WASHINGTON — As many as 20 percent of U.S. combat troops who fought in Iraq or Afghanistan leave with signs they may have had a concussion, and some do not realize they need treatment, Army officials said Thursday. Concussion is a common term for mild traumatic brain injury. While the Army has a handle on treating more severe brain injuries, it is “challenged to understand, diagnose and treat military personnel who suffer with mild TBI,” the chairman of a task force on traumatic brain injury created by the Army surgeon general said.
@3. Headline Briefs 14 no:New warning on cold medicines
The government issued its strongest warning Thursday about the dangers of giving cough and cold medicines to infants, urging parents to stop giving the over-the-counter remedies to children 2 and younger. The Food and Drug Administration released the warning out of fear that many parents have continued treating sick infants with popular pediatric cold products despite a flurry of recent reports highlighting the side-effects and the risk of death. Recent surveys showed that a majority of parents still think it’s OK to give the medicines to young children without consulting a doctor.
Texas: Navy chopper crashes
A Navy helicopter on a training mission near Corpus Christi went down in a fiery crash near a 971-foot-tall antenna tower, killing three crew members and critically injuring a fourth, a Navy spokesman said Thursday. Investigators were examining the wreckage from the Wednesday night crash, including a large piece that could be seen at the base of the tower. A television station executive said it appeared the MH-53 Sea Dragon helicopter struck the tower about 50 feet from its top.
Pennsylvania: Brink’s stops heist
A man wearing a Brink’s armored-car shirt was nabbed inside a company facility Thursday as he tried to make off with a bag that had $640,000 inside, police said. The man, 33, got through a gated area at the Brink’s facility in Southwest Philadelphia shortly after 7 a.m. and grabbed the cash, police said. Guards caught him as he tried to run, police said. He was in custody later Thursday. It was not clear whether he is a Brink’s employee or just posing as one, a police spokeswoman said.
Montana: Climate talk canceled
A climate scientist’s speech to high school students was canceled because members of the rural community were concerned the Nobel Peace Prize laureate’s message on climate change would be “anti-agriculture,” the superintentent said Thursday. The Choteau schools superintendent said school board members pressured him to bring in someone with an opposing viewpoint to speak to the school’s 130 students, and he thought canceling the speech was the reasonable and neutral option. “It was my decision to bring him in and it was my decision (to cancel him.)”
California: Assault weapons sales
The director of the anti-gang organization NO GUNS, which the city of Los Angeles once paid $1.5 million to steer Hispanic youths away from a life of crime, pleaded guilty Thursday to selling assault weapons illegally to undercover officers. Hector “Big Weasel” Marroquin, 51, was sentenced to eight years in prison, a Los Angeles County prosecutor said. Marroquin’s accomplice and girlfriend, Sylvia Arellano, 26, pleaded guilty to illegal weapons sales. She is scheduled to be sentenced on Tuesday to four years in prison, he said.
Brazil: Sex abuse charges filed
A U.S. couple was indicted Thursday in Sao Paulo on charges of sexually abusing children at a nudist colony, a court official said. Frederic Calvin Louderback, 63, of San Diego, and his companion Barbara Anner, 72, could face up to 30 years in prison if convicted of sexually abusing children, corrupting minors and conspiracy, a court official said. Also indicted was a Brazilian couple suspected of helping the Americans. Police say that hundreds of photos of young boys engaged in homosexual acts were found in the homes of both couples.
Israel: Military tests new missile
Israel successfully tested a new long-range missile on Thursday, defense officials said, and reports indicate the missiles might be capable of being armed with nuclear warheads. Israeli radio reported the ground-to-ground missile can carry conventional or nonconventional warheads. The report named the missile “Jericho-3,” meaning it would be an advanced version of the Jericho missiles already said by foreign intelligence agencies to be capable of delivering nuclear warheads. Channel 10 TV said Israel was working on a missile with a range of 2,500 miles.
Zimbabwe: 10-million-dollar bill
Zimbabweans will be soon lining their pockets with 10-million-dollar bills. The central bank announced Thursday it would increase the denomination of the nation’s highest bank note more than tenfold to keep pace with the world’s highest inflation rate, officially estimated at 25,000 percent annually. Independent financial institutions say real inflation is closer to 150,000 percent. The new 10-million note is the equivalent of about $4 at the dominant black market exchange rate. In an effort to end chronic cash shortages and long, chaotic lines at banks and automated teller machines, the bank will issue the new notes today, the Reserve Bank governor said.
From Herald news services
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