A year after Prime Healthcare Services took over Shasta Regional Medical Center, profits, the number of employees, and the numbers of patients are all up. At the hospital, that is a reason to celebrate.

Chairman of Prime Healthcare, Dr. Prem Reddy, made one of his twice-monthly trips to SRMC to congratulate staff on the turn-around. Shasta Regional is making a profit; there are 25 more employees than last November; and there are more admissions to the emergency room and the hospital.

One year ago the hospital was literally hours from closing, and employees were actually boxing up equipment.

We asked the hospital's top administrators to compare the last days of ownership by Hospital Partners of America to what it is like under Prime. Chief Nursing Officer Cyndy Gordon, who has been working there since 1978, says that the staff is more relaxed now.

While the hospital has turned a financial corner, not everyone is happy about how it got there. Staff was originally cut, and contracts with insurers, unions and vendors were canceled.

Since Red Bluff's marijuana ban went into effect, one local mom has decided to single-handedly take on the City. She is gathering support for medicinal marijuana one signature at a time.

In November, the Red Bluff City Council approved a ban on growing medicinal marijuana within city limits. The ban also fines collectives for being open.

The City says they voted for the ban, because the community of Red Bluff supports it. Alyssa Eastman says that is not the case.

The stay-at-home mom has been going door-to-door for 2 weeks now. She has gathered 130 signatures from people who say what the City of Red Bluff is doing is not right.

Alyssa says the research shows not everyone is on board with the City, and it is time to listen to the people.

To be fair, Alyssa came across 40 people who either supported the ban, or declined to comment.

Swine flu shots were given to students in Chico on Tuesday. Parents lined up with their kids at Marsh Junior High School.

The line stretched out the door and around the building with people waiting to have their kids vaccinated.

Over 3,700 doses of the intra-nasal vaccine have been given out free of charge at school clinics since the beginning of the month. That accounts for over 20% of students in the county.

Public Health officials say these types of clinics benefit more than just the kids being vaccinated. By vaccinating the children, officials feel like they are protecting the entire community by slowing the spread of the virus.

The last school swine flu vaccination clinic will be at Pleasant Valley High School on Thursday from 3:30-7:30 PM.

It might be raining and snowing, but Lassen County has been declared in a state of emergency. The Department of Agriculture says Lassen County is so dry that it needs help.

Officials say the drought started the first of the year and is ongoing. Farmers and ranchers in Shasta, Modoc, Plumas, and Sierra as well as Lassen County, can all apply for the low interest loans.

A controversial expansion of Chico's Wal-Mart store is on the agenda for Tuesday's city council meeting.

The council will consider two resolutions that could mean a green light for the project, if they pass.

The resolutions would override concerns about the project's environmental impacts and road blocks it hit before the city's planning commission.

The meeting will be at 6:30 p.m. in the council chambers at the Chico Municipal Center.

Redding police have arrested a man for the theft of two 30-packs of beer from a gas station.

David William Wuco was arrested Monday and booked into the Shasta County Jail.

According to a press release, someone stole the beer last week from a Valero station on Churn Creek Road.

According to police, a clerk tried to stop the thief but the thief fought back, punching the clerk and biting him on the arm.

Homeowners in south Redding could be up to their ankles in flood water or worse. FEMA has pin-pointed a new flood plain in Redding. Now 648 homeowners are facing a fast-approaching deadline to purchase flood insurance.

The new flood plain is off of Highway 273, north of Girvan Road. It covers about 270 acres.

Out of the entire area, FEMA is most concerned about Olney Creek. It appears the levee there no longer meets Federal standards.

The levee was built in 1980 and met the Federal standards of the time. But over the years, those standards have changed, and officials say the levee no longer meets the requirements of being at least three feet above flood plain elevation

FEMA says every year, this flood plain zone has a 1% chance of experiencing a major flood. That may not sound like much, but according to FEMA, it is a 25% gamble if you have lived in a home for 30 years.

With the new designation, folks living in the Olney Creek area have to buy flood insurance by next August. That would cost hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars every year.

On Tuesday night, with all five members expected to be there, the Redding City Council tackles the mysteriously multiplying marijuana collectives again.

In early November, with Mayor Rick Bosetti out being treated for prostate cancer, the council deadlocked on a proposed ordinance. Barring a switched vote, Mayor Bosetti will be the deciding vote Tuesday night.

He told us that he has no problem with the ordinance, with some stipulations. He said, “I've had my discussions with our city attorney, and making sure that some of the ordinances are structured in a manner that make me feel good. That being that a prescription can only be used at one co-op; you can't use the medicine on site at the co-op; and only the direct, finished good was available at the co-op."

