Leaping frogs, spiny lobsters, hostile roosters: News from around our 50 states

Alabama

Montgomery: The Pentagon is naming a new commander and president of Air University in Montgomery. A statement from Defense Secretary Mark Esper says Air Force Maj. Gen. James B. Hecker is being promoted and will oversee the military school, which is located at Maxwell Air Force Base. Hecker is serving on the Pentagon staff in Washington. Hecker is a pilot who graduated from the Air Force Academy about 30 years ago. Air University is the nation’s main site for the professional education of Air Force officers.

Alaska

Anchorage: The Department of Health and Social Services reports a person experienced PSP symptoms after eating a clam harvested near Perryville on the Alaska Peninsula, the first reported illness this year. The symptoms can include tingling of the lips and tongue within minutes of eating a toxic shellfish. Symptoms can progress to tingling of fingers and toes and the loss of muscle control in the arms and legs followed by difficulty breathing. The department says some people experience a sense of floating or nausea. If chest and abdomen muscles become paralyzed, death can occur within hours. In the past month, high PSP toxin levels have been detected in shellfish collected from Chignik Lagoon, Chignik Bay, King Cove and Sand Point.

Arizona

Phoenix: Environmental regulators have issued a high pollution advisory for ozone for the Phoenix metropolitan area. Arizona Department of Environmental Quality officials recommended that people limit outdoor activity Thursday while the advisory is in effect, especially children and adults with respiratory problems. People most vulnerable to the impacts of air pollution include children, older adults, adults exercising outdoors and people with heart or lung disease and those suffering from asthma and bronchitis. Exposure can increase the number and severity of asthma attacks, cause or aggravate bronchitis or other lung disease and reduce the body’s ability to fight infection.

Arkansas

Jasper: City leaders are planning to draft an ordinance next month addressing a problematic rooster that has been attacking pedestrians. Mayor Jan Larson says the “vicious” rooster scratches and chases people. She says a woman fell while fleeing the rooster, which also went after a small boy. Police Chief Michael Henderson says no one has been injured by the rooster, but his department has received complaints. Larson notes that chickens and roosters are permitted in Jasper. Sara Orlowski, a poultry specialist with the University of Arkansas, says some roosters can be aggressive when protecting their flock of hens. Their mating season is spring and summer. She tells the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette that running away from roosters sends them the message that they’re dominant, encouraging them to pursue.

California

Sacramento: Gov. Gavin Newsom says he is encouraged by Chevron’s efforts to clean up what has turned into the state’s largest oil spill in decades. The governor visited the oilfield west of Bakersfield on Wednesday, where more than 900,000 gallons have seeped out of the ground over the last couple of months, according to KQED News. About one-third of that is oil and the other two-thirds water. Chevron says the oil spill might have started when crews tried to seal an abandoned well. State officials say the spill does not pose a risk to drinking water. Newsom told reporters Chevron has been forthright about the incident. But he adds that the state will ask the company to turn over data so regulators can investigate the cause of the leak.

Colorado

Denver: Metropolitan State University of Denver is conducting environmental testing at a campus building where four university employees have been diagnosed with three types of cancer. The building is located at the Auraria Campus. According to a letter sent to staff Thursday by Auraria Higher Education Center CEO Colleen Walker and Metropolitan State University of Denver COO Larry Sampler, all four employees worked in the same immediate office area of the West Classroom. Results of the independent testing of the work area are expected Aug. 8. The letter noted that previous environmental testing in West Classroom for lead in the water and asbestos indicated no reason to doubt that the building is safe to occupy.

Connecticut

Hartford: A new analysis shows Connecticut outpaces other states and the federal government when it comes to employing women in the highest levels of state government. Although the report released Wednesday by the Governor’s Council on Women and Girls found women hold nearly 52% of executive branch jobs considered “officials and administrators,” it also says the state has more work to do addressing “representation problems.” The analysis also shows minority men and women earn less than white men and women in executive branch agencies. The average minority male earns approximately $10,000 less than the average white male and female, and the average minority female earns almost $8,000 less than the average white female. Democratic Lt. Gov. Susan Bysiewicz says all state agencies and branches of government should conduct their own reviews.

