(Clarinda, Iowa) – The Page County Engineer reports part of a bridge guard rail along 180th Street was recently stolen. Engineer JD King said the rail was stolen from the bridge located at the intersection of 180^th and H Avenue. He suspects the railing was stolen for scrap money. Some of the rail was recovered by secondary roads crews and brought back to the shop, but King told the Page County Supervisors, Tuesday, that several of the posts are still unaccounted for.

There were no cameras nearby to capture the incident. King sadi the county’s insurance will not cover the loss of the rail. It’s not clear was the dollar loss of theft amounted to.

(Radio Iowa) – Iowans who love Halloween might want to share the holiday with their pets, but if you’re going to put the dog or cat in a costume, one expert says to be sure you’re not stressing them out instead. Megan Matamoros, director of shelter operations at the Animal Rescue League of Iowa, says there are costumes out there for practically every critter, including guinea pigs, but for starters, make sure the costume is a proper fit for your pet. “You want to make sure you get the right size, so there’s everything from extra-extra small to triple extra large,” Matamoros says. “Make sure if you have a golden retriever, for example, that you’re not using a small costume, trying to squeeze them into that costume so that they can breathe appropriately.”

ARL of Iowa photo

Pets have very sensitive hearing, so if you’re putting a hat, hood or anything else on their head, make sure their ears aren’t covered. “And then you don’t want to cover their eyes with a mask with no eye holes, so making sure that they can still see,” she says, “so that they can move around like a normal cat or dog, walking on all four paws, being able to rotate left and right, wag their tail, stick their tongue out and be able to hear. That’s going to be your safest option for your costume.” Some pets simply don’t like to wear costumes, so only dress them up if they don’t become stressed while wearing one. With many animals, she says it’s easy to tell if they’re unhappy in that outfit.

“Sometimes they look like they can’t walk, so if they’re falling over in their costume or constantly digging or tugging at their costume, that may be a sign of uncomfortability,” Matamoros says. “If they’re starting to really pant in their costume heavily, whether that’s a cat or a dog, that can be a sign of stress.”

The A-R-L’s Animal House Store at the Des Moines headquarters has a selection of pet costumes available on sale through Friday.

(Radio Iowa) – The Iowa Lottery ended the first quarter of the fiscal year with sales running ahead of last year, thanks to a big jackpot. Iowa Lottery C-E-O Matt Strawn. “Through September, through that three month period, total lottery sales just slightly ahead of 118 million dollars represents a 15-point-oh-three increase over last year through September,” he says. Strawn says the money sent to the state was also up. “Total lottery proceeds through September total 24-point-nine million. And that represents a year over year proceeds increase of 38point-six-five percent, and we’re ahead of fiscal ’26 budget targets by about 40 percent,” he says. The bottom line was boosted by the first big jackpot in some time.

“Those results were very heavily influenced by that one-point-seven-eight-seven billion-dollar Powerball jackpot we had in early September,” Strawn says. “In fact, the week of that big jackpot was the fifth highest sales week in the 40 year history of the Iowa Lottery.” Strawn says other games also benefited from the jackpot excitement. “When you have a large Powerball jackpot, there’s a bit of a halo effect on the rest of the lottery products that see a slight increase,” he says, “certainly nothing like we saw with the Powerball sales. But that increase dissipates over time.” Strawn says October has been a normal month thus far. “Sales have normalized and are much more closely tracking where we were last year, at least through the month of October,” Strawn says.

Strawn says fuel prices and the economy have more impact on sales in the absence of a big jackpot run.

(Red Oak, Iowa) – A man from Tabor was arrested Tuesday night following an investigation into a suspected case of abuse at a group home in Red Oak. Officers arrested 39-year-old Donnie Kenneth Pitcher at around 7-p.m., Tuesday, on two-counts of Dependent Adult Abuse – Intentional/with physical injury. Both are Class-C Felonies. Pitcher was also charged with Dependent Adult Abuse – a Serious Misdemeanor.

He was being held in the Montgomery County Jail on a $10,000 bond. The Fremont County Sheriff’s Office assisted Red Oak Police in conducting the investigation.

(Red Oak, Iowa) – Police in Red Oak arrested two people Tuesday afternoon, in connection with the theft of lottery tickets. Authorities say 22-year-old Jessica Andrea Nuñez, and 21-year-old Kaleb Rylie Toepfer, both of Red Oak, were arrested a little after 3-p.m., Tuesday, in the 400 block of N. 3rd Street. Nuñez was arrested on with two felony counts of lottery ticket theft and Theft in the 2nd Degree. Toepfer was arrested as an Accessory after the fact (stealing lottery tickets) – Felony, and Theft in the 2nd Degree, an Aggravated Misdemeanor.

Red Oak Police say the pair were arrested following an investigation involving the Iowa Lottery Authority, which resulted in the discovery of more than 500 stolen Lottery tickets and about $1,600 in profit from those tickets. Bond for both suspects was set at $5,000 each. They were being held in the Montgomery County Jail.

(Ames, Iowa via the Iowa Capital Dispatch) – Finalists for Iowa State University’s presidency will come to campus next week to meet with stakeholders and introduce themselves to the public in the hope of being selected for the role.

The Iowa Board of Regents announced Tuesday that three of the four finalists recommended by the ISU Presidential Search Committee have accepted invitations to visit Ames for meetings and open forums. The forums will take place from 4-5 p.m. Nov. 4-6 in the Memorial Union’s Durham Great Hall. The forums will also be livestreamed on the Iowa Board of Regents’ website.

