Author: Yorke Prough

At approximately 11:38 AM on Thursday April 4^th, Wapello Fire and Rescue was called 714 Washington Street in Wapello for a report of a garage fire. Dispatch advised the garage was fully involved and the fire was spreading to an adjacent camper.

Morning Sun Fire Department was requested for mutual aid and responded to the scene. Fire crews arrived on scene to find an approximately 800 square foot garage heavily involved with fire spreading to a fifth wheel camper. 32′ x 82′ machine shed fully engulfed in flames. The fire was quickly brought under control and was eventually extinguished by firefighters. The building and contents sustained significant damage, however they were insured by the property owner.

Damage estimates are unavailable at this time. There were no injuries. The cause of the fire is under investigation. Also assisting was Wapello Community Ambulance and Louisa County Sheriff’s Office.

Have you ever heard of a grandparent scam? Recently, Iowa has experienced an influx in reported grandparent scams, especially in the eastern part of our state. This is where scammers target seniors and manipulate them into believing that their loved ones are in distress and try to play on the persons emotions.

The scammer will often impersonate a grandchild claiming to be arrested, in an accident, or in an urgent financial crisis. They then pressure grandparents to immediately send money using cash, gift cards, wire transfer, Bitcoin, or other methods.

Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird issued a warning to Iowans about the growing threat of grandparent scams.

Scammers will also introduce a fake law enforcement officer or lawyer to incite more fear and create a sense of legitimacy. According to the Federal Trade Commission, older Americans lost $1.6 billion to fraud in 2022.

To protect against grandparent scams, Iowans should:

• Be wary of unknown calls: Do not answer calls you do not recognize. If suspicious of a call, hang up and call law enforcement or the Iowa Attorney General’s office.
• Always double-check: If concerned about whether a story is legitimate, call the loved one at a known number, not a number provided by the caller.
• Never send money or personal information over the phone: Scammers will always pressure you to send money via methods that cannot be traced or retrieved. Never send money over the phone.
• Don’t Lie: Scammers will tell you to lie to bank tellers, cashiers, law enforcement, or others. This is a red flag to stop.

If you believe you or someone you know has been targeted by a grandparent scam, report it to the Iowa Attorney General’s Office at 888-777-4590.

The Enhance Iowa Board awarded over $3 million in Community Attraction and Tourism (CAT) grants to projects in 10 communities.

Mount Pleasant is one of those communities that will benefit as the Midwest Old Settlers and Threshers Association was awarded $210,000 toward the development of 100 additional camping sites, restoration of an existing heritage electric railway passenger car and purchase of an additional one. The total project cost is just over $1.5 million.

The Enhance Iowa Program provides financial incentives to communities for the construction of recreational, cultural, educational or entertainment facilities that enhance the quality of life in Iowa. To date, 149 CAT grants have been awarded by the board, totaling $50,230,070.

Mike Norris with the Southeast Iowa Regional Planning Commission and Christopher Ales on behalf of Hershey LLC, met with the Henry County Supervisors to discuss the continuation of redevelopment and reuse of Iowa Wesleyan property.

Christopher Ales plans to send an application to the State which will provide funding for his vision of repurposing the Hershey Hall into affordable housing. As part of this $6.8 million project, 22 apartment units will be added to the town of Mt. Pleasant. All will be 2-3 bedroom and atleast 90% of those will qualify for low to moderate income housing.

If the application is approved by the State in July, construction could begin as early as next spring with the units ready by the end of 2025.

Marc Lindeen, a Henry County Supervisor, believes that this is a wonderful thing for our county and city.

A resolution was voted on in support of this project.

The Des Moines County Engineer has released the following message about a road closure.

The following route will be closed starting Monday, April 8th for a paving project. Weather permitting, we anticipate this route to remain closed for approximately 5 – 6 weeks.

Golf Course Road
(Between 9458 Golf Course Rd and DMC Hwy 99.)

We are sorry for any inconvenience that this causes and we appreciate your patience while we improve our roads in Des Moines County.