Police in Red Oak report the arrest at around 4:30-p.m. Wednesday, of 57-year old Jason Troy Waters. The Red Oak man was arrested in the 1600 block of N. Broadway, on a charge of Harassment in the 3rd Degree. He was transported to the Montgomery County Jail and held on a $300 cash bond.

The National Weather Service said Wednesday afternoon, another tornado was determined to have occurred southeast of Anita, Wednesday morning, prior to the fatal twister that occurred south/southeast of Adair. The Anita tornado actually occurred around 25 minutes before the Adair tornado and demolished an old barn, tossing debris about one third of a mile downstream. The remainder of the path was across rural cropland with a total path length of just over one mile.

The Anita tornado which started at around 1:04-a.m., 2.6-miles south/southeast of Anita, was rated an EF-1, with estimated peak winds of 90-to 100 MPH. It’s 50-yard wide path was 1.1-miles long, and ended at around 1:06-a.m. 1.6-miles southeast of Anita. (For more info.: https://www.weather.gov/dmx/20190522_Tornadoes)

(All photos by NWS Damage Survey Team)

Anita – Debris Downwind

Barn near Anita

(Radio Iowa) — Two men who say they were abused by priests joined the Iowa Senate’s Democratic leader today (Wednesday) in calling on Iowa lawmakers to do more for victims of child sex abuse. Senator Janet Petersen, a Democrat from Des Moines, says the state’s attorney general should investigate the Catholic Church. Petersen also says Iowa’s criminal and civil laws for child sex abuse cases are the most restrictive in the nation.

“Our laws do not protect our communities from sexual predators and I think we cannot continue to ignore this,” Petersen said. “There is case after case across this country.” The period for filing CRIMINAL charges is too short, according to Petersen. Child sex abuse victims in Iowa have until they’re 33 years old to file a CIVIL lawsuit. Sixty-seven-year-old John Chambers of Des Moines says studies show 52 is the average age when a victim reveals they were abused as a child.

“Adults that bottled this up and held it in for so many years,” Chambers says. “And there are a lot of us.” Tim Lennon, who grew up in Sioux City, says he was 43 years old when he first remembered being molested by the priest in his childhood church. “Those memories are the fire, the anger that I feel for what happened to me,” Lennon says. “…What happened to me should not happen to another child.”

Lennon, who now lives in Arizona, is a national leader in the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests. He plans to hold a news conference outside the Sioux City Diocese office tomorrow (Thursday) morning. Lennon says the Catholic Church should release the names of bishops, nuns and others involved in the church who are accused of sex abuse.

ALLEMAN, Iowa (AP) — Authorities say a worker has died after falling from a tower near Alleman in Polk County. Sheriff’s Sgt. Heath Osberg says the man was working on the tower when he plunged to his death around 11 a.m. Wednesday. Osberg says there are several towers in that area for cellphone and radio transmissions.

The man’s name and other details haven’t been released yet.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — A violent offender shot this month by Iowa City police had been released from jail days earlier, despite probation violations that could have kept him behind bars.

Hours after bonding out of jail on a charge of assaulting a police officer, Michael Cintron Caceres allegedly robbed an Iowa City gas station at knifepoint early May 7. Two days later, he allegedly burglarized other businesses before he was shot and wounded after fleeing from police officers.

Now the Department of Correctional Services, which was responsible for supervising Cintron Caceres during his probation, says the 34-year-old is “a danger to the community” who should be jailed indefinitely.

And the Division of Criminal Investigation is investigating whether officers appropriately used deadly force when they sought to apprehend him early May 9.

FOREST CITY, Iowa (AP) — Winnebago County supervisor and former NFL defensive lineman Mike Stensrud faces misdemeanor charges after police say he showed up drunk and armed at a board meeting this week.

The Mason City Globe-Gazette reports police were called Tuesday to the Winnebago County Courthouse after the board meeting adjourned. Police say the 63-year-old Stensrud had been drinking alcohol from a cup during the meeting, and an alcohol breath test he took showed his blood alcohol level at .09. Anything above .08 is considered legally intoxicated.

When asked if he was armed, Stensrud acknowledged having a pistol, which an officer took from his pocket. Stensrud is charged with public intoxication and carrying a firearm while under the influence.

He told the Globe-Gazette he had sought treatment for his drinking in January and had been sober until Tuesday, saying “I just blew it.” Stensrud played football at Iowa State and in the NFL for a decade before retiring in 1989.

The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office reports two arrests. Today (Wednesday), 26-year old Keegan Michael Johnson, of Stanton, was arrested at around 11-a.m. for Driving While License barred, and Operation of a vehicle with expired plates. His bond was set at $2,000.

On Tuesday, 19-year old Charles Lee Shadbolt, of Villisca, was arrested at the Regional Corrections Facility in Council Bluffs, on a Montgomery County Bench Warrant for Violation of Probation. His bond was set at $5,000.

The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office reported two recent arrests on Wednesday afternoon.

