Sheriff’s Office Releases Identity of Lineman Who Died After Falling Out of Bucket Truck Near Dexter

A follow up to a story we first reported on the Raccoon Valley Radio Network Tueday morning… we now have the identity of the lineman who died after falling out of a bucket truck.

According to the Dallas County Sheriff’s Office, 39 year-old David Denger of Panora was part of a crew hanging power lines along the west side of Dexfield Road north of Dexter Tuesday.

Around 10am, Denger fell from the bucket of the truck that was suspended nearly 50 feet in the air.

The cause of the accident is not known at this time and Denger was pronounced dead at the scene.

Dallas County EMS and LifeFlight along with Dexter and Stuart Fire Departments assisted the sheriff’s office at the scene.

The accident remains under investigation.

Raccoon Valley Radio will bring you more information as it becomes official.

Cook Hopes Scoop the Loop Proves Fun Times Remain in Stuart

The first Scoop the Loop night of 2014 is coming up in about a week, but it will actually be the fifth such event since Bob Cook brought the idea to Stuart in September of 2012.

As the event’s popularity continues to grow, Cook discusses why he came up with Scoop the Loop in the first place.

“We hope there is some economic benefit, (but) a lot of it is I wanted to put something together where people can come enjoy their friends, their community members, meet new people and have an evening entertainment that was good for all ages… and prove that you don’t have to leave your community to have a great night.”

While Scoop the Loop is geared toward promoting and benefiting the town of Stuart, Cook says he’s expecting car owners to visit from all over central and west central Iowa next weekend.

“We have big groups coming from Atlantic, Greenfield, Winterset, Des Moines, Panora, Adel, Dallas Center… we have people from all over bringing cars.  The hopes are that with these three programs we have this summer will draw crowds from even further away to not only enjoy the programs, but (also) enjoy the cars and street food uptown later.”

Cook says he’s hoping to see around 120 classic cars at next weekend’s Scoop the Loop, and now he’s just hoping for good weather.

Guthrie County Supervisors Approve of New Agreement with Lake Panorama RIZ

The Guthrie County Board of Supervisors met briefly Thursday for their second meeting of the week.

After the Board voted unanimously to approve the Lake Panorama Association’s fireworks permit that is used for their 4th of July celebration every year, discussion turned to the lake’s Rural Improvement Zone (RIZ).

The Supervisors unanimously approved the redrafted agreement with RIZ that was presented during their Tuesday meeting.  A one year lobbying window has now been opened for both parties, and that will stretch from June 1st of this year until May 31st of 2015. 

Neither the Lake Panorama RIZ or the Guthrie County Supervisors, as part of the Iowa Association of Counties, had previously been able to lobby the state legislature on matters pertaining to RIZ since their relationship began in December of 2002.

LPA General Manager John Rutledge says the purpose of this new agreement is to bring RIZ Boards and county supervisors together from around the state for a joint discussion that could prevent the sides from fighting in the state legislature next year.

West Central Valley School Board Discusses Athletic Complex, Considers Hiring New Athletic Training Service

The West Central Valley School District Board of Directors met Wednesday for its May session.

After financial reports and bills were approved for the month to begin the meeting, the Board heard a letter from a West Central Valley parent who is disappointed by the decision to move up the academic year start state for next school year.  The calendar begins August 14th this fall, which is in the middle of the Iowa State Fair.

The parent asked the Board to reconsider the start date for future years.

Two resignations and the retirement of Glenna Stamps were then approved.  The Board also approved of seven new district contracts, including for new girls basketball coach Drew Stonewall.

The Board then approved two open enrollment out requests before denying one.  The student had been hoping to open enroll out to the Earlham School District.

Next, the Dallas County Hazard Mitigation Plan was briefly discussed and approved as presented.

After approving for the girls volleyball team and high school cross country teams to attend out-of-town summer camps, the Board then heard a presentation from athletic director Tod Broman.  Broman presented a drafted contract for approximately $6,000 to hire Peak Performance in Des Moines as a third-party athletic training provider starting next school year.

Broman says the district needs more athletic training service than what is currently provided.

The Board decided to table the discussion and will revisit the item in its June meeting after a more definitive contract is drawn up with Peak Performance.  The biggest question the Board had pertained to how the service would be financed.

The West Central Valley Teacher’s Association contract was the next item discussed, and it was approved with all yes votes save for an abstainment from Marty Doud.

Next, the Board considered salary recommendations made by Superintendent Dr. David Arnold for the district’s principals, AD, nurses, supervisors, business manager, and confidential personnel.  The board approved the recommendations as presented.

To conclude the meeting, the Board briefly discussed the latest regarding the new football field and track complex.  Dr. Arnold says the School Board will meet with contractors and all parties involved within the next week or two to discuss all the data that has been collected and recently analyzed.

Dr. Arnold says he hopes to learn in that meeting with contractors what happened to the complex this winter and what work needs to be done to prevent such problems in future years.

Raccoon Valley Radio’s Severe Weather Action Team Covers Three Storms

Raccoon Valley Radio’s Severe Weather Action Team was called into action three times Tuesday. The first one was just before 4:30pm, the second time was approximately an hour later, and the final coverage scenario played out right around the 7 o’clock hour.

The first storm brought a single cell through the far northwest corner of Guthrie County, bringing heavy rain and intense thundering, but no hail or strong winds were reported.

The second included just the extreme northern sliver of Dallas County, but no rain, winds or hail were reported.  The warning was allowed to expire 15 minutes early at around 5:45pm.

And finally, the third storm was similar to the second storm in that that hit just a sliver of northern Dallas County, but no rain, winds or hail were reported.  The warning expired at approximately 7:20pm.

Reports came in from around the coverage area during the three storms, including Coon Rapids, Bayard, Guthrie Center, Jefferson and Perry.  Raccoon Valley Radio staff reported live from our stations in Jefferson, Perry and Stuart throughout the duration of the severe storms, keeping in contact with meteorologists from the WeatherEye Weather Center.

In total, six Raccoon Valley Radio staff participated in the live coverage, along with Adair & Guthrie County Emergency Management Coordinator Bob Kempf and Coon Rapids Librarian Jan Brower.

No damage was reported during any of the severe storms.