Local law enforcement entities are teaming up with the Governor’s Traffic Safety Bureau to help reduce a spike of deaths on the road in Iowa. The Iowa Department of Transportation reported a 25-percent increase in deaths this year over last year. The Iowa State Patrol told the Des Moines Register it is seeing some of the most dangerous driving in the organizations 85 years, with people driving too fast and using their phones.
Starting today, the Sioux City Police Department, Woodbury County Sheriff’s Office, and Iowa State Patrol are increasing patrols for impaired drivers. The enforcement is scheduled to last one week. A task force was enacted this year in Iowa to try and reach a goal of less than 300 traffic fatalities in one year.
Iowans' demand for coronavirus shots has sagged to the point that the state may have to toss out 33,000 doses of vaccine. The Iowa Department of Public Health confirmed this week that the doses of Johnson & Johnson vaccine could expire unless Iowans decide to accept them.
The doses appeared to receive a reprieve Thursday, when Johnson & Johnson announced federal regulators had authorized the company to extend the expiration dates by six weeks. However, if they're not used by late July, many the doses could still wind up being thrown away.
Clay County residents on Tuesday voted overwhelmingly against a $41 million bond issue that would have built a new county government complex and vacated the aging courthouse.
Now, the Save Our Historic Clay County Courthouse Committee, will host a historic preservation consultant, who will analyze the building and give a public presentation. The courthouse is in need of upgrades of its mechanical systems while preserving unique floor tiling, masonry and woodwork throughout the building.
