Waiting for the 6 o'clock news

Several television station converged on the front lawn of the Floyd County Court House in Charles City after an announcement of an arrest was made involving the Evelyn Miller murder case. Danny Slick faces a federal indictment for making false statements to a federal agency. Click here to read more.

Emergency Drill

Above - Floyd County Sheriff's Deputy Darin Crooks looks on while personnel from the Charles City Fire Department and AMR Ambulance participate in an emergency drill.

Images (c) Allen Murray and Charles City Fire Department

'Flame of Hope' stops in Charles City

Charles City Police Captain Brad Gibson spoke at a ceremony in Cental Park as part of the U.S. Law Enforcement Torch Run Final Leg Team's stop in Charles City. The final leg of the Torch Run began in Chicago on June 24 and will end in Ames, Iowa where the 2006 Games will be held. The Torch Run event is Special Olympics’ biggest grass-roots fundraiser.

750 GPM

Firefighter Training

Keeping It Closed

Living History

I was organizing some of my photos and found several I had intended to post but failed to do so. This image is one of them. It was from this year’s Charles City Military History Days. Obviously it has been worked on in Photoshop. I use to play with photo manipulation software a lot, but had decided to put more thought and effort into photography while actually taking the pictures. After working with the selective coloring photograph (see below), I started toying with other ideas for post-processing. It is fun to experiment with all the different option available in the digital darkroom.

On Scene With CCFD

Above - Firefighters from the Charles City Fire Department wait outside the Floyd County Memorial Hospital while other firefighters check the status of an alarm received from that location.

[[Here ya go - the only photo worth saving
from Joslin Street]]

Images (c) Allen Murray and Charles City Fire Department

Peddle Tractor Pulls

Cameron Murray eases her way towards the full-pull line at the sanctioned peddle tractor pulls held during the Century of Tractor Power event in Charles City. This was Cameron’s first attempt at the peddle tractor pull and finished third in the 6 year old division.

Sunrise Over Pond II

Ok, its not as good as the last post, but there is still something about it I really like. Your thoughts?

Sunrise Over Pond

Fisherman drowns in Nashua

The body of a missing fisherman has been found down stream from the Cedar Lake dam in Nashua, Iowa. Search and rescue teams from around the area were called to the dam early Monday morning after a 30 year-old man was seen slipping below the water while fishing.

Cadaver dogs try to pick up a scent along the face of the dam. Water below the dam is reportedly over 20 feet deep.

Charles City Firefighters work to calculate the rate in which the water above the dam is raising after rescuers stop the flow of water over the dam.

Photojournalist Bryon Houlgrave works the scene Monday afternoon while rescue team continue searching the Cedar River.

Images (c) Allen Murray, Floyd County Search and Rescue, and Charles City Fire Department

Rescue workers work to free victim

Members of Floyd County Search and Rescue work to extricate a 23 year-old female pinned inside a Chevrolet Blazer. The victim was airlifted from the scene by University of Iowa Air Care helicopter.

Also assisting at the scene were Floyd first responders and fire department, AMR ambulance, Floyd County Sheriff's Department and reserves, and Iowa State Patrol.

Additional photos can be found here

Images © Allen Murray and Floyd County Search and Rescue

Barbed Wire Sunset

Twenty-One Miles Per Hour

I was out storm chasing a few days ago and was trying to position myself (and my camera) in front of a storm cell which had a history of sharp lightening, high winds, and hail. (No, I never claimed to be the smartest guy out there, but I really wanted some good photos!) I headed east, running parallel to the main part of the storm. As my luck would have it, I meet up with a friendly farmer. My sixty miles per hour speeds were quickly reduced to twenty-one. I began to get frustrated, muttering not-so-nice phrases as if someone somewhere could hear me. The opportunity to get the good storm chasing photos was quickly fading as my time and gas were about depleted.

I didn’t want to return home without something to show for my time and effort. That’s when it hit me. I could steal some of Bryon’s creativity! I had wanted to try something similar to a photo Bryon posted back in September. It is a scene all to familiar to those of us living in rural areas.

I took several shots, experimenting with different compositions and settings. I didn’t want an ‘exact’ replica of Bryon’s shot, so I decided to not include the steering wheel. I also wanted to play with the placement and focus of the speedometer. I would get a good frame setup, and then realize several raindrops had accumulated on my windshield. After clearing the window, I would have to recompose the shot. It was much more difficult than I thought it would be.

Overall I like the way my version turn out. I am kind of torn on the softness of the speedometer. I like it blurry, but wonder if it would have been strong if it were sharp. I also could have done without the raindrops in the photo, but I figured since I was out trying to catch a storm maybe a few water spots were appropriate.

Bryon- I hope you don’t mind that I used your idea. If so, I apologize.

To all - Be sure to check out Bryon's photo

Red Red Radishes

At the Market

Mary Whiteside (left) purchases fresh tomatoes from one of the many vendors at the Farmer’s Market in Charles City. Offered at this year’s market is the traditional selection of locally grown produce, baked goods, honey, and eggs. In addition, visitors will find a selection of organic fruits and vegetables, handmade furniture, plants and flowers, and various craft items.

The Charles City Farmer’s Market is held on Wednesdays from 3:30 PM to 6:00 PM and Saturdays from 9 AM to noon and is located on the west side of Central Park in downtown Charles City.