Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 2:40 a.m. CDT

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Officials say it will take five days or longer to restore power to some Iowa homes and businesses that have been without electricity after a wind storm left damage across the Midwest on Monday and killed at least four people. In Cedar Rapids, Iowa, a utility company spokesman says the straight-line winds that toppled trees and power lines across the state was unprecedented and caused extensive damage to the power grid. In rural central Iowa, a county sheriff has attributed two more deaths to the storm. He says that a 42-year-old woman on her porch was struck by a large tree as the storm moved through, and a 41-year-old electrician was electrocuted by a power line.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — President Donald Trump’s reelection campaign has sued two Democratic-leaning Iowa counties that are making it easy to vote by mail during the coronavirus pandemic, seeking to invalidate tens of thousands of voters’ absentee ballot applications. The Trump campaign, the Republican National Committee and other GOP groups filed the lawsuits against elections officials in Linn and Johnson counties. At issue are absentee ballot request forms that the counties are sending to registered voters with personal information already filled in. The GOP lawsuits argue that the auditors are violating a state directive by prepopulating the forms and that any ballots cast in response to the mailings may be subject to legal challenge.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Farmers across much of Iowa are dealing with the heartbreaking aftermath of a rare wind storm that turned what was looking like a record corn crop into deep losses. The storm slammed the Midwest with straight line winds of up to 100 miles per hour on Monday, gaining strength as it plowed through Iowa farm fields, flattening corn and bursting grain bins still filled with tens of millions of bushels of last year’s harvest. Similar damage was reported in Indiana and Illinois. Before the storm, the U.S. Department of Agriculture had forecast a record national corn crop this year, of which Iowa was expected to provide about 18%.

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) — A Cedar Rapids man has been charged in the fatal beating of his mother earlier this summer over what police say was an effort to steal $50 from her. Police say 49-year-old George Alan Deason is charged with first-degree murder and other counts in the death of 71-year-old Elsie Mae Deason. Police believe George Deason attacked his mother in her home on June 30. She was found the next day with critical injuries. Police said it appeared she had been severely beaten. She was taken to a hospital, where she died of her injuries on July 23. Police say George Deason was arrested shortly after his injured mother was found, and police confiscated a battering weapon called a slapjack from him.

DES MOINES–Gov. Kim Reynolds has issued a disaster proclamation in response to a severe weather system that moved across Iowa and caused widespread damage August 10. The proclamation now allows state resources to be utilized to respond to and recover from the effects of this severe weather in Audubon and Madison counties. The proclamation also activates the Iowa Individual Assistance Grant Program for qualifying residents, along with the Disaster Case Management Program.

Governor Reynolds previously declared a disaster and activated the Iowa Individual Assistance Grant Program and the Disaster Case Management Program for Benton, Boone, Dallas, Cedar, Clarke, Clinton, Greene, Grundy, Hardin, Iowa, Jackson, Jasper, Johnson, Jones, Linn, Marshall, Muscatine, Polk, Poweshiek, Scott, Story, Tama, and Washington counties. Proclamations may be issued for additional counties.

The Iowa Individual Assistance Grant Program provides grants of up to $5,000 for households with incomes up to 200 percent of the federal poverty level or a maximum annual income of $43,440 for a family of three. Grants are available for home or car repairs, replacement of clothing or food, and temporary housing expenses. Original receipts are required for those seeking reimbursement for actual expenses related to storm recovery. The grant application and instructions are available on the Iowa Department of Human Services website. Potential applicants have 45 days from the date of the proclamation to submit a claim.

Disaster Case Management is a program to address serious needs to overcome a disaster-related hardship, injury or adverse condition. Disaster case managers work with clients to create a disaster recovery plan and provide guidance, advice and referral to obtain a service or resource. There are no income eligibility requirements for this program; it closes 180 days from the date of the governor’s proclamation. For information on the Disaster Case Management Program, contact your local community action association or visit www.iowacommunityaction.org.

(Radio Iowa) – Agents with Iowa’s largest home insurer are working plenty of overtime this week, trying to prioritize and process claims from clients who had damage to their homes, cars and other property in this week’s derecho.

Mark Doyle, a State Farm agent in Ames, says he’s had 450 claims filed since Monday, ranging from blown-over fences to homes that were totaled by the extreme winds and toppling trees. “Typically, we’ll get a hail storm that rolls through and it might touch on part of the town,” Doyle says. “This thing really just hit all parts of the town and all over. Half of Iowa got hit by this thing.”

Trees were blown onto fences, cars, power lines and everything else in Monday’s storms.

Statewide, the company’s claim count for this storm is over 13,000 and rising, which Doyle says is significantly higher than an ordinary severe weather event. The wind storm boasted gusts as high as 112 miles-an-hour and it caused destruction across Iowa’s midsection and well into Illinois and states further east.

In central Iowa, Ames was particularly hard-hit, including Doyle’s office, which compounded matters. “We had no power, we had no phones, we had no ability to forward those phones on to the 24-hour service, so we had a little delay in being able to get to people,” Doyle says. “We staged in my home because I did get power the next day.”

Much like a hospital’s emergency room has to determine which patients are in the most life-threatening condition and need to be seen right away, Doyle says they’re working to prioritize insurance claims.

