Greene County Sheriff, EMT lament Flack’s River Farm casualties

Flack’s River Farm Recreation, an ATV play land located south of U.S. Highway 30 on County Road P14 in Greene County, was the scene Saturday of underage drinking followed by injuries as people left the farm and drove while intoxicated in order to avoid the oncoming thunderstorm.

One attendee, Ron Kolbeck, 60, of Jefferson, died after striking the Eureka bridge over the Raccoon River on County Road E53 on his way home.

The event was organized and produced by Iowa Chill as a recreation and entertainment opportunity and was hosted by Craig Flack as owner of Flack’s River Farm Recreation. Admission was charged to enter the event.

According to its Facebook page, Iowa Chill “specializes in promoting the people of Iowa, actively endorsing Midwestern values and bringing people together for memorable experiences.” The annual all-day event features outdoor recreation, live bands and food and beverages.

Greene County Sheriff Jack Williams described the gathering of more than 1,000 people to the Greene County Board of Supervisors at their Monday morning.

“Problems began in the morning and continued until 3 a.m. Sunday,” Williams said.

Law enforcement was repeatedly called to the farm, and medical services were needed throughout the day due to injuries and intoxication, he said.

“Underage drinkers were wearing wristbands” that falsely indicated they were of drinking age, Williams said. He said there were five arrests involving intoxication and driving, and “we found alcohol in the trunks of cars.”

Flack denied that minors were drinking at the event.

“We assembled the best team of gate workers, security and parking attendants that we possibly could,” Flack said in a Facebook post Monday afternoon. “No one got in that was under 18. Twenty-one years and older all got wristbands. Minors got marked with an M. We had an off-duty cop in full gear with an ATV. We had at least 10 other security guys. They all did a great job and took their job very seriously. The torrential downpour caused most of the problems. People left that would’ve stayed otherwise.”

Thirteen people were arrested on various charges through the day and night, Williams said. “Housing them used all our available room. We had no officers free to transport them to other facilities.”

Greene County EMS Director Michelle Madsen was on ambulance duty Saturday.

“It’s frustrating to pick up patients” in a situation like that, Madsen told the supervisors.

Williams and Madsen described emergency personnel trying to save a life with CPR after a car accident Saturday night while simultaneously receiving reports about people “running down the highway in swimsuits” in nearby locations.

As Flack indicated, the storm prompted people to leave the Iowa Chill event and drive while still intoxicated. There were numerous car accidents in consequence.

Williams said he is discussing possible criminal charges with Greene County Attorney Thomas Laehn, and other charges might be added after consultation with Laehn.

Janice Harbaugh reports for the Greene County News Online.