A traffic stop at around 2:30 this (Friday) morning in Red Oak, resulted in an OWI arrest. Police say 26-year old Benjamin Lee Adams, of Red Oak, was taken into custody for OWI/1st offense in the 1800 block of N. 6th Street. He was brought to the Montgomery County Jail and held on $1,000 bond.

(Radio Iowa) — T-P-I Composites is temporarily halting production at its wind blade manufacturing plant in Newton as employees are tested for COVID-19. Plant General Manager Josh Syhlman says TPI proactively reached out to the Governor’s Office to discuss an enhanced COVID-19 testing plan after 28 confirmed new cases were reported among the plant’s workforce during the last week. TPI expects the voluntary pause in production to last until the middle of next week. This will allow for another deep clean of the facility and to implement a more rigorous testing plan for all Newton associates. The Newton Plant workers will be paid during the production pause and TPI also plans to provide protective masks to its associates’ family members for use at home.

(Radio Iowa) — All four Iowans serving in the U.S. House have voted for a plan to plug more money into the small business loan program that ran out of money last week. Democratic Congresswoman Abby Finkenauer of Dubuque says 60 BILLION dollars in the bill is reserved for community-based banks and credit unions.

“These are the ones that are out there lending to our ‘small’ small businesses, the ones who need not just a $1 million, or might need $10,000 or $15,000 to keep maybe it’s five employees employed in and on the payroll,” Finkenauer says. “And, to be frank, those were the ones that were being left out in the last package.” The “Paycheck Protection Program” was designed to help small businesses with fewer than 500 employees keep making payroll, but a loophole let large hotel and restaurant chains get loans.

Congresswoman Cindy Axne, a Democrat from West Des Moines, says the 60 BILLION reserved for community banks will provide loans to the kind of “mom-and-pop” businesses that are crucial in rural Iowa. “Our one and two person owned shops on Main Streets in our communities, our restaurants, individual contractors,” Axne says, “those types of people need the funding.” The bill also provides 75 BILLION for hospitals. Axne says this is a difficult time for hospitals.

“They’re laying people off,” Axne says. “They don’t know how they’re going to cover their operating expenses because there aren’t elective surgeries and things like that happening, so we’ve got to shore those up so they can keep their doors open.” Republican Congressman Steve King of Kiron says the 25 BILLION dollars for expanded COVID-19 testing is important part of the package, because testing will help determine the best methods for reopening the economy. The total price tag for the package is 484 BILLLION dollars.

Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell has suggested it may be time to quit adding to the federal deficit. Congresswoman Finkenauer says while the debt is obviously a concern, shoring up the economy is a higher priority right now. “We are in a horrible situation where our working families and Americans all across the country and locally are scared and need assistance,” she says, “and this is the time when the federal government should be stepping up.” Congressman Dave Loebsack, a Democrat from Iowa City, says he’s pleased the House and Senate came together in a bipartisan way to send the bill to President Trump.

Iowa Republicans Chuck Grassley and Joni Ernst voted for the package when it passed the U.S. Senate earlier this week.

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds says the state’s $26 million contract with Utah companies to increase coronavirus testing was developed after she acted on a tip from actor Ashton Kutcher. Kutcher says he was simply using his tech connections to offer a creative solution that could help his native state. Kutcher pitched the governor on a Utah program launched this month to increase testing, saying it looked promising. Kutcher said that one of his good friends is a tech executive who was involved in TestUtah, and he put him in touch with the governor. Aides to Reynolds soon followed up with Utah government officials and TestIowa was launched on Tuesday.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Ethanol producer ADM says it is idling production at its corn ethanol plants in Cedar Rapids, Iowa and Columbus, Nebraska, furloughing 90 employees in each facility for at least four months. The company says low consumer demand for gasoline also has dramatically cut demand for corn-based ethanol which is blended into gasoline. The company said it is focusing on cash flow and diverting some of its resources to other products that are in higher demand, such as alcohol for hand sanitizer. The plants each have a capacity of about 300 million gallons a year, among the largest plants of their type in the nation.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Nearly 28,000 more people filed initial unemployment claims last week in Iowa as the state’s economy continued to take a hit from efforts to slow the spread of the coronavirus. Iowa Workforce Deveopment reported Thursday that another 27,912 people filed unemployment claims during the week ending April 18. That’s down from claims filed in previous weeks but still far above typical numbers before many businesses closed to fight COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus. There were 151,846 continuing unemployment claims. Nationally, more than 4.4 million workers applied for unemployment benefits last week, In the last five weeks, about 26 million people have now filed for jobless aid.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Dozens of U.S. meat-processing plants have been forced to close temporarily as the industry struggles to contain the spread of the coronavirus among employees who often stand side-by-side while cutting and packaging beef, pork and poultry. Giant slaughterhouses that employ thousands of people are designed to have workers close together, making it difficult to adhere to social distancing guidelines that advise people to stay 6 feet apart. Even as companies take steps to protect workers, industry experts say it’s nearly impossible to eliminate all risk of catching the virus and they note safety measures have been adopted unevenly.

