West Nile virus cases have hit the second highest number since the mosquito-born virus was identified in Iowa in 2002. The Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH) reports 73 cases of West Nile virus are under investigation. The highest year was 2003, when Iowa had 147 cases. “School has started, Halloween is just around the corner and some people are even thinking about the holidays, but mosquitoes are still thriving and biting,” said IDPH Deputy Epidemiologist, Dr. Ann Garvey. “West Nile virus activity will continue until the state’s first hard frost, regardless of the date on the calendar.”

Most people (70 to 80 percent) who become infected with West Nile virus do not develop any symptoms. About one in five people who are infected will develop a fever along with other symptoms such as:

• Headache
• Body aches
• Joint pains
• Vomiting
• Diarrhea
• Rash

Whether for work or play, in the backyard or a football game, being outside means there’s a risk for West Nile virus. Iowans should take the following steps to reduce the risk of exposure to West Nile virus:

• Use insect repellent with DEET, Picaridin, oil of lemon eucalyptus, or IR3535. Always read the repellent label and consult with a health care provider if you have questions when using these types of products for children. For example, oil of lemon eucalyptus should not be used on children under 3 years of age and DEET should not be used on children less than 2 months of age.
• Avoid outdoor activities at dusk and dawn when mosquitoes are most active.
• Wear long-sleeved shirts, pants, shoes and socks outdoors whenever possible.

In addition, and especially since the recent statewide rainy weather, it’s important to eliminate standing water around your property because that’s where mosquitoes lay eggs. Empty water from buckets, cans, pool covers and pet water dishes. Change water in bird baths every three to four days.

So far this season, three Iowans have died from West Nile virus. For more information on mosquito and tick transmitted diseases in Iowa visit https://www.idph.iowa.gov/cade/vectorborne-illness.

(Radio Iowa) – Native American activists built a sweat lodge in Sioux City which they hope will inspire people to seek out the healing they need to get well from alcoholism, domestic abuse and trauma. The small hut is made of willow tree limbs, nestled on a field next to War Eagle Park. Calvin Harlan, with the Omaha Tribe of Nebraska and Iowa, says it’s a way to cleanse the mind, body and spirit. “We talk to Mother Earth and God about our problems, our issues, and when we come out, we leave them in there so that they’re taken care of,” Harlan says.

For many, it’s a place of prayer or healing. Harlan says the sweat lodge helps people let go of the negativity in their life, a large part of the healing process. Frank LaMere, a member of the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska, says the Native community is in “dire need of healing” and the sweat lodge will be a tremendous benefit. “Whatever can help you get well is what I want to see us be a part of,” LaMere says. “This is a big part for those who’ve lost their way who’ve decided to come home, back to their people — be they Omaha, Winnebago, Nakota, Lakota, Dakota, Meskwaki — they can come back to their roots.”

As he looks forward, LaMere says he hopes to see the sweat lodge prosper as he says it could really make a difference for those who have strayed. “Things in the Native community, and maybe even in the greater community with regard to alcohol, drug abuse, opioid use in our community has probably never been worse and we don’t talk about that,” LaMere says. “This is a step toward healing, a step in that direction.”

The lodge is near Jackson Recovery Centers’ Sioux City facility. Jackson’s Ben Nesselhuf says it’s one way the recovery center could better serve its Native American patients. “Helping them connect with something that they feel comfortable with, helping them connect to their own traditions, their own culture,” Nesselhuf says. “In the past, we’ve had patients that have gone off site for sweats, so this way we have it much closer.”

The sweat lodge is a partnership between Jackson, the community and the nonprofit group Native Youth Standing Strong. Advocates say it may be one of the biggest steps the Native American community and supporters are taking to grow and address issues of addiction, health and depression.
(written By Katie Peikes, Iowa Public Radio)

(Radio Iowa) – Medpharm Iowa spokesman, Lucas Nelson, says the company’s facility in Des Moines will be ready to deliver medical marijuana products. He says work has been right on schedule. They are going just about as wonderfully as we could have hoped,” Nelson says. “We’ve got a couple of more pieces of equipment that are being installed and being trained on right now, but our grow facility is completely up and going. The extraction, processing and formulation side of it…is basically done.” He says they are getting the plants ready to extract the cannabis oil to make the products to sell. “We got a number of production cycles already in motion. We’ll have a big harvest coming soon. That’ll be some of the fresh material that’ll be processed into final product,” Nelson says.

