Latest Iowa Headlines
All the headlines from our Iowa Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Corps Says Some Midwest Levees Damaged in 2019 Still Vulnerable
Apr 2 2020 // With flood concerns already high in the Midwest, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is warning that many levees on the Missouri and Kansas rivers that were damaged during devastating floods last spring remain vulnerable to...
Twister that Damaged Iowa Apartment Building Was EF1
Apr 1 2020 // A tornado that ripped off part of a wall from a northeast Iowa apartment building has been rated an EF1 twister, with peak winds of 107 mph (172.2 kph), officials said. The funnel touched down around 6:30 p.m. Saturday...
Iowa Safety Agency Fines Animal Food Operation $74K
Mar 31 2020 // Iowa’s workplace safety agency wants to fine an eastern Iowa animal food operation for workplace safety violations, saying it has exposed employees to risks that include long falls. The Occupational Safety and Health...
Severe Weather Spawns Tornadoes, ‘100-Year Flood’ in Midwest
Mar 30 2020 // A severe weather system tore through the Midwest over the weekend, bringing damaging high winds, tornadoes and flooding. Authorities say severe weather in Ohio spawned what forecasters are calling a “100-year...
Iowa Battery Manufacturer Cited for Safety Violations, Fined $42K
Mar 25 2020 // A battery manufacturer in eastern Iowa has been fined $42,000 for workplace safety violations, authorities said. The Iowa Occupational Safety and Health Administration said Exide Technologies, of Manchester, was cited for...
Iowa’s First MainStreet Insurance Acquires 3 New Agencies
Mar 13 2020 // First MainStreet Insurance (FMSI), a Cedar Rapids, Iowa-based affiliate of TrueNorth Companies, has closed on its acquisition of three new agencies. The firm expanded to Western Iowa with the merger of EGR Insurance in...
Iowa’s BrokerTech Ventures Adds 5 New Agency Partners, Names Hatten as COO
Mar 10 2020 // BrokerTech Ventures (BTV), the Des Moines, Iowa-based broker-led investor group and accelerator program, has added five new investor partners/sponsors, including Heffernan Insurance Brokers Inc., The Horton Group, Inc.,...
Ratings Roundup: Midwest Family Insurance Group
Mar 9 2020 // Outlooks for Iowa’s Midwest Family Insurance Group Revised to Positive AM Best has revised the outlooks to positive from stable and affirmed the Financial Strength Rating of A- (Excellent) and the Long-Term Issuer...
Despite Finding Insurer’s Actions ‘Reprehensible,’ Iowa Court Slashes Payment to Paralyzed Worker
Mar 9 2020 // The Iowa Supreme Court has dramatically reduced the compensation a paralyzed northeast Iowa man received from a jury in a lawsuit against an insurance company even while finding the company’s actions were...
Outlooks Revised to Positive for Iowa’s Midwest Family Insurance Group
Mar 2 2020 // AM Best has revised the outlooks to positive from stable and affirmed the Financial Strength Rating of A- (Excellent) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating of “a-” of Iowa-based Midwest Family Mutual Insurance...
Iowa Court Slashes Insurer’s Payment to Paralyzed Worker
Mar 2 2020 // The Iowa Supreme Court has dramatically reduced the compensation a paralyzed northeast Iowa man received from a jury in a lawsuit against an insurance company even while finding the company’s actions were...
Broker Investor Group Selects 12 Insurtechs for First Cohort
Feb 27 2020 // BrokerTech Ventures, an investor group and accelerator program led by nine insurance brokerages, has selected 12 insurtechs for its first cohort that convenes March 2 in Des Moines, Iowa, for a five-week...
Deer Sent Flying by Car Crashed into 2nd Car, Killing Driver
Feb 24 2020 // A deer sent flying when it was hit by a car in southeast Iowa crashed through the window of a second car, killing its driver, the Iowa State Patrol said. The accident occurred a little after 7 p.m. Wednesday on Iowa...
United Fire in Iowa Reports 4Q Earnings Loss
Feb 19 2020 // United Fire Group Inc. on Tuesday reported a loss of $23.2 million in its fourth quarter. On a per-share basis, the Cedar Rapids, Iowa-based company said it had a loss of 93 cents. Losses, adjusted for investment gains,...
Suit: Iowa’s Drake U., Fraternity Negligent in Dangerous Hazing Event
Feb 19 2020 // A student is suing Drake University in Des Moines, along with a fraternity at the school and several fellow students for an unspecified amount after he said he nearly died from a hazing incident. Court documents filed Feb....
Iowa District to Pay $4.8M to Settle Suit Over Deadly School Bus Fire
Feb 18 2020 // A western Iowa school district will pay $4.8 million to settle a lawsuit brought by the family of 16-year-old girl who died in a 2017 school bus fire that also killed the bus driver. Riverside Community School District has...
Two Employees Injured in Fire that Destroyed Iowa Towing, Auto Shop
Feb 18 2020 // Two people suffered minor injuries in a fire that destroyed a Fort Dodge, Iowa, towing and auto business in northwestern Iowa, officials said. The fire broke out in the afternoon on Feb. 14 in Mid Iowa Towing, television...
Iowa Senate Passes Bill with $20M for Flood Projects
Feb 10 2020 // The Iowa Senate has passed a bill that provides $20 million for flood relief requested by Gov. Kim Reynolds to help shore up levees in southwest Iowa in anticipation of flooding along the Missouri River this spring. All 48...
Iowa’s LMC Insurance & Risk Management Teams Up with AssuredPartners
Feb 10 2020 // LMC Insurance & Risk Management, headquartered in West De Moines, Iowa, has joined Florida-based AssuredPartners Inc.’s national broker team. LMC’s operations consist of 290 dedicated employees who will...
Iowa Town to Buy more Homes in Flood Plain
Jan 28 2020 // The city of Bettendorf, Iowa, has been awarded a $2.2 million federal grant that, coupled with state and city contributions, will make $2.95 million available to buy out up to 22 homeowners in the flood plain along Duck...
