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Keep up-to-date with Fox News Radio, Radio Iowa, Brownfield & the Iowa Agribusiness Networks!
DES MOINES – Officials with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR), Tuesday afternoon, said the DNR was investigating a wastewater discharge at the City of Nora Springs, in Floyd County. On Monday, January 20, the Iowa DNR Field Office in Mason City received a call from the City of Nora Springs regarding a wastewater discharge due to a frozen sewer line running below the Shell Rock River. The discharge is believed to have started sometime on January 18th, and is continuing to enter the river from a manhole on the bank of the river located near the 1st St SW bridge. The Shell Rock River is frozen in the area by the discharge. Wastewater is not visible on the surface, but is believed to be entering under the ice.
Attempts to resolve the plugged line were said to have been unsuccessful and it is anticipated the discharge will continue until later in the week when warmer temperatures allow for the line to be jetted. The DNR says there have been no observable impacts to the river in small pockets of open water downstream from the discharge, and no reports of backups in basements in the area. No dead fish have been observed. The Iowa DNR will follow up with the city for further assessment.
A clogged sewer line is leaking under the ice into Shell Rock River in Nora Springs. (Photo courtesy of David Knoll/DNR via the Iowa Capital Dispatch)
To report a release after hours, please call the DNR’s emergency spill line at (515) 725-8694. Quick reporting can help DNR staff identify the cause of an incident. The DNR website has more information about spill reporting requirements.
DES MOINES – 1000 Friends of Iowa has announced the winners of the 2024 Best Development Awards during a ceremony. The announcement took place this week at the Capitol in Des Moines. The awards honor projects that recognize connections between building and project development and quality of life. With a mission focused on responsible land use, 1000 Friends of Iowa promotes smart growth planning principles that help achieve socially, economically, and environmentally sustainable communities.
The winning projects of this year’s awards and categories are:
Row on 1st New Residential Project in Council Bluffs (photo courtesy 1000 Friends of Iowa)
Kari Carney, Executive Director of 1000 Friends of Iowa, said “We congratulate this year’s award winners and commend them on their great projects that highlight best practices in responsible land use and innovation in sustainable practices. Economic Development projects like those honored with this year’s awards create vibrant communities and serve as models for other Iowa communities.”
The Best Development Awards are selected from a pool of applications each year and judged by an independent group of jurors.
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1000 Friends of Iowa, founded in 1998, is a statewide nonprofit organization focused on land use and transportation.. Its mission is to unite Iowans in efforts to protect farmland and natural areas, revitalize neighborhoods, towns and cities, and improve quality of life for future generations. Additional details about 1000 Friends of Iowa’s smart growth priorities can be found at www.1000FriendsofIowa.org.
(Glenwood, Iowa) – A company in Glenwood is letting-go nearly two-dozen employees next month. According to the Iowa WARN (Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification) website, SpartanNash in Glenwood reported on January 15th, their employees would be losing their jobs effective February 14 (2025), as the facility permanently closes.
SpartanNash’s website says the business is “A food solutions company that delivers the ingredients for a better life,”providing food wholesale and grocery retail services. The company is based in Byron Center, MI. Their grocery retail stores are located in several Midwestern States, as well as in Kentucky. 
In late November, CDS Global, Inc. In Harlan, announced their subscription fulfillment facility in Harlan would be closing on Feb. 3Rd, with a loss of 94 jobs. Last September, the NSK-AKS Precision Ball Company in Clarinda was also closing, with 54 jobs to be lost. The closing is expected to take place March 31st (2025).
(Radio Iowa) – A spokesman for the Department of Transportation says an agreement was reached earlier this month that will keep goods from backing up at ports in the eastern part of the U-S. Charlie Purcell (Per-sell)says dock workers had a short strike back in October. “They were able to resume work under the condition that they continue negotiations and work out some last some disagreements about the degree to which port facilities would be automated and the impacts that would have on dock workers jobs,” Purcell says. He says they recently reached a final agreement. “On January 8th the two parties were able to reach an agreement. The deadline that they had was January 15th, so we were thinking we might need to report on that,” he says. “But fortunately, that has they have reached an agreement, and that now goes to the union for a formal vote. So we’re not anticipating that we’ll have any major disruptions in the ports on the East Coast.”
Purcell says goods coming into Iowa by rail were down a bit last year. “Overall, 2024 through the whole year is down about two-point-nine ( 2.9%) percent in terms of railcar loads. This is measured on a six week moving average as compared to 2023 so you can see that we’re kind of back to more or less normal levels for the last part of this year,” he says.
Purcell made his comments during an update for the state Transportation Commission Tuesday.
(Radio Iowa) – While many Iowans huddle inside when it’s this cold, others set off for their ice fishing shacks, which is the reason dozens of firefighters from multiple departments in southwest Iowa took part in an ice rescue training session last weekend. Red Oak Fire Chief John Bruce says they do the on-ice training workshop every winter. “It brings the teams together on an ice rescue scenario, how to deploy the rescue teams, and how to use the ice rescue equipment,” Bruce says. “It’s just a good refresher to get those skills fine-tuned.” Ice rescues are only needed a few months out of the year, so Bruce says this refresher is vital so they can properly respond to someone falling through the ice — particularly given the popularity of ice fishing in the region.
