The person suspected of stealing a car late Tuesday morning in Atlantic and leading authorities on a high speed chase faces multiple moving violations. The Cass County Sheriff’s Office says a 54-year old male resident of the Willow Heights Residential Care Facility, was being held at the Behavioral Health Unit at the Cass County Memorial Hospital, but he was not placed under arrest. The man’s name cannot be released because of HIPPA rules.

Officials say he allegedly stole a 2002 Dodge Intrepid belonging to Jon and Darcy Schwanke, of Atlantic, while the couple was fixing a fence near Willow Heights. The incident began at around 11-a.m. Tuesday. A chase ensued, ending on Highway 71 near Newport Road, when the driver of the stolen vehicle lost control, and the car entered the east ditch. No injuries were reported. The driver was subsequently transported to CCMH for evaluation.

The man received six citations, including: Unsafe Passing; 2 counts of Failure to Obey Stop signs; Reckless Driving; Excessive Speed and Failure to Maintain Control. Additional charges are possible, pending completion of the investigation. Officials say the Schwanke vehicle sustained an estimated $2,600 damage, while a 2009 Dodge Charger driven by Cass County Chief Deputy Sheriff Jon Westering, sustained about $400 damage, when Westering attempted to stop the stolen car.

The Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH) joins national and local partners in recognizing May as Stroke Awareness Month. Approximately 60,000 Iowans were told by a doctor they had suffered a stroke in 2011, and while the death rate from stroke has been decreasing, stroke is the fourth leading cause of death in Iowa.

“The most recent data shows stroke causes 5 percent of all the deaths in Iowa – that’s about one stroke every six hours,” said IDPH Director, Dr. Mariannette Miller-Meeks. “Recognizing the symptoms of a stroke and acting quickly to get medical attention can save a life and limit disabilities.”

The signs of stroke are sudden and happen without warning. IDPH recommends you act F.A.S.T. if you or someone with you has the following symptoms:

• Face – Ask the person to smile. Does one part of the face droop? Does the person report sudden numbness in the face?
• Arms – Is one arm weak or numb? Ask the person to raise both arms. Does one arm drift downward? This is also true of legs. One leg may suddenly become weak or numb, or the person is unable to walk.
• Speech – Ask the person to speak. Is their speech slurred? Are they unable to speak? Can they correctly repeat a simple sentence? Do they respond to questions with answers that don’t make sense?
• Time – If the person shows any of these symptoms, call 9-1-1 immediately.
  

Additional signs of stroke include sudden confusion, sudden trouble seeing in one or both eyes, sudden dizziness or loss of balance, and sudden severe headache with no known cause. If possible, remember when the individual last appeared normal and when the first stroke symptoms appeared. This is very important in determining the best treatment options and if certain medications can be used.

The IDPH Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention program has more information on stroke available at www.idph.state.ia.us/hpcdp/hdsp_home.asp.

(Press Release)

A public hearing will take place during a regular meeting of the Walnut City Council, Thursday, with regard to an amendment to the Fiscal Year 2012-2013 budget. Following the hearing and discussion, the Council will vote on adopting a Resolution calling for a budget amendment. They’ll also vote on a Resolution on the issuance of $1.06-million in General Obligation (G.O.) Refunding Bonds, Series 2013, and the providing of a Debit Service Levy to pay for the bonds.

In other business, the Walnut City Council will discuss: a possible Streetscape Enhancement Project, and the Optimist’ Antique City Car Show. They will also review and update the City’s Infrastructure Needs Study and Strategic Plan.

The Walnut City Council meeting begins at 5-p.m., Thursday.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – The Iowa Department of Education will establish a task force to review whether to adopt new science standards for students.  Lt. Gov. Kim Reynolds announced the creation of the task force today (Wednesday). The group will review the Next Generation Science Standards, science learning goals for K-12 students developed in a multi-state process.  The task force will make a recommendation on whether those standards should be part of the Iowa Core curriculum.

Iowa was one of 26 states that worked to develop the science standards. The goal was to set standards that help prepare students for college or the workforce. The standards were released in April.

Iowa’s cold, rainy weather may be less than ideal for two-wheeling it this morning, but the National Bike Challenge opens today (Wednesday). Iowa placed in the top ten in the competition last year. Mark Wyatt, executive director of the Iowa Bicycle Coalition, says it’ll be nice out soon and Iowa’s cycling enthusiasts can start adding up their miles. “We’re going to be working to try to boost Iowa to the top,” Wyatt says. “This is a state-by-state and a bicyclist-by-bicyclist and a community-by-community challenge to see who can ride their bikes more.” There are many different ways Iowans can take part in the countrywide contest and there’s an online leader board.

“You can look at individual riders and see who’s amassing the most points,” Wyatt says. “You can form a team of a group of people that can work together and encourage each other. Your workplace can compete against other workplaces and communities can compete against other communities to see who has the most bicycling in the state.” To take part in the challenge, log on to the website: Iowa Goes By Bicycle-dot-com.

“That will take you to the sign-in page,” Wyatt says. “It will ask you a few simple questions or you can log in with Facebook. There’s even a smartphone app so if you really don’t like typing in your miles, you can just pull out your phone and hit ‘start’ and it will record when you’re riding your bike.” The event kicks off National Bike Month. To learn more, visit: www.iowabicyclecoalition.org.

(Radio Iowa)

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With the month of May underway, let’s look back at the weather stats for Atlantic last month. In April 2013, the average High temperature in Atlantic was 57 -degrees. The normal average High is 62. The average low for the month was 32, which is slightly cooler than the norm of 37. Precipitation for the month was more than an inch above normal, at 4.55-inches, which included melted snowfall (and that amounted to only a “Trace”). Normal precipitation in April here in Atlantic, is 3.43-inches.

The hottest days of the month were the 29th and 30th, both of which topped out at 82. The coolest day was 13-degrees, which occurred on April 1st. Looking ahead to the month of May, our records indicate the average high is 73, while the average low has been 49. Precipitation for the month typically amounts to 4.32-inches.

KJAN is the official National Weather Service reporting site for Atlantic.

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DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – The Iowa Senate plans to debate a bill that would require people convicted of certain aggravated misdemeanors to submit DNA samples for a federal databank.   Lawmakers are set to debate the measure today (Wednesday).  Under the proposal, adults convicted of crimes like aggravated assault and theft would submit a DNA sample. Under current Iowa law, only convicted felons and sexual offenders are required to submit samples.

Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller is supporting the bill, saying it will help police solve more cases. The American Civil Liberties Union is campaigning against the measure, calling it invasive and excessive.  Republican senators stalled the measure from being debated Tuesday in order to file amendments to the bill.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) – A monthly economic survey index for nine Midwest and Plains states dropped last month but continues to suggest improving economic growth for the region. The Mid-America Business Conditions index hit 56.8 in April, compared with 58.2 in March.  The confidence index rose to 59.9 last month from 58.2 in March.

Creighton University economics professor Ernie Goss oversees the survey, and he says the supply managers surveyed “expect the upturn in housing to remain an important ingredient of the economic expansion.”

The survey uses a collection of indexes ranging from zero to 100. Survey organizers say any score above 50 suggests growth while a score below 50 suggests decline for that factor.  The survey covers Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma and South Dakota.