Gazette Daily News Briefing, July 10 and July 11
This is Stephen Schmidt from the Gazette digital news desk and I’m here with your update for Saturday July 10 and Sunday July 11.
The chance for more rain will continue into this weekend. According to the National Weather Service it will be cloudy with a high of 75 degrees in the Cedar Rapids area on Saturday. There will be a chance of scattered showers and thunderstorms all day, with a 50 percent chance for rain for much of it. The prediction Sunday is for more of the same, with a higher probability of significant rainfall. The chance for rainfall on Sunday will still hover around 50 and 60 percent all day. The high on Sunday is also expected to be 75 degrees with cloudy skies.
Firefighters rescued two children and four dogs Friday morning from a house fire in southwest Cedar Rapids.
Firefighters were called just before 10:30 a.m. to 1825 D St. SW. When they arrived, responders found a fire on the front porch of a 1.5-story residence. Firefighters said the fire caused a window to fail, filling the residence with hot smoke.
As the fire crew was knocking down the fire, two high school-age youths made their way through the smoke to the front door. According to the fire department account, the teens who escaped indicated there were two children still on the second floor of the residence and an adult in the basement. The teens also reported there were dogs and cats inside, but they did not know how many. The children were saved from the second floor, and firefighters later determined that the adult they mentioned had been at work at the time of the fire.
The residence suffered heavy fire damage to the front porch and minor smoke and water damage to its interior.
Staff at MercyOne facilities across Iowa are required to get the COVID-19 vaccine by this fall, diverging from other local hospitals when it comes to mandating shots for employees.
Employees, contractors and anyone conducting business in certain MercyOne health care facilities are required to be vaccinated against the COVID-19 by Sept. 21.
That includes hospitals and associated medical clinics at MercyOne Dubuque, MercyOne Dyersville, MercyOne Clinton, MercyOne North Iowa and MercyOne Western.
The mandate comes from MercyOne’s parent company, Trinity Health. The Catholic not-for-profit health system based in Michigan operates 90 hospitals across 22 states, including Iowa, Illinois, Nebraska and South Dakota.
Iowa gamblers ended fiscal 2021 with a record-breaking flurry, setting new all-time marks for betting on casino, sports and lottery games that taken together topped $3.2 billion.
Iowa’s 19 state-licensed casinos reported adjusted gross revenue of nearly $1.58 billion via their slot machines and table games and a separate sports wagering handle of over $1.2 billion that netted them nearly $90 million in receipts for the 12-month period ending June 30, according to state Racing & Gaming Commission data posted Friday.
Favorable weather, availability of COVID-19 vaccinations and more discretionary money earmarked for entertainment as Iowa’s farm and overall economy rebounded were all factors contributing to a turnaround from last year’s 20 percent revenue decline, he said.
The Iowa Ideas 2021 virtual conference will be here before you know it, and we would like you to be our guest on the house. The Gazette is providing free access to this two-day gathering with more than 50 sessions- filled with thought-provoking local, and national speakers-- all ready to engage you on a variety of important and timely Iowa-issues. Join us October 14th and 15th for this can’t miss, idea-exchange experience. Learn more and register for the event at iowaideas.com
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