and they saw the workforce, employees, and the facilities and iowa. i think they just immediately thought, we can't walk away from this. cynthia: johnston mayor paula deirenfeld was part of an iowa delegation fighting to make this historic, central iowa facility a central part of the new company, which will become the largest agricultural business in the united states. but about 175 jobs have already been slashed in the restructuring. mayor deirenfeld: in the short-term, you'll see a little shake out, as they put the merger in place. so there may well be some additional job loss. but over the long-term, next 3-5 years, we'll see jobs increase. cynthia: the iowa department of economic development today approved $16 million in tax benefits and financial assistance to retain 500 research jobs. johnston city council also added another $1 million incentive package. the company said in december it would cut 10% of the global

some folks here today told me there are no new additional job cuts planned in this announcement today. and this merger still needs regulatory approval. steve and stacey? stacey: iowa's congressional delegation were disappointed with the news that dow-dupont decided not to make johnston its home headquarters. sen. ernst: we will maintain a presence. by the way, i understand through that merger, by research and development in johnston, iowa. but that does not help those families and employees that are losing their jobs right now. stacey: senator charles grassley says he's disappointed, too. but he adds, quote, "today's announcement may not be what we had hoped, but it underscores the value of pioneer's outstanding employees and innovative research and development." grassley goes on to say, "still at issue is the antitrust review, which i'll be keeping a close eye on. i'm continuing to listen to concerns from farmers and consumers about the merger." steve: des moines attorney steve zumbach has been working on central iowa economic

he says, rather than focusing on losing some jobs, we should be focusing on the opportunities today's announcement presents. we're losing some jobs. but you're not all that steve zumbach: i'm not worried about that. that's a short-run matter. long-term, what's important is that the heartbeat of pioneer, the epicenter of pioneer, is the science. and it's some of the best science in the world, in terms of plant genetics and ag bioscience. that is staying in des moines. and if i have my choice between some executive mbas and scientists, long-term, who are going to be the real value adds, it's the scientists. and they're going to be here. steve karlin: zumbach says the future is bright. because with iowa state university, central iowa is perfectly set up to become an ag bioscience center. and that is the future, in terms of job growth. a former dow, dupont, pioneer employee is speaking out during this transitional period for the company.

johnston, as part of our team coverage. rose, what was her reaction? rose: steve, i spoke with a woman who worked there for nearly six years. she said loved her job. but she says she's hopeful for the company's future. michelle: i think that was the christmas present that the activist investors were looking for. i got a christmas present of a different nature. rose: on december 18, michelle book lost her job working community relations for dupont pioneer. this, just days after company leaders announced the dow dupont merger. book landed on her feet and is now ceo of food bank of iowa. michelle: i'm thrilled to be at the food bank of iowa. but it was a tough time. there were others that were let go right before christmas. and many after christmas, as well. rose: the company is offering job placement services to laid-off employees. book says she's optimistic for those like her. michelle: i think this is a great opportunity for other growth businesses in the des

of that top talent that pioneer is losing right now. rose: she says she first felt changes in 2014, when the company announced job cuts. michelle: we've been in a constant state of change and flux. that's hard for employees to absorb. rose: with the agriculture headquarters going to delaware, she says she still believes dow, dupont, pioneer will continue to be an asset to the community. michelle: i would hope that, as they continue to grow the plant genetics buisness, that there's more opportunity for growth. and they'll ramp back up. rose: i did reach out to about a dozen current employees. they did not want to comment. but one worker did tell me that he wants to leave on his own accord, because he's worried about the stability of the company. live in johnston, rose heaphy, kcci 8 news, iowa's news leader. stacey: john deere says its earnings were down the last three months, thanks to weak sales of farm and construction equipment. deere says it earned just over $254 million last quarter. down 34%, from the same time

was cutting 220 jobs. agriculture sales dropped 12% during the first quarter. construction sales dropped even farther -- 23%. another open meeting, but no decision yet on whether or not to allow the bakken oil pipeline while board members discussed the evidence already presented still have two more potential hearings next month. iowa is the only state left to approve this pipeline. the pipeline will bring oil from refinery. steve: the warmer temperatures were pushed here by some really strong winds. we had a crew in ellsworth today, where they saw gusts of up to 50 miles an hour. the wind was strong enough to blow over this semi-truck that was traveling along interstate 35. and it wasn't just there. the iowa state patrol dealt with several similar accidents throughout the state, where the strong winds just pushed over those big, high-profile

is this going to slow down? kurtis: i lost my hat today. i got a call from the waukee lost and found. it is in dubuque, but i want to point out, it is still a breezy out there. a big improvement from earlier today, how about 60's in the metro down to lamoni and council bluffs? much colder to the north, and we had clouds rotate on through. look at this nice shot of a bald eagle coming in from our u-local page. the wind will settle down. 39 at 7 a.m. by noon tomorrow, 56. mostly sunny for the afternoon, 60 degrees. so a very nice saturday. wind is only northwest at 5-10. a day without all the wind, that would be nice.

