(Radio Iowa) – Iowa Congresswoman Ashley Hinson is calling for a change that would let 18, 19 and 20 year olds with a commercial driver’s license be cross-country truckers — to address a national shortage of interstate truck drivers. Federal regulations currently require truckers who travel from state-to-state to be at least 21 years old. “Having more truckers on the road will improve supply chain efficiency, translated to lower prices for good and services,” Hinson says. “It will also provide critical career opportunities for 18 to 20 year olds not interested in a four year degree.”

Forty-nine states and the District of Columbia issue commercial driver’s licenses to people under the age of 21, but they are not allowed to cross state borders. “An 18 year old truck driver is permitted to drive 300 miles from let’s say a project in Sioux City all the way back to Dubuque County, but according to current regulations that same driver is not allowed to drive the truck the three miles across the Julien Dubuque Bridge for a project cross the state line in Illinois,” Hinson says. “That doesn’t make any sense to me.”

Hinson has introduced a bill called the “Reciprocity, Efficiency and Age Limitation” or REAL Act in the U-S House to let 18, 19 and 20 years drive cross-country if they have a commercial driver’s license. Hinson. a Republican from Marion, is visiting the Semi-Driving program at North Iowa Community College today (Friday) to discuss her idea with trucking industry leaders.

SIOUX CITY, Iowa (KCAU) – A pilot working with a critical-care helicopter service in Iowa has returned to work after a bird crashed through the windshield and struck him in the head last month. KCAU-TV in Sioux City reports Troy McCormick, of Wings Air Rescue in Sioux City, was flying toward a hospital in Storm Lake on Nov. 23 when the incident took place.

The bird smashed through the windscreen and hit McCormick on the side of the head before disintegrating inside the helicopter. A fellow crew member quickly canceled their mission and diverted the helicopter to Storm Lake airport with McCormick dazed but uninjured, and covered in blood and feathers. .”

McCormick believes he was hit by a duck, but he’s not sure. McCormick has been flying since 2001 and joined Wings Air Rescue roughly a year ago. He considers the incident a freak accident.

Wednesday (Dec. 6) was McCormick’s first day back to work since the incident. He said he was excited to be back in the sky continuing to save lives — and he hopes to avoid any birds.

(Atlanta, GA) – The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report 230 people have been sickened and three people have died, from cantaloupe recalled for salmonella contamination. Eight cases of the illness are reported in Iowa, seven in Nebraska, 14 people in Missouri are sick from the bacteria. Minnesota reports the most cases, at 20. Wisconsin has 18, Illinois reports 11 cases, and South Dakota has one reported case.  The CDC says it is concerned about the outbreak because the illnesses are severe, and people in long-term care facilities and childcare centers have gotten sick. They warn you should not eat pre-cut cantaloupes if you don’t know whether Malichita or Rudy brand cantaloupes were used.

some of the recalled cantaloupe product.

The pre-cut fruit was sold in several stores, including Kwik Trip and Aldi stores in Iowa, and Trader Joe’s. See additional details HERE.

Salmonella is an organism which can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems. Healthy persons infected with Salmonella often experience fever, diarrhea (which may be bloody), nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain. In rare circumstances, infection with Salmonella can result in the organism getting into the bloodstream and producing more severe illnesses such as arterial infections (i.e., infected aneurysms), endocarditis and arthritis.

(Des Moines, Iowa) –  Officials with the Iowa D-N-R say a moose that had been seen Wednesday in Spirit Lake is believed to have fallen through the ice on East Lake Okoboji and drowned. The D-N-R says the moose had been swimming in Spirit Lake and Marble Lake since late November and came from Northern Minnesota.

Arnolds Park Okoboji Fire & Rescue was expected to try and pull the moose out of the lake so it can be taken to Iowa State University for study.