It was a busy meeting yesterday for the Guthrie County Board of Supervisors, as numerous items received heavy discussion.

First off, the Supervisors met with officials from Wellmark Blue Cross & Blue Shield, who were on hand to notify the Board of the change in relationship with Two Rivers Insurance.

Wellmark has terminated its contract with Two Rivers after an audit was recently performed and indicated Two Rivers was adding fees to insurance bills without Wellmark’s knowledge.  Wellmark officials says Two Rivers is under review by the Iowa Insurance Division, which will eventually determine the extent of the wrongdoing.

Guthrie County’s insurance plan will not see any rate or premium changes as a result of Wellmark’s change in relationship with Two Rivers.  Wellmark officials assured the Supervisors there would be “no lapse in coverage” as a result of this change.  The County remains part of the Iowa Governmental Health Care Plan.

County Engineer Josh Sebern then spoke to the Supervisors about the five-year Secondary Roads Construction Program, which was unanimously approved by the Board.  In year one of the plan, Sebern has outlined three bridge replacement projects and one pavement preservation project.  The bridge projects are listed to take place in Thompson, Baker and Richland townships, while the pavement preservation work would be done on County Road N-70 from Highway 141 near Bayard to County Road F-32.

Sebern and the Supervisors then had discussion about Friday night’s bridge collapse incident north of Guthrie Center on Brushy Creek. The tractor and anhydrous tanks that fell into the creek along with the collapsed wooden bridge were owned and operated by Agriland, and Sebern, who was on-site all day Saturday to monitor the situation, says they “responded quickly and effectively in removing equipment and debris” from Brushy Creek.

Sebern says inspections of the bridge were up to date prior to its collapsing.  With the repercussions from the incident expected to last for awhile, Sebern says he’s been in talks with the County Attorney to figure out all monetary and insurance related issues that could arise.

Sebern says he has also been contacted by officials from the Federal government, who want to now do a study pertaining to how well bridge load limits are followed and enforced.  Based on the minimum shipping weight of the tractor that fell into Brushy Creek, Sebern says it did exceed the bridge’s maximum weight limit range.

Sebern concluded the discussion by saying the most important aspect of the bridge collapse incident is the fact the tractor driver got away with just minor injuries, and the Supervisors agreed with that sentiment.