on four-counts of Possession of Controlled Substance/3rd or Subsequent offense. She was being held in the Adams County Jail on a $20,000 bond.

Thursday afternoon, Creston Police arrested 27-year-old  Aaron Jeffery Johnson, of Creston, for Driving While Revoked. Johnson was cited and released on a Promise to Appear in court.

(Radio Iowa) – The students’ renovations included building a two-car garage, re-shingling the roof and remodeling both bathrooms. It’s the third home that was refurbished through a special program that fixes up houses in the city’s older neighborhoods. Ryan Ellis, a senior at Marion High School, helped with the project. “I’m happy I learned how to use most of the tools, and how to measure stuff and cut stuff correctly,” Ellis says. “And now graduating this year, I want to hopefully get a job that’s kind of like that, and it’ll be easier to do that now, because I know half of the information.”

The Marion Community Build Program gives high schoolers opportunities to enhance their trade skills, while supporting the area’s low-and-moderate income housing needs. Mark Seckman is president of the Marion Economic Development Corporation. Seckman says, “What this provides is just that initial taste of what it’s like, everything from rough carpentry, finish carpentry, painting, caulking, a little bit of plumbing, things like that, where they can just get a taste of what it’s like, and now they can see a career path.”

Seckman says the house is now on the market for families earning less than 80 percent of the area’s median household income. He says the program is meant to reduce barriers for young families seeking homeownership.

(Radio Iowa) – The Iowa National Guard recognized the upcoming 250th birthday of the U-S Army in a ceremony at Camp Dodge in Johnston Thursday. With a little pomp and circumstance, and cake, soldiers and airmen of the guard gathered to hear Adjutant General Stephen Osborn talk about the significance of the milestone. He says for a quarter of a Millennium, our army has stood as one of the oldest and most enduring institutions in our nation. “And nowhere is its legacy more alive than right here with the Iowa National Guard, whose roots trace back to 1636, earlier than the Army itself. And our Air Force brothers and sisters. They, too, share our proud lineage. Born from the Army’s early air power of the Army Air Corps and later Army Air Forces before becoming an independent branch of service in 1947,” he says.

Major General Osborn says the Army and the military have continued to change. “And over these past 250 years, we’ve learned a thing or two. First and foremost, we’ve learned that taking care of our people and our families is the foundation of our mission. Readiness begins with people,” Osborn says. He says the current Army has something in common with the first soldiers. “Our military has always been an institution of change, adapting to meet new challenges and emerging threats, and we must continue this evolution if we are to remain the trusted force that our state and our nation rely on. That means embracing the change in the changing environment that we now operate in,” Osborn says.

Volunteers dressed in uniforms of soldiers through various periods of the Army’s 250 years cut a birthday cake at Camp Dodge. (RI photo)

General Osborn says there is no choice but to move forward and adapt. “We must seek new and innovative ways to build readiness and to meet the expectations of our civilian leaders. This includes seeking greater efficiencies in all we do, from recruiting to training, transformation, and modernization are not simply buzzwords. They are reality. And they are a necessity,” he says.

The U-S Army was established on June 14th, 1775.

(Red Oak, Iowa) – The Red Oak Police Department reports one arrest took place this (Friday) morning, and an accident occurred Thursday. Authorities say 57-year-old Rebecca Kae Sands, of Red Oak, was arrested at around 2-a.m. today (Friday), in the 100 block of Cherry Street. Sands was arrested for OWI/1st offense. She was being held in the Montgomery County Jail on a $1,000 bond.

And, no injuries were reported following an accident at around 10:40-a.m. Thursday, in Red Oak. The collision happened at the intersection of Iowa Highway 48 (Broadway Street) in Red Oak, and Oak Street. Police said a 2014 Ford pickup driven by 33-year-old Victoria Vaughan, of Villisca, was traveling west on Oak Street. A 2010 Nissan SUV driven by 49-year-old John Gross, of Red Oak, was traveling north on Broadway. As Gross’ vehicle attempted to cross the intersection, it struck the pickup, causing disabling damage to the pickup. Gross told Police he was reaching for something inside his vehicle and failed to see the red light at the intersection. He was cited for Failure to respond to a steady red signal.

The SUV sustained severe damage and was leaking fluid, but was able to be driven from the accident scene. Damage to both vehicles amounted to a police-estimated $17,000 altogether.