In brief: Whooping cough nearly doubles in Idaho, kills infant
Nearly twice as many cases of whooping cough have been reported in Idaho so far this year. One infant has died from the highly contagious bacterial disease, also known as pertussis, the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare reported Tuesday.
Through July, 241 cases were reported to public health officials, compared with 122 cases in the first seven months of 2013.
In the five North Idaho counties, 25 cases were reported through July, compared to 24 last year.
“The best way to protect children and infants from pertussis is to get vaccinated so you are protected, and then you drastically reduce the risk of passing it on to extremely vulnerable infants,” said Mitch Scoggins, program manager for the Idaho Immunization Program.
Pertussis vaccines are available in many physicians’ offices, local public health district offices and pharmacies.
Jackson Road set to reopen
Jackson Road, an important corridor for farm traffic in south Spokane County, is set to reopen to traffic today or Thursday after a wintertime flood washed out its crossing of Rock Creek south of Freeman.
The flood on Feb. 14 took out a culvert and parts of the road, forcing the county to schedule emergency repairs.
A contractor on the job has worked to get the road reopened by mid-August so farmers could use the connection during harvest. Otherwise, farm vehicles would have to take a costly detour to state Highway 27.
McMorris Rodgers town hall Aug. 18
Staff for Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers said they realized too late their error in the published date for an upcoming Spokane town hall event on a mailer that hit the district last week.
The glossy mailer lists the wrong day of the week for the event. It will be held Aug. 18, which is Monday, a spokeswoman said.The error was discovered after the mailers had been sent to the printer, the spokeswoman said, and a newsletter with the correct date was sent out electronically to digital subscribers of the congresswoman’s emails.
The mailers were sent under the franking privilege of congressional representatives to send and prepare official mail at taxpayer expense.
Man stabbed on North Division
A stabbing Monday night along a major north Spokane road sent one man to the hospital with serious injuries and closed the thoroughfare briefly for an investigation.
Police responded to reports of a stabbing around 8:40 p.m. Monday at the intersection of North Division Street and West Gray Court, according to a news release. They found a man bleeding from several stab wounds.
His injuries were initially said to be life-threatening, but his condition had improved Tuesday morning, police said. He is expected to survive.
Multiple witnesses told police the person who stabbed the man left the area in a vehicle. Police said initial reports indicated the stabbing was not a random incident, and the investigation is ongoing.
Body found in woman’s car
LAKE STEVENS, Wash. – Authorities say the Snohomish County, Washington, sheriff’s helicopter has located a car belonging to an 89-year-old woman missing since mid-July and a body has been found inside.
The 1987 Chevy Nova belonging to Ethel O’Neil was found Tuesday afternoon in bushes off a street in Lake Stevens, Washington, east of Everett.
Spokesmen for Everett police and the sheriff’s office say the car’s occupant has not yet been identified. The Snohomish County medical examiner will identify the body and establish the cause of death.
The Everett woman has been missing since July 16.
The sheriff’s office says community tips indicate she was last seen in the Lake Stevens or Marysville areas, where she asked for a map and directions back to Everett.
Burglar picky about cigarettes
WESTPORT, Wash. – Detectives know something about the burglar who recently broke into a grocery store in Westport and took 50 bottles of alcohol and all the tobacco products except one brand of cigarette.
The burglar doesn’t care for Virginia Slims and left them behind.
The loss for Ted’s Red Apple-Westport Market was about $5,000, KBKW reported.