Delaware

Wilmington: The state’s next medical marijuana dispensary will open next to retail stores on Concord Pike across from Brandywine Town Center. The dispensary, the state’s fifth, will sit between Mattress Warehouse and Sprint in the new shopping center, which also features Metro Diner and Helzberg Diamonds, and will soon add a home theater store. It will be the second state location for Columbia Care, a New-York based medical cannabis company. Columbia Care declined to comment, other than to say that it is too early in the process to provide further details. More than 5,000 people in the state are certified by their doctors to purchase medical marijuana, according to the state health department. Medical marijuana can be used to treat a host of conditions, including Alzheimer’s, multiple sclerosis and other ailments that cause chronic pain.

District of Columbia

Washington: Some subcontractors for a homeless shelter say they’re struggling to get paid despite finishing work nearly a year ago. The Washington Post reports the Kennedy was the first of seven shelters set to replace a troubled megashelter that was demolished last year. The District awarded the $14 million project without competitive bidding to developer 5th Street Partners, which then hired Moseley Construction to oversee construction and subcontractors. The general contractor’s CEO, Johnny D. Moseley, says payment delays are the result of the city not fully paying the developer, something the city denies. The city’s final $1.6 million payment was made this month.

Florida

Miami Beach: Wildlife officials are patrolling state waters during an annual two-day spiny lobster sport season to make sure divers are following the rules. The season began Wednesday after midnight and ran through Thursday. Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officers were stopping boaters off Miami Beach on Wednesday. Some boaters even approached the wildlife officers’ boat to save time. A saltwater fishing license and a lobster stamp are required to take the crustaceans. The lobster’s carapace must be larger than 3 inches, located from between the horns to where the head meets the tail. Egg-bearing female lobsters must also be left alone. A dive flag is mandatory for safety. Participants in Monroe County and Biscayne National Park can only have six lobsters. The limit is 12 for the rest of the state. The regular season starts Aug. 6 and ends March 31.

Georgia

Americus: Authorities say two people are dead after a small plane crashed in a pecan orchard. Col. Eric Bryant of the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office told reporters the crash Wednesday morning scattered debris over an area the size of a football field. He said officials are working to identify the two people aboard the plane who died. Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman Kathleen Bergen says the plane crashed right after it took off from nearby Jimmy Carter Regional Airport in Americus. That’s about 140 miles south of Atlanta. Bergen said the plane was a single-engine Cirrus SR22 aircraft. The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board are sending crash investigators to the scene.

Hawaii

Lihue: A Kauai beach park has reopened following a $6 million repair project. Black Pot Beach Park in northern Kauai welcomed visitors Monday for the first time in more than a year, the Garden Island reported Wednesday. An overflowing river in Hanalei Bay washed vehicles into the water and destroyed restrooms and roads in April 2018. City officials have been working on repairs since, the newspaper reported. The repair project included a new roundabout, parking lot, drop-off and pickup zones and landscaping changes to enhance the ocean view, park officials said. There are also temporary portable restrooms located at the park, which will be replaced with new units, officials said.

Idaho

Correction & clarification: The Idaho National Laboratory, a nuclear research facility, is in the southeastern part of the state. The location was incorrect in the 50 States feature on July 26.

Boise: Employees returned to work Thursday at a sprawling nuclear research site in southeastern Idaho after a wildfire forced two days of evacuations. The lightning-caused wildfire at the Idaho National Laboratory is one of several burning across the U.S. West. The nuclear research complex sits on a parcel of desert that is nearly the size of Rhode Island, and facilities there include nuclear reactors, high-level nuclear waste treatment plants and various nuclear research projects. The wildfire, which started Monday night and has burned an estimated 177 square miles, threatened some of those buildings for a time. But a shift in wind direction on Wednesday moved the fire toward open range land and helped fire crews make progress in fighting the flames. The lab has several safety measures for wildfires, including clearing the ground around each building and having several specially trained fire crews.

