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Bodies ID'd in fiery crash

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 16:16:00 PST

Two men killed when their car crashed into a west county home last week have been identified, the Sonoma County Coroner's Office reported.

Absentee voting under way

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 12:38:00 PST

More than 152,000 absentee ballots are at the main Santa Rosa post office this morning, ready for delivery to Sonoma County registered voters who have the next month to make their decisions.

Ocean search resumes for tourist

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 12:26:00 PST

A woman feared drowned off of the Sonoma Coast was identified Monday as Nuala O'Donohoe, who'd come to California from Ireland for a meditation retreat.

Same-sex unions could bring cash to county

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 11:10:00 PST

Gay weddings could mean more than $112 million to Sonoma County over the next three years, according to an analysis by a Sonoma State University professor.

Fog greets morning commuters

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 12:13:00 PST

Thick, low fog greeted morning commuters, but few accidents were reported as the work week got under way. The fog was expected to burn off quickly into a sunny, warm day, with temperatures reaching 78 degrees in Santa Rosa.

Changes afoot at Sea Ranch

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 11:11:00 PST

The landmark lodge at The Sea Ranch seeks to expand and is looking for backing from the community's residents.

Monday's low gas prices

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 10:56:00 PST

Santa Rosa's average price for regular gasoline was $3.630 a gallon today, according to AAA. A year ago, it was $2.990.
Among the area's typically low-price stations, these prices were reported this morning:
--$3.449 at Arco at Hearn and Corby Avenues in Santa Rosa.
--$3.459 at Arco at Fourth Street and Brookwood Avenue in Santa Rosa.

New teen club director expands offerings

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 05:50:00 PST

Heather Young never met Charles "Chop" DeMeo, one of the thriftiest, yet most generous friends Santa Rosa ever had.
But Young holds some remarkable possessions left behind by the attorney, bank founder and long-ago Santa Rosa mayor who died a childless widower at age 90 in 1995.

For the firefighters

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 09:52:00 PST

Legendary musician Kris Kristofferson serenaded fans at the Ukiah fairgrounds Sunday evening, adding his star power to an effort to support the volunteer firefighters who spent the summer battling the worst wildfire season in Mendocino County's history.

Trail plans proceed despite city opposition

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 05:50:00 PST

The county's Open Space District is going ahead with plans to construct a wheelchair-accessible trail across a Montini Ranch pasture, despite opposition from the city of Sonoma.

Woman feared lost to high waves

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 05:48:00 PST

A search was under way Sunday for a 42-year-old woman who is missing and feared drowned at Salt Point State Park, where she was on a retreat with several others, park rangers said.

Ike wrought heavy toll on environment

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 04:42:00 PST

WASHINGTON -- Hurricane Ike's winds and massive waves destroyed oil platforms, tossed storage tanks and punctured pipelines. The environmental damage only now is becoming apparent: At least a half million gallons of crude oil spilled into the Gulf of Mexico and the marshes, bayous and bays of Louisiana and Texas, according to an analysis of...

TRUCKEE Group: Calls about bears have fallen

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 04:42:00 PST

A Lake Tahoe bear advocacy group is crediting a bumper berry crop for a sharp drop in calls about bears this year.
Ann Bryant of the BEAR League said the group's call volume decreased from 100 to 200 a day last year to around 50 a day this year. Bryant said 12 bears have been killed by vehicles around Tahoe this year compared with 78 last year.

LOS ANGELES Virus sickens 130 students at USC

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 04:42:00 PST

Campus officials believe it was a norovirus, not contaminated food, that sickened about 130 University of Southern California students this weekend.
University spokesman James Grant says a preliminary investigation found a norovirus to be the cause of campus illness, that led to one to two days of vomiting, stomach cramps and diarrhea.

DAVENPORT Toxin discovered in air near school

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 04:42:00 PST

Air quality regulators on California's central coast say they have found high levels of a cancer-causing chemical in the air around a Davenport elementary school and fire department.

