Moon trees, moon film, monk honored: News from around our 50 states

Alabama

Montgomery: A Department of Corrections narcotics dog died last weekend after he had an allergic reaction to a substance inside an Elmore County prison. Department of Corrections officials say K-9 Jake collapsed during a contraband search inside Staton Correctional Facility last Thursday. Jake “alerted” on a substance before falling unconscious. The substance has not yet been identified, though ADOC says an early test by a HazMat team identified it as synthetic marijuana. The nursing staff at Staton performed CPR and inserted an IV before Jake was transported to the Auburn University Veterinary Clinic. But his condition deteriorated after Friday when he developed pneumonia. A funeral with full honors will be held for Jake and Gov. Kay Ivey also commended Jake’s service to the state.

Alaska

Fairbanks: An Alaska company is completing plans to acquire and develop a site for mining metals for foreign markets. The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reported that Trilogy Metals plans to develop an ore-extraction site called Artic, where about 43 million tons of reserves were discovered. The company president says the copper deposit is located in the Ambler Mining District about 300 miles north of Fairbanks. By the end of this year, Trilogy hopes to complete its plan to use the site to extract and transport metal ore to Asia. The U.S. Bureau of Land Management says the project includes building a road. Federal officials say draft plans for the road are expected to be released in August followed by a public comment period.

Arizona

Phoenix: The state landed $90 million in federal grants for a project to widen Interstate 17 north of Phoenix in hopes of easing congestion and cutting down on the number of wrecks, according to Gov. Doug Ducey’s office. It’s part of a $320 million project led by the state Department of Transportation and Federal Highway Administration to add lanes along 23 miles of I-17, from Anthem Way to Sunset Point. The project will also add eight miles of “flex lanes”, which will carry traffic north on Fridays and Saturdays but south on Sundays between Black Canyon City and the Sunset Point Rest Area.

Arkansas

Little Rock: A meat-alternative food company has filed a lawsuit in federal court claiming a state law that bans the use of “meat” in labeling plant-based foods violates free speech rights. Oregon-based Tofurky Co. filed the lawsuit Monday against Arkansas’ Bureau of Standards. Tofurky produces a variety of tofu, quinoa and other plant-based “sausages,” deli slices and burgers. The Arkansas law’s stated goal is to “require truth in labeling.” It also bans companies from labeling other vegetables, such as cauliflower, as “rice.” Arkansas is the nation’s top rice producer. Tofurky filed a lawsuit in 2018 against a Missouri meat-labeling law. This month, Illinois-based Upton’s Naturals Co. challenged a Mississippi law. Arkansas’ law is set to take effect Wednesday. It would fine companies up to $1,000 for each violation.

California

Los Angeles: Her name was “Lucille,” and in B.B. King’s hands she gave voice to the “King of the Blues.” Julien’s Auctions announced Tuesday that King’s black Gibson ES-345 prototype guitar is among the items from his estate that will go up for bid on Sept. 21. Julien’s says Gibson gave King the instrument for his 80th birthday. The headstock has “B.B. King 80” and a crown inlaid with mother-of-pearl. The guitar is estimated to be worth $80,000 to $100,000. The National Medal of Arts that President George H.W. Bush presented to King in 1990 is also up for auction. So are his touring van, jewelry and clothing. The 15-time Grammy winner was 89 years old when he died in 2015.

Colorado

Denver: Public health officials say four homeless people have been diagnosed with hepatitis A this year, so the city is stepping up free vaccinations. KDVR-TV reported Monday that three of the cases were diagnosed within the past three weeks. Public Health executive director Dr. Bill Burman says his agency will set up vaccine clinics almost every day in day shelters, syringe access programs, Civic Center Park and other places where people at risk of contracting the disease are found. Hepatitis A can be spread through the sharing of drugs and equipment, fecal-oral contamination or intimate contact with a person who has the disease. Health officials say the disease can be prevented with a vaccine that has been a part of standard childhood immunizations for more than a decade.

Connecticut

Hartford: Heavy rainfall and thunderstorms that raced across the state caused major flooding and a fire in a dorm at a private school. At the Tweed-New Haven Airport, major flooding Monday night caused airport staff to cancel flights for almost 24 hours through Tuesday afternoon. A dorm at Choate Rosemary Hall, a private school in Wallingford, also caught fire after a lightning strike, forcing students to evacuate and take shelter at an athletic center. No injuries were reported. Lorraine Connelly, director of communications for the school, said the lightning struck the building around 6:20 p.m. Firefighters say they had to wait until the lightning passed to complete their work. The state’s major utilities were reporting scattered power outages Tuesday morning.