“We want to make sure we’re honed up on these skills, because you never know from moment to moment where you could be dispatched to,” he says. “It’s imperative for the individual or individuals that are in that frigid water, that we effect that rescue as quickly as possible.” Nearly 40 firefighters took part in the training from departments in Red Oak, Elliott, Grant, Villisca, Corning, Mount Ayr, Clarinda, and the Montgomery County Emergency Management Agency. Bruce says it’s crucial there’s at least four inches of ice on the lake or pond, which you’ve either tested yourself or communicated directly with the Iowa D-N-R or county conservation office.
Red Oak Fire Dept. Facebook page photo
“Our religious ice fishing folks, they’ve fine-tuned their skills of being able to go out and hit the ice and they can tell by the sound it’s making whether it’s thick ice or not,” he says, “and a lot of them are experienced with their augers and know to do a pilot drill.” Bruce says if you’re not sure whether the ice is thick enough, don’t go out. Also, have someone with you to call 9-1-1, and let someone know where you’re going and when you plan to return. Other tips from the Iowa D-N-R include bringing hand warmers, ice cleats, ice picks, a life jacket, a floating safety rope, a whistle, a first aid kit, and extra dry clothes.
(Red Oak, Iowa) – Police in Red Oak arrested a man Tuesday afternoon on a drug charge. 21-year-old Matthew Dillion Childs, of Red Oak, was taken into custody at around 3:40-p.m. at the intersection of Corning and Broadway Streets, in Red Oak. He was charged with Possession of a Controlled Substance – a Serious Misdemeanor. Childs was being held in the Montgomery County Jail on a $1,000 cash-only bond.
(Council Bluffs, Iowa) – An Iowa man was taken into custody in Indonesia for multiple federal child sexual exploitation charges. On Tuesday the U.S. Marshals Service announced that with the help of the U.S. Department of State and Indonesian officials 32-year-old Trevor John Collison was taken into custody on federal charges of sexual exploitation of a child and possession of child pornography. A warrant for his arrest had been issued in Oct. 2024 by the U-S Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa.
According to the U.S. Marshals, Collison fled from the country after a search warrant was executed at his home in Little Sioux by the Harrison County Sheriff’s Office in August. Collison was tracked across several South Pacific countries before being located in Indonesia.
Collison was taken into custody by Indonesian immigration officials when he tried to extend his visa, the U.S. Marshals said. He was returned to the U.S. and will appear before a Federal Magistrate for the federal charges.
“The U.S. Marshals are dedicated to supporting our state and local partners throughout Iowa in tracking down individuals who evade justice,” Ted Kamatchus, U.S. Marshal for the Southern District of Iowa, said in a statement. “By leveraging its global reach, the U.S. Marshals Service empowers our local law enforcement partners with the ability to locate and apprehend even their most elusive fugitives.”
DES MOINES, Iowa [KCCI] — One of President Donald Trump’s first actions in the White House was to pardon 1,500 people charged in the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, including nine Iowans. Trump’s executive order mandates that “all individuals convicted of offenses related to events that occurred at or near the United States Capitol on January 6, 2021, who are currently held in prison are released immediately.” He directed the Federal Bureau of Prisons to immediately implement his order.
Iowans charged in connection with Jan. 6 riots:
As of Tuesday night, records showed that Kyle Young of Redfield and Salvador Sandoval of Ankeny remain in prison. Sandoval’s attorney said he expected his client to be released soon.
(Radio Iowa) – City officials in Spencer are hoping the State of Iowa will help pay for an analysis to determine the full extent of flood damage to the city’s wastewater treatment system. Spencer City Administrator Kevin Robinson says the Federal Emergency Management Agency will help cover the cost of repairs — but it will cost a MILLION dollars to produce the report required to qualify.
“So without scanning the system and proving there’s damage, we can’t get a FEMA reimbursement,” he says. Robinson testified before the House Local Government Committee on Tuesday afternoon and told lawmakers the city’s biggest expense moving forward will be fixing its wastewater treatment plant. “Potentially we’ll need to upgrade the plant, which would be about $30 million,” he said. “At a minimum, we’ll have about $5 million to $6 million in repairs.”
There was sewer back-up in 75 percent of the homes, businesses, schools and other structures in Spencer during last June’s flooding. Robinson says insurance payouts for homeowners in that predicament have been inconsistent. “One company would say: ‘Yes, you had sewer back up. You’re covered,'” Robinson told lawmakers. “The next company would say: ‘You had sewer back up, but we believe the flood caused that back up because your wastewater treatment plant went offline in your city, therefore it was not localized to your residence and we are not paying your claim.'”
Earlier this month, Governor Reynolds called on legislators to set up new state oversight for people called “umpires” who mediate disputes over insurance claims.
GRINNELL, Iowa — Nearly 300 people will lose their jobs this spring when a window and door manufacturer closes its plant in Grinnell. According to Iowa WARN, a state-run log of notices of layoffs, Jeld-Wen gave notice Monday that it would lay off 298 workers at its Grinnell location effective March 21. The company told KCCI-TV the transition will begin immediately.
The North Carolina-based company laid off 152 workers at the plant last fall.
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