Iowa

Here’s how you can help Iowa communities recover after last week’s tornadoes

Published

2 years ago

April 29, 2024

Here’s how you can help Iowa communities recover after last week’s tornadoes

At least 17 tornadoes occurred in Iowa on April 26, causing damage in several counties and significant destruction, including one death, in the small Pottawattamie County town of Minden.

That is the latest count from the National Weather Service in Des Moines based on preliminary reports and completed storm surveys as teams continue to evaluate damage and determine ratings for additional tornadoes in the coming days.

If you want to help support the communities and people impacted by the severe weather, here’s how.

How can I help, Minden, Iowa recover from the tornado?

Minden remained closed off to the general public as of Monday afternoon due to debris and the use of heavy equipment in the town. As a result, officials are asking that volunteers and organizations don’t self-deploy to the area, according to a Pottawattamie County news release.

Cleanup efforts and securing infrastructure began during the weekend, and as needs arise and safety conditions improve, officials will announce volunteer opportunities.

Monetary donations are encouraged for those who wish to donate to help people affected by the Minden tornado, who can then purchase what they need, according to the news release.

How to make Minden-specific donations will be announced in the coming days. Currently, people can make donations to the Southwest Iowa Emergency Relief Fund at givewesterniowa.org to support areas impacted in the region, according to the news release.

Readers’ Watchdog: Home damaged by weekend storms? Here’s what you need to know

How can I help Pleasant Hill, Iowa recover from the tornado?

Take an aerial look at the tornado damage Pleasant Hill suffered

A tornado swept through Pleasant Hill Friday, April 26, damaging a number of homes and power lines.

Provided by Polk County Iowa

The Pleasant Hill tornado, classified as an EF2, lasted roughly 12 minutes and caused one injury and damage to nearly 20 homes.

The city is not asking for physical donations, according to a news release on April 27. Financial donations can be made through the Disaster Recovery Fund, which the Community Foundation of Greater Des Moines has activated following the severe storms and tornado that affected Pleasant Hill.

Grants are awarded to community-based organizations and service providers responding to a disaster and grants are made to meet the needs not already being addressed by existing resources and programs, according to the Community Foundation of Greater Des Moines.

Pleasant Hill’s Facebook page encourages people needing assistance or wanting to offer assistance to call 211.

More: Parking is not allowed on some Pleasant Hill streets as crews clean up tornado debris

Looking for another way to help? Round up your purchase at Casey’s

Shoppers can round up their purchases at Casey’s stores in Iowa, Nebraska and Oklahoma as part of a campaign supporting the American Red Cross through May 10, said Katie Petru, a spokesperson for the convenience store chain.

Here are tips to avoid scams after disasters

People impacted by natural disasters such as a tornado should be aware of fraudulent contractors that take advantage of people in need of repairs.

The Iowa Attorney General’s Office has some tips if you hire a contractor. Here are several:

Work with an established, reputable local contractor.
Legitimate contractors rarely solicit through door-to-door, so be skeptical about who shows up at your home.
Avoid paying large sums of money to a contractor in advance. If you have to make a partial advance payment for materials, make your payment out to the supplier and the contractor and insist on a mechanic’s lien waiver in case the contractor fails to pay others.

People should also watch for scammers posing as officials with government disaster assistance agencies, according to the Federal Trade Commission. You can spot an imposter because they’ll demand money.

But scams aren’t limited to those impacted by a natural disaster.

People wanting to help those impacted by a natural disaster should be aware of scammers seeking donations for disaster relief. Donate to trusted, well-known charities and verify its legitimacy through its official website as scammers may create fake charities during natural disasters, according to the FTC.

Paris Barraza is a trending and general assignment reporter at the Des Moines Register. Reach her at pbarraza@registermedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @ParisBarraza.

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Iowa

2026 Iowa high school boys basketball state tournament brackets, schedule

Published

4 hours ago

March 4, 2026

Press Room

2026 Iowa high school boys basketball state tournament brackets, schedule

The Iowa high school boys state basketball tournament is just around the corner and the full field has now been set.

By March 13, four teams will be crowned state champions and there are plenty of worthy squads vying for the title. On Tuesday, the final brackets were released and we now have a clear picture of the eight teams in each class hoping to take home the trophy.

Here’s a look at the first-round pairings and the full state tournament schedule for next week’s IHSAA action.

Class 4A Iowa boys state basketball tournament schedule

State quarterfinals, Monday, March 9

No. 4 Dowling Catholic vs No. 5 Dubuque Senior, 5:30 p.m.
No. 1 Cedar Falls vs No. 8 Urbandale, 7:15 p.m.

Tuesday, March 10

No. 3 Waukee Northwest vs. No. 6 Johnston, 10:30 a.m.
No. 2 Waukee vs No. 7 Cedar Rapids Prairie, 12:15 p.m.

