1 killed, 2 escape house fire

ORONO (AP) — Officials say one person has died in a house fire in Orono, while two others escaped from the burning home.

Firefighters say flames were shooting from the house when they arrived shortly before 11 p.m. Sunday.

The two people who made it out told police a third person remained in the house.

Long Lake Fire Chief James Van Eyll tells the Star Tribune officers tried to enter the house to find that person, but were driven back by heavy smoke.

Firefighters from several departments responded to the scene. They contained the blaze several hours later, entered the house and found the victim.

The state Fire Marshal’s Office, Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office and the Hennepin County Medical Examiner are investigating.

Former aide charged with stealing

WATERLOO, Iowa (AP) — A former secretary for Iowa soil and water conservation districts was charged Monday with stealing from the organizations.

Leslie Carey was charged with one count of wire fraud, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for Iowa’s Northern District.

Her attorney filed a notice that she would plead guilty, according to the Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier.

Carey was an administrative aide for the soil and water conservation districts in Black Hawk and Bremer counties from 2007 to 2017. She resigned after an overdrawn account led to a state audit.

The audit found Carey withdrew nearly $182,000 in cash from the Black Hawk district and spent $105,000 on debit and credit cards. Carey improperly transferred money from the Bremer district to cover costs in Black Hawk’s budget.

Winner claims $1M prize in Iowa

CLIVE, Iowa (AP) — A northwest Iowa man who bought a Powerball ticket that turned out to be worth $1 million claimed his prize Monday.

Shane Saxen told officials at Iowa Lottery headquarters in Clive that he usually doesn’t buy a ticket until the jackpot’s really high.

“In this case, I just decided, ‘Why not? I’ll get one,'” Saxen said.

The ticket he bought at a Brew convenience store matched five of the numbers drawn Saturday but missed the Powerball number and the $80 million jackpot.

Saxen, 31, lives in Correctionville and works as a campus security officer at Briar Cliff University in Sioux City. He plans to invest most of his winnings for retirement.