Delaware

Georgetown: A Confederate flag and monument honoring those who fought for the South in the Civil War have cost the local historical society more than $14,000 in state funding. The Georgetown Historical Society was set to get $14,443 in grant-in-aid under a bill that gives tens of millions of dollars to more than 100 nonprofits each year, according to budget documents. But Sen. Trey Paradee, D-Dover, who serves on the General Assembly’s Joint Finance Committee, recommended that the group be struck from the list because of the Confederate monument and flag, which are on the grounds of the historical society’s museum on Bedford Street. The bill passed unanimously on the last day of the legislative session. Paradee told The News Journal that he did not discuss the change in funding with the historical society in advance, though he would consider restoring the grant if they got rid of the Confederate symbols. The Georgetown Historical Society did not return calls for comment. Debbie Jones, the group’s vice president, told WBOC 16 that the decision threatens the nonprofit’s financial standing.

District of Columbia

Washington: A D.C. council member who voted for a no-bid sports gambling contract says he wasn’t aware of documentation connecting his cousin to the contract. The Washington Post reports Kenyan R. McDuffie defended his vote Friday, saying his motivating factor was the best interest of the District and residents. Intralot was awarded the sole-source sports gambling contract. The company submitted subcontracting plans with McDuffie’s cousin listed as chief executive of Potomac Supply Company, a commercial paper supplier. McDuffie said he had no knowledge of his cousin being listed as CEO of Potomac before the newspaper contacted him. Potomac’s owner Okera Stewart says Intralot mistakenly identified McDuffie’s cousin as CEO because of an email he sent Intralot on Stewart’s behalf. An Intralot executive hasn’t returned comment requests.

Florida

Cocoa: Trafford Realty, which had been in operation for 102 years, closed July 1. The business was the oldest continuously operating retail office in Florida, says Margot Trafford Hester, former realtor whose father, Al, was chairman. The closure of Trafford Realty followed the death of company President Terry Lolmaugh and Vice President Roy Berry this spring. A.R. Trafford founded the company in 1917. His son, Al, started his career in 1938 and took over the company from his father. Al Trafford, who died in 2014, had continued participating in the business until age 98.

Georgia

Dallas: A K-9 was fatally shot by a deputy during a foot chase of a suspect. News outlets report 8-year-old Verro got out of his patrol car Friday without being assisted by his handler, Cpl. Brandon Kilgore. Paulding County sheriff’s spokesman Sgt. Ashley Henson says deputies were pursuing a man fleeing the scene of an alleged domestic dispute. The situation didn’t require the deployment of the dog, but Verro squeezed out of his kennel looking to help Kilgore. The dog then attacked a deputy because he couldn’t differentiate who the suspect was without his handler. Henson says the deputy was unaware the dog was a K-9 and shot him to stop the attack. The suspect was apprehended. Kilgore had worked with Verro for about seven years.

Hawaii

Hilo: Hawaii County officials have announced reconstruction of a Big Island highway covered in lava is progressing on schedule. The Hawaii Tribune-Herald reported Sunday that the Department of Public Works says construction on parts of Highway 132 is expected to be completed in a few weeks. A spokeswoman says the project that began earlier this month is expected to be completed by Oct. 5 to qualify for 100% federal reimbursement. Work will continue on various sections of the roadway that was inundated with lava during the 2018 Kilauea volcanic eruption. Officials say access to some residents’ land-locked homes and farms will be restored by October on the highway located about 24 miles southeast of Hilo.

Idaho

Caldwell: Federal data shows more women are operating farms in Idaho, but officials say they have always been there. The Idaho Statesman reports the 2017 Census of Agriculture released earlier this year shows about one-third of Idaho farms are run by women. The U.S. Department of Agriculture recorded more than 10,000 women in farm leadership roles. It also says more than 17,000 women are working on farms and ranches in the state, up from the just over 13,000 recorded in 2012. The department attributed the uptick to a change in how the farm leadership positions are recorded. Department statistician Randy Welk says officials determined that woman and youth were probably getting undercounted. He says often the name listed as the operator of a family farm wasn’t updated.

Illinois

Ford Heights: A south Chicago suburb without a library is getting a boost from students at an alternative high school inside a state juvenile detention facility. Illinois officials say the youth enrolled at Booker T. Washington Alternative High School at Harrisburg youth center constructed four library boxes to be placed throughout Ford Heights. The boxes will continually be replenished with books through a partnership with a bookstore. Department of Juvenile Justice Director Heidi Mueller says the boxes are symbolic of how collaboration, hard work and a shared goal can help families. Ford Heights had to close its library decades ago over funding issues. There will be a dedication ceremony for the boxes on July 30.