Illinois

Peoria: The city is receiving more than $2.3 million in federal grants to upgrade its fleet of buses to make them more environmentally friendly. Illinois members of Congress announced Wednesday that the Greater Peoria Mass Transit District will use the money to purchase zero- and lower-emissions buses. The general manager of the Peoria-area transportation system, Doug Roelfs, says electric buses bought with the money will help modernize the city’s aging fleet and help achieve the goal of making the entire agency more “environmentally conscious.” The funds come from an emissions program under the Federal Transit Administration. The grants enable state and local authorities to buy more environmentally sound buses, as well as to acquire, lease or build support facilities.

Indiana

Peru: A proposed 9,200-head hog farm is moving forward despite opposition from residents who say it will hurt property values and environmentalists worried about its proximity to a large reservoir. Farm Service Agency loan specialist Michael Priest says the project’s two barns have received the required permits from the Indiana Department of Environmental Management. Each will house up to 4,620 wean-to-finish pigs. Boss Hog Barns and Snowhill Ridge plan to build the farm in Miami County about 4 miles from the Mississinewa Reservoir and the Miami State Recreation Area. Environmentalists worry farm runoff could impact both sites. The Kokomo Tribune reports some residents fear the smell of hogs and manure will harm property values and the farm will impact their health and compromise crucial water resources.

Iowa

Des Moines: Japanese beetles and thistle caterpillars have been abundant and wreaking havoc throughout the month. Japanese beetles generally break out for six to eight weeks in early June, but because of the cool weather at that time, the adult beetles arrived in en mass around the beginning of July. These beetles can cause a grade deal of damage to linden and crabapple trees, fruit-bearing trees and grapevines, along with other foliate flora. The thistle caterpillars have been hatching in unusual droves across Iowa soybean fields. Thistle caterpillars are not considered a pest species and, according to Robin Pruisner, Iowa’s head entomologist, haven’t posed a serious threat to crops at any time in her memory. The high number of thistle caterpillars noticed this year could be problematic for soybean plants, though no one is sounding the alarm quite yet.

Kansas

Lawrence: Two months after Perry Lake flooded, the Kansas National Guard continues to deliver water to residents in a nearby village – and the effort could continue until mid-September. The Guard has delivered 1.3 million gallons of water to Lakeside Village because the community’s water well pumps are submerged after flooding in May at Perry Lake, about 1 mile from the village. Jane Welch, spokeswoman for the Adjutant General, says six guardsmen, using three trucks, are hauling 40,000 gallons of water every day to about 150 homes. The U.S. Geological Survey said Wednesday that Perry Lake Heavy reached 921.14 feet, its highest level in 26 years. The Lawrence Journal-World reports the Federal Emergency Management Agency is paying for the water hauling because Jefferson County is part of a federal disaster declaration.

Kentucky

Owensboro: The Kentucky National Guard says more than 150 soldiers are deploying to the Middle East. Soldiers with the 206th Engineer Battalion are headed to the U.S. Central Command Area of Operations to conduct construction missions in support of Operation Inherent Resolve. The last deployment for the unit was in 2006 when it was sent to Kuwait during Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Louisiana

Lake Charles: Sowela Technical Community College says a $1 million donation from an energy company will be used to give its students hands-on experience in oil and gas work at a new “pipeline academy.” The school announced the donation from TC Energy in a Tuesday news release. The academy at Sowela’s Lake Charles campus will include a pipeline training area at the college’s Process Technology Center. The college says the center will function as a working plant, where students will be required to complete shift work as part of their curriculum.

Maine

Bangor: The Bangor State Fair started Thursday and runs through Aug. 3. The event takes place near Cross Insurance Center and usually draws more than 40,000 visitors. Organizers say it dates to 1849. The event is billed as an agricultural and recreational fair. The schedule includes fireworks and tractor pulls, as well as traditional fair staples such as sheep and rabbit shows. The fair also includes a full schedule of live music, food and games.

