DES MOINES - Iowa State University has begun installing water quality monitoring equipment in 16 Iowa lakes to collect data during the 2011 and 2012 ice-free seasons
that will help identify what factors lead up to harmful algal blooms, which is a major water quality impairment for Iowa lakes.

The study is being conducted in cooperation with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources.  Hazard buoys mark the location of the equipment, which is beneath the
water surface and officials are asking the public to not disturb the buoys.

The following lakes will be part of the monitoring study.

Arrowhead Lake, Sac
Badger Lake, Webster
Beeds Lake, Franklin
Big Spirit Lake, Dickinson
Black Hawk Lake, Sac
Center Lake, Dickinson
East Lake, Clarke
Five Island Lake, Palo Alto
George Wyth Lake, Black Hawk
Lake Keomah, Mahaska
Lake Orient, Adair
Lower Gar Lake, Dickinson
Rock Creek Lake, Jasper
Silver Lake, Palo Alto
Silver Lake, Dickinson
Springbrook Lake, Guthrie
				

One-person suffered apparent minor injuries during an ATV accident this (Wednesday) morning, near Carson. According to Pottawattamie County dispatch reports, the male victim of the accident suffered shoulder injuries.

The mishap occurred just after 10-a.m. west of Carson, at 39615 Highway 92. Carson Rescue was paged to the scene. No other details are currently available.

The Iowa Hospital Association’s (IHA) Education and Research Foundation has awarded $96,000 in scholarships to 32 college students from all parts of Iowa.  Jennifer Arp of Massena, a registered nurse at Cass County Memorial Hospital, is one of the outstanding students from across the state who received a $3,000 scholarship. The students, who are all studying in health care fields, will also be eligible for up to $6,000 in assistance from the Iowa Hospital Education and Research Foundation (IHERF) over two years.
Jennifer currently works as the Quality Coordinator at CCMH, and is pursuing her Bachelor of Science in Nursing at the University of Phoenix.

IHA established the IHERF Health Care Careers Scholarship Program in 2004 to help address the ongoing shortage of health care professionals and encourage young Iowans to remain in the state as they establish their careers.  The first scholarships were awarded in 2005, and now 200 students have benefited from the program.  In exchange for financial support, scholarship-receiving students agree to work one year in an Iowa hospital for each year they receive an award.  Including these latest awards, the scholarship program has provided $600,000 in direct support to students since its inception.

IHA staff, the IHERF Board, hospital leaders and IHA Auxilian/Volunteer Board members from throughout the state evaluated scholarship applications from more than 130 students, who were judged on grade point average, a written personal statement, letters of reference, and extracurricular, community and healthcare-related activities.

This year’s recipients include nurses seeking both graduate and undergraduate degrees as well as students in physical therapy, occupational therapy, ultrasound technology and physician assistant programs.

The winners of this year’s Iowa Character Awards have been announced. Amy Smit, with the Character Counts in Iowa program, says 13 award winners were selected from 60 entries. “Every year, I think that they can’t get any better than the last. They always continue to not just surprise me, but our entire selection committee with the great Iowa teachers, students and companies that we have throughout the state,” Smit said.

All of the winners will be recognized at The Iowa Character Awards Banquet on August 5 at the Hy-Vee Conference Center in West Des Moines. Smit says Harlan High School is the winner of this year’s “School of Character” award. “They’re fairly new to Character Counts, but they’ve really taken it on and made it part of their school culture and climate. So, we’re really happy to recognize them,” Smit said.

Andria Knutson and Zach Moss of Winterset, have been named co-winners in the “Youth Citizen of the Year” category. “These two are known throughout their community for being so service oriented and so caring about other people that our selection committee was really blown away by their dedication to helping others,” Smit said. Character Counts In Iowa is a non-profit organization that was founded by former Governor Robert Ray in 1997.

(Pat Powers/Radio Iowa)

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Sheriff’s officials in western Iowa’s Monona County say a Moorhead man died following a motorcycle accident between Moorhead and Pisgah. 36 year old Eric Houston was found in a ditch off of Highway 183. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Officials say the accident, which happened sometime Monday night, was not discovered until Tuesday morning, when the driver of a mail truck saw Houston’s cycle in the ditch.

The accident remains under investigation.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin is urging U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack to approve crop disaster relief for western Iowa in the wake of flooding along the Missouri River. Harkin, a Democrat, made his plea in a letter to Vilsack, a former Iowa governor. Harkin says a secretarial disaster designation would provide money from USDA programs, emergency loans and Supplemental Revenue Assistance Payments Program to help producers recover from loss of crops and damage to farmland, livestock facilities and buildings.

Harkin says designated counties would include: Fremont, Harrison, Mills, Monona, Pottawattamie, and Woodbury. Gov. Terry Branstad recently began the process to secure a disaster designation.

Dep. Kyle Quist & his K-9 partner Kane (photo by Cass. Co. S/O)

The Cass County K-9 unit was involved in the apprehension early this morning of two suspects in Pottawattamie County. Full details are currently not available, but according to Sheriff’s Deputy Kyle Quist, a vehicle pursuit ended with a crash in Pott County at 290^th and York Road.

Two suspects ran from the vehicle and were located by the K-9 unit in a tree line east of where they wrecked the vehicle We’ll have more on this story when additional details are released.

The Cass County K-9 unit was involved in the apprehension early this morning of two suspects in northern Pottawattamie County. Pott County Sheriff’s Department spokesman, Sgt. Dwayne Richie told KJAN News the incident began at around 2:36-a.m. near Neola, as Deputy John Kirlin, who was on routine patrol, was traveling south on Railroad Highway.

The deputy observed two vehicles traveling northbound. After he turned around to catch up with the vehicles, both vehicles began to speed up. One car made a turn onto 6^th Street in Neola, the other turned onto 5^th Street. The 1^st car turned around and back onto Railroad Hwy before traveling onto 5^th street. Both vehicles were traveling at a high rate of speed. The deputy activated his cruiser’s lights and sirens.

Deputy Kirlin then began to record the incident on his in-car camera. He was able to follow the taillights of one of the vehicle onto 290^th Street and continued the pursuit at speeds in excess of 77-miles per hour on the gravel road.

The pursuit ended at the intersection of York Road and Tustin Avenue, where Kirlin found a red, 2009 Chevy Cobalt in the north ditch. The vehicle was unoccupied, and the rear passenger door left open. The car’s engine was also running and beginning to overheat. The deputy shut the vehicle off and was assisted in the search for the occupants by two more deputies, a State Trooper and a Harrison County Sheriff’s Deputy and Cass County K-9 officer Kyle Quist and his partner “Kane.”

Authorities determined three suspects ran from the vehicle. Two suspects, a male and a female, both 18-years of age, were located by the K-9 unit hiding in a tree line. They were identified as Caitlyn Ozee and Patrick Eggerling. The driver of the vehicle, identified as 35-year old Scott Hall, of Council Bluffs. Hall reportedly told the pair to “run,” but they soon reconsidered their options. Richie says they were warned by Deputy Quist to come out or the dog would be sent after them, they decided to comply.

The pair were charged with Interference with Official Acts. During question, Eggerling told officials why Hall took-off from the deputy. He said it was because Hall didn’t have a Driver’s License. Hall remains at large, and a warrant has been issued for his arrest.