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Minivan Hits Downtown Hardware In Sheldon

Sheldon, Iowa — A minivan struck a downtown Sheldon business on Friday.

Downtown Hardware Crash1
Photo by Rachel McDonald

Brad Hindt of Downtown Hardware says that the maroon minivan struck his business and broke out a large glass window and destroyed some merchandise. The driver, staff and customers were fine. He says no one was hurt.

Downtown Hardware Crash2
Thanks to Brad Hindt for photo

He says a refrigerator, a stove, and a TV as well as some shelving was damaged. Hindt says that between his insurance and the driver’s, insurance should cover the damages.

He says it was an accident and accidents happen. At 5 PM on Friday, Hindt said cleanup was basically done, and the building was secure.

Rock Valley Man Faces Felony Drug Charge

Orange City, Iowa — A man who police say manufactured methamphetamine within a thousand feet of a Rock Valley park has been arrested and is in custody on the felony charge.
Sioux Co Jail
Court records indicate that Rock Valley officers believe that 29-year-old Austin Richard Mulder manufactured methamphetamine within a thousand feet of a public park between August 16 and October 2, 2014. Rock Valley Police Chief Monte Warburton’s report also says Mulder entered into a common scheme with one or more other people to manufacture, deliver, or possess with the intent to manufacture or deliver the controlled substance, methamphetamine.

He says law enforcement officers located a methamphetamine lab and remnants from a previous cook at Austin Mulder’s home on 14th Street in Rock Valley on October 11, 2014.

According to Sioux County Jail records, Mulder was picked up at the North Central Correctional Facility in Rockwell City on Thursday, November 5th, 2015 and was taken to the Sioux County Jail where at last report he remained on a $10,000 bond.

Two Sentenced To Five-Year Terms In Felony Cases

Rock Rapids, Iowa — Two people have been sentenced in two separate felony fraud cases in Lyon County.
Lyon Courthouse SVA
According to court documents, a Lyon County Sheriff’s deputy reported that in August of 2014, now 43-year-old Marlene Woodraska of Sioux Falls brought a check in to the Larchwood Quick Stop that was written out to the Larchwood Quick Stop for $585. The deputy says this check was on a different person’s account. He says Woodraska produced the check to the clerk and paid for a pack of cigarettes and a pop, and took the remainder of the $585 as cash. When the clerk asked Woodraska for a driver’s license to verify the check, he reports that Woodraska wrote a fictitious driver’s license number and phone number on the check. The deputy says Woodraska claimed she was cashing the check for a friend of her daughter’s but was unable to provide the friend’s name, phone number, or any contact information for her daughter.

The deputy also says that Woodraska passed two other checks, one in December of 2013 and one in February of 2014 at the Larchwood Mini Mart. He says those checks, for $100 and $303.86 had not been paid either by the time of the complaint in September of 2014.

The Lyon County Attorney’s Office reports Woodraska has been sentenced to a five-year prison term for Forgery, a Class D Felony. She also received a suspended fine, among other penalties and fees.

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According to court documents, a Lyon County Sheriff’s deputy reported that 34-year-old Ryan Jacobson, whose address is listed as the Residential Treatment Facility in Sheldon paid off some debt and some bills using a telephone bill-pay service, but using a bank routing number and account number that did not belong to him. He was charged with four counts of identity theft. Three of the counts were dismissed, but the one for the largest amount, $1200, was not.

According to Lyon County Attorney Shane Mayer’s office, Jacobson was sentenced for the crime of Identity Theft, a Class D Felony. He received an indeterminate prison term not to exceed five (5) years, which is to run consecutively to a sentence he is currently serving in another matter. He also received a suspended fine, among other penalties and fees.

Sibley Fire Department Saves 4WD Tractor

Sibley, Iowa — The Sibley Fire Department saved a tractor from going up in smoke on Thursday night.
Sibley fire logo door
Sibley Fire Chief Kenny Huls says the fire department was paged about 9:12 PM on Thursday night to a tractor fire a mile south of the state line on Highway 60.

He says they arrived to find a 2011 four-wheel-drive tractor with smoke coming from it. Huls says the tractor was owned by Terry Schuck. He says Schuck’s bother had been disc ripping with the tractor when he noticed some smoke and called 911.