stacey: new at 6:00, a convicted murderer says the iowa department of corrections is making a huge mistake cutting a rehabilitation program for offenders. kcci's kim st. onge is in the newsroom to explain what the program is, and why it was slashed. kim: a convicted murderer tells me the victim impact program helped thousands of inmates take responsibility for their actions . but budget cuts forced doc to put it on the chopping block. jamie ross was 16 years old when she was sentenced to 50 years in prison, after pleading guilty to second degree murder. she only served eight and a half years behind bars, after helping man. jamie: myself and the other female agreed to take him to the and they ended up beating him to death. kim: while serving time at the women's prison in mitchellville, she took a 12-week course, called the victim impact program. it teaches offenders that all crimes have serious affects on victims. jamie: this class helps to teach you that every decision you make

kim: she says the department of corrections made a huge mistake cutting the program. >> we found that there was no statistically significant difference in recidivism rates between offenders who had received victim impact program, versus those who had received no program. kim: meaning, it didn't prevent people from re-offending. the money is now used for a cognitive behavior program. jamie thanks the victim impact program for now having her life back on track. and she wants that same success for everyone. jaime: we want to make sure that everybody that is getting out of prison would make good neighbors. kim: that victim impact program and this new cognitive behavioral program are estimated to cost about $120 per person, every year. stacey? stacey: day two of state wrestling. we're live at wells fargo arena. scott reister has the highlights. steve: state health officials have detected their first case of the zika virus in iowa.

doing to combat the disease. leader. this is kcci 8 news at 6:00 with chief meteorologist john

andy garman. steve: the iowa department of health today confirmed that an iowa woman has indeed tested positive for the zika virus. the infected woman is between 61 and 80 years old. and a frequent traveler to central america. the health department says the general public is not at risk for contracting zika. because the mosquitoes that carry it are not established in iowa. infected people suffer from a fever, rash, joint pain, and/or red eyes. but they usually don't become sick enough to be hospitalized. however, pregnant women who contract the virus may pass it on to their fetuses. that causes a serious birth defect of the brain, called microcephaly. a condition in which the child's head grows more slowly than the rest of the body. there is an iowa connection in the fight against the zika virus. stacey: kcci's vanessa peng live tonight with more on an ames

of the fight. vanessa: steve, stacey, newlink genetics made headlines for their work on an ebola vaccine. now, they're turning their attention to the zika virus. newlink genetics is one of dozens of companies that's thrown their hat into the ring to develop a zika virus vaccine. newlink is an ames biopharmaceutical company. infectious disease division vice president brian martin says they're just starting out, like their competitors. martin says, right now, they're still trying to figure out what type of vaccine they're going to work on. brian: we're just starting, right? everybody is just starting. literally, this vaccine was only recognized as a threat around the beginning of the year. think about how short that is. you know, we're basically six, seven weeks into the year, and we're talking about how far are we? it takes a long time to develop a vaccine. vanessa: senator joni ernst 84 of -- took a tour of newlink

employees, and told them she's thankful for their work. live in the ames bureau, vanessa peng, kcci 8 news, iowa's news leader. stacey: new information about a major drinking water donation that hyvee made to flint, michigan, on behalf of iowa state basketball player and flint, michigan native monte morris. the 11 semis loaded with water that left ames yesterday rolled into flint today. the donation was greeted by members of morris' family, including his mom, grandfather, godmother, aunt, and cousin. they said they were overwhelmed by hyvee's generosity. the warm temperatures are here. we are so excited and welcoming to them. kurtis: good news, the wind is slowly quieting down. we knew it would be strong today. but it really howled out there north of town. presley, just a couple of plows off to the north. 53 degrees, wind chill 49, west

here is the station, we had a gust of over 50 in audubon. 47 in ames, and also numerous reports up north on interstate 35 of over 50 miles per hour. cooler 40's to the north, marshalltown, you talked out at 60. preston was 61. 60 here in des moines. day planner, still in the 50's right through 10 p.m. clear skies at 10 p.m. 34 degrees at 7 a.m., and actual temperature is 39. but we will not stay there for long. temperatures climb very quickly. by noon tomorrow, 56. 3:00 p.m. temperature on saturday, how about 60 degrees? notice the clouds scooting through northern iowa, spinning across the twin cities. that kept temperatures down. we are seeing clouds down to the south, a few will drift into southern iowa.

