Environment

City officials propose new plan to solve geese problem

Submitted by Lonnie Liebner, Community Web Producer

Monday, October 17th, 2011, 10:20am

City officials propose new plan to solve geese problem

Huntsville City officials hope a new feeding plan in Big Spring Park will help reduce the problems geese cause in the popular downtown park.

Officials say the geese have dramatically increased in numbers and have moved out most of the native ducks. They have also left the park and pond with an abundance of waste.

Because of the nuisance and public health hazard, officials came up with a new feeding plan that is aimed at keeping the animals healthy while reducing the health hazards to humans.

Karen Hill Sheppard, veterinarian and director of Huntsville's Animal Control, researched the problem and found many cities across the country facing similar situations. Sheppard says the first order of business is to educate the public not to feed the geese human food.

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Families should plan for National Preparedness Month

Submitted by Lonnie Liebner, Community Web Producer

Wednesday, September 7th, 2011, 2:58pm

Families should plan for National Preparedness Month

President Barack Obama has declared September National Preparedness Month and the Alabama Emergency Management Agency, along with the Federal Emergency Management Agency, urge Alabamians and their families to take this time to update their disaster preparedness plan.

As the April tornadoes and Hurricane Irene illustrate, people may need to survive on their own after an emergency. This means having food, water, and other supplies for each family member for at least three days.

“Local officials and relief workers will be on the scene after a disaster, but they cannot reach everyone immediately. It is important to get a kit, make a plan, and be informed of disasters that can occur in Alabama,” said Jeff Byard, state coordinating officer for AEMA.

Recommended items in a basic emergency supply kit should last for up to 72 hours before help arrives.

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Alabama forestry officials prepare for wildfires

Submitted by Lonnie Liebner, Community Web Producer

Thursday, September 1st, 2011, 2:59pm

Alabama forestry officials prepare for wildfires

State Forestry officials fear a 400 acre wildfire in DeKalb County may be the first of many during what could be a long and hard fall fire season in Alabama.

Firefighters with the Forestry Commission worked three days to get the fire near Ider contained and under control before demobilizing Wednesday night.

Dry weather combined with low humidity have currently combined to create conditions favorable for several wildfires.

"We're going to see a lot of them," said Forestry Commission Spokeswoman Coleen Vansant.

Vansant expects the fires to feed off all the debris left behind from the April 27th tornado outbreak.

It's already been a very busy year for wildfires in Alabama.

So far, nearly 2,500 wildfires have burned more than 57,000 acres.

Last year by this time, the state had

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Red Flag Warning for much of Alabama

Submitted by Lonnie Liebner, Community Web Producer

Monday, August 29th, 2011, 3:45pm

A combination of warm temperatures, strong winds and low relative humidity has resulted in a Red Flag Warning for much of Alabama. This means that outdoor burning can become dangerous quickly.

The National Weather Service has more information on their website about this type of warning.

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Tennessee Valley 3 months after tornado outbreak

Submitted by Tommy Self

Wednesday, July 27th, 2011, 8:59am

Tennessee Valley 3 months after tornado outbreak

First off let me officially introduce myself to everyone that reads this blog. My name is Tommy Self, and I am a professional storm chaser from Madison. I am the owner and lead chaser/forecaster for the Tennessee Valley Storm Trackers. Some of you may have heard of us from Waff 48 Storm Team or by following us on Facebook.

Now that the introductions are out of the way, let's look back at the past 3 months. April 27th will be a day I will never forget. I have been storm chasing for 13 years and have seen some devastating storms during that span, but nothing like what transpired that day. I intercepted 4 different tornadoes that day and was shocked and saddened by what I saw.

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Burn ban lifted for north Alabama

Submitted by Anonymous on Friday, July 1st, 9:53 am

Officials with the Alabama Forestry Commission say ground moisture levels in 12 north Alabama counties have increased enough to reduce the threat of catastrophic wildfire, justifying downgrading these counties from Drought Emergency (No Burn) to Fire Alert. Counties included are: Lauderdale, Colbert, Franklin, Marion, Limestone, Lawrence, Winston, Madison, Morgan, Jackson, Marshall, and DeKalb.

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Power outages in Madison county

Submitted by Anonymous on Tuesday, June 28th, 8:43 am

There currently is a large power outage in northwest Huntsville extending west from Research Park Blvd. to Explorer Blvd. and Discovery Dr. and along US 72 Hwy, Slaughter Rd., and University Dr. to Nance Rd. This will include much of Cummings Research Park . Crews are working to restore power now.

The outage that affected most of northwestern Madison County has been repaired. Lighting struck a substation on Nick Fitcheard Road damaging equipment inside the station. This is one of the locations where Huntsville Utilities receives power from TVA.

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