The Atlantic Parks and Recreation Department-sponsored “Movies in the Park” for tonight, has been cancelled. Parks and Rec Director Seth Staashelm reports the event was cancelled due to the expected rain and possible flash flooding. The Parks Department apologizes for any inconvenience this may cause, and they invite you to join them August 17th at the Rotary Sheltger in Schildberg Park, to watch “Jumanji – Welcome to the Jungle.”

The Mills County Sheriff’s Office reports two separate arrests took place, Thursday. At around 7:05-p.m., 33-year old Jamie Lea Petersen, of Council Bluffs, was arrested on a warrant for Compulsory Education Violation. And, at around 11:45-a.m., 26-year old Travis Carl Boyer, of Canyon Lake, TX, was arrested at the Douglas County, NE. jail, on a warrant for Fugitive from Justice and for being a Fugitive from Justice. He was being held without bond.

Officials at the Cass County Memorial Hospital in Atlantic report “Dry needling” is the topic for the next session of Healthy U, scheduled for noon on July 19th at Cass County Health System. Ryan Legg, DPT, CLT and Dan Vogel, DPT, will present together on what dry needling is, what it is used for, and the science and training behind it. Vogel says “Dry needling is performed by a physical therapist to treat pain. Most patients have great success with dry needling and feel relief right away.”

Ryan Legg, DPT, performs dry needling on a patient’s hip.

Healthy U is a free educational lunch series at Cass County Health System held monthly in Conference Room 2. The public is invited and welcome to attend, but reservations are required as lunch is provided for all attendees. Call 712-243-7479 to reserve your seat.

Numerous law enforcement agencies are currently in a high speed pursuit of a man on a “crotch rocket” type motorcycle. The chase entered the northern limits of Atlantic past the KJAN studios at around 9:25-a.m. The rider got to about the Troublesome Creek bridge on Olive Street,  where a road block was set up. He turned around and went north on Olive to the interstate. Speeds were estimated at 125-to 130 miles per hour. When he flew past KJAN the man was wearing a white shirt, shorts or blue jeans, and was carrying a backpack. He was also wearing a helmet. Law enforcement entities involved in the chase include Iowa State Patrol, Cass County Sheriff’s Department, Atlantic Police, Iowa Dept. of Motor Vehicle Enforcement and Iowa DNR.

The chase was still underway on I-80 westbound near Shelby, at 9:45-a.m. It’s not clear what precipitated the pursuit or why the man is running.

With hundreds of Iowa homes damaged or destroyed by flooding just this month, the director of the National Flood Insurance program is launching a campaign to get more people to buy flood insurance and to focus on addressing hazards ahead of time. Dave Maurstad says the effort is working to close the insurance gap. “We estimate that 40% of the properties in the high-risk area have flood insurance coverage and we need to do much better than that,” Maurstad says. “We’ve set a goal within the Federal Insurance and Mitigation Administration to double the number of properties covered by flood insurance by 2022.”

Difficult, back-to-back hurricane seasons and events such as inland flooding, wildfires and mudslides helped shape the new strategy. Maurstad says the highest priority of the strategic plan is to develop what he calls a “culture of preparedness.” “When we look at how the nation responds to natural disasters, insurance is a key part of it,” Maurstad says. “Event after event shows not enough people have the right kind at the right limits of insurance that could really help them and their communities recover so much faster.”

There are now about five-million flood insurance policy-holders in the nation, generating about five-billion dollars in revenue. For homeowners in low- to medium-risk areas, preferred-risk flood insurance policies can cost around $500 a year. For those in high-risk flood zones, the cost can rise to around $2,000. Maurstad says homeowners need to become better informed about the areas where they live and make changes before the next storm hits. “Part of it is how we can make sure people know what their risk is, so they can take the right steps to mitigate their properties,” Maurstad says. “They can either elevate them, storm-proof them or do something to help minimize the damage, and in some cases, identify areas that maybe we shouldn’t be developing in.”

Maurstad says one goal of FEMA and the National Flood Insurance Program is to quadruple the amount of investment in mitigation by 2022. He says that would allow the nation to bounce back faster from natural disasters.

(Radio Iowa)

SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) — A man accused of setting fire to a Sioux City house has been given probation. The Sioux City Journal reports that 33-year-old Jesse Bigeagle pleaded guilty Thursday to an arson charge after prosecutors dropped charges of burglary and criminal mischief. He was given four years of probation and a suspended 10-year prison sentence.

Woodbury County District Court records say Bigeagle entered the home early on Sept. 19, went to the basement and started a fire there before leaving. No injuries were reported. The records say Bigeagle had lived at the house.

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

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DECORAH, Iowa (AP) — An August trial is scheduled for a northeast Iowa woman accused of hitting and starving her 3-year-old daughter. Court records say 28-year-old Monica Flores, of rural Cresco, entered a written plea of not guilty Tuesday to a charge of child endangerment. Her trial is set to begin Aug. 29th. Authorities say the little girl had bruising on her neck, torso and legs and was malnourished.

Creston Police report two men were arrested Thursday on separate Driving While Suspended charges. 24-year old Cody Joseph Parmenter, of Creston, was arrested at around 3:45-p.m., and 37-year old Briankeith Andre Whitfield, of Creston, was arrested at 6:40-p.m.  Both men were being held in the Union County Jail on a $300 bond, each.

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

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