Maryland

Annapolis: A professor who was removed by the U.S. Naval Academy after an investigation into his conduct in class was reinstated to his job by a federal board. The U.S. Merit Systems Protection Board ordered the reinstatement of Bruce Fleming with back pay within 20 days. The English professor was removed in August. Administrative Judge Mark Syska wrote in the order that the primary witness in the case “had severe credulity issues.” He also wrote that the purported victims in the case, who were students, “did not generally take offense or have any actual issue with the appellant.” Jason Ehrenberg, Fleming’s attorney, said academy officials were trying to punish his client for criticizing the academy. Cmdr. Alana Garas, an academy spokeswoman, said the Navy was reviewing the decision. Fleming had been a civilian English professor at the academy since 1987.

Massachusetts

West Springfield: Police are warning hikers to be on the lookout for aggressive yaks. West Springfield police say a hiker in the Bear Hole Reservoir recreation area was charged by three yaks at about 8 p.m. Wednesday. The West Springfield Environmental Committee posted on Facebook that they appeared docile so someone approached within 6 feet. But then “one put its head down, snorted and then charged,” and the other two joined in the chase. No one was injured. Police Lt. Nolan Ryan says the yaks, native to Asia, have ear tags and are believed to have escaped from a private owner in nearby Westfield. Animal control has been notified and has a plan to corral the animals.

Michigan

Dayton Township: A man shot ande killed an escaped alligator after he says the reptile lunged at him at his property. Derrick Fells says he was collecting minnows Saturday when he heard a “hissing” sound and the alligator tried to attack. Fells told WEYI-TV he apparently startled the reptile, and it “turned on me.” He says he shot it with a pistol and called 911. The sheriff’s office says the reptile was 5 to 6 feet long. The alligator was shot about 65 miles north of Detroit. Investigators determined that the alligator escaped from a fenced enclosure at a nearby property where an exotic animal rescue was operating. Two other alligators are there, along with snakes, tortoises, turtles and emus.

Minnesota

Sauk Rapids: Even though the 107th annual Benton County Fair, which runs July 30-Aug. 4, has a few new features this year – expanded robotics demonstrations and new food vendors – much of the fair is still the same tried and true family-friendly festival. The fair is free for people to enter and explore the exhibits. People can purchase tickets for rides and grandstand shows. A big tradition is the rooster crowing contest – 10 a.m. Saturday at Cottonwood Stage. Other favorites include free entertainment, such as an amateur talent show and concerts. This year, the fair will feature all local bands at the beer garden stage. And people always seem to flock to the children’s barnyard year after year.

Mississippi

Jackson: Water contact warnings are in place for all Mississippi beaches because of a harmful bloom of blue-green algae, but at other times, water contact warnings and advisories are issued for another reason: feces. According to Environment America, an environmental protection group, sampling data from 4,523 beach sites in 29 coastal and Great Lakes states and Puerto Rico were submitted to the National Water Quality Monitoring Council. Of those, 2,620 sites indicated potentially unsafe levels of fecal contamination for swimming on at least one day, and 605 were potentially unsafe at least 25% of the days that sampling took place in 2018. In Mississippi, Environment America’s report states 21 of 21 beach sites sampled were potentially unsafe for at least one day in 2018. A sampling site at Gulfport East Beach in Harrison County was potentially unsafe for 44 days in 2018, more than any other site in the state. Sewage overflows and breaks are potential sources while others are more natural and washed in by rain events.

Missouri

Jefferson City: Gov. Mike Parson says Col. Levon Cumpton will become the state’s adjutant general beginning Aug. 2. Cumpton is an Army Ranger and combat veteran with five deployments abroad. He earned the Combat Action Badge, a Purple Heart and a Bronze Star. He also has served in numerous National Guard activations during emergencies and disasters in Missouri. Cumpton, a Missouri native, earned a master’s degree as a graduate of the U.S. Air Force War College. He will succeed Maj. Gen. Stephen Danner, who announced his retirement.

