A man has rescued his parents from their burning bedroom in Adelaide's northern suburbs early today. Firefighters were called to the house in Salisbury Downs about 3:30am (local time) and found the house engulfed in flames. A spokeswoman for the Metropolitan Fire Service says the man woke up to discover his parents' bedroom was on fire. All three of the occupants were treated for smoke inhalation. The fire caused about 0,000 damage.

A 33-year-old man accused of robbing a bank in Mannum earlier this month has been granted bail in the Adelaide Magistrates Court, after being denied it on Monday. The police prosecutor opposed the bail application for Justin Robert Lundberg but could not provide any details why. It is alleged Lundberg and Anna Martha Hein, 33, robbed a branch of the Bank SA in early December.

Two-time Tour Down Under champion Stuart O'Grady will ride in the event next month after recovering from bacterial pneumonia. Race director Mike Turtur said on Thursday that O'Grady was making a strong recovery after being diagnosed with the illness earlier this month. There were fears that the pneumonia would force the South Australian out of the event. But Tour stage-winner and fellow Australian Mark Renshaw will definitely miss the race after also falling ill. Renshaw will miss the start of the season as he recovers from Epstein-Barr virus. His Columbia-HTC team management are confident that he will be fit for the Tour de France, where Renshaw will work as the leadout for sprinting sensation Mark Cavendish. Turtur is also hopeful that compatriot Allan Davis will defend his Tour title. Davis is currently without a team after Belgian squad Quick Step let him go, apparently because of budget problems. Apart from winning this year's race, Davis is the rider to have ridden the Tour every year since it started in 1999. - AAP

Shawn Redhage scored 25 points to lead the Wildcats to a 94-73 win over Adelaide on Wednesday night, just four days after losing to the 36ers on their own floor. The Sixers made a powerful offensive showing to blitz Perth at Challenge Stadium on Saturday night 82-70 - the first time in nearly four years Adelaide had beaten the Wildcats at home. Coming into the game with plenty of momentum from two strong wins, the 36ers went into half-time with a four-point lead thanks to some accurate shooting from Matthew Burston. Burston had 17 points and five rebounds for the home side, but it was not enough to arrest Perth's climb to the top of the NBL table. As they have more times than they would like this season, the 36ers relinquished a third-quarter lead and their offence slowed noticeably in the 20 minutes after half-time. Redhage took advantage and dropped 15 points on the home side in the final quarter, firing from all spots on the floor and missing just one of his field goal attempts. Adelaide product Luke Schenscher, now posting up in the Perth front court, had 10 points and seven rebounds against his old team. The Sixers had five turnovers in the final period alone as the Wildcats cranked up the defensive pressure, recording four steals in the final four minutes. Redhage told Grandstand he was glad to finally find his three-point range, making four from five from long range. "Last game I was 1-for-8 from the three-point line so I felt like I was due," he said. "The way they were guarding the on-ball screen, I found it easy to move around the corner and once you hit a couple you let them fly as a kind of heat check and see how hot you really are." He said the Wildcats were wary of Adelaide coming into the clash, but they knew what they had to do. "This league is really tough, especially with eight teams and everyone is so deep," he said. "We lost last Saturday at home and if you come out with the right mindset and stick around, especially on the road, and you hit some shots finally, you're able to get over the line." He had high praise for Jesse Wagstaff, who had 15 points on 57 per cent shooting and six rebounds. [After half-time] we changed up our defence a little, they were hurting us on the pick-and-roll so we tried to change it up," he said. "Jesse Wagstaff really kept us in the game tonight, hitting some threes and some buckets in the second half. "He was a big key, and we can grow from this win because Adelaide's a tough place to win." Cortez Groves, who was a game-time decision for the 36ers with a right knee strain, played 22 minutes and scored 15 points on 5-of-12 shooting.

Three youths who joined in an eight-hour crime rampage across Adelaide two years ago have been sentenced as adults by the District Court. Judge Peter Brebner said the three youths and a man committed 22 offences in 12 separate incidents over eight hours in December 2007. They stole two cars, smashed windows and threatened bystanders with a fake gun in incidents between Salisbury and O'Halloran Hill. Judge Brebner said at one stage they called out "City West 49" - the name of an Aboriginal gang - as they threatened to kill a man and his two children in their North Adelaide home. But the judge found no evidence to suggest the four were members of such a gang. He said the brazen attacks were outrageous and of the utmost seriousness. He said the only mitigating factor was that the gun was fake. One youth was jailed for nine years and the two others for more than seven years. Family members of the three youths gasped and cried out as the sentences were handed down. The adult, 26-year-old Scott Dwayne Graham, was jailed for 7.5 years.