State semifinals, Thursday, March 12

TBD vs. TBD, 10:30 a.m.
TBD vs. TBD, 12:15 a.m.

State championship game, Friday, March 13

Class 3A Iowa boys state basketball tournament schedule

State quarterfinals: Monday, March 9

No. 1 Ballard vs. No. 8 Gilbert, 10:30 a.m.
No. 4 Pella vs. No. 5 Carroll, 12:15 p.m.
No. 2 ADM vs. No. 7 Xavier, 2 p.m.
No. 3 Storm Lake vs. No. 6 Solon, 3:45 p.m.

State semifinals, Wednesday, March 11

TBD vs. TBD, 5:30 p.m.
TBD vs. TBD, 7:15 p.m.

State championship game, Friday, March 13

Class 2A Iowa boys state basketball tournament schedule

State quarterfinals: Wednesday, March 11

No. 1 Kuemper Catholic vs. No. 8 Union Community, 10:30 a.m
No. 4 Treynor vs. No. 5 Grundy Center, 12:15 p.m
No. 2 Unity Christian vs. No. 7 Western Christian, 2 p.m.
No. 3 Regina Catholic vs. No. 6 Aplington-Parkersburg, 3:45 p.m.

State semifinals, Thursday, March 12

TBD vs. TBD, 5:30 p.m.
TBD vs TBD, 7:15 p.m.

State title game, Friday, March 13

Class 1A Iowa boys state basketball tournament schedule

State quarterfinals: Tuesday, March 10

No. 1 St. Edmond vs. No. 8 Woodbine, 2 p.m.
No. 4 Notre Dame vs. No. 5 Bellevue, 3:45 p.m.
No. 2 MMCRU vs. No. 7 Boyden-Hull, 5:30 p.m.
No. 3 Bishop Garrigan vs. No. 6 Marquette Catholic, 7:15 p.m.

State semifinals, Thursday, March 12

TBD vs TBD, 2 p.m.
TBD vs TBD, 3:45 p.m.

State title game, Friday, March 13

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Iowa State announces gymnastics program will be discontinued

Published

16 hours ago

March 3, 2026

Press Room

Iowa State announces gymnastics program will be discontinued

Iowa State University announced March 3 that it is cutting its women’s gymnastics program, weeks after abruptly canceling the remainder of the season due to what athletics director Jamie Pollard said were “unreconcilable differences” in the program.

Cyclone gymnasts were informed of the decision to cut the program by ISU associate athletics director Shamaree Brown in a meeting on Tuesday morning, two people with direct knowledge of the situation told USA TODAY Sports Network.

Iowa State gymnastics head coach Ashley Miles Greig and her three assistant coaches were told that their contracts would not be renewed, the university’s news release stated. Miles Greig’s contract was set to expire after the season on June 30, 2026.

Cyclones gymnasts will have the option to remain at Iowa State to finish their degrees, or to transfer to another NCAA school to compete in gymnastics. If they stay at Iowa State, ISU will honor their scholarships. Iowa State’s release said its compliance department would work with the NCAA on waivers to help gymnasts receive an additional year of competition.

Tuesday’s announcement ended weeks of speculation about the program’s future that began when Iowa State canceled its gymnastics season on Feb. 8. In a statement at the time, Brown said the decision was because the Cyclones did not have enough athletes available to compete. In a letter to the gymnastics team and alumni on Feb. 17, Pollard wrote that the cancellation resulted from “a series of complex internal conflicts between individual teammates, coaching staff members, and parents,” language that Iowa State repeated in Tuesday’s release.

In a video released by the school, Pollard said Iowa State would take the next several months to decide which women’s sport would replace gymnastics so that the athletics department remains compliant with Title IX, a federal law that requires NCAA schools to provide proportional participation opportunities to men and women.

“I also want to say, this is not a financial decision. This is a student-athlete experience decision,” Pollard said in the video. “Adding another women’s sport will probably cost equal or more than what we’re already spending on the gymnastics program. This is about student-athlete experience.”

Pollard said that Iowa State conducted reviews of its gymnastics program in 2018 and 2023 stemming from unspecified issues. The 2023 review, conducted by an external law firm, led Iowa State to part ways with then-head coach Jay Ronayne. Miles Greig was hired in April 2023.

On Tuesday, Iowa State denied USA TODAY Sports Network’s public-records request for the findings of the university’s 2018 and 2023 gymnastics probes. In an email denying the request, Ann Lelis, a member of Iowa State’s office of general counsel, cited portions of state open records law that prevent the disclosure of personal information of students or public employees. Lelis also said the requested records were not subject to disclosure because they contained confidential attorney privileged documents.