“We’re going to take all of those people that have the severe losses, where their home is uninhabitable, they’re going to move to the front of the line,” Doyle says. “We need to take those displaced people and get them dealt with immediately. If someone has a tree on a fence in the backyard, that’s probably going to go to the back of the line.”

For Iowans with storm damage, he says to take pictures or video, and prevent any further damage by making temporary repairs. Save receipts for tarps and materials and start the claims process online, on the app or by phone. When hiring a contractor, get multiple estimates in writing and don’t pay for any work up front.

DES MOINES, Iowa, Aug. 13, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — U-Haul® facilities across Iowa are offering one month of free self-storage and U-Box® portable storage container usage to residents affected by the devastating storms earlier this week. Winds exceeding 100 mph damaged countless homes and left hundreds of thousands without power in the Midwest.

U-Haul® is offering 30 days of free self-storage and U-Box container usage to storm victims in and around Iowa at 16 store locations.

As those impacted begin the recovery process, U-Haul Companies of Eastern Iowa and Western Iowa are making 16 stores available to help with storage services at no cost for 30 days. Two of the participating stores are located in western Illinois.

“On Monday, Iowa and much of the Midwest saw a very strong storm push through that has left an immediate need for disaster relief,” said Randy Dickson, U-Haul Company of Western Iowa president. “With very few exceptions, all of our storage facilities have power and can offer assistance. This is a chance for our teams to give back and provide our neighbors with a secure place for storing their belongings during clean-up efforts.”

People seeking more information about the U-Haul disaster relief program or needing to arrange 30 days of free self-storage or U-Box should contact the nearest participating location. With U-Box containers, you can conveniently pick up our custom-designed trailer and take your U-Box with you. U-Haul also can store your U-Box container in a secure warehouses or pick up and deliver it to a location of your choice.

As an essential service provider, U-Haul is open to meet the needs of its communities. For details on what U-Haul has done to enhance cleaning protocols, protect Team Members and customers, and encourage the use of programs that inherently promote social distancing and contactless business, please reference our multi-media press release: Moving Safely and Smartly during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Two more deaths in Iowa have been attributed to the powerful storm that struck Iowa this week. Poweshiek County Sheriff Thomas Kriegel says a 42-year-old woman sitting on her porch in Malcom on Monday was struck by a large tree blown over as the storm moved through, and a 41-year-old electrician who worked for the city of Brooklyn died when he was electrocuted by a power line he was reconnecting.

Earlier in the week officials in Cedar Rapids confirmed a bicyclist had been hit by one of several large trees that fell on a bike path. An estimated 250,000 Iowans still have no power.

The Council Bluffs Police Department reports that at around 11:45-a.m. today (Thursday), Police, Iowa  Department of Transportation Officers and DOT roads, responded to Exit 49 of I-29 So Bound for a traffic problem closing the off ramp. A semi pulling a large section of a wind mill had gotten off its route and had to exit at So Expressway. The load was approximately 16 feet tall and 187 feet long. It was too large to go through the intersection and needed assistance to get turned around and back on its route.

The off ramp had to be shut down for approximately 1 ½ hours. The entire intersection of So Expressway and 30th Ave had to be shut down for approximately 30 minutes while the semi was turned around and sent back up onto the interstate.

Council Bluffs Police would like to remind motorists to pay extra attention to large / oversized loads and their escort vehicles. When around them be conscious of their lane positioning and give them a wide berth as they have limited mobility and can only be on designated routes. In this particular case the semi driver was forced into the wrong lane due to crowding by other motorists.

The Silver Cord Program is a graduation incentive program to promote volunteerism in the Atlantic Area. Atlantic High School seniors who volunteered a minimum of 200 hours throughout their high school career graduated this year with a silver cord and were eligible for a $500 scholarship provided by the Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce. The program encourages volunteer opportunities with all Civic Organizations and benefits the entire community.

Pictured: Kelsey Beschorner, Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce Program Director; Cole Sampson (Photo submitted)

“The Silver Cord program was started as a way to educate students about the importance of community service. It gives students the opportunity to see firsthand how investing their time can enhance and grow their community,” Bailey Smith, Executive Director of the Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce said.

The 2020 Silver Cord Scholarship recipient was Cole Sampson. Cole volunteered at the Red Cross community blood drives, RAGBRAI, AtlanticFest, Coca-Cola Days, Christmas in Atlantic Ice-Skating Rink and numerous other community activities.

“A big lesson I learned from these experiences was the importance of coordination and communication. I saw the many details and all the preparation that goes into events like these and how it can go smoothly if things are well planned and executed. I come from a family who believes in volunteering. My grandmother (Eleanor Hoover) was always ready to help in the community in any way she was able, whether it was with sporting competitions, YMCA events, or with anyone else who needed a hand,” Cole Sampson, Silver Cord Scholarship recipient stated.

Cole will be attending Iowa State University this fall to study Industrial Design.

If you are interested in learning more about the Silver Cord Program, please visit www.atlanticiowa.com. If you would like to volunteer, please visit www.atlanticiowa.com or call the Atlantic Area Chamber at 712.243.3017.