A man armed with a knife and wearing a grim reaper mask has held up a post office at Tranmere in Adelaide's north-east. Police say the man threatened staff about 12:00pm (AECT) before leaving with a sum of cash in a maroon Ford sedan. The car, which had no registration plates, was being driven by another man. It was last seen heading east on Reed Avenue. Police say members of the public should not approach the car.

The Kangaroo Island Mayor has questioned the safety of two of the island towns listed by the Country Fire Service as safer precincts during bushfires. Jane Bates says Kingscote seems a good option, but Penneshaw and Parndana could still be at risk. "Penneshaw has a national park bordering it and Parndana of course is in the middle of the island and does have an amount of vegetation both on the edge of the town and within the town," she said. "So I think people still need to be aware of the potential dangers, even in these safe havens and make sensible decisions on the day."

Staff at Mobilong Prison east of Adelaide have confiscated 20 litres of home brew they found in a plastic bag in a closet. The mixture of fermenting fruit, bread and sugar had an alcohol content of 12 per cent. Correctional Services Minister Tom Koutsantonis says the find is disturbing as alcohol consumption could easily fuel bad behaviour and violence among inmates. "We're using intelligence-based investigation, good old fashioned reconnaissance and we're finding and disrupting their contraband," he said. "We won't always get all the contraband, but what our corrections are showing is that we're getting most of it and we're making it harder to get into prisons. "And once it gets into prisons we're making it harder for them to hide it."

A catastrophic fire danger rating will apply in eight South Australian districts tomorrow. Adelaide is expected to have a top temperature of 42 degrees, with fresh and gusty northerly winds. The eight districts stretch from South Australia's west coast, across the mid-north, to the upper south-east. Severe or extreme fire danger ratings will apply in the state's seven other districts. Meanwhile, the Country Fire Service (CFS) has released a list of the safest places to go on a day of catastrophic fire danger. A new three-tier system gives the safest locations in metropolitan and regional areas. The CFS's chief officer Euan Ferguson says the list has been developed after widespread confusion about where to go on the first day of a catastrophic rating last month. "CFS has looked at the recommendation for neighbourhood safer places by the Victorian Royal Commission," he said. "South Australia is implementing a slightly different strategy - identifying a hierarchy of bushfire safer places in South Australia."

The South Australian Government says a new Opposition policy on ports would spark a mass exodus of mining companies from the state. Under the policy, mining company Centrex - which has Government approval to ship iron ore from Port Lincoln - would be subject to strict environmental monitoring. The Liberals say they would fast-track plans for a deep sea port in Spencer Gulf and not give any more iron export licences involving Port Lincoln, beyond the current Centrex deal. But Resources Minister Paul Holloway says a hard-line approach would fail miserably. "The Government's had a very close involvement in developing new ports on Eyre Peninsula, but we're doing that through encouragement, providing the support that's necessary," he said. "The last thing you'd want to do is start talking about big sticks and forcing big companies into taking particular action, because all you're going to do is get them to take their investment to other states, because we're not the only place in Australia, or in the world for that matter, that has minerals."

South Australia's Opposition Leader, Isobel Redmond, has released a policy which she says will make it easier for people to donate goods and volunteer their time for charities. She says under the Liberal plan, volunteers and donors will be protected from liability, which will encourage people to donate property such as furniture. The State Government this year passed laws protecting people who donate food to charities. Ms Redmond says her policy offers extra protection. "There is a fear in the community if they donate things they might be sued for anything that's wrong with goods and so on," she said. "And we want to make it clear that that isn't going to be a problem, so that we can encourage people to donate goods and services through our charitable organisations."

