MARSHALLTOWN, Iowa (AP) – Authorities are investigating what caused a methane-fueled fire at the JBS pork plant in Marshalltown. Firetrucks were dispatched to the plant’s methane collection lagoon about 10:30 a.m. Saturday. Firefighters and JBS staffers isolated the plant from the methane collection system to prevent any gas exposure to the plant itself.

Officials say it took about three hours to extinguish the blaze. No injuries have been reported. JBS officials estimate damage at $500,000 and say the plant remains in production.

Police in Creston said today (Monday), three men were arrested Friday, one of them twice in the same day. 38-year old Brady Richert, of Creston, was arrested just before 3-a.m. Friday, for Disorderly Conduct. Richert was arrested again Friday afternoon, on the same charge. He was later released from the Union County Jail on separate, $300 bonds.

45-year old Kevin Giles, of Orient, was arrested Friday night at the Union County Law Enforcement Center, for 2nd Degree Harassment. Giles was being held in the jail on $300 bond. And, 42-year old Mikel Wierick, of Creston, was arrested Friday night for OWI/1st offense. He was later released on $1,000 bond.

The area’s top news at 7:05-a.m., w/KJAN News Director Ric Hanson

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National School Choice Week takes place this week in Iowa and across the country. There are 207 events planned in the Hawkeye State to raise awareness about K-12 school choice, and 21,392 events nationwide. The events in Iowa, which are independently planned and independently funded, include everything from information sessions and open houses at schools to rallies, policy discussions, and movie screenings organized by community groups. Highlighted events include a large school choice celebration January 25 at 10:00 a.m. at the State Historic Building Auditorium, in Des Moines.

The counties of Monona, Dallas, and Jackson and cities of Burlington, Calmar, Cedar Rapids, Council Bluffs, Davenport, Grimes, Maquoketa, Melcher-Dallas, Milford, Perry, Polk City, and Webster City have issued official proclamations recognizing January 22nd-through the 28th, 2017 as “School Choice Week.”

National School Choice Week provides families in Iowa with the opportunity to research and evaluate the K-12 school choices available for their children in advance of the 2017-2018 school year. The Week also raises awareness of the importance of providing every child with effective education options.

With a goal of raising public awareness of effective education options for children, National School Choice Week will be the largest celebration of education options in US history.

SCHOOL CHOICE OPTIONS AVAILABLE FOR IOWA FAMILIES

According to National School Choice Week’s organizers, families in Iowa can use the Week to look for K-12 schools for the 2017-2018 school year. Parents in the Hawkeye State can choose from the following education options for their children: traditional public schools, public charter schools, magnet schools, online academies, private schools, and homeschooling. In some parts of the state, open enrollment policies allow parents to select the best traditional public school, regardless of where the school is located. The state also has programs allowing qualifying children, in some cases, to receive scholarships or tax credits to attend private schools.

ABOUT NATIONAL SCHOOL CHOICE WEEK

National School Choice Week is an independent public awareness effort spotlighting effective education options for children, including traditional public schools, public charter schools, magnet schools, private schools, online learning, and homeschooling. The Week runs from January 22-28, 2017. For more information, visit www.schoolchoiceweek.com.

Gasoline prices have remained relatively stable in the last couple of months.   Iowa Department of Agriculture fuels analyst  Harold Hommes, says there haven’t been any surprises in the market other than the recent report on inventories. “It was a big surprise actually, inventories of both refined gasoline and crude. Both of which were expected to show some declines, but it looks like production of crude is up and those refineries are running at 92-93 percent are kicking out gasoline at levels that are increasing inventories,” Hommes says.

He says that’s good news as it keeps the price down for motorists, but it’s not such good news for those who sell the product. “That’s a challenge the industry’s got to deal with — so we may see some softening of gas prices in the next week or two,” Hommes says.