Program to aid Countrywide borrowers

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 04:42:00 PST

An estimated 400,000 Americans who are struggling with risky mortgages from Countrywide Financial Corp. can get their loans modified and payments reduced under a program to be announced today.

Prison receiver seeks $8 billion for inmate care

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 04:42:00 PST

SACRAMENTO -- With California struggling to pay its bills and facing another deficit, the receiver in charge of the state's inmate medical care will argue today for the right to take $8 billion from the state treasury.

Europe struggles to save collapsing banks

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 04:42:00 PST

European nations scrambled Sunday night to prevent a growing credit crisis from bringing down major banks and alarming savers as troubles in financial markets spread around the world, accelerating economic downturns in major economies on three continents.

O.J. jurors: Witnesses weren't needed

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 04:42:00 PST

LAS VEGAS -- Jurors who convicted O.J. Simpson of armed robbery and kidnapping in Las Vegas say they did not rely on witness testimony to find him guilty of all 12 counts he faced.
Michelle Lyons, one of seven jurors to speak to reporters Sunday night, said jurors felt they "could not rely on that witness testimony."

Election's Supreme power

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 04:42:00 PST

WASHINGTON
There were not many conspicuous tributes to the legacy of President Bush at last month's Republican National Convention, but there was at least one.
It was a campaign button with the words "Thanks, W" across the top and photos of Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Samuel Alito beneath the letters.

Mental health care gets boost in bailout legislation

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 04:42:00 PST

WASHINGTON -- More than one-third of all Americans will soon get better insurance coverage of mental health treatments because of a new law that, for the first time, requires equal coverage of mental and physical illnesses.

Child flu complications rise

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 04:42:00 PST

CHICAGO -- More children have died from flu because they also had staph infections, according to a new government report that urges parents to have their kids get the flu shot.

Doctors warn of exotic pet dangers

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 04:41:00 PST

CHICAGO -- Warning: young children should not keep hedgehogs as pets -- or hamsters, baby chicks, lizards or turtles, for that matter -- because of risks for disease.
That's according to the leading U.S. pediatricians' group in a new report about dangers from exotic animals.

Feud threatens de Young collection

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 04:41:00 PST

Three years ago, at the black-tie opening at the de Young Museum's new home in San Francisco, the collector John Friede held court in the gallery that bore his and his wife's names, looking as proud as if the celebration was in his honor.

Raid, suicide bomb kill 11 in house

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 04:41:00 PST

BAGHDAD -- Eleven Iraqis, including six women and children, were killed Sunday when a suicide bomber set off explosives during a raid by U.S. forces on a house in Mosul, the U.S. military said.

Palestinians must act on peace deal, new Israeli leader says

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 04:41:00 PST

JERUSALEM -- Israeli Prime Minister-designate Tzipi Livni warned Sunday that time is running out for a peace deal with the Palestinians, with extremists gaining strength as negotiations stumble.

Hong Kong finds tainted Cadbury chocolates

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 04:41:00 PST

BEIJING -- Hong Kong said Sunday it found two Cadbury chocolate products contained considerably more of the industrial chemical melamine than the city's legal limit in a growing scandal over tainted food made in China.
Iran banned imports of all dairy products from China because of the contamination concerns, state radio reported.

Researcher collects calls, yips, yelps and rattles of the wildnd hisses save nature's sounds for posterity

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 04:41:00 PST

SALT LAKE CITY
Rattlesnakes aren't to be trifled with, but if you're trying to collect the sounds of every creature in the West that slithers, hops, flies or flops, distance isn't a luxury you can afford.

Pirates stare down navies

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 04:41:00 PST

NAIROBI, Kenya -- With a Russian frigate closing in and a half-dozen U.S. warships within shouting distance, the pirates holding a tanker off Somalia's coast might appear to have no other choice than to wave the white flag.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates Plans drawn for tallest skyscraper

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 04:41:00 PST

With the world's tallest building nearing completion, Dubai builders said Sunday they are embarking on an even more ambitious skyscraper: one that will soar the length of more than 10 American football fields.
That's about two-thirds of a mile or the height of more than three of New York's Chrysler Buildings stacked end-to-end.