Montana

Helena: Authorities say more than two dozen children who were removed from an alternative treatment center are being interviewed as part of an investigation into allegations of physical and psychological abuse. The 27 children between ages 11 and 17 were taken Tuesday from the Ranch for Kids program after state health officials cited “egregious abuse” allegations in recent months at the facility near the Canada border. State regulators have suspended the ranch’s license. Ranch Director Bill Sutley told the Missoulian newspaper that he plans to challenge the suspension. The children have been taken to an undisclosed location and are talking with investigators. They also received medical evaluations.

Nebraska

Lincoln: A New York company is preparing to build a 230-megawatt solar power farm east of Nebraska’s capital city, making it the largest solar installation in the state. Ranger Power, which is based in Brooklyn, New York, says it has arranged leases with the owners of more than 1,000 acres near a Lincoln Electric System substation and intends to seek a local permit for the solar farm. The project development manager, Colin Snow, says Ranger has talked to three major Nebraska utilities – Lincoln Electric, Omaha Public Power District and Nebraska Public Power District – about buying the power but has not sealed any deals. The company wants to build the entire $230 million project in one phase, but that could be difficult if it does not get enough power purchase commitments. The company hopes to start construction within two years, and the work would take six to 12 months. The project would create more than 300 temporary construction jobs but only about a half-dozen permanent jobs, says Pat Haverty, vice president of the Lincoln Partnership for Economic Development.

Nevada

Reno: Boat inspectors recently prevented two vessels infested with invasive mussels from launching at Lake Tahoe. The Tahoe Regional Planning Agency says Wednesday both boats were quarantined until they could be decontaminated. Chris Kilian of the Tahoe Resource Conservation District says it’s a stark reminder of why inspections are mandatory at Lake Tahoe. Inspectors say they found about 100 invasive mussels – many suspected to be alive – in the hull of a powerboat traveling from Lake Pleasant, Arizona. The infestation was so large inspectors couldn’t remove them all so the boat wasn’t allowed to launch. A small sailboat that the owner said had been out of the water for about four years eventually was allowed to launch at nearby Donner Lake after officials removed approximately 20 dead mussels from the hull’s keel locker.

New Hampshire

Concord: The state’s recent efforts to reduce the number of patients waiting for days or sometimes weeks in emergency rooms for inpatient psychiatric care appear to be paying dividends. Data compiled by the state’s chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness show a steady drop in the number of such patients over the last six months. Between January and July, the daily average was 35 people, down from 49 for the same period last year. The highest daily total was in September 2017, when 72 people were waiting for beds. Bipartisan legislation aimed at addressing the problem passed that year, and lawmakers built on it this session with funding for mobile crisis teams, designated receiving beds for patients in mental health crises and supported housing for those leaving the state mental health hospital.

New Jersey

Wall: The checkered flag will wave for the final time at the Wall Stadium speedway next year, track owners announced Wednesday. The 2020 racing season will be the last for the nearly 70-year-old racetrack. Developer Pulte Homes plans to build nearly 350 homes on the site, which has held auto racing events in some form since 1950. Pulte Homes plans to build 348 homes on the site, mostly in the form of two-bedroom and three-bedroom townhouses, the owners said.

New Mexico

Santa Fe: Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham has ordered state flags be lowered to half-staff on Friday in honor of a Roswell firefighter who has died from injuries suffered in the line of duty. Authorities say 46-year-old Jeff Stroble died Sunday. He was injured in a June 5 explosion that occurred while members of the Roswell Fire Department were preparing for the city’s annual Fourth of July fireworks display. Stroble was a 17-year veteran of the department.

New York

Albany: Portions of two upstate highways are being renamed to honor state troopers killed in the line of duty. A bill signed by Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Wednesday names bridges on Interstate 86 in the Steuben County town of Bath in honor of 29-year-old Trooper Nicholas Clark. He was shot and killed last July while responding to reports of a suicidal man. Another bill signed by Cuomo renames a portion of Route 5S in the Montgomery County town of Glen in honor of Sgt. Jeremy VanNostrand. The 36-year-old trooper died in a motor vehicle accident last November outside the barracks where he was stationed in Glen.

