We’re supposed to stop at red lights, but some motorists ignore the law and blast right through, risking at least a ticket, and at most, killing someone. This is National Stop On Red Week.

Melissa Wandall, outreach director for the National Coalition for Safer Roads, is urging Iowans to become more aware of the deadly risks. “The goals for National Stop On Red Week are to educate, encourage and empower the motorists on our highways to make better decisions when stopping on red,” Wandall says. “We want to make sure that’s what they’re doing. So many people unfortunately have forgotten that we have laws in place to keep us all safe.”

A federal study of Iowa crashes in 2009 found intersection-related crashes claimed 87 lives. Nationwide, that same year, 87-hundred people were killed in such wrecks at intersections. While some drivers make a conscious choice to run a light because they’re running late, others might not realize they’re blowing through a stoplight because of their cell phone, G-P-S or something else.”It has more to do with distractions than it has to do with people just not stopping on red,” Wandall says. “It doesn’t just have to be a gadget. You can be distracted in your mind, with your kids in the car, with your radio, it’s thinking about something else other than the fact of where you’re going.”

Wandall’s husband, Mark, was killed by a red-light runner two weeks before their daughter was born. Wandall has since become a leading voice for intersection safety. She helped spark passage of Florida’s “Mark Wandall Traffic Safety Act,” which expanded the use of life-saving red light camera technology. She’s been telling her story for eight years now. “I’ve actually have had people who’ve come to me and said, ‘I’ve always ran lights. I didn’t care and I never got caught and I never hurt anybody else but after hearing your story, it really made me think I have to change my behavior because I might just take some innocent child’s life or I might take a dad out of some family’s life.'”

The study from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration found red-light running is the leading cause of urban crashes, while more than two-point-three million drivers received a red-light citation last year. Learn about this week’s campaign at: www.StopOnRedWeek.com

(Radio Iowa)

SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) – Two bicyclists have reported being shot at along a state highway northwest of Sioux City. Authorities say Tony Pierce and John Pecaut told deputies they were riding along Iowa Highway 12 a couple miles north of Stone State Park when the incident occurred Sunday morning. Pierce and Pecaut say a vehicle slowed as it neared them and someone inside it started shooting above their heads. The men took cover in a ditch.  A suspect vehicle was stopped about four miles north, and two men were arrested after a brief foot chase.

Twenty-two-year-old Terry Oliver Jr. faces a charge of attempted murder. Twenty-year-old Cesar Gonzalez is charged with being a material witness.
A Plymouth County jailer said both remained in custody on Monday.

Officials with the Nishna Valley Trails group  say children ages 3 through 10 are invited to take part in a bike ride as part of the AtlanticFest celebration on August 11^th.  The Ice Cream Ride will be held at the Schildberg Recreation Area on the west edge of Atlantic, beginning at 11 a.m.  According to their age level, riders will ride the trails around the lakes for varying distances.  At the end of the ride, an ice cream treat awaits the participants.

The starting point will be at the west entrance to the Recreation Area, off west 2^nd Street and along Buck Creek Road.  The parking area is across from the city Yard Waste Site.

The Ice Cream Ride is sponsored by the Nishna Valley Trails association, with special support from Fareway, Howard’s Clothing, and the Sweet Joy Shoppe.  For more information, contact Myra Kail at 243-4265.

w/ Ric Hanson

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (5.9MB)

Subscribe: RSS

The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office reports this morning (Monday), that a Red Oak man was cited for operating a vehicle with an expired driver’s license and expired plates, following an investigation into an accident which took place Thursday evening. Officials say 52-year old Dale Ellworth Burns was driving a 1994 Chevy pickup northbound on E Avenue near the intersection with 175th Street, when he lost control of the vehicle.

The pickup went into the east ditch and rolled onto its passenger side, sustaining $2,500 damage. Burns was not injured during the accident, which happened around 7:50-p.m., Thursday.

The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office says a couple from Adams County suffered from “road rash” following a motorcycle accident Sunday evening. 61-year old Mickey Burl Smart, and his passenger, 58-year old Carol Smart, both from Corning, were treated at the scene by Stanton Rescue, but refused transportation to the hospital. The accident happened at around 9:30-p.m.

Officials say the couple was riding a 2012 Harley Davidson when they came upon three deer on the roadway. When Mickey Smart dumped the cycle onto its left side, it slid about 63-feet before coming to rest on the south shoulder of the road. The cycle sustained $2,500 damage. No citations were issued.

Sheriff’s officials in Montgomery County say a Dodge City, Kansas, man was arrested Saturday afternoon on alcohol and other charges, following a traffic stop at the intersection of High Street and Highway 71, in Villisca. 30-year old Francisco Jav Figueroa-Ramirez was taken into custody at around 2:40-p.m., on charges he was Operating a motor vehicle While Intoxicated (OWI), having an Open Container, and Driving While Suspended (DWS). Figueroa-Ramirez was brought to the Montgomery County Jail and held on a $2,000 cash bond.

Authorities in Adams County say a Union County man was arrested early Saturday morning on drug and alcohol charges. 36-year old Andy Gist, from Creston, was taken into custody at around 2:45-a.m., on charges that include Driving While Intoxicated (DWI), Possession of drug paraphernalia, and Possession of Marijuana. He was also cited for speeding, and failure to have a license. Gist was later released on $2,585 bond. And, 55-year old Larry Biehn, of Massena, was arrested Friday night in Adams County, on a charge of Driving Under the Influence (DUI). He was later released on $1,000 bond.

Sheriff’s officials in Adams County say three people were arrested early Sunday morning on drug charges following a traffic stop on Highway 148. 48-year old Mark Mitchell, 21-year old Dale Anson and 47-year old Tammy Forsee, all from Corning, face Possession of Narcotics with the Intent to Deliver, Possession of Drug Paraphernalia and Failure to Affix a Tax Stamp charges, after the vehicle they were in was pulled over on Highway 148 at around 12:30-a.m. Sheriff’s deputies along with the Adams County K-9 unit recovered a large amount of marijuana from the vehicle. A search warrant was obtained for a residence on 9th Street in Corning, during which more drug related items were found. An additional charges of Child Endangerment has also been filed against the trio. The suspects were being held in the Adams County Jail without bond.