The possibility of tornados, strong winds, hail and all the damage that comes with these storms are expected to arrive in our area this afternoon. Area schools are closing early to avoid having the high provile buses loaded with children on the roads during the event.

Residents traveling on Highway 150 near Urbana late in the evening on Wednesday night, saw flames, a lot of flames. The fire could be seen from miles away.

Benton County Attorney, Ray Lough along with his two assistant attorneys Tim Dille and Megan Hall spoke briefly to the Vinton Kiwanis Club. The three shared a little about their experience and duties as part of the team in Benton County.

The Vinton-Shellsburg Prom 2023 Grand March will be held on Saturday, April 15 in the High School Auditorium. The doors will open at 6:00 p.m. and the event will begin at 6:30 p.

Vinton is participating in the 2023 Iowa's Living Roadways Community Visioning Program. Community Visioning is a transportation enhancement planning process that serves Iowa communities under 10,000 in population.

Following the flood of 2008, the city of Vinton lost homes near the river's edge in Vinton. A few homes along second street that were so badly damaged that they were eventually torn down and the lots empty.

 On March 2, the Area Substance Abuse Council (ASAC), Benton County Sherriff, Ronald Tippett, Benton County Attorney, Ray Lough, and Megan Hall, spoke with Iowa Attorney General, Brenna Bird, to discuss the Substance Use and Mental Health efforts in the county.

Friends of the Center Point Library sponsored a BlueTone Jass Collective performance at the Center Point Library on Thursday, March 23.  Getting down with the tuba at a jazz concert, in the library? Yes! The four-person band, plus a stand-out vocalist, performed nine different instruments and a range of tunes from Louie Armstrong to the Beatles, much to the delight of the spring concert crowd of about 20 attendees.

On Saturday, 40 Vinton-Shellsburg FFA members competed at the District Contests at Beckman Catholic High School. Here are their results:Conduct of Chapter Meetings: Will McKenna, Wes McKenna, Eli Ollinger, Ben McGowan, Ben Buhr, Andrew Allsup, and Cooper McClintock - SilverJob Interview: Kelcie Appleby - GoldParliamentary Procedure: Alana Fleming, Megan Schlitter, Izzie Birker, Grayce McClintock, and Rachel Rollinger - GoldPrepared Public Speaking: Annabelle Newton - 2nd Gold - Advance to StateAg Broadcasting: Jazmyn Dods - SilverCreed Speaking: Cal Christenson - SilverFarm Business Management: Kaelyn Pettyjohn, Kail Evans, and Kate Timmerman - .

The Kids Krusaders of the First Christian Church in Vinton is made up of youth grades 1-6. The kids meet every Wednesday after school from 3:30-5:00 p.