Adelaide import Cortez Groves has been cleared of a serious knee injury, but still may not play against Perth on Wednesday night at the Dome. A scan has revealed Groves has a strained right knee. He will be assessed before tip-off to see if he is ready to take his place in the 36ers line-up. If Groves can not take his place, Tom Garlepp will be called up to sit on the bench. Meanwhile captain Adam Ballinger insists he will play despite missing most of the Sixers' training session today with a hamstring problem. "I was dribbling down the court, I'm in trouble when I dribble so I shouldn't have done that," he said. "I just pulled it a little bit and we're just being over-safe. "It's a big game [on Wednesday night] and it's a little scary to see me sitting on the sidelines but I'll be fine." Ballinger said the team is in good form, but acknowledges the Wildcats will come out hard to avenge their defeat on Saturday. "What a difference half a week makes," he said. "The last two weeks have been great, especially to go into Perth and win a game like that on the road, we're pretty confident. "We've gained a bit of confidence from the Gold Coast game and we've just played well. "I do expect them to come out very hard, we may have caught them a little bit by surprise there but we won't here. "We've got to play the same way we did there to win here." He said he expects the 36ers' supporters to welcome Wildcat and former Adelaide boy Luke Schenscher when Perth takes the floor at the Dome. "I think the crowd will be great, it's not a Julius Hodge type of thing," he joked. "The crowd will be great to Luke. "He was great here for a year and I know he's from here so they should be pretty cordial to him."

Two Adelaide men who blackmailed a woman over a drug debt have been jailed for a maximum of four years. Last year the men, who cannot be named for legal reasons, repeatedly threatened to kill the woman and her family if she did not give them 0,000. The District Court heard the men had given the victim cocaine to sell but she did not return the profits, saying the drug had been stolen and watered down. The sentencing judge said he did not believe her story about the drugs, but said she was still entitled to the protection of the law, despite her illegal drug activities. One of the men will serve another 12 months in jail before he is eligible for release, while the second will serve another year-and-a-half before he is eligible for parole.

A man who invaded a Gilberton home, in north Adelaide, and terrorised a family with the help of three young boys has been sentenced as a serious repeat offender. Thirty-six-year-old Christopher Layton Noble was found guilty over the break in June last year. The District Court heard he and three boys - one as young as 12 - woke the sleeping family in the dark and held them hostage before stealing various items around the house. Noble escaped in the family's BMW, which he crashed through the steel security gates. Prosecutors asked that the seasoned criminal be sentenced as a serious repeat offender, so he can receive a harsher sentence. Noble rolled his eyes and looked at his nails during today's hearing, where he was sentenced to a total of more than 12 years jail with a non-parole period of nine years and nine months.

An Adelaide man who spent his Federal Government stimulus payment on amphetamines has been jailed by the South Australian Supreme Court for stabbing his housemate. The judge said 36-year-old Steven Charles Cairns and his housemate, Mark Woods, bought drugs with most of the ,400 they each got from the Federal Government. After a binge lasting several days, Cairns fled when Mr Woods started to smash furniture because there was no sugar in the house. The judge said when Cairns returned he stabbed Mr Woods up to 17 times, initially out of self-defence. Cairns was jailed for three years and nine months and can apply for parole in 2011.

Adelaide United defender Robert Cornthwaite has pleaded guilty to two charges over the assault of a nightclub bouncer in Adelaide in August. Cornthwaite did not attend the hearing in the Adelaide Magistrates Court but his lawyer Pat Amey entered the pleas on his behalf. Cornthwaite has admitted assaulting the bouncer outside Hindley Street nightclub Limbo in August and then refusing to give his name to police. Mr Amey asked for another hearing in early February to fit in with Cornthwaite's playing schedule, which includes Asian Champions League matches. However magistrate Maria Panagiotidis said that date was not available. The case was listed later in the month and the magistrate ordered that Cornthwaite must be there. The 24-year-old has already been fined by his club and served a two-match ban. He has also been ordered to do volunteer work and have counselling.

The South Australian Government has challenged the Opposition to reveal its plans to sell off land at Gepps Cross to help find the money to pay for a city sports stadium. Sports and Recreation Minister Michael Wright says that land includes the Velodrome, the Hockey Stadium and the privately owned Croatian Sports Centre. Mr Wrights says the Liberal sell-off is a "half-baked" plan and the users of the facilities need to know what the future of their sports will be. "This is a return to the bad old days of Liberal privatisation," he said. "They need to tell us what are they going to do about hockey, what are they going to do about cycling, and what are they going to do about the Croatian Sports Centre? Because they plan to sell off the land where these sports are held." The Opposition's urban development and planning spokesman, David Ridgway, says the Croatian Sports Centre would be able to retain its land under the sell-off proposal. He says hockey and cycling facilities would be developed alongside the Opposition's proposed City stadium and he has had advice that the sale of Government land will adequately cover the cost of the development. "What we're looking to do is not only sell that site and some land at Keswick, but ultimately the land around the Entertainment Centre in 20 to 25 years time," he said. "Once we transition football into the new covered stadium, of course the land at AAMI Stadium would be part of the redevelopment as well."

