KWIT: Regional News for 6/20 (2008-06-20)

In Iowa...

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) - President Bush got a firsthand look at
the flood damage in Iowa yesterday -- with painful lessons from
Hurricane Katrina still in mind.
Bush was in Cedar Rapids and Iowa City as he inspected the
Midwest flooding that forced tens of thousands of people from their
homes in six states.
Bush says he's listening to small-town concerns and understands
the exhaustion of rescuers.
He told local and federal officials in Cedar Rapids that --
quote -- "Obviously, to the extent we can help immediately, we
will help."
Cedar Rapids was submerged by the Cedar River, which crested
almost 20 feet above flood stage.
In Iowa City, the damage was more limited when the Iowa River
topped its banks. At least 16 buildings at the University of Iowa
were affected and hundreds of homes took on water.

COLUMBUS JUNCTION, Iowa (AP) - John McCain toured flood-damaged
southeastern Iowa yesterday, walking past half-submerged buildings,
washed-out roads and thousands of sandbags.
The Republican presidential candidate says the government will
do everything it can to help residents of Columbus Junction.
The town of 1,900 is at the confluence of the Cedar and Iowa
Rivers, and experienced record flooding several days ago.
National Guard vehicles and troops blocked access to washed-out
roads in town, where the municipal water system was shut down to
prevent contamination and is yet to reopen.
McCain praised volunteers who helped prevent worse damage.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) - The federal government has awarded 4
million dollars to help Parkersburg clean up from last month's
deadly tornado that flattened half the town.
The twister hit northeast Iowa on May 25, killing eight people
and destroying or damaging more than 500 homes. The National
Weather Service rated it an EF5, the strongest tornado to hit Iowa
in 32 years.
The grant money was awarded by the Federal Emergency Management
Agency. It covers costs for removing debris caused by the tornado.
The grant was announced yesterday by Iowa Senators Chuck
Grassley and Tom Harkin and Congressman Bruce Braley.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) - Amtrak has delayed plans to restore
passenger service on one of its two routes in Iowa because of
continued flooding.
Amtrak says it will now try to restore service on the Southwest
Chief between Kansas City, Mo., and Chicago, tomorrow. Amtrak had
planned to restore the service, which includes a stop in Fort
Madison, today, but a second crest on the Mississippi River delayed
those plans.
The route has been suspended in Iowa since Tuesday.
Spokesman Mark Magliari (MAG'-lee-ARE'-ee) says water still
surrounded the Fort Madison station yesterday.
If service in Fort Madison cannot be restored by tomorrow,
passengers can use stations in Galesburg, Illinois, or La Plata,
Missouri.
Amtrak service between Chicago and Denver on the California
Zephyr across Iowa remains suspended because of flooding.

In Nebraska...

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) - A federal grand jury has indicted the
80-year-old former chairman and CEO of Minden Exchange Bank & Trust
Co., accusing him of stealing more than $11 million.
The indictment unsealed yesterday says Ray Van Norman of Kearney
took the money between 1997 and June 30, 2006, by creating fake
lines of credit.
U.S. Attorney Joe Stecher's office says Van Norman used the
money to pay down loans related to cattle feeding clubs Van Norman
had an interest in.
The indictment says Van Norman renewed old loans and advanced
new loans to unqualified borrowers.
Van Norman is also accused of falsifying financial statements
and concealing the nature of the loans from regulators.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) - A former Kennedy White House speechwriter
says Nebraska Republican Chuck Hagel would be a good running mate
for Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama.
Ted Sorensen says Hagel's national security experience is what
Obama needs on the ticket. He says former Democratic presidential
candidate Hillary Clinton doesn't fit the bill.
Hagel is a two-term U.S. senator who serves on the Senate
Foreign Relations and Intelligence committees, among others.
Sorensen is from Nebraska and is an author and former
speechwriter for John F. Kennedy. He was speaking yesterday at an
Omaha fundraiser for Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Scott Kleeb
(CLEB).
Caroline Kennedy, the late president's daughter, is on Obama's
vice presidential search committee.
Sorensen says he has spoken to her about the selection.

AURORA, Neb. (AP) - Storm damage repairs are forcing authorities
to temporarily shut down traffic next week on a stretch of
Interstate 80 in south-central Nebraska.
Lanes in both directions will be closed starting at 7 a.m. CDT
on Monday and Tuesday between the Giltner interchange, mile marker
324, and the Aurora interchange, mile marker 332.
Traffic will be rerouted east and west along U.S. Highway 34.
Nebraska Road Department officials say the closures are expected
to last about two hours each day.
Power lines that cross the interstate will be replaced. They
were heavily damaged during the May 30 storms.

In South Dakota...

PIERRE, S.D. (AP) - State and local officials told a legislative
study committee yesterday that the revenue outlook for highway and
road projects in South Dakota is not good.
They say the condition of roads across the state will
deteriorate without extra funds.
Most money for highway projects comes from the federal
government, but future prospects for that funding are uncertain.
State Transportation Secretary Darin Bergquist says South Dakota
and other states across the nation are facing a crisis in
maintaining and building highways.
Bergquist says his agency will provide the Legislature's interim
Highway Needs and Financing Committee with options in September to
increase revenues for highways.

PIERRE, S.D. (AP) - An early June storm that dropped some large
hail in Hughes and Stanley counties likely killed a good number of
pheasants in the area.
But a state Game, Fish and Parks official says the area's
overall pheasant population should still be good.
Andy Lindbloom says adult pheasants and nests were lost in the
storm that flooded parts of both counties as there was no cover for
the birds to use as shelter.
Lindbloom says other birds, ducks and even some deer were likely
killed in the storm.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) - Many bankers in Iowa and Illinois expect
flooding to have a significant impact on corn yield and the overall
economy.
That's according to a survey of rural bankers in eleven states,
including Nebraska.
The Rural Mainstreet Index hit a new low this month, declining
to 40.8 from May's anemic 42.6 and April's 47.5. An index greater
than 50 indicates a growing economy over the next three to six
months.
Ken Henstorf is president of First National Bank in Shenandoah,
Iowa. He says the area is being devastated by rain, and much
replanting will be necessary.
Creighton University economist Ernie Goss and Bill McQuillan,
CEO of City National Bank in Greeley, Nebraska, created the monthly
economic survey, which came out yesterday.

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) - The winter wheat harvest in South
Dakota typically gets under way in earnest around the Fourth of
July, and this year's crop is in good shape so far.
Just 9 percent of winter wheat is rated in poor or very poor
condition.
The Agricultural Statistics Service in Sioux falls says just 6
percent of spring wheat is in poor condition.