The lastest U-S-D-A crop report out Monday shows a majority of the corn and soybean crops have emerged, but some farmers are heading back to the fields. Corn and soybean growers in six-county area of southwest Iowa have to replant thousands of acres of crops destroyed by last week’s wind and hail storms. Iowa State University’s Southwest Iowa Extension Agronomist, Aaron Saegling rates the damage that stretches from Oakland to Council Bluffs as- among the worst he’s seen during his 25-year career.

“Those plants are gone. They’re not laying down in the field. They’re gone. They’re just not even in the field,” Saegling says, “And so that tells me there is probably as much wind as hail. We have some fields that are pretty bare.” Saegling says farmers can try to get a crop out of some of the fields.  “There will be a lot of soybean replanting. A lot of the corn I don’t believe will make it. …so a lot of those acres will probably not be replanted because it’s pretty late in the year.”

Saegling says many barren fields will be getting erosion-preventing cover crops. The report says 98-percent of the corn crop has emerged, which is 18-percent ahead of last year and four percent ahead of the five-year average. The U-S-D-A report says soybean planting is nearly complete and 87-percent of the crop has emerged. That’s three weeks ahead of last year and about one week ahead of normal.

(Radio Iowa)

CARROLL, Iowa (AP) — Two western Iowa men are accused of stealing more than 500 flagpoles from the Carroll American Legion over Memorial Day weekend. The Carroll Daily Times Herald reports that 37-year-old Christopher Lee Gay and 20-year-old Chance Abel Kinney, both of Lake City, were arrested on Sunday. The men were charged with first- and second-degree theft and were released from jail on a promise to appear in court.

Police Chief Jeff Cayler says investigators are seeking a third suspect, whom he declined to identify. The suspects allegedly stole two trailers with an estimated 550 metal flagpoles and tried to sell them at two salvage yards. Salvage yard workers declined to buy the poles, and were able to identify at least one of the suspects.

The poles are worth an estimated $16,500.

CARROLL, Iowa (AP) — Officials in Carroll are more closely enforcing maximum occupancy limits in the city’s public library after a former City Council member threatened to report overcrowding to the state fire marshal. The Carroll Daily Times Herald reported Monday that former council member R.W. Collison sent the letter last week to Fire Chief Greg Schreck.

Collison noted that hundreds of children attend summer reading programs at the library and would be in danger if the building had to be vacated quickly because of a fire or other emergency. Officials were measuring the building and planned to post maximum occupancy signs of about 100 people. Some library programs may need to be moved to other sites.

Collison has supported redevelopment of the library. He’s opposed proposals to build a new library.

The Atlantic Community School District’s Board of Education Monday night approved the hiring of Eric Waldstein as the new Head Football Coach. Waldstein comes from Aberdeen, S.D., where he taught Health and Wellness classes, is a strength and Conditioning Coordinator, and has been Head Football Coach at Presentation Junior College since 2012.  He succeeds Nick Ross, who resigned in April.

Eric Waldstein (Photo from pcsaints.com)

In addition to his coaching duties, Waldstein will be a Physical Education and Social Studies teacher at the Atlantic High School. His wife, Hillary, was hired as a Level 2 & 3 Special Ed instructor at the high school. Athletic Director Matt Alexander said Eric Waldstein has junior college head coaching experience and is well qualified for the position. He was one of 7 finalists for the job,5 of whom were from within the district.

In a Press Release, Alexander says Eric Waldstein began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Morningside College in Sioux City, and since that time has had the opportunity to coach at several 2 and 4 year colleges including Simpson in Indianola, IA and Cornell College in Mount Vernon, IA. Coach Waldstein has also been either the head or assistant coaches at junior colleges in Illinois and Wisconsin.

Alexander says Coach Waldstein’s experience and background will be a great asset to the Trojan football program. He’s expected to meet with his staff this Friday. Waldstein and his family are making plans to get moved to the community in the near future.  He and his wife have two children, Xander, age 6, and Ryan, age 2.

A Harlan man died after a single vehicle accident this (Monday) morning. The Shelby County Sheriff’s say 71 year old Kelly Doonan of Harlan died following the accident near 915 Timber Road in rural Shelby County. Doonan was driving a 1998 Chevy Pickup northbound on Timber Road around 7:15am when he lost control, left the roadway and struck a tree in the front yard. Doonan was transported to Myrtue Memorial Hospital in Harlan and was pronounced dead. The pickup was a total loss. The Shelby County Sheriff’s were assisted by Medivac Ambulance, Harlan Fire Department and Kimballton Fire Department.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — An audit of Veterans Affairs facilities has found nearly 1,000 veterans who requested an initial appointment in Iowa or Nebraska over the last decade, but have not yet been seen. The report released Monday says 987 enrolled veterans sought appointments at one of three facilities — two in Iowa, and one in Nebraska that serves western Iowa.

The VA Nebraska-Western Iowa Health Care System had 606 appointment requests during the last decade that have not been scheduled. The VA Central Iowa Health Care System had 274 requests, and the Iowa City VA Health Care System had 107.

The report shows 317 new patients who were placed on waiting lists for initial appointments. New patients are placed on waiting lists when an appointment can’t be scheduled within 90 days.

Sheriff’s officials in Mills County say one person was transported to a hospital in Council Bluffs following an accident Saturday afternoon, northeast of Malvern. Judy Smith was a passenger in a 2007 Pontiac driven by Charles Smith, of Red Oak. She was taken by Malvern Rescue to Jenny Edmundson Hospital following the rear-end collision just west of the intersection of Highway 34 and 330th St.

Officials say a 1999 Plymouth driven by Jerico Coy, of Omaha, was traveling west on Highway 34 behind the Smith vehicle, and failed to notice Smiths’ car before running into the back of it. The accident happened at around 12:15-p.m.

Four people were arrested over the weekend, in Mills County. Sheriff’s officials report 21-year old Angel Rose Bovee, of Glenwood, was arrested at around 4-p.m. Friday, on a warrant for Violation of her probation. Her bond was set at $10,000.

On Saturday, Mills County deputies arrested 20-year old Ozzy Ray Hunter, of Oakland, on a warrant for Failure to Appear on an original charge of Driving While Barred. He was taken into cusotdy at around 2:30-p.m. during a traffic stop on Highway 59 at Applewood Road. Hunter’s bond was set at $5,000.

On Sunday, 37-year old Francine May Gladden, of Omaha, was arrested in Mills County on a Red Oak Police Dept. warrant. Her bond was set at $300.

And on Monday (Today), 19-year old Kurtis Robert Miller, of Council Bluffs, was arrested near Highway 34 and 370th Street in Mills County. Miller was charged with Possession of a Controlled Substance and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. His bond was set at $1,300.

(Noon News)

Authorities in Montgomery County are investigating a break-in and theft from Sunbest Papetti Farms, on the southwest side of Villisca. Officials say the incident happened sometime between 4-p.m. Friday, June 6th, and the early morning hours of Saturday, June 7th. Officials say a person or persons unknown broke into the maintenance shed at the egg business, located at 2975 265th Street.

Once inside, more than $3,000 worth of tools were loaded into a Kubota utility vehicle and driven to T Avenue, where they were off-loaded into another vehicle. Anyone with information about the crime is asked to contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-432-1001.