There are between 20-30 collectives in Redding, three in the Mission Square Shopping Center alone. Collective operators we have spoken with welcome some sort of ordinance. They agree that there has to be some regulations.

While he does not condone the use of marijuana, look for the Mayor to vote in favor of the ordinance, if it meets his criteria.

The Mayor would like to see a streamlined process: walk in with a doctor's recommendation, get a certain amount, and walk out. Additionally, he wants no live plants on site.

Butte County officials say an inmate in the County Jail died from poisoning from a mix of medications found in his system. 44-year old David Thompson was found dead in his cell in September.

The toxicology report just came back. There were no signs of foul play. The case is now considered closed.

Children in Chico who have not yet received the pandemic H1N1 vaccine have two more chances this week. Clinics will be held on Tuesday November 17th, from 2:45pm to 6:45pm at Marsh Junior High School and on Thursday November 19th, from 3:30pm to 7:30pm at Pleasant Valley High School.

The vaccine provided will be a nasal spray vaccine. There will also be a limited supply of injection vaccine (flu shots) for children who, for health reasons, cannot receive the nasal spray vaccine. At these clinics, the vaccine is being provided to children only, not parents or school staff.

In addition to school-based vaccination clinics, H1N1 vaccine will be available at many doctors’ offices throughout Butte County. Children who are 9 years of age or less will need a second dose of H1N1 flu vaccine at least 3-4 weeks after their first dose.

Sarah Palin is coming to Redding in February, and tickets were first being sold on Monday. Halfway through the day, the Redding Convention Center sold out of all the tickets they had.

The other ticket outlets also had quick-moving ticket sales, but still had tickets available. Redding Radio, KLXR, and Northern Lights Energy still had tickets as of 12 PM on Monday.

The date of the speech is scheduled to be February 8th.

A happy ending to the search for four stolen pomeranian puppies in Anderson. Police say all four dogs have been found.

They were taken during a home burglary on November 10th, and sold to people outside a local Wal-Mart. Those unsuspecting people then contacted the dogs owners after seeing media coverage of the theft.

The suspects have not been found.

If you know somebody looking to join in on the start of salmon season on Monday, do not expect them to bring home a whole lot. Fishermen are only allowed 1 fish a day per person along the Sacramento River.

Local fishermen say they are ready to go but say they long for the good old days, when fish were plentiful in the area.

Here is where you can fish: 150 feet below the lower Red Bluff boat ramp to the Highway 113 bridge at Knights Landing.

Chico homeowners on Legacy Lane reported a home invasion Sunday night involving at least two armed suspects.

According to a police press release, two men forced open the front door of a home and forced two victims into a bedroom around 8 p.m. Sunday, duct-taping their mouths and hands.

The suspects then took several items from the home and fled.

Police began an investigation, but were still looking for suspects on Monday morning.

Police said in the press release the crime probably wasn't drug-related.

Sad news out of Siskiyou County. The body of a 19 year old was found at 8 a.m. this morning at Iron Gate Lake. His name is Daryl Dyke and he was found near Jenny Creek Bridge. KRCR News Channel 7 learned the teen was first missing on November 7th. Several emergency crews and law enforcement agencies have been searching for the teen for over a week. An autopsy is scheduled for early this week. Right now it doesn't look like any obvious signs of trauma were found.

Investigators say the pilot of a medical helicopter issued a mayday moments before the aircraft crashed into a hilly area north of Reno near the Nevada-California state line. All three crew members - the pilot, flight nurse and paramedic - were killed. The FAA said the helicopter -- an Aerospatiale AS350 -- had dropped off a patient at a Reno hospital and was returning to its base in Susanville, Calif., when it crashed around 2 a.m. Saturday. FAA spokesman Ian Gregor said a witness driving nearby told authorities he saw nothing unusual about the helicopter's flight before it fell rapidly from the sky. The witness said he saw a fireball when the helicopter hit the ground. The helicopter was operated by Mountain Lifeflight in Susanville, which issued a statement Saturday afternoon identifying the dead as pilot James Bradshaw, flight nurse Clinton Reger and paramedic Christopher Ritz.

The Weaverville community came together today to gather 140 boxes of everything you could want for dinner on Thanksgiving Day. Turkey, potatoes, yams, it was all there for the men and women who were forced from their jobs at the Trinity River Lumber Mill after the September 12th fire that forced one of the mills to shut down. The donations came from all over, Trinity high school gave hundreds of cans, the Junction City Republican Women's group trucked their cans down earlier this morning, and the local grocery stores contributed whatever they could.