North Carolina

Asheville: The bleachers might be a bit more crowded for Madison High School football games and other athletic events next season after engineers recommended blocking off roughly one-third of seating on the home side of O.E. Roberts Stadium. The deterioration of the nearly 50-year-old facility raises questions on how to pay for any potential renovations to the site. Voters in Madison County will again decide on a quarter-cent sales tax increase that school officials say could help generate revenue to raise teacher pay and finance a more than $3 million project to revamp the 1972 stadium. The same referendum fell short of passage in the 2018 general election. In a July report to Madison County Schools Superintendent Will Hoffman, Kloesel Engineering listed concerns with the stadium, including spalled concrete, water drainage and a rotating retaining wall at the eastern end of the home stands between the bleachers and the athletic track.

North Dakota

Bismarck: North Dakota health officials still don’t know the cause of two pipelines spills last week that leaked oilfield wastewater into a tributary of the Missouri River and another that spread over pastureland. State environmental scientist Bill Suess says that cleanup of the “produced water” is ongoing at the two spill sites. The spills were reported by Polar Midstream. The company on July 14 reported a 20,000-gallon spill east of Williston and about a mile from Lake Sakakawea, the largest reservoir on the Missouri River. Suess says investigators don’t think the spill reached the river. The second spill leaked more than 12,000 gallons of wastewater, impacting an unknown amount of pastureland. Company spokesman Zak Covar says the cause isn’t known. He says the focus is on cleaning up the spill.

Ohio

Columbus: The state has closed five rides at the Ohio State Fair, with one permanently shut down because of “visible corrosion.” Dorothy Pelanda is the director of the Ohio Department of Agriculture, which oversees the fair. She said Thursday the four other rides could be reopened after minor repairs. The Columbus Dispatch reports Pelanda permanently shut down a Ferris wheel-type ride known as “Military Base” because it showed “visible corrosion.” A message seeking comment on the announcement was left with the company that operates the rides. The state earlier this year replaced about 100 chairs on the fair’s overhead SkyGlider and added a braking system. An 18-year-old man was killed and seven people were injured when the spinning, swinging Fire Ball ride broke apart in July 2017.

Oklahoma

Kingfisher: No injuries or damage have been reported following a small earthquake in central Oklahoma, the fourth such earthquake in the area in less than three weeks. The U.S. Geological Survey says a magnitude 3.1 temblor was recorded at 4:39 a.m. Thursday near Kingfisher, about 40 miles northwest of Oklahoma City. A 3.1 magnitude quake and two 2.6 magnitude quakes were recorded in the same area, all on July 9. Thousands of earthquakes in Oklahoma in recent years have been linked to the underground injection of wastewater from oil and gas production. The USGS reports the number of magnitude 3.0 or greater earthquakes is on pace to decline for the fourth straight year after state regulators began directing producers to close some wells and reduce volumes in others.

Oregon

Salem: The cost of a liquor license in Oregon is going up for the first time in 70 years after newly passed legislation doubled the amount the agency will charge bars, restaurants, breweries and wineries for the right to sell alcohol to customers. The law moves Oregon’s liquor fees from among the cheapest in the nation to just below the national average for such fees, but the agency says getting on a par with other states was not the motivation. Starting Oct. 1, a full liquor license will be $800, up from $400, and winery or brewery license fees will increase from $250 to $500. All other fees will also double on and after that date.

Pennsylvania

Middleburg: A bracelet that belonged to a soldier from Pennsylvania killed during the Battle of the Bulge in World War II will be returned to his daughter. An off-duty detective using a metal detector in Wales discovered the silver bracelet that contained Albert Coleman’s name and serial number. Colin Murphy tells The Daily Item he used the information to trace Coleman to Snyder County. The county historical society says Coleman got married after high school and he and his wife had a daughter. Board member Esther Klinger says the daughter was 18 months old when Coleman was killed on Jan. 17, 1945. He was buried in Pennsylvania. Coleman’s unit had been stationed in Wales before shipping off. The bracelet will be presented to his daughter, Nancy Shilling, during a ceremony at the society’s headquarters on Sunday.