In the video, Pollard said he asked his senior leadership team “to meet with those individuals in our department that work really closely with our gymnastics program and make a recommendation to me about what we should do going forward.”

The leadership team recommended to Pollard that the school discontinue the gymnastics program, Pollard said, and use those resources for a different women’s sport. Pollard accepted the recommendation from his staff, and he spoke with university leaders. “We are all on the same page,” he said. “This is the right decision for our athletics program and for our student-athletes.”

Cyclone gymnast Samantha Schneider, a redshirt freshman, wrote in an Instagram post on Tuesday that she was heartbroken by the decision and criticized Iowa State’s administration for deflecting blame onto the gymnasts.

“Terrible that this is the result of the lack of support from Iowa State’s Athletic Administration,” Schneider wrote. “For the last 5 months, we have come forward as a team regarding (certain) situations and environment concerns and nothing has been done to protect us as athletes on this team. The gymnasts should NOT be blamed or be sharing any part of the responsibility for this decision being made.”

A former member of this season’s coaching staff also mourned the decision in a text message to USA TODAY Sports Network on Tuesday. The person requested anonymity for fear of repercussions.

“At the end of the day this is unfair to the athletes and the alumni that have built this program and have continued to ask for better,” the coach wrote. “It appears that the department was looking for an easy way out or an easy solution, not realizing they would hurt a lot of people in the process. My only hope is that the athletes can come back stronger than ever.”

Miles Greig could not be immediately reached for comment when contacted Tuesday morning by USA TODAY Sports Network.

The Iowa State gymnastics team participated in four competitions this season before the athletics department shut down the remainder of the season on Feb. 8. Nick Joos, Iowa State’s senior associate athletic director for communications, told USA TODAY Sports Network at the time that the cancellation was due to a “combination of injuries and other health issues.”

During what ended up as Iowa State’s final meet against Denver on Feb. 1, several Cyclone gymnasts fell off the uneven bars. The Cyclones forfeited their next meet on Feb. 6 against West Virginia, with Miles Greig saying in a statement, “At this time, we do not have enough student-athletes available to safely field a team against West Virginia, and regrettably must cancel this competition.”

Two days after that, Brown met with gymnasts on Feb. 8 at Iowa State’s on-campus practice gym and informed them that their season would not continue.

Iowa State’s annual financial report submitted to the NCAA for fiscal year 2025 showed the gymnastics program generated $287,392 in total operating revenues with $1.69 million in expenses, a gap of about $1.4 million. Iowa State allotted 14 scholarships to gymnastics. Football and men’s basketball are the only Iowa State sports in which revenue exceeds spending.

Cyclone gymnastics recruits who had committed to the program for the 2026-27 season can commit to a different school or attend Iowa State and have their scholarship agreements honored.

Former Iowa State gymnast Shea Mattingly, whose last name was Anderson when she graduated in 2012, said she had been in contact with other former members of the team after Tuesday’s announcement.

“We’re all frustrated. We’re all angry,” Mattingly said. “That (Pollard) video made us all really mad, honestly. … It places all the blame on these student-athletes whereas the administration’s accountability in this, they hired these coaches that maybe it seems like they couldn’t handle the program.”

Mattingly said she and other alums aren’t giving up hope on the future of the program.

“I think we’re still going to fight,” she said. “So we’re going to send emails. We’re going to call. We’re going to do all we can, even though it seems his mind has been made up.”

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Iowa

Seven Of Eight 3A Slots Filled For Iowa High School Boys State Tournament

Published

1 day ago

March 3, 2026

Press Room

Seven Of Eight 3A Slots Filled For Iowa High School Boys State Tournament

Seven of the eight spots for the upcoming Class 3A Iowa High School Athletic Association Boys State Tournament were determined Monday night in substate championship action.

Advancing to the Casey’s Center in Des Moines, Iowa were ADM, Ballard, Storm Lake, Carroll, Gilbert, Pella and Solon. On Tuesday, Cedar Rapids Xavier will play Dubuque Wahlert Catholic, as that game was moved due to the Dubuque Wahlert Catholic girls competing in the girls state tournament.

The seven teams advancing were all the higher seeds, as six of the seven picked up victories on their home court. The other – Storm Lake’s 66-53 win over Sergeant Bluff-Luton – was held at nearby Buena Vista University.

ADM claimed a 30-point decision over Nevada while Ballard bested Oskaloosa, 79-45. Carroll claimed a three-point triumph vs. Sioux Center, Gilbert bested rival North Polk, 73-62, Pella eliminated Keokuk, 60-47, and Solon downed Central DeWitt, 49-44.

The state tournament bracket will be released following the conclusion of the Cedar Rapids Xavier-Dubuque Wahlert Catholic contest.

The 4A substate championships are also on deck for Tuesday evening.

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