The most recent survey showed the average price of a gallon of unleaded gas in Iowa was two dollars, 36 cents.  That was the same as the week before.  Hommes says the continuing supply glut will continue to benefit drivers at the pump. He says the long term reaction to the supplies should make things flat, or there could be some slightly falling prices.  Hommes says he expects to see some stronger crude oil prices in the long term which would bump prices up by the summer driving season.

Gas prices bumped up 10 to 15 cents a couple of weeks ago, in a move that Hommes says was likely an attempt by retailers to make some more profit as last year in late January and February the gas prices softened. “This time there were some pressures on those values, and most recently they’ve put that added dime on there — 15 cents — to try and recover some of those margins,” Hommes says.

The price last week was 52 cents higher than one year ago.  The national average gas price was two dollars, 34 cents, two cents below Iowa’s average.

(Radio Iowa)

The Boards of Supervisors in Cass and Adair Counties have Fiscal Year 2018 Budget Work Sessions set for today. In Atlantic, the Cass County Board of Supervisors will meet at 8:30-a.m. in their boardroom at the courthouse. They’ll also meet Tuesday morning at 8:30.

In Greenfield, the Adair County Board of Supervisors’ Budget Work Session begins at 9-a.m. today in the courtroom at the Adair County Courthouse. No action will be taken during the sessions.

A Marshalltown man faces charges following an investigation into a fatal fire at Hartford Gun Sales and Training in Hartford, Friday. The victim’s name hasn’t been released. The suspect is identified as 28-year old Stephen James Major who faces charges of arson and operating a motor vehicle without owners consent.

Crews found a structure fully engulfed in flames. The victim was found after the flames were extinguished.

(Radio Iowa)

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Authorities say the body of a man was recovered from the Des Moines River after his kayak capsized.  Rescue crews were sent to the Sycamore Access boat ramp in Des Moines around 5:30 p.m. Sunday after a 911 call. A man who also had been kayaking told authorities that he’d sought help after turning around and seeing that his companion’s kayak had capsized. The body was recovered around 6:30 p.m.

It’s not yet clear whether the 71-year-old man who died had any medical issues. His name hasn’t been released yet.

Farmers and ranchers in Iowa now can get notifications from their county Farm Service Agency office through text messages on their cell phones. John Whitaker, director of the Iowa F-S-A office, says whether producers are in the field, on a tractor or even on horseback, this service enables vital notifications to get through.

“What we’re trying to do is get immediate, important messages out to producers, say a deadline that’s approaching or, like last weekend, when we had severe weather and there were livestock losses,” Whitaker says, “just important information they can use right at their fingertips.”

While producers nationwide can sign on to the program, Whitaker says the texts can be sent on a county-by-county basis and all messages will come from your nearest county office. “The idea is, we don’t want you to get messages from the entire country,” he says. “We want these to be very specific to the county office, particularly if it’s something like storm damage or crop reporting or something like that.”

The goal is to quickly disseminate the information producers need. “We don’t spend as much money on paper newsletters as we did years ago,” Whitaker says. “Sometimes, we only send a couple a year instead of one every month. It helps us control our costs when we do that but we want to get the information out to producers in a timely manner.”

Contact your local F-S-A office for details.

(Radio Iowa)

Police in Red Oak arrested two people Sunday  afternoon who were allegedly involved in an altercation Friday night that resulted in minor injuries to two other people. Authorities say 24-year old Nathan Allen Aldrich, and 25-year old Roland Charles Chapin III, both of Red Oak, were taken into custody at around 3:30-p.m., Sunday at the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office, and charged with Simple Assault. Aldrich and Chapin III were being held in the Montgomery County Jail on $300 bond, each.

Friday night, Red Oak Police, assisted by Montgomery County Sheriff’s Deputies, arrested 44-year old Roland Charles Chapin, Jr., of Red Oak, also for Simple Assault, in connection with the same altercation involving several individuals in the 300 block of E. Joy Street. Chapin, Jr., was being held in the Montgomery County Jail on $300 bond.