70 in kansas city and st. louis. st. louis might get thunderstorms tomorrow. 56 in chicago. again, this is february. 70's down in dodge city. this system over minnesota now, spinning off to ontario, and we have another system that will come on by to the south of us. but overall, this looks very nice for your saturday. here is futurecast, clear skies overnight, sunshine ahead for saturday. again, a picture-perfect february day. saturday is clear, looks like cover. early sunday morning, there could be a light mixture north of highway 20, east of i-35. this will drop towards the quad cities by sunday afternoon, and hanging around. around 39 degrees tonight, clear skies out there. good news, these winds clear out each and every hour. by tomorrow, out of the

make it up to 15 outside of town, high of 50. so saturday, just like today, without the wind. sunday is 48. monday has sunshine, 34 -- numeral highs are 30's -- normal highs are 30's. upper 30's and low 40's next weekend.

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announcer: from iowa's sports leader, this is kcci 8 sports. andy: things are getting serious at wells fargo arena. the state wrestling tournament in its second day, now at a right where it is great to get there. but some of the guys are wrestling for championships. the field gets weeded out at this scott reister and tony point. seeman have our coverage from the well. ready for another fun night. scott: it has been a fun day so far, a fun night ahead, andy. the invoice and on the -- the emotion on the mat is an absolute zoo. let us get you started with the

it was fun. the right side of the scoreboard. at one point, brady tyner for dallas walked into the quarterfinal last year, and he is not lost ends. brady: it has been a long year coming from last year. but i have finally got it. scott: watch out for i-35's in the blue. massive takedown and a manly mustache. a major decision, he and his mustache will wrestle on saturday night. at 182, the undefeated ogden in the blue. facing manson kruger, and check out the moment afterwards. look at the respect these competitors have for each other. the stakes are so incredibly high.

120 -- zach thompson gets the takedown. he advances to tonight's semifinal round. 126, originally from africa, gets the leg takedown. he is having a ball, on to the semifinals. >> it is fun. but it is just fun. you go out there and russell. scott: at 145, albia's gets the takedown. well. at 220, about to the big -- the season flashes before his eyes. he is able to wiggle out. remains undefeated. a quick strike to get the 2 right out the back. he is on to the semifinals, also

tony seeman has is covered. tony coleman kobe prichard, lost his leg a decade ago. he continues to dominate. at 126, southeast polk's moves on it 6-2. jake waters from dowling, he gets the takedown. waters and him will meet in the semifinals. valley,o problem here. he moves on with an 11-3 major decision. at 145, under undefeated makes it looks easy. >> i feel like im a predator out there. they are in my way, and i will get the state title. they will get taken out.

he moves on in a 3-1 decision. >> that was the game plan. i know what i want coming in. so so keep the tunnel vision. tony: who else at 3a, ethan anderson, he is moving on. ethan: i think i have earned it. these past three years, just putting in the work all those mornings. i deserve it, i think. tony: no doubt it has been a raucous couple of days. now we start with the semifinals, scheduled to start at 7:30 tonight. scott, back to you. scott: we will see you tonight at 10:00. scott reister, kcci. andy: scott and tony, much more tonight at 10:00. southeast polk currently reading in 3a.

because teams are in the postseason. three games tonight, including a girls matchup at des moines christian.

t serve any fish sandwich at culver's. we serve wild-caught, north atlantic cod. this cod grows in water that is cold, clean and pristine, full of flavorful nutrients, and that comes through in the fish. this is the way we ship it to your restaurants. it's not pre-breaded. so not only do we use the highest quality cod, but we still hand-batter it the old-fashioned way. that's remarkable. and we think we get the best fish filet sandwich because of that. this is the best fish sandwich in america. "welcome to delicious!" >> trump versus the pope. >> you've been in fights with a lot of people. but the pope? >> world reaction. >> i mean this takes taylor swift versus kanye west like nothing. >> then walking dead 911. cops raid their home because they're watching the walking dead.

what are you reporting? >> plus, the shocking plot to frame a pta president. >> by this married couple. >> did you knowingly participate in a scheme with your wife to frame kelly peters? >> now final vindication. >> this is not okay to do to somebody. then, sister versus sisters. how the murder of their mother by dad is tearing them apart. >> i think he completely brain washed them. >> we made our own decision. plus -- >> wrong. >> wrong. >> wrong. >> what you're doing wrong every day. and you don't even know it. >> wrong. >> you're doing it wrong. >> you're not even eating a cupcake the right way. and pizza, you're doing it all wrong. >> the proper way to eat a slice of pizza. >> you're not even showering the right way. >> you're definitely showering wrong. now "inside edition" with deborah norville. >> deborah: hello, everybody. thank you for joining us. they're the everyday things you never knew you were doing wrong.