A Fort Madison man was found dead in a vehicle at the Southeast Iowa Regional Airport on Friday morning.

Just before 10:30am that morning, officers with the Burlington Police Department were called for a report of an unresponsive male. Upon arrival, they found Kevin Bower, 64, of Fort Madison, deceased in a vehicle.

According to the Burlington Police Department, an investigation is underway, but no foul play is currently suspected.

The Mount Pleasant Community school board met in regular session Monday evening for a variety of business.

Matt Barton, a representative for the Childcare center in town, spoke with the board about leasing space for a before and after school program. Currently, they think Harlan would be the best location as it will cause the least disruption. In this discussion, the school district would provide space and transportation, while the childcare center would provide the staffing. According to superintendent, John Henriksen, a lease agreement is all that would be needed to make this happen. This seems to be an ongoing conversation, as details are still be ironed out.

The chapel repairs were discussed, which are finishing up, and the estimated cost at the beginning was $190,000, which looks to be right on the mark.

Dr. Butler and Mr. Henriksen gave a shoutout to Nikki Ensminger for her help with summer school, which was a success. At the high school level, 92 credits were made up and nearly 100 students attended. The middle school saw 46 students on average each day, with many students engaged in STEM activities, and some even going on a field trip.

The Tri-State Rodeo is not far away now, and additional entertainment has been announced. The world-famous Budweiser Clydesdales will march into Fort Madison on Tuesday, September 3^rd, and stay at the Tri-State Rodeo ground until the 10^th.  

The Clydesdales’ appearance in Fort Madison, is one of hundreds made annually by three teams of traveling hitches based out of operation headquarters located at the St. Louis Brewery in Missouri.   The Clydesdales have been the mascot of Anheuser-Busch since 1933.

The Des Moines County Sheriff’s Office had a busy weekend getting meth off the streets after making two separate arrests.

On July 4^th, Sheriff’s Deputies stopped a vehicle for a registration violation at Cottonwood Ct. and Vineyard St. in Burlington, IA. During the traffic stop deputies observed a passenger, James Adam Murphy, age 53, of Davenport, IA, to be in possession of drug paraphernalia. Deputies observed James pull a glass smoking pipe out of his pocket. Deputies also located a bag of methamphetamine and a container of marijuana on James.

James was placed under arrest for two counts possession of a controlled substance 3rd or subsequent offense, D Felony, and possession of drug paraphernalia. James was transported to the Des Moines County Correctional Center.

The next day, Sheriff’s Deputies stopped a vehicle at Mt. Pleasant St. and Curran St. in Burlington, IA after recognizing the driver was unlicensed. Deputies made contact with the driver and positively identified him as Calvin Darnell Hill, age 52, of Burlington, IA. Deputies confirmed that Hill’s driving status was barred in the State of Iowa. Deputies were also advised that Hill had an active arrest warrant.

A Burlington Police Department K-9 unit was requested and conducted an open-air sniff around the vehicle, in which the K-9 alerted. A search was then conducted. Where a glass methamphetamine pipe, loose shards of methamphetamine, several individually packaged bags of methamphetamine, drug packaging material, and an open container of alcohol were located inside the vehicle. The total combined weight of the methamphetamine was approximately 26 grams.

Hill was placed under arrest on the arrest warrant and charged additionally with driving while barred, open container, possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver (B Felony), failure to affix a drug tax stamp (D Felony), and possession of drug paraphernalia. Hill was transported to the Des Moines County Correctional Center.

The Henry County Sheriff’s Office reports of a single vehicle accident in Geode State Park on Sunday morning, in which the driver was intoxicated.

At approximately 5:33am on July 7^th, the HCSO was notified of an accident in the 3300 grid of Racine Avenue.

An investigation into the accident determined that Linda Schrock, 70, of Stronghurst Illinois, was driving a passenger car entering Geode State Park. After failing to navigate the turn the vehicle left the roadway and entered the ditch where it struck several bushes/small trees before coming to a rest.

Observations of intoxication/impairment were observed from Linda and Standardized Field Sobriety Tests were administered.

As a result of this investigation, Linda was charged with Operating While Intoxicated and cited for Failure to Maintain Control.

The Fort Madison Bridge will close next month for repair, with maintenance expected to last through November. In a statement from BNSF railway, they announce the closure due to public safety as the necessary repairs are made.  This will begin August 5^th and last through August 30^th, with a weeklong break as the Tri-State Rodeo goes on from August 31 to September 8^th. After that, repairs will continue through November 22^nd.

Maintenance work will include replacing floor beams and associated stringers at six different locations on both the east and west approach. Since the bridge is owned and operated by BNSF Railway, toll revenue collected on the bridge is paying for part of the maintenance with BNSF making up the remainder of the cost. They assure that no public dollars are being used.