Rhode Island

Warwick: A delay in an international flight route coupled with airline service cuts has left T.F. Green Airport with fewer passengers. WPRI-TV reports that the airport has been seeing a fall in flights. Overall passenger activity at the airport fell more than 14% in April. Seat capacity declined by 18.5%. Regional Sky last year announced a direct flight from T.F. Green to Montreal to start in November 2018. It was later pushed to 2019. The company’s president says the airline wasn’t getting enough customers to “justify one flight.” Iftikhar Ahmad, president and CEO of the agency that runs the airport, tells the board the cause of the decline is because of Southwest and other airline cuts. The airlines blame the global grounding of Boeing 737 Max jets.

South Carolina

Clemson: An estimated 600 to 700 members of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club are set to ride into Clemson from July 29 to Aug. 2 for their national gathering. “They’ll come in, have a meeting, get together,” Kade Herrick, tourism director for the Clemson Area Chamber of Commerce, said. “It is almost like a family reunion for them.” News of the event, originally shared by the Seneca Journal, sparked mixed responses on social media, with some residents upset that the city had not told citizens about the event. Others were excited about the chance for businesses to bring in revenue during the slower summer months. The Department of Justice classifies Hells Angels as an “outlaw motorcycle gang“ and says the group is involved in the production of drugs and in other criminal activity. Herrick says he does not have concerns about the club coming to Clemson and did “due diligence,” reaching out to officials in Missouri and in Clarksville, Virginia, to learn about the results of similar events there.

South Dakota

Sioux Falls: Police will hold a town hall in east Sioux Falls on Tuesday to address several gunshot incidents in the area. Officers have responded to 10 reports of gunshots since July 8, and all have been on the east side of the city — mostly concentrated in the northeast part of Sioux Falls. The town hall will be held at 6:30 p.m. at the Kenny Anderson Community Center on East Third Street, , says Capt. Loren McManus. The recent shootings have been in the evening or before 6 a.m. In each case, police responded to witnesses saying they heard the gunshots, but officers rarely got an eyewitness account. This leaves them with little information for the search for suspects, McManus said. Background investigations have led police to believe that a majority of the shootings involve gang activity. At least two of the shootings occurred at a gang member’s home known to investigators, McManus told the Argus Leader.

Tennessee

Knoxville: A bridge on Asheville Highway was named to honor the three victims of the fatal 2014 Knox County Schools bus crash. State Rep. Rick Staples, D-Knoxville, and State Sen. Becky Duncan Massey, R-Knoxville, held a ceremony to unveil the signs that will be displayed along Asheville Highway, near the Holston River. Zykia Burns, Seraya “Bubbles” Glasper and Kimberly Wester-Riddle died on Dec. 2, 2014, when a bus from Chilhowee Intermediate School struck a bus from Sunnyview Primary School. Burns was 6, Glasper was 7 and Riddle was 46. The bus from Chilhowee swerved across Asheville Highway and struck the bus from Sunnyview, which Burns, Glasper and Riddle were riding. It was learned that the driver of the bus from Chilhowee, James Davenport, was texting while driving, which caused him to swerve and led to the fatal crash.

Texas

Amarillo: A school district in the Texas Panhandle will begin drug testing students as young as 12 years old who are interested in playing sports or participating in other extracurricular activities. Testing will begin with the resumption of classes next month at Bushland Independent School District and will be required of students in grades seven through 12 who play in the band, sit on the student council, assemble a yearbook, play chess or participate in other clubs. Students who receive a permit to park at the high school also will be subjected to testing. The district does not have a drug problem or growing epidemic, district Assistant Superintendent Angie Watson said Wednesday, but the purpose is to keep students safe and “deter them from doing anything that would harm them.”

Utah

South Ogden: Officials are searching for a source of possible contamination after dozens of fish and a few ducks were found dead in a creek. KUTV-TV reports children fishing in Burch Creek discovered the dead fish and called 911 on Wednesday afternoon. The South Ogden Fire Department says nearby residents also reported smelling gas in the area. The department says between 40 and 50 fish were found dead. The Weber County Health Department says it was testing the water to determine the cause and source. The creek flows into the Weber River.