The Thanksgiving dinner boxes will be passed out to the families on November 23rd, just days before Thanksgiving but plenty of time to cook up an extra special dinner.

Cash and food donations are still being accepted at the North Valley Bank in Weaverville.

Redding hospitals celebrated "World Diabetes Day" in grand style this afternoon. At Mercy Medical Center, the Northern California Type 1 Diabetes Group received a $15,000 check from the Riverview GC Women's Golf Association to help the new group get up on its feet. $3,000 of the $15,000 given to the group is reserved for sending diabetic children to a special summer camp. Over a hundred people visited Shasta Regional Medical Center today to take in all things diabetes. The hospital had doctors provide question and answer time and brought vendors of diabetic products to the people for a small trade show. In the afternoon the hospital had a panel of doctors take questions from the audience and also had their chef give an instructional class on making healthy food for a diabetic diet.

For more information on world wide diabetes day, visit:
http://www.worlddiabetesday.org/

Over a thousand people took the trip today to one of three Shasta County high schools set up as to be a special Shasta County Public Health vaccination clinic for the H1N1 influenza.

Shasta County Public Health says H1N1 vaccines are coming in daily to local doctors and urge you to contact your local physician for more information.

For a link to the Shasta County Public Health website and information on both H1N1 and seasonal flu vaccines, visit:
http://www.co.shasta.ca.us/html/Public_Health/services/shastaflushots.co...

Some new regulations are in place at Mercy Medical Center because of the H1N1 swine flu. Anyone under the age of 16 better be healthy, or you will have to stay home.

Mercy Medical is taking the fight to H1N1 starting immediately at the front desk. As soon as you walk in, you will be asked questions about your health and how you are feeling.

Mercy Medical has an umbrella policy asking visitors of any age to stay home if they are not feeling well.

But starting Friday, they are focusing extra on those 16 and under. They are asking them to stay home unless they have gotten a H1N1 vaccination or a doctor’s note that they have had the flu and are now completely healthy.

The reason is that the hospital has a lot of people who have a weak immune system, and could easily catch the H1N1 virus.

Aside from asking people 16 and under to stay away, the hospital is putting masks and sanitizers at all the entrances to help limit the spread of the influenza.

We made some calls and found only one other hospital in the area that is imposing an age restriction on visitors because of the swine flu. St. Elizabeth Hospital in Red Bluff is asking all visitors 12 and under to stay home, no exceptions.

A Tehama County woman has pleaded no contest to starting a fire in Trinity County in August. Brenda Eitzen of Los Molinos made her plea Thursday to one count of recklessly starting a fire.

She accidentally started the Coffin fire with a cigarette on August 12th. It burned 1,200 acres in the Lewiston area. Eitzen will be sentenced November 30th.

The City of Redding is looking into privatizing whatever services it can as a way to save money. One place where it has worked is animal control and regulation, done by the non-profit Haven Humane Society.

Haven Humane has contracted with the city since 1982. A couple of new services have recently been added: to get a dog license, you need to go to Haven. According to officials, the City used to provide that service for $100,000 a year. The Haven Humane Society now does it for $15,000 a year.

But starting in January, you might be able to do one-stop shopping at your vet. Haven is offering local veterinarians a chance to sell city dog licenses.

For those of you more feline inclined, a feral cat program will start a week from Sunday. For $25, volunteer vets will use Haven's facilities to spay or neuter feral cats, give them a rabies vaccination, and test them for leukemia and aids.

Dr. Ray John says there are four or five large colonies in wooded areas. People insist on feeding the cats, and the population grows. They are quite a problem. They spread disease, and reproduce at large numbers.

A fixture in downtown Redding could be gone within the next five years. As part of the Redevelopment Agency's five year plan, officials are considering to tear down the parking structure on California Street.

In its place could go a multi-story building for parking, shopping and affordable housing. Some city officials say the parking lot has outlived its use.

The parking garage idea is just a small component of the agency's lengthy report on potential areas for redevelopment.

Staff members will present the report to the Redevelopment Agency during a public hearing Monday night. The only decision the agency is expected to make is whether or not to adopt the report. The hearing starts at 5:15 PM in the Redding City Council Chambers.

A hay truck cught fire on Highway 99 Friday afternoon near Los Molinos. CHP shut the highway down for several hours, while crews cleaned the burned hay off the road.

The road has been cleared, and traffic is resuming as normal. No word on what started the fire.

A couple thousand people were without power on Friday, all because of a small animal. PG&E officials say a squirrel got caught on a line and brought darkness to 2,265 homes.

The area affected was in south Redding, near Churn Creek, west of Airport road. Everyone should be back online by Friday evening.

Sadly, the squirrel did not make it.