Police are looking for a man and a woman involved in a series of hold-ups in Adelaide's CBD and western suburbs. A woman had her Holden station wagon stolen at the intersection of Pultney Street and North Terrace just before 1:00pm. Assistant Commissioner Madeleine Glynn says it crashed into a patrol car when police tried to intercept it near Gawler Place. "During this incident a police officer suffered an injury to his hand and his firearm was taken by the suspects," she said. About 20 minutes later, a man and a woman armed with a knife and a gun tried to hold up two banks on Henley Beach Road but fled empty handed. A woman suffered a cut head when she was assaulted and robbed by the offenders. The stolen police firearm and car were recovered at Woodville about 2:00pm. Police say they know the offenders.

Western Australia has clinched a dramatic, 104-run outright victory in its Sheffield Shield clash with South Australia at the Adelaide Oval. The Redbacks lost an extraordinary 5 for 9 after making their way to 5 for 237 after the tea break. Paceman Brad Knowles did most the damage with figures of 4 for 33 as the hosts crumbled to be all out for 246. Steve Magoffin and Aaron Heal also picked up two wickets each. Set a target of 351 to win, the Redbacks looked well placed for a charge at an unlikely victory when they reached 2 for 174 after lunch. Magoffin (2 for 38) picked up the crucial wickets of Michael Klinger (60) and Mark Cosgrove (47) after the pair combined for an 80-run stand. South Australia skipper Graham Manou added a patient 26 and Aaron O'Brien 21 before Heal (2 for 63) kicked-started the carnage by claiming both their wickets. Knowles then had Dan Christian and Jake Haberfield with consecutive deliveries, before knocking over Cullen Bailey two runs later to complete the remarkable rout. Shaun Marsh was named man of the match for his unbeaten scores of 82 and 108 in the Warriors' two innings.

South Australia needs 139 runs and Western Australia five wickets in the final session to win their Sheffield Shield contest at the Adelaide Oval. At the tea break, the Redbacks had reached 5 for 212 in their second innings of a match that was dangerously close to fading out in a draw before both captains declared on Sunday to set up a thrilling finish. Aaron O'Brien (7 not out) had joined captain Graham Manou (15 not out) at the crease before the break. The home side scored 101 in the middle session thanks to some heavy hitting from in-form left-hander Mark Cosgrove, who smacked eight boundaries on his way to 47. First innings century-maker Michael Klinger resumed after lunch on 33 and made it to 60 before falling to Steve Magoffin, ending an 80-run stand with Cosgrove. Magoffin has 2 for 38 from 12 overs, having also clean bowled Cosgrove.

The husband of a prominent children's author has pleaded not guilty in an Adelaide court to three counts of unlawful sexual intercourse. Malcolm Arthur Fox - the husband of author Mem Fox and father of South Australian State Labor MP Chloe Fox - was originally charged with 10 child sex charges, but prosecutors have withdrawn all but three. It is alleged that while he was a teacher in the 1980s, Fox made an underage boy perform sex acts on him and also performed a sex act on the boy. A pre-trial hearing has been set down for February.

Adelaide forward Adam Ballinger has been rewarded for his recent dominant performances with the NBL's Player of the Month award. Ballinger was a clear winner over the Hawks' Tywain McKee after averaging 24 points per game as well as 6.5 rebounds. Ballinger shot at 58 per cent from the field, including 44 per cent from outside the arc, and led the 36ers to a 3-1 record in November. His highlight of the month was a monster 36-point, 11-rebound game against the Blaze. Gold Coast coach Joey Wright was named Coach of the Month.

South Australia went to lunch at 2 for 111 on the final day of its Sheffield Shield match against Western Australia, needing another 240 runs for victory. First innings century-maker Michael Klinger was unbeaten at the break on 33 alongside Mark Cosgrove on 9 at the Adelaide Oval. Resuming at 0 for 30, the Redbacks lost openers James Smith (26) and Dan Harris (42) in the morning session. A draw looks the likely outcome with the Warriors still requiring another eight wickets to take an outright win.

The South Australian Government says infrastructure experts have uncovered more flaws in the Liberal Party's plan to rebuild the existing Royal Adelaide Hospital. The Government says analysis has found that the new multi-storey buildings will be too small to accommodate services from the demolished hospital wings. Health Minister John Hill says patients would be crammed into tiny rooms without windows. "The public needs to understand that the Liberal Party is saying they can build something for 0 million which would in fact cost .4 billion, take 11 years, and in the end you get tower blocks - slum tower blocks with bedrooms without windows," he said. But Opposition health spokesman Duncan McFetridge says Mr Hill's claims are outrageous. "Criticising tower blocks for hospitals from this government is ridiculous because this is a government which is adding another three storeys onto the top of the children's hospital at North Adelaide," he said.