When firefighters arrived, Huls says they did see some smoke near diesel exhaust fluid tank. He says there was a wiring harness above tank that apparently shorted out and started on fire, and that started the tank on fire.

Huls reports that there was about $3000 loss to the tank and the wiring harness.

He says they were on scene for about a half an hour.

Hulls says the Sibley Fire Department has had a busy fall with about 14 calls since October 1st, including a structure fire.

Authorities: Fifth Suspicious Fire In Sioux Center

Sioux Center, Iowa — A historic display house and several antiques at the Sioux County Fairgrounds were destroyed in a fire on Thursday, November 5, 2015 in Sioux Center.
sioux center fire logo door
According to Sioux Center Fire Chief David Van Holland, about 2:40 PM, the Sioux Center Fire Department was called to the report of structure fire at Heritage Village at the Sioux County Fairgrounds, on Sioux Center’s northeast side.

The chief says the fire department saw flames coming through the house’s siding as they approached the scene. He says they used water to fight the fire, which spread rapidly due to the house’s balloon construction. That means there are no boards between the studs and the fire can quickly move up or down the walls.

Van Holland reports that there were no injuries to people, pets, or livestock.

The fire department was assisted by the Hull Fire Department and Sioux Center Ambulance Crew.

He says the cause of the fire is unknown but is quite suspicious.

No damage amount has been assigned to the fire or the damaged and destroyed antiques.

He says they used 4000 to 5000 gallons of water to fight the fire, and crews were on scene for an hour and a half.

Chief Van Holland went on to say that this is only the latest in a string of fires that Sioux Center authorities think were suspicious in nature.

According to Sioux Center Police Chief Paul Adkins, this is the fifth fire in Sioux Center that the Fire Department has responded to in the last several months. He says authorities strongly believe that all these fires were started intentionally. An investigation will continue until the situation has been resolved.Sioux Center PD Charger Door Logo Only

The Sioux Center Police Department reports that their office, along with the Sioux Center Fire Department and the State Fire Marshall’s office are actively involved in this investigation. If anyone has any information regarding these fires, or if you see or notice any unusual or suspicious activity in or around the community, they ask you to contact the Sioux Center Police Department.

Cooling Grain in Storage

ISU WordmarkNorthwest Iowa — Now is the time to cool your stored grain, according to Iowa State University Extension and Outreach Agricultural Engineer Kris Kohl.

In the past couple of weeks with temperatures in the 60s, a lot of corn and soybeans went into storage. With grain this warm, Kohl says moisture migration within the grain mass and spoilage can occur very quickly – even with moderately dry grain.

With average daily temperatures soon in the low to mid 40s, newly stored grain should be cooled down as soon as possible, Kohl says. Stored grain should be cooled to 30-40 degrees for winter storage. The sooner grain is cooled down the better to keep it from spoiling. Fans may need to run several times during the fall to get grain down to wintertime storage temperatures.

Kohl says the time required to completely cool a bin of grain depends on fan size. In general terms, a large drying fan will take 10-20 hours to cool a bin of grain. In comparison, a small aeration fan can take a week or more to completely cool a full bin. In either case, it is best to measure the temperature of the air coming out of the grain to see if cooling is complete. It is also much better to error on the side of running the fan too long rather than turn it off too soon, according to Kohl.grain bin

Kohl says now is also a good time to “core” each of your bins to remove fines that have accumulated in the center of the bin. When coring a bin after filling, remove about half the peak height for improved aeration. After coring, the top of the grain should be visually inspected to ensure an inverted cone has been created. If no cone is created, bridging of the grain has taken place and a very unsafe condition has been created. No one should enter the bin until this situation has been safely corrected.

According to Kohl, if grain is dried down to the proper moisture and correctly cooled, it should store very well through the winter. Still, it is best to check stored grain at least every two weeks during the winter and once a week in warmer weather. To check grain, inspect and probe the grain for crusting, damp grain, and warm spots, says Kohl. In addition, run the fan for just a few minutes and smell the exhaust air for any off odors.

For more details, order a copy of “Managing Dry Grain in Storage” AED-20 from Midwest Plan Service at www-mwps.sws.iastate.edu/catalog/grain-handling-storage or check more grain drying and storage information at www.ag.ndsu.edu/graindrying.