(Radio Iowa) – Another Republican has entered the race for governor and it’s a candidate who says he’ll be the biggest donor to his own campaign. Zach Lahn kicked off his campaign this afternoon at his family’s century farm near Belle Plaine, which he bought in 2014 and where his family now lives. Lahn is the son of a pastor who grew up in Sioux City, got a degree in political science from Colorado University and got a job working for a member of Colorado’s state senate. He’s led campaigns for Republican candidates in Iowa and other states and has worked for the political advocacy group Americans for Prosperity.

Lahn now runs an investment business and says he’s not a politician, will be his biggest donor and can’t be bought. As governor, Lahn says he’d pursue an “Iowa First” agenda because the people who built Iowa are being pushed aside by greed and corruption. Lahn is calling for the break up big ag and big pharma monopolies that he says have rigged the system against farmers and poisoned Iowa families for generations.

(Glenwood, IA) – The Mills County Sheriff’s Office reports 31-year-old Jessica Elaine Harvey, of Glenwood, was arrested Wed. night. Harvey was taken into custody in Glenwood, on a charge of Domestic Assault-Bodily Injury/1st offense. Her bond was set at $1,000.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – Officials with Vision Atlantic report Tom and Dianna Williams, of Atlantic, recently made a generous $1,000 donation to support Vision Atlantic’s transformative community development project. Having called Atlantic home for more than 45 years, the Williams family says they have seen firsthand how collaboration and community spirit can shape a thriving hometown. Their commitment – Vision Atlantic says – reflects both a love for this community and a shared belief in investing in its future growth and vitality.

(Photo: Vision Atlantic President Christina Bateman alongside Tom and Dianna Williams. – Submitted by Vision Atlantic)

In a news release, Tom and Dianna Williams said “Atlantic has been home to our family for over 45 years. Our children were born and raised here, and now two of them are raising their own families in this same community. Dianna’s work in elementary education for over 36 years has fueled her passion for providing the best possible care for children and families. We’re proud to be a small part of this incredible group of visionary leaders working to expand and strengthen Atlantic. Communities can only grow and prosper when we all come together to make positive changes for the future.”

Vision Atlantic project includes a new housing development, child development center, and YMCA expansion.Read more about it at www.visionatlantic.org.

(Creston, Iowa) – Officials with the Creston Police Department say two vehicles sustained a total of $4,500 damage, but no injuries were reported following a collision Wednesday afternoon at the intersection of Mills and Spruce Streets.

Authorities say a Ford SUV driven by 67-year-old Phyllis Shilling, of Greenfield, was traveling south on Spruce Street at around 2:20-p.m. As Shilling approached the intersection, she failed notice a Jeep SUV driven by 37-year-old Maggie Stuart, of Creston, who was traveling east on Mills Street. When Shilling failed to yield at the posted intersection, her SUV was struck by the Jeep on the right front side.

No citations were issued.

(Radio Iowa) – Some Iowans could see their first snowflakes of the season this weekend. Meteorologist Dylan Dodson, at the National Weather Service in Johnston, says there are still a lot of uncertainties in the forecast, especially across northern Iowa. “Because the temperature differences at the surface are going to matter a lot,” Dodson says. “One to two degrees could be the difference between rain or snow for you with this system as these typically are towards the beginning of the season.”

While today (Thursday) and Friday should feature unseasonably warm weather, the storm front will move in on Saturday, though the only sure thing is — it’ll be dropping some form of precipitation. “It’s tough to say how much we’re going to get,” Dodson says. “You could see some areas that just get all rain. There could be some areas that look at one to two, maybe even three inches of snowfall. It definitely is going to vary depending on where you’re at and what the temperature is in that area.”

While the forecast calls for parts of the state to experience low temperatures in the teens by Sunday night, highs could be back to near 60 by the middle of next week.

(Radio Iowa) – Health care providers who met with Rob Sand, a Democrat who’s running for governor, are raising concerns about the private companies that manage Iowa’s Medicaid system and the shortage of rural doctors. Dr. Abby Flannagan, a 33-year-old O-B-G-Y-N at UnityPoint Health in Grinnell, says without incentives to practice in rural Iowa, it won’t just be a shortage — there won’t be physicians delivering babies outside of urban areas. “And sadly, I think, in my lifetime,” Flannagan said, “which is terrifying ’cause it’s always something you think is never going to happen while you’re around, but I do think unfortunately in the next couple of decades we’re going to see that.”

Flannagan says UnityPoint in Grinnel is already the only hospital delivering babies between Waterloo and Pella and Des Moines and Iowa City. During a forum in Newton yesterday (Wednesday), Flannagan told Sand there need to be dramatically more residencies in Iowa for med school graduates and the state’s current student loan forgiveness programs are too limited. Sand held the listening session in Newton, where the city’s hospital closed its labor and deliver unit in 2024. “I think at the end of the day, the vast majority of Iowans want someone there to deliver their babies,” Sand said. “…I think it’s important we not just talk about being a welcoming Iowa, but just quit with the culture war and just be focused on solving real problems for people.”