Finalists were selected from a group of eight semifinalists, narrowed down by the search committee from a pool of nearly 80 candidates. While names have been kept confidential so far in the search, each finalist’s identity will be publicly announced and their curriculum vitae published online 24 hours before their campus visit.

Once campus visits are complete, the board of regents will speak with committee co-chairs Regent JC Risewick and ISU Faculty Senate President Meghan Gillette and interview the finalists in closed session during the group’s Nov. 11 meeting. According to the release, the board will announce ISU’s new president the same day, “tentatively scheduled for 6 p.m.” in the Memorial Union.

Each of the co-chairs said in previous statements they were impressed with the candidate pool for the position and are excited to bring the finalists to campus.

(Radio Iowa) – Republican Randy Feenstra says property tax reform is a priority for Iowa voters and he’ll work to lower residential, business and industrial property taxes and freeze them if he’s elected governor.  “We have to make sure that seniors can stay in their houses, but I also understand that when you give more money back to families and businesses, that’s how they grow and that’s how our economy will grow,” Feenstra said. “…I’m a fiscal hawk — anything that we can do to reduce taxes. As you know, I wrote and passed the largest tax reduction in Iowa history. I also helped and wrote the largest tax reduction in U.S. history and so I know a lot about taxes and for me it’s all about how you can grow an economy.”

Feenstra was a state senator for 12 years and is currently in the middle of his third term in the U.S. House. He’s on the House tax-writing committee that worked on President Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill. In 2018, Feenstra was chair of the Iowa Senate’s Ways and Means Committee when Republicans passed a nearly two-point-nine billion dollar reduction in state income taxes for individuals and corporations. Feenstra, who formally launched his campaign for governor yesterday (Tuesday), says ensuring access to health care, particularly in rural Iowa, is a concern.

“I was a volunteer EMT for 15 years. I know how important it is for that ambulance to be there within minutes of having a heart attack or a stroke.” Feenstra is emphasizing his Iowa roots. “I’m a fourth generation Iowan, grew up in northwest Iowa, right in the small town of Hull. Threw the paper route and worked at the local bakery, met my wonderful wife at the Pizza Ranch. We’ve been married 33 wonderful years and have four wonderful children that all went to the same school I did,” Feenstra says. “You know, for me, it’s all about making sure that Iowans can live the American dream just like I did.”

Feenstra began laying the groundwork for a campaign for governor shortly after Governor Kim Reynolds announced in April that she would not seek reelection. Feenstra has talked about the angst Iowans feel about young people leaving the state after high school and has suggested it’s time to emphasize vocational education programs. Feenstra says one of his goals as governor would be to ensure Iowa has a world class education system.

“We have to make sure that our kids are getting the fundamentals in education. We have to teach the ABCs and not DEI,” Feenstra said. “We have to make sure that every child has a quality education, from preschool all the way through community colleges to our universities.” Feenstra supports the state’s Education Savings Account program that gives parents state tax dollars to cover their child’s private school tuition and other expenses. Feenstra says he’s willing to discuss extending the state payment to parents who homeschool their children.

The video Feenstra’s campaign released Tuesday morning took aim at State Auditor Rob Sand, a Democrat who’s running for governor and suggested Sand is a pretender who is secretly liberal. During an interview with Radio Iowa, Feenstra says he’s the best Republican to face Sand in the 2026 General Election. “I can win. I’ve done it. I worked at a great business, the Foreign Candy Company. I understand how important it is to make sure you sell our state,” Feenstra said. “You know, now I’m at the federal level, working with Trump…I continue to deliver each and every time and I will deliver results for Iowa when I’m governor.”

Emily O’Brien, a spokesperson for Sand, says Feenstra spent half his launch video misleading Iowans about Rob Sand and O’Brien says Sand has a message that’s resonating with voters across the political spectrum. Three other Republicans have been running for governor the past few months. Two of them have been openly questioning why Feenstra had not been making public appearances around the state and campaigning for governor.

GUTHRIE COUNTY, Iowa — The Guthrie County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday declared emergency medical services an essential service, a step aimed at creating uniform EMS coverage countywide. KCCI reports the vote was 4-1. Supervisors J.D. Kuster, Brian Johnson and Steve Smith joined Supervisor Maggie Armstrong in support. Supervisor Mike Dickson was the lone no vote.

The earliest the question could go to county voters in a special election is March 2026, officials said. Backers expect a different outcome than last year, when a similar measure did not pass.

Maggie Armstrong said she will watch the Iowa Legislature closely, hoping two bills introduced last year resurface — one to make EMS tax-increment financing exempt and another to make EMS essential statewide.

ANKENY, Iowa [KCCI] — A 19-year-old Des Moines woman died after crashing into a semi that was sitting on the shoulder of Interstate 35 on Tuesday afternoon.

The Iowa State Patrol says a semi was sitting on the outside shoulder of the northbound lanes near mile marker 100.9 due to mechanical issues. Shortly before 3:30 p.m., Emilie Anne VanWinkle, of Des Moines, was traveling northbound in a 2002 Mercury Sable when she lost control and crashed into the rear of the semi on the side of the road.

The crash remains under investigation.

According to the latest data from the Iowa Department of Transportation, 226 people have died so far this year on Iowa roads. That number is 68 fewer than at the same point in 2024. Over the last five years, an average of 353 people have been killed in statewide crashes annually.