Indiana

Indianapolis: Indiana State Fairgrounds officials say a $50 million project will replace its nearly century-old swine barn with a new building that can hold events around the year. Fairgrounds Executive Director Cynthia Hoye says the open-air building can’t generate year-round revenue because it isn’t climate-controlled. The new building will be called the Fall Creek Pavilion and will still house livestock during the state fair. Most of the building that opened in 1923 will be demolished. Work could start after next year’s state fair. Gov. Eric Holcomb proposes dipping into the state’s $2.3 billion in reserves to pay cash for the project. Democrats have lambasted that plan, saying the money should go to other priorities such as raising teacher pay or improving access to affordable child care.

Iowa

Iowa City: The Muslim community in the Iowa City area is growing quickly, and along with that growth so is the need for a new Islamic cemetery, mosque leaders say. The Iowa City Mosque spent years establishing the Al-Iman Cemetery in southwest Iowa City and is now in the slow process of beautifying the space and putting in necessary physical infrastructure. The cemetery has long been an important project for the Iowa City Mosque, in part because members found local cemeteries did not allow them to bury loved ones in accordance with certain Muslim traditions, says Ousainou Keita, president of the Executive Committee for the mosque. The new cemetery allows for loved ones to be buried facing Mecca, the birthplace of Islam, and coffins or caskets are not mandated, like they are with other cemeteries. The Al-Iman Cemetery will serve the small slice of residents who identify as Muslim in Iowa City, Coralville and North Liberty.

Kansas

Wichita: State health and environment officials are recommending alternative ways for municipal water operators to treat toxic blue-green algal blooms that have troubled state lakes for nearly 10 years. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says people and animals that come into contact with cyanobacteria algae might suffer diarrhea, headaches and other symptoms. The state Department of Health and Environment has detected traces of toxins related to the blooms in at least five water treatment plants. KMUW-FM reports that the department has suggested adding activated carbon to the water treatment process. The carbon causes algae to fall to the bottom of ponds, allowing clean water to pass through. Department officials say they also offer a program to subsidize water quality tests searching for toxins caused by cyanobacteria.

Kentucky

Ashland: Planning is underway for a monument that would list the names of all Boyd County residents who served in World War II. The Independent reports the Ashland Rotary Club is planning a 79-foot wall that would have 6,700 names laser-etched on it. Cheryl Spriggs is spearheading the project and says the organization has raised about $20,000 and hopes to double that. She says Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul has agreed to attend an Aug. 21 fundraiser for the project. She says officials are looking for locations along the riverfront and in Central Park. The wall will replace one built in 1944 and demolished a decade later. Spriggs said she hopes to finish the wall by May 8, 2020, which is the 75th anniversary of Germany’s surrender.

Louisiana

Lake Charles: Hurricane Barry brought a 7-foot storm surge in some parts of south Louisiana and dropped more than 20 inches of rain in one parish, according to a preliminary report from the National Weather Service. The storm, which made landfall July 13 as a Category 1 hurricane, also caused flooding and power outages in more than a dozen parishes, according to the report out of the NWS Lake Charles office. The most rainfall was measured in South Ragley in Beauregard Parish. It received 23.5 inches of rain, according to the report. Morgan City in St. Mary Parish, near Barry’s landfall, received nearly 11 inches of rain. Denham Springs in Livingston Parish received nearly 9 inches. In St. Martin Parish, Barry dropped about 7 inches of rain. Scott, in Lafayette Parish, received about 6 inches. The storm, which might have caused as much as $900 million in property damage, also caused more than 7 feet of storm surge in St. Mary and Vermilion parishes. At its peak on July 14, the Vermilion River in Perry reached nearly 11 feet.

Maine

Madawaska: The state will receive $36 million to help pay for the replacement of an aging bridge that connects one of its northernmost communities with the Canadian province of New Brunswick. Republican Sen. Susan Collins, who chairs the Transportation Appropriations Subcommittee, says the money will go toward replacing the Madawaska International Bridge. The bridge connects Madawaska with Edmundston, New Brunswick. The money is through the Infrastructure for Rebuilding America Program, which uses federal grants to help communities fix infrastructure. The program served 26 projects in the country last year. Collins’ office says temporary closures and a weight limit on the bridge forced some residents and businesses to drive as many as 75 miles out of their way. The total cost of replacement is estimated at $73.5 million.

Maryland

Baltimore: The state will receive a $125 million federal grant for long-sought improvements to the Howard Street Tunnel. Gov. Larry Hogan announced the grant Monday from the federal Infrastructure For Rebuilding America Grant Program. Height restrictions prevent the shipment of double-stacked containers by rail to and from the Helen Delich Bentley Port of Baltimore and up and down the East Coast. Double-stack containers provide a more cost-effective way to transport freight by rail than by truck.