Others who participated in the round table raised concerns about regulations they fear may penalize hospitals and doctors that deliver higher percentages of cesarean deliveries. The former president of Mercy Clinics in Des Moines told Sand hospitals, doctors and clinics are still waiting too long to get reimbursed for providing care to Iowa Medicaid patients — and have to consider whether it would cost more to sue or pay the interest on a line of credit from a bank while they wait to get paid by the managed care companies the state hired to handle transactions.

DES MOINES, Iowa — The owners of the shuttered Steer N’ Stein are suing the Iowa State Fair, accusing it of a “coordinated and retaliatory campaign” to close their business after the fair terminated their lease earlier this year. KCCI reports Steer N’ Stein owner Mike Krantz claims the fair terminated Steer N’ Stein’s lease, citing unpaid fees totaling $102,000. The lawsuit alleges that the company faced issues with a new payment system used by the fair, and the family believed they had settled the balance until they received a notice from the fair stating they owed $90,000. Krantz said they were not informed why they owed the money.

The family accuses the fair of defamation, alleging it misrepresented the amount of money involved in the dispute. The lawsuit also claims the Iowa State Fair improperly auctioned off the property and engaged in uncompetitive business practices. Krantz’s attorneys say the financial, reputational, and constitutional damages could exceed $90 million.

The Iowa State Fair declined to comment.

(Radio Iowa) – Forecasters say Iowans should have a few more days of unseasonably warm weather before the cold sets in, so this may be the ideal time to transition the lawn mower to the back of the barn or shed and get the snowblower ready for duty. Kris Kiser, president and C-E-O of the Outdoor Power Equipment Institute, says to prep the mower for storage by sharpening the blade, putting in a new spark plug and air filter, and running it until it runs out of gas. “Fuel has ethanol in it now, which is hygroscopic. It’ll absorb water over time and phase separate. The key is to not let that happen,” Kiser says. “So run the product dry, clean it and try to store it in dry place. That’s key for power equipment.”

If your mower or other tools, like weed trimmers, run on those large, rechargeable batteries, there’s a right way and a wrong way to store those for the winter ahead — and those batteries are pricey, so don’t just leave them attached. “Follow your manufacturer directions to the letter here,” Kiser says. “There are some differences with that, but likely it’s going to be — charge them up, don’t put them on a metal shelf, and store in a cool, dry place.” If your snowblower was put away properly in the spring, he says it should be an easy chore to get it ready for the winter ahead. Fuel stabilizers, products like Sta-bil, may be helpful but Kiser would refer you back to the instruction manual. “The key, I think most engine manufacturers today will say, run it dry, store it dry with nothing else in it,” Kiser says. “It should, when you introduce fresh fuel, remember fuel stales now, and so when you’re ready to bring it back out for the season, use fresh fuel. Don’t have fuel that you’ve kept in a can in the garage for 30 days or more, fresh fuel should bring it back.”

Does much need to be done to a snowblower to get it ready for action? “A lot of it’s going to be determined by how you put it up, so if you run it dry and you’ve stored it in a dry place, you should likely have no issues whatsoever,” Kiser says. “Not all snow blowers have them, but check the air filter, check the oil, but if you put it up, it’ll likely fire right when you fill it with gasoline. Give it a pull or two, it should fire right away.” Forecasters says light snow is possible in parts of Iowa this weekend, but no accumulation is likely. Still, the flying flakes will be here soon enough, and Kiser says when that day arrives, you’ll want to take another precaution for the health of your snowblower.

“If you’re going to get a snowstorm, clear the area that you intend to plow or blow, because that machine is going to find sticks, debris, the garden hose, dog toys, whatever is left out there. That machine is going to find them, and once the snow covers them, you’re not going to see them,” Kiser says. “So the key is, before the storm, get out there, clear it, you don’t want the machine finding those items.” If you have questions about your power equipment but can’t find the original instruction manual, he notes it’s probably online.

https://www.opei.org/

BLAIR, Neb. — A western Iowa woman who was arrested in Blair, Nebraska after her two children were rescued from a hot car this past Summer, has plead guilty to child abuse. KETV in Omaha reports the incident happened in August at an apartment complex. Blair police arrested Tanya Knudsen of Missouri Valley. She plead guilty, Wednesday, to a charge of child abuse.

Blair police said employees at a nearby business heard children screaming and called 911. A Washington County Sheriff’s sergeant, who was in the area, found a 3-year-old and a 16-month old crying inside a locked vehicle. The vehicle was not running, and the children were secured in car seats.

The kids were taken to the hospital and were released to a family member. Knudsen is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 6, 2026.