Vermont

Salisbury: Several communities are seeing an abundance of a particular frog this summer. University of Vermont herpetology lecturer James Andrews estimates that the population of the northern leopard frog has leaped a hundredfold in a region near the Otter Creek in Addison County primarily because of the wet spring. He estimates that 400,000 young frogs were killed by cars in Salisbury. Some of the dried up carnage is still visible on the road. Andrews says the northern leopard frog lays eggs in grassy flood plains of the Otter Creek. Usually, the flood plains dry up and many of the eggs do too, but that didn’t happen this year. He says people who have been here for 30 years or more say they have never seen so many frogs.

Virginia

King George: A bald eagle injured in a fight at an area landfill last month is ready to fly again. The Wildlife Center of Virginia plans to release the eagle Friday in Caledon State Park. The adult female bird was found on the ground, fighting with another eagle at the King George County landfill on June 15. The bird was treated for lead exposure and mild trauma from its fight with the other eagle. The bird has spent the past few weeks in the center’s outdoor pens, building up strength and stamina. The state park where the eagle will be released is the summer home for one of the largest concentrations of bald eagles on the East Coast.

Washington

Seattle: The state is rolling out same-day voter registration for the primary election next month. The Seattle Times reported Wednesday that residents for the first time will be able to register or update their existing registrations at county auditor or elections offices until the end of the primary period on Aug. 6. The new state law allows people to register by mail or online until eight days before an election. The state previously cut off mail and online registrations at the 29-day mark. The state also requires counties to operate voting centers in cities of more than 100,000 people during presidential elections. Several voting centers are opening in the Seattle area despite not being a presidential-election year. King County Elections Director Julie Wise says they’re testing the concept this year.

West Virginia

Charleston: West Virginia’s congressional delegation is asking Presdient Donald Trump to authorize federal disaster relief funds after flash flooding damaged the state’s eastern highlands late last month. U.S. Sens. Joe Manchin and Shelley Moore Capito joined U.S. Reps. David McKinley, Alex Mooney and Carol Miller in a joint statement Wednesday asking for the federal disaster declaration. Severe thunderstorms hit Grant, Pendleton, Preston, Tucker and Randolph counties on June 29, leading to flooding and evacuations. Homes were knocked off their foundations and bridges and roads were washed out, including parts of four-lane U.S. Route 33. There were no reports of deaths or serious injuries. Republican Gov. Jim Justice has declared an emergency and the West Virginia National Guard is helping with some of the cleanup.

Wisconsin

Madison: The University of Wisconsin would be able to increase tuition no greater than the rate of inflation under a bill being proposed in the state Legislature by the chairman of the Assembly’s higher education committee. The proposal envisions a time without a tuition freeze that has been in place for six years and will run for at least two more. The Wisconsin State Journal reports Wednesday that Republican Rep. Dave Murphy plans to introduce a bill that would allow the UW Board of Regents to raise tuition by the consumer price index increase each year. It would also lock tuition at the same rate a student pays their first year over the next three. Republican state Sen. Andre Jacque is also behind the bill, which wouldn’t take effect until the 2021 school year at the earliest.

Wyoming

Fort Laramie: Gov. Mark Gordon has declared a state of emergency to help farmers in Wyoming and Nebraska affected by an irrigation system failure. Gordon says Monday’s declaration will enable the state to deploy workers and equipment to try to solve the problem that has left more than 150 square miles of cropland without irrigation water at the peak of summer. The problem began when a 14-foot-wide tunnel for irrigation water collapsed July 17. The backed-up water washed out an irrigation canal, flooding nearby farmland. The Casper Star-Tribune reports about half of the farmland now without irrigation water is in Wyoming and the other half is in Nebraska. Crops grown there include corn and sugar beets. Repairing the irrigation system will take an estimated two to four weeks.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 50 states