On Tuesday, May 21st at about 9:29am Deputies arrested 19-year-old Charles Lee Shadbolt of Villisca. Shadbolt was arrested at the Regional Correction Facility in Council Bluffs on a Montgomery County Bench Warrant for Violation of Probation. He was held on $5,000 bond.

On Wednesday, May 22nd at 10:57am Montgomery County Deputies arrested 26-year-old Keegan Michael Johnson of Stanton for Driving While License Barred and Operation of a Vehicle with Expired Plates. He was held on $2,000 bond.

The Audubon School District’s Board of Education met Monday evening. Superintendent Brett Gibbs said the Board approved final approval to some summer projects, including tuck pointing at the Elementary School, and replacement of fencing around the exterior of the football field and track.

The Board also talked about future remodeling of the 5th through 12th grade building. About 12-years ago, the district added some rooms onto the back of the building to bring the 5th and 6th grade up, but Gibbs said the rest of the building has not had much done to it since 1964. He said “It’s time, basically starting with our HVAC system. The building currently has steam heat, the pipes for which are leaking. Gibbs said they’ve been told the boilers “are on the downhill side” of their life, with another 10-years of use at the most before they need to be replaced. “So it’s time to starting looking at ways we can upgrade our facility here and make it more energy efficient, and maintain the condition of the building.”

He said the will be in discussion with Engie Engineering on the potential costs and how the potential project could be paid for. The Audubon School Board also set Student Fees for the FY 2020 School Year. Gibbs said also parents should be aware the District is switching to a different provider for parents to use credit cards online for student fees, including lunches and books. He said there will be a fee charged to the user, which will in-turn charge persons who use credit cards for those purchases…much like an ATM fee.

The new provider is JMC, which has the districts student information system, and costs less than the current provider. With regard to student lunch fees, Brett Gibbs said the price of student and adult lunches increased 5-cents, and the cost of junior high mesh jerseys went from $22 to $25.

In other business, the Audubon School Board discussed student drop-off and pick-up at the Elementary School. Gibbs said they have some safety concerns, mainly in the morning. “EMC Insurance sent out a traffic [flow] expert come out and make suggestions on ways to improve the flow.” Those suggestions included proper markings on the pick-up and drop-off areas, and having the buses drop-off in a different location in the morning. If that doesn’t help, the next step is to look at putting a whole new bus pick-up and drop-off area on the east side, which would likely cost around $50,000. But they want to try all other ideas first, according to Gibbs.

The National Weather Service in Des Moines spent the morning assessing the damage caused during a storm early this morning, in northwestern Adair County. One person died and another was injured during what the preliminary investigation determined was a STRONG (EF-2) Tornado, with estimated peak winds of 120-to 130 MPH.

Officials say “A tornado developed quickly 3.2 miles south southeast of Adair, Iowa early Wednesday morning, May 22nd, 2019 resulting in one fatality and one injury. A rural homestead located just south of Interstate 80 received extensive damage to a single-family residence and outbuildings. The damage survey team also found lesser damage to single family residences and outbuildings located south of the main impacted home.”

Main Residence outbuildings-1

Main Residence GrainBinFoundation-1

Main residence (Adair Tornado) – Outbuildings (All photos by NWS Damage Survey Team)

The twister’s path was 4.8-miles, and 150-yards wide. It’s estimated to have begun at 1:29-a.m. 3.2 miles south-southeast of Adair, and ended at around 1:37-a.m., 2.2-miles northeast of Adair. 74-year old Linda Lee Brownlee died at the scene. Her husband, 78-year old Harold Brownlee suffered serious injuries, and was flown to a hospital in Des Moines. Debris from their home landed on nearby Interstate 80, at mile marker 77. One semi was in the ditch at about the same location.

Meteorologist Chad Hahn, with the National Weather Service, says it’s very unusual to have a twister strike that early in the morning. He says only about five-percent of tornadoes hit during the nighttime.  While May, June and July are typically the worst months of the year for tornadoes in Iowa, this is the first confirmed tornado this year. Last year, there were 69 tornadoes statewide with the most notable hitting Bondurant, Marshalltown and Pella on July 19th. Over the past decade, Iowa has seen as few as 16 tornadoes during all of 2012 and as many as 88 tornadoes in 2014.

Law enforcement reported to KJAN that numerous power poles were down this (Wednesday) morning across rural roads in eastern Cass County. A motorist drove over one of the power lines at around 4-a.m. on Glendale/Fairview Road, between 750th (Highway 148) and 760th Streets. Building debris from a barn was scattered along Glendale Road, but has since been removed. Cass County Emergency Management Coordinator Mike Kennon encourages residents who sustained storm damage to contact him at 254-1500.  For more information on the tornado: https://www.weather.gov/dmx/20190522_Tornadoes

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EF Scale: The Enhanced Fujita scale classifies tornadoes in
the following categories.

EF0…Weak……65 TO 85 MPH
EF1…Weak……86 TO 110 MPH
EF2…Strong….111 TO 135 MPH
EF3…Strong….136 TO 165 MPH
EF4…Violent…166 TO 200 MPH
EF5…Violent…>200 MPH