A FOUR BLOCK AREA OF STORM LAKE WAS SHUT DOWN THIS THURSDAY MORNING AFTER A SUSPICIOUS PACKAGE WAS FOUND IN A STREET.
STORM LAKE POLICE SAY A BRIEF CASE PARTIALLY WRAPPED IN DUCT TAPE WAS FOUND AT LAKE AVENUE AND RAILROAD STREET SHORTLY AFTER 7AM.
AUTHORITIES SHUT DOWN TRAFFIC AND CORDONED OFF THE AREA UNTIL IT COULD BE DETERMINED WHAT WAS IN THE CASE.
PERSONNEL FROM THE CNN RAILROAD CAME TO THE SCENE AROUND 9AM AND IDENTIFIED THE CASE AS ONE THAT HAD FALLEN OFF A TRUCK AND WAS HARMLESS. STREETS IN STORM LAKE WERE REOPENED A FEW MINUTES LATER.
Today governors from three states will tour a plant in South Sioux City that makes a lean beef product that's been blasted by critics.
Iowa Governor Terry Branstad held a news conference yesterday with former Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack, the nation's ag secretary, to denounce those critics.
Beef Products Incorporated is the nation's leading processor of this "boneless, lean beef" product. It has already shut down its plant in Waterloo, putting 200 people out of work. Branstad and a delegation of officials will visit B-P-I's plant in South Sioux City today which has reduced production dramatically due to declining consumer demand.
B-P-I plants in Texas and Kansas have been idled this week and the governors of those two states will join Branstad today for a tour of the South Sioux City plant.
Branstad accuses the national media of a "poisonous tone"about this product that will hurt the nation's cattle producers and the people who work at the plants. The lean, finely-textured beef product is made from the trimmings left over after beef carcasses are cut into steaks and roasts. According to Vilsack, "hundreds" of schools asked the U-S-D-A to ban the product from school lunches.
IOWA GOVERNOR TERRY BRANSTAD AND U.S. SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE TOM VILSACK HAVE LAUNCHED A CAMPAIGN AGAINST THE MISINFORMATION ABOUT LEAN FINELY TEXTURED BEEF. BRANSTAD SAYS THE PRODUCT IS SAFE, LOW IN FAT AND NUTRITIOUS:
BRANSTAD SAYS INACCURATE REPORTS BY NATIONAL MEDIA ARE NOW COSTING PEOPLE JOBS:
VILSACK SAYS THE USDA WOULDN'T ALLOW THE PRODUCT IF IT WASN'T SAFE.
BRANSTAD WILL JOIN OTHER GOVERNORS AND OFFICIALS IN TOURING SOUTH SIOUX CITY'S B-P-I PLANT LATER TODAY.
THE GOVERNOR SAYS HE WILL EAT SOME OF B-P-I'S PRODUCT TO DEMONSTRATE IT IS SAFE.