Medpharm is a subsidiary of Kemin Industries. The company also won the rights to have two dispensaries to sell the medical marijuana. “Our Windsor Heights and our Sioux City location are actually ahead of schedule on both — which is almost unheard of. I wouldn’t have been that surprise if we were behind, instead we are actually ahead of schedule,” according to Nelson. “So, that’s excellent.” He says they hope to have the dispensaries open in November to start some educational events. “Open houses, kind of tours, explanations about the program. And again, if you are a patient, what the process is going to be like, what you should bring with you, what to expect, what sort of products are available, all those sorts of things, so that when the program truly goes live at the end of the month you are not going to have questions,” he says. “Hopefully most people won’t have questions, they are not going to have confusion, they’ll walk in and they’ll know what to expect.”

Other companies are running dispensaries in Council Bluffs, Waterloo and Davenport. He says it seems like those dispensaries are on target and haven’t fallen too far behind schedule. Nelson says they are at a bit of disadvantage in not having as many people on the ground as they are out of state operators. Nelson says Medpharm has been working with them to help them get ready for the start of sales. “We’ve talked at length with them about training procedures and all that sort of thing that is obviously very important for patients, that they are getting the same information if they come into any dispensary. So there’s no confusion about products and what might work for what condition and what wouldn’t work,” Nelson says.

The state law requires Medpharm to have the products ready for sale by December 1st.

(Update 10:09-a.m.) The last of the errant hogs were rounded-up and loaded into a trailer a little after 10-a.m. today (Friday), following a semi-tractor trailer rollover accident earlier this morning in Cass County. Authorities had asked motorists to avoid the area of Interstate 80 and Exit 64 (The Wiota Exit) when the accident resulted in numerous hogs to be set free. Anita Rescue and Wiota Fire crews were called to the scene at around 4:30-a.m. today (Friday). Cass County Emergency Management Director Mike Kennon says the semi was hauling 160 head of hogs.
One person was said to have been suffering from a head injury following the crash. They were transported to the Cass County Memorial Hospital for treatment of non-life threatening injuries. Kennon said the semi rolled after when it left the Interstate and was turning south from the off-ramp onto Highway N-28, toward Wiota.The Iowa State Patrol, Cass County Sheriff’s Deputies, Cass County EMA and a veterinarian were all on the scene, along with Wiota Fire and Anita Rescue.

Photo’s courtesy Mike Kennon, Cass Co. EMA

A man and woman were arrested early this (Friday) morning on burglary charges, in Creston. According to Creston Police, 53-year old Dennis Earl Christensen and 57-year old Elizabeth Elaine Christensen, both of Creston, were arrested at around 2:30-a.m. at their residence. Both face charges of Burglary in the 3rd Degree. Dennis Christensen faces additional charges that include Possession of a Controlled Substance (Meth) and Possession of Paraphernalia. He was being held in the Union County Jail. Elizabeth Christensen was being held in the Adams County Jail, for Union County. Bonds for both were set at $5,000.

DAVENPORT, Iowa (AP) — A man accused of killing and sexually assaulting a woman in Dubuque has changed his plea to guilty. Twenty-two-year-old Helmon Betwell was sentenced Thursday to life in prison with the possibility of parole after he entered the new plea. A charge of sexual assault was dismissed. Betwell’s trial was scheduled to begin next week. Police say he attacked 66-year-old Nancy Krapfl on Sept. 1, 2015, as she was walking in Dubuque.

In April last year a judge ruled Betwell was competent for trial after his lawyers had questioned his ability to help prepare his defense. A defense expert had said Betwell has an intellectual disability that prevents him from understanding the proceedings. The judge said subnormal intelligence is just one consideration in a competency decision.