WASHINGTON (AP) — Sprouts from the sandwich chain Jimmy John’s have been linked to an outbreak of foodborne illness — again. The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Wednesday that 12 cases of E. coli poisoning in five states are linked to clover sprouts eaten at Jimmy John’s restaurants. The outbreak comes a year after sprouts from one of the chain’s suppliers were linked to 140 salmonella illnesses. Sprouts from the chain were also linked to a 2009 salmonella outbreak in several Midwestern states and were suspected in an E. coli outbreak in Colorado in 2008. The CDC reports more than 30 sprout outbreaks in the last 15 years. Sprouts need warm and humid conditions to grow, encouraging bacterial growth.

Do you sleep with your cell phone on a bedside table? You may want to move it after reading this report from Radio Iowa’s Matt Kelley:

The director of a sleep disorder clinic in Omaha says he’s seeing patients from Iowa and Nebraska, mostly teens and young adults, who are sleep-texting — that’s right, texting while they’re asleep. Dr. Michael Summers says, “The transition from wake to sleep and sleep to wake happens fairly abruptly and you still may be in and out of that either wake or sleep state and that is where these occur.” Dr. Summers believes sleep-texting is a lot more common than you might think. “The frequency of it really increases if you’re sleep-deprived,” he says. “You combine that with certain sleep medications that can make parasomnias more common and you’re starting to see this become more of an issue. It’s probably fairly under-reported, at least sleep-texting, because admittedly, some people may send things that are a bit embarrassing to talk about.” Summers blames the phenomenon of sleep-texting on sleep deprivation. He says, “Most people average around seven hours — or less — of sleep per night and a vast majority of studies show that most people need at least nine hours of sleep per night.” He says sleep deprivation does take its toll on a person and it can carry over into their awake time.

“You are more prone to making mistakes,” Summers says. “You’re less efficient. Chronic sleep deprivation decreases response times, so when you’re driving, you may not be able to react as quickly. You may do what we call automatic behaviors where you’re driving and you may go into this zone-like state where you drive by your exit.” Too little sleep can also lead to sleep-eating, night terrors, restless leg syndrome, sleep paralysis, chronic pain and teeth grinding. Summers, whose clinic is at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, says the first step in stopping these episodes is to get more sleep. He recommends that at a certain time, electronics are turned off. He says never get into bed with your cell phone. If you need it in your bedroom, put it out of reach.

The Cass County Board of Supervisors today (Wednesday) approved the transfer $191, 000 from the Local Option Sales Tax (LOST) fund to the Debt Service Fund, in order to pay down a $520,000 loan for the Northwest Water/Sewer Extension Project. The loan was originally set-up to be paid in 20 annual installments of $26,000 each, but the agreement also provided an option for the County to prepay the bond principle in all or in-part, prior to its maturity.

The project was approved by the Board in May, 2011. It involved the laying of 3,200 feet of water main and sanitary sewer from Highway 83 to the Amaizing Energy Industrial area and along Glacier Road and underneath the railroad spur line. The utilities were created in that area in hopes of fostering economic development. The County is paying for the project, with Atlantic Municipal Utilities acting as the flow-through agency for the funds.

In other business, the Board set March 14th, 9:05-a.m.,  as the date and time for a public hearing on the proposed Fiscal Year 2013 County budget.

MANSON, Iowa (AP) – The northwest Iowa town of Manson is struggling to sink a new water well all because of something that happened 74 million years ago. A meteorite slammed into the region, sending up rocks from five miles below the surface. The Manson Crater spans parts of four counties with a diameter of 24 miles.
 
The Des Moines Register says the rocky mess is creating big headaches for well-drilling crews searching for a spot where pumps can bring up enough water for the entire town.  Crews drilled on the edge of Manson in November, but had no luck. The Department of Natural Resources is suggested the city concentrate on the center of the crater, where earlier wells have produced water.    The city’s current wells were built in 1905 and 1921.

SAC CITY, Iowa (AP) – Authorities have charged a western Iowa woman with 93 counts of animal neglect.  A news release from the Sac County Sheriff’s Office says the charges stem from the rescue of 87 dogs and one cat from a farm in rural Kiron. The carcasses of five dead animals were found when officials searched the farm on Jan. 25th.   The sheriff’s office says 44-year-old Mary Brodersen has been charged.   Brodersen has relinquished ownership of the animals, which have been turned over to various shelters.   Six of the dogs were suspected of being pregnant.

The Atlantic Police Department today (Wednesday) reports 26-year old Albert Johnson, of Atlantic, was arrested Tuesday. Johnson was taken into custody on a charge of Harassment in the 3rd Degree. He was brought to the Cass County Jail and held, pending a court appearance.

The Iowa Department of Transportation today (Wednesday) announced Atlantic will be one of six sites for a public information meeting pertaining to the State’s long-range Transportation Plan. The meeting in Atlantic will be held March 15th, at the DOT’s District 4 Office (2210 E. 7th St.), from 4:30-to 6:30pm. 

During each of the six meetings scheduled for around the state, a presentation will be made at 5:15-p.m., with DOT personnel available between 4:30-6:30pm, to individually discuss the plan. Meeting rooms are accessible for persons with disabilities. To provide comments or to request special accomodations, contact the Iowa DOT’s Office of System Planning in Ames, at 515-239-1520 or e-mail Iowa.Motion@dot.iowa.gov.

The DOT will be accepting public comment on the plan through March 30th. To view information about the plan, log on to the DOT’s website at www.iowadot.gov/iowainmotion/state.html

w/ Ric Hanson

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