Officials with Pottawattamie County Public Health have reported two new cases of Covid-19, bringing the total number of case positives to 20. Seventeen patients have recovered from the virus, two are self-isolating at home, and as we’ve previously mentioned, there was one death.

The two latest cases are persons 41-to 60 years of age. One is a male, the other female. One had pre-existing conditions and contact with an existing Covid-19 case. The other has no pre-existing conditions and no contact with an existing case. They were tested on April 18th and 20th, respectively. Both are self-isolating at home. Health officials are conducting contact tracing investigations, and are in communication with the IDPH.

Atlantic, IA— On April 12, it was announced that a case of novel coronavirus (COVID-19) had been confirmed in Cass County. Cass County Public Health is happy to announce that the patient has recovered.
“With his permission, we’re happy to report that Cass County resident John Stokes has recovered from COVID-19,” said Cass County Public Health Director Beth Olsen. “In late March, John traveled out of state and then arrived home in Cass County about two weeks ago. When his symptoms worsened, he sought care in a safe way.”

John Stokes receives from CCHS staff as he is discharged from the hospital.

When asked about his experience at Cass County Health System, John said, “The folks at the hospital were angels. They were very caring, very comforting. Even when they had to check on me during the middle of the night, they were very gentle, very kind. From Paul, the nurse practitioner, to all of the nurses, straight down to the kitchen. They were all very patient. And the food was fantastic!” When John was discharged from CCHS, a small group of staff lined the hallways to celebrate his recovery and return home.

“I felt I should have been the one applauding. They were the ones taking the risk, because I already had it. They were the ones still risking a lot to help me, to heal me.” And now, John is at home and looking forward to the future. “Keep the faith,” said John.

Many residents may be wondering if they were potentially exposed to COVID-19 through John. “Through our investigation, we didn’t find any significant risk to the public,” said Beth. “If we had, we would contact individuals one-on-one. In this case, that wasn’t necessary.”

While this case is over, it is still important for residents to continuing making prevention their first priority. “We don’t want people to gain a false sense of security and ease up on their social distancing practices or other preventive measures. We know that COVID-19 is widespread in the state, and we all have a role to play in minimizing the spread here in Cass County,” said Beth.

All residents should:
• Stay home as much as possible. Leave only for essential errands like groceries or getting medication. When you run these errands, send only one person from the household, if possible.
• Stay home when even mildly ill (the kind of illness that normally wouldn’t prevent you from your everyday activities)
• Cover coughs and sneezes with a tissue or your elbow/upper arm.
• Wash hands frequently with soap and water for at least 20 seconds.
Approximately 80% of Iowans infected with COVID-19, will experience only a mild to moderate illness. Most mildly ill Iowans do not need to go to their healthcare provider or be tested to confirm they have COVID-19. Sick Iowans must stay home and isolate themselves from others in their house. Stay home and isolate from others in the house until:
• You have had no fever for at least 72 hours (that is three full days of no fever without the use of medicine that reduces fevers)
AND
• other symptoms have improved (for example, when your cough or shortness of breath have improved)
AND
• at least 7 days have passed since your symptoms first appeared.

If you think you may need healthcare, call first. Your provider can assess whether you need to be seen in the office or if you can recover at home. Atlantic Medical Center, RHC offers telehealth appointments that can be used for some patients.