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First child H-1-N-1 death reported by Health Department

November 3, 2009 By

The Iowa Department of Public Health says it has confirmed the first child death in the state from the H-1-N-1 virus. Health Department medical director Patricia Quinlisk says the child died in eastern Iowa in October. Quinlisk says the child had some risk factors that put them at higher risk of having complications from the flu. Quinlisk says even though this child had higher risk factors, we need to be aware that there have been cases nationally where healthy children have died from H-1-N-1.

Doctor Quinlisk says H-1-N-1 does seem to be hitting kids harder than older adults.She says there have been many more deaths in children and would be expected from influenza, as she says the flu deaths are typically more common in the elderly. Quinlisk says with H-1-N-1 for reasons they don’t understand, people over 60 have not been as ill with H-1-N-1, while “we’ve had unfortunately quite a few children get very ill.”

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Filed Under: Health & Medicine

I-80 traffic stop yields big pot bust

November 3, 2009 By

Authorities in western Iowa say a routine traffic stop on Interstate 80 Sunday afternoon led to the discovery of 165 pounds of marijuana. Pottwattamie County Sheriff Jeff Danker says a deputy pulled over a car for speeding as it was headed eastbound on I-80 near Council Bluffs. The driver of the car, 26-year old Nicole Tuthill of Murietta, California, claimed she was a professional snowboarder who spent the winter months in Boulder, Colorado. Danker says the deputy didn’t believe the story.

“She had a snowboard in (her car) and said she was going to Des Moines to visit a friend,” Danker said. “Well, why do you need a snowboard in your vehicle?” The car had a couple of large, clamshell carrying containers on the roof and the deputy noticed other items he felt were suspicious.

“Some incense and other things in the car that didn’t check out,” Danker explained. Tuthill denied the deputy’s request to search the interior of the car, but a K-9 “hit” on the scent of drugs outside the vehicle. The pot was found in the roof-mounted luggage carriers. Tuthill was taken to the Pottawattamie County Jail on charges of possession with the intent to deliver marijuana.

Contributed by Ric Hansen, KJAN, Atlantic

Filed Under: Crime & Courts Tagged With:

Faulty appliance blamed in fatal Shenandoah fire

November 3, 2009 By

State fire officials say an electrical malfunction in a can opener sparked a fire that killed a rural Shenandoah woman Sunday. State fire investigator, John Ticer, says the fire originated under a cupboard can opener in the kitchen area. Ticer says the cord of the can opener was likely loose where it matches up with the switch and the led to a short.

Ticer says it’s unknown why 65-year-old Karen Beecher was unable to escape the burning house after reporting the fire shortly before 1:30 Sunday morning. Firefighters found Beecher in a southeast bedroom. Ticer says there was heavy smoke throughout the house, although the fire was mostly contained in the kitchen. He says firefighters reported it was extremely hot, and they don’t know if that heat kept Beecher from getting through the hall past the kitchen.

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Filed Under: Fires/Accidents/Disasters

Creighton survey still not positive about Christmas season

November 3, 2009 By

A survey predicts the holiday shopping season may not give Iowa merchants — or the state’s tax coffers — much of a bump during the final two months of the year. Creighton University economist Ernie Goss says his latest survey of business leaders and supply managers in Iowa and eight other Midwestern states suggests holiday shoppers could be in a bah-humbug mood.

“On average, the expectation is down by one-point-six percent,” Goss says. “Now, we’d like to see about six-percent growth so this is not good news in terms of holiday buying.” Goss says the results of the Creighton survey during October are in line with other economists’ predictions of a lackluster holiday shopping season during a sluggish economic recovery. He says consumers in Iowa and elsewhere are being bombarded with conflicting messages about the economy, in addition to worries about their jobs and the potential for a costly winter heating season ahead.

“What we’re seeing here is just a whole lot of uncertainty,” Goss says. “There’s uncertainty about Cap and Trade bills going through Congress, there’s uncertainty about the health care reform bill going through Congress and finally, you’ve got tax increases on the horizon.”

Since the national recession began almost two years ago, Goss says Iowa has lost three-percent of its jobs, most of them just in the past year. Even though Iowa’s unemployment rate has stabilized, Goss says he expects the state’s jobless rate to climb again before year’s end.

Filed Under: Business

Ferentz not interested in BCS standings talk, focused on Northwestern

November 3, 2009 By
Sports Illustrated cover.

Sports Illustrated cover.

Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz says he will not lobby to improve the Hawkeyes standing in the B-C-S. Iowa is 9-0 on the season but the Hawkeyes are losing the national debate and stand a very good chance of being left out of the national championship game even if they run the table.

Ferentz says he doesn’t look at those things and says he assumes they are in the mix, but says they still have three conference games left and that’s all they can worry about right now. Ferentz says the Hawks have done a good job all season of not looking ahead and there is no reason to start now.

He says he is so uninterested in the polling right now and he says they will probably end up where they belong. “The suspense is not killing me, I can just assure you it’s not killing me, it hasn’t been… the suspense about this week that’s a little more prominent in my thought right now, my thought process,” Ferentz says.

Ferentz says they cannot worry about what other people think. He says no one in their camp will cry about it. Ferentz says what he has learned is that the first team to complain is usually the first team to get beat. While the Hawks continue to win they are not earning many style points.

Ferentz says they all realize they have three tough teams remaining and are not the type of team that goes and wows people. He says they just have to go out and find a way to win. Iowa hosts Northwestern this weekend and Ferentz says the Hawkeyes best trait is their ability to handle pressure.

Ferentz says one thing the team doesn’t do is panic during a game. He says they have done a lot of things not so well, but that is one thing they have done well is look forward and play well in the fourth quarter. Ferentz says a season like this one takes a number of big plays at the right time.

He says to have a successful season, you are going to have tough moments where someone has to step up, and this year they’ve already had their share of great moments. Ferentz says when you don’t have those moments, you don’t win.

Filed Under: Sports Tagged With: ,

Arnaud anxious to get back into the action

November 3, 2009 By

Austen Arnaud is anxious to return to the field this weekend when the Iowa State Cyclones host Oklahoma State. The junior quarterback injured his throwing hand in an October 17th victory over Baylor and sat out the last two games though he did go through pregame warmup prior to this past weekend’s game at Texas A@M.

Arnaud says he threw the ball Saturday and had some good velocity on it, so he should be ready to go this Saturday. I.S.U. coach Paul Rhoads says Arnaud was close to playing last week. Rhoads says the full velocity wasn’t there for Arnaud and he says based on the progress made, Arnaud will be back.

Rhoads says you have to be able to throw the ball, or you won’t get it by very many people. He says Arnaud could have played without passing the last two weeks. Iowa State is 5-4 and Arnaud says the Oklahoma State defense will provide a diffiocult test. Arnaud says they do a lot of things to try and get you to throw to the short routes on third and long. He says they are athletic and make it tough on the passing game.

Filed Under: Sports Tagged With: ,

Second man charged in death of Cedar Rapids ducks

November 3, 2009 By

Cedar Rapids police have arrested a second person in connection with the death of 47 ducks at a local park. Police says the ducks appeared to have been stoned to death on June 25th of 2008.

Police charged 19-year-old Shayne Smalling of California with livestock abuse and criminal mischief. Earlier police charged 20-year-old Zachary Kanellis of Cedar Rapids with the same charges.

Filed Under: Crime & Courts
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