IOWA CITY, Iowa (KCRG) – Derek Phillips, University of Iowa student and marching band member, died Tuesday morning after collapsing Saturday. The band’s social media post states that Phillips was the mellophone section leader and represented “the very best of what it means to be a Hawkeye.” The family of Phillips shared that their son has been taken off life support after he collapsed during Saturday’s Hawkeye football game at Kinnick Stadium. According to The Gazette, he suffered heat stroke during the game. Derek Phillips “collapsed in the heat” and suffered a “sudden cardiac arrest” according to a post on his Instagram account from his family. However, the University of Iowa did not mention any incidents or health issues when it suddenly cancelled halftime performances, stating “the health and safety of our students, staff, and fans are our top priority.” The game-time temperature on Saturday of 90-degrees was the fourth-hottest game in Iowa history, with heat indexes making it feel like well above 100-degrees. The marching band and spirit teams still performed their normal pregame ceremonies but in shorts and T-shirts. The band announced days before the game that it would perform in their alternate uniforms instead of the traditional wool uniforms because of the heat. TV9 reached out to the University of Iowa for confirmation of the reason for the halftime performance cancellation.
JONES COUNTY, Iowa (KCRG) – Jones County Supervisor Jon Zirkelbach has been charged with assault in connection with an incident last month at his workplace at the Jones County Senior Center. According to a criminal complaint, an employee told police she went into work early and had concerns she wanted to discuss with Zirkelbach. That’s when she said she and Zirkelbach stood up and began arguing. Zirkelbach then allegedly walked toward the victim and grabbed her by the arm. Witnesses told police they never saw “direct contact” of the incident, but that they saw the grabbing motion and release of the arm. The victim sent police pictures of her arm after the incident that showed three marks where Zirkelbach allegedly grabbed her. Zirkelbach is set to run unopposed in this November’s election. He currently serves as the supervisors’ vice chairman.
PALO, Iowa (KCRG) – The federal government finalized a loan of up to $1.9 billion Tuesday to help bring Iowa’s only nuclear power plant back online, a project expected to cost multiple billions of dollars and bring hundreds of permanent jobs back to Linn County. The U.S. Department of Energy announced the financing for NextEra Energy’s restart of the Duane Arnold Energy Center. The 615-megawatt nuclear plant shut down in 2020 after more than 45 years of commercial operation. The Department of Energy said the plant will be capable of producing enough electricity to power nearly 500,000 homes. The project is expected to create about 1,500 jobs during construction and refurbishment and support more than 450 jobs once the plant is operating. NextEra has not publicly disclosed the total cost of restarting Duane Arnold, but company leaders said the project will require an investment of multiple billions of dollars. NextEra Energy Resources CEO Brian Bolster said Tuesday that the federal financing was a key piece of moving the project forward. The company expects the entire facility to come back online around the end of 2028 or beginning of 2029. The restart is still subject to approval from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The NRC is reviewing several licensing actions and conducting inspections to determine whether Duane Arnold can safely resume commercial power operations.
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (KCRG) – The Cedar Rapids city council approved police chief David Dostal’s retirement agreement, including thousands of dollars in benefits and healthcare coverage beyond his time at the department. David Dostal was sworn in as chief on February 13, 2024 and will be officially retiring January 1st, 2027. He will enter paid administrative leave starting October 2. The City of Cedar Rapids shared a copy of Dostal’s retirement agreement, which includes more details about his compensation and relationship with the city going forward: the city has agreed to cover his health insurance through the end of next year, the agreement bars both sides from criticizing each other, Dostal will be paid $191,096: which equals six months’ pay, unused leave and health benefits, and his salary also was increased to the top pay step for police chief once the agreement was signed. TV9 learned about Dostal’s retirement over the weekend after finding the news inside Tuesday’s council agenda. The item was on the consent agenda, which is a bundle of routine business topics typically approved in a single vote. Dostal was given the agreement on September 1st and signed on the 3rd, but no public announcement was made until Tuesday. One person at Tuesday’s meeting says the people of Cedar Rapids deserve more transparency. At this point there aren’t any details about a successor or interim chief. There also isn’t any information about the hiring process for the next chief. The reason behind Dostal’s retirement has not been revealed.