A runaway truck crashed into five cars and a tree at Magill in Adelaide's east this morning before slamming into a building. Workers had been unloading a cubby house from the back of the truck on East Street just before 8am (ACDT), when the brakes gave way. Two workers in the back of the truck managed to hold on, while the driver tried to steer the vehicle in the middle of the road. The truck rolled backwards a couple of hundred metres, hitting parked cars, before crossing Magill Road and hitting a wall. One of the workers was taken to hospital for a cut to his face. Carl Barlow's van was smashed by the truck and he says the timing of the crash was extremely lucky. "Definitely, I'll be buying a lottery ticket that's for sure. If I'd had been in there, it could have been quite serious," he said. "We were only in there two minutes prior, unloading material."

Stuart O'Grady could to miss next month's Tour Down Under after being diagnosed with bacterial pneumonia. The champion cyclist was admitted to hospital after arriving home from Monaco last week and his doctor has told him to rest until further notice. O'Grady was also put into hospital in Spain last month after collapsing at a MotoGP event. Race Director Mike Turtur says his team is expected to announce whether he will be replaced within the next two weeks. "It's going to be a push for him to start the Tour and if he did start it would just be in the peloton and wouldn't be able to do too much," he said. "But it's unlikely I think that he would start."

A 46-year-old woman from Goodwood has been charged with the murder of an Adelaide man. Police found the 36-year-old man's body inside an Edithburgh house on the Yorke Peninsula, just after 10:30pm yesterday. The pair were known to each other. The woman is expected to face the Elizabeth Magistrates Court later today.

Two sporting declarations has ensured a tight battle for outright points in the Sheffield Shield match between South Australia and Western Australia at Adelaide Oval. The Redbacks were 0 for 30 in their second innings at stumps on day three, still needing another 321 runs for victory with a full day to play. Dan Harris was unbeaten on 4, while James Smith was not out 26. Earlier on Sunday, both captains injected some life into a match that was at risk of meandering towards a draw with declarations that left the contest wide open. Redbacks captain Graham Manou was the first to take a chance when he closed his side's first innings at lunch with the Redbacks at 6 for 249, still 152 behind the Warriors' first innings of 401. Michael Klinger remained unbeaten on 109 in a knock that was more patient than punishing, his century soaking up 351 minutes and 267 balls. In the final session Warriors captain Adam Voges matched Manou's courage, declaring the visitors' second innings at 2 for 198 for an overall lead of 350. Shaun Marsh remained not out on 108, his century taking just 153 minutes and 131 balls, while including 14 boundaries and two strokes that cleared the fence. Voges was also unbeaten on 58 and Peter George was the only successful bowler for the Redbacks with 2 for 13. - AAP

An unbeaten 47 to Shaun Marsh had Western Australia in a commanding position at tea on day three of the Sheffield Shield match against South Australia at Adelaide Oval. At the break the Warriors were 2 for 101, with skipper Adam Voges also not out 23. The visitors had an overall lead of 253 with eight wickets in hand and four sessions to play in the four-day fixture. Earlier, Redbacks skipper Graham Manou played his part in possibly securing an outright result for one of the teams when he declared his side's first innings closed at 6 for 249, still trailing by 152 on the first innings. Michael Klinger was unbeaten on 109 when Manou decided to send the visitors back in a bid to rescue a game that was meandering towards a draw. In the Warriors' second innings fast bowler Peter George picked up two early wickets, grabbing openers Luke Towers for 2 and Wes Robinson for 29. Voges was expected to set the Redbacks a target of more than 350 to chase on the final day. - AAP

South Australia gave itself a chance at reaching parity on day three of its Sheffield Shield match against Western Australia at Adelaide Oval. At lunch the Redbacks were 6 for 249 in response to the Warriors' first innings of 401, thanks to an unbeaten century from Michael Klinger. He was 109 not out, joined by Dan Christian (5) after South Australia improved its overnight score of 4 for 167 by 82 runs. Graham Manou (16) and Aaron O'Brien (24) were the batsmen to fall in the morning session. Aaron Heal was the best of the Warriors' seven bowlers with 2 for 55.