Massachusetts

Worcester: The largest furniture and flooring store in New England has been acquired. Vystar Corp. announced Monday that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Worcester-based Rotmans Furniture and Carpet. Rotmans, one of the largest independent furniture retailers in the U.S., with 200,000 square feet and 150 employees, was founded by and has been under the leadership of the Rotman family for 50 years. Vytex is a Worcester-based manufacturer of environmentally safe and biodegradable rubber latex products. Vystar has acquired a controlling interest in Rotmans for more than $2 million, comprised of 25% cash and 75% in notes convertible into shares. Steve Rotman, CEO of Vystar and Rotmans, says the transaction will not impact the Rotmans store name or business practices and is expected to increase Vystar shareholder value and liquidity.

Michigan

Detroit: Fire has claimed the building that once housed the Gold Dollar, the Cass Avenue bar where the White Stripes played their first show and other bands cut their teeth in the late 1990s as Detroit’s garage-rock phenomenon took flight. The Gold Dollar closed in 2001 after a five-year run, and the property was reportedly purchased by the Ilitch organization in 2015 as the company acquired properties in the area around Little Caesars Arena. Deputy fire commissioner David Fornell says the fire was “fully involved” when firefighters arrived on the scene after 8 p.m. Monday. They were still battling the blaze at 10 p.m. Power and gas services at the building were shut off six years ago, Fornell says, adding it was too soon to determine the cause of the fire or speculate about arson.

Minnesota

Collegeville: A St. John’s University monk has been named 2019 Jefferson Lecturer in the Humanities by the National Endowment for the Humanities, marking the first time the honor has been given to a Minnesotan, a member of the clergy or a Benedictine monk. According to a news release issued Monday, Father Columba Stewart, OSB, will give a lecture titled “Cultural Heritage Present and Future: A Benedictine Monk’s Long View” at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 7 at the Warner Theatre in Washington. The lectureship is the highest honor bestowed by the federal government for contributions to the humanities, according to the release. Stewart is a graduate of Harvard, Yale and Oxford universities and a professed Benedictine monk of St. John’s Abbey since 1981. He is a much-awarded expert in the research field of early Christian monasticism, according to the release. Stewart is a professor of theology at St. John’s University School of Theology and Seminary and has been the executive director of the Hill Museum & Manuscript Library at St. John’s since 2003.

Mississippi

Jackson: The Mississippi Department of Education says a $1,500 raise for teachers will cost $18.5 million more than it originally told lawmakers. The department made the announcement Monday, months after local superintendents discovered a shortfall caused by the department’s ignorance of how teachers were classified in its computer system. Lawmakers allotted $58 million for the raise that began July 1, based on it going to 31,000 teachers. But the department didn’t count 10,000 other teaching positions that officials thought were federally funded. Instead, those positions are state-funded, and Mississippi must absorb the costs. Legislators pledge to pay the remainder of the full $77 million when they convene in January after elections. State Superintendent Carey Wright has said the department will give local school districts enough money to cover costs until then.

Missouri

Rocheport: The Missouri Department of Transportation will receive an $81 million federal grant to help pay for the replacement of the Interstate 70 bridge over the Missouri River near Rocheport. Republican members of Missouri’s congressional delegation announced Monday the state will receive the grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Infrastructure for Rebuilding America program. The bridge was built in 1960 and carries about 12.5 million vehicles per year. It is rated in poor condition and repairing it has been a top priority of state officials for years. State transportation officials have said the current bridge will remain open while the new one is built. The agency had applied for about $178 million for the project, which has an estimated cost of $200 million.

Montana

Missoula: Wildlife officials are asking people who are traveling near Glacier National Park to report sightings of animals crossing the road. The Missoulian reported Monday that park officials and the U.S. Geological Survey want to know where animals are crossing U.S. Highway 2. Officials plan to use the data to help find locations for dedicated wildlife crossings and for other efforts to ease animals’ migration between the park and the Flathead National Forest. Park wildlife biologist John Waller says officials are interested in sightings of rare animals like lynx, bears and wolverines, as well as common animals like deer. Research ecologist Tabitha Graves says officials want to collect as much information as possible, including sightings from several years ago.

Nebraska

Lincoln: A poultry farm that could house up to 380,000 chickens has been proposed for Lancaster County as the county considers new regulations for large livestock operations. The Lincoln Journal Star reports that Sunset Poultry LLC applied earlier this month for a special permit for eight barns housing up to 47,500 chickens each on 80 acres just south of the Saunders County line. The birds would go to the Lincoln Premium Poultry plant in Fremont that’s processing chickens for Costco. An application last year for a poultry farm that would supply Costco spurred officials to examine Lancaster County’s lack of specific zoning laws regarding large livestock operations. A task force has arrived at recommendations for changes. A Lincoln Premium spokeswoman says Sunset Poultry would abide by the pending recommendations.

Nevada

Las Vegas: Retired engineer Gary George was a NASA intern in 1976 when he paid $218 at a government auction for three truckloads of film reels that happened to include original video footage of man’s first steps on the moon. On Saturday, three film reels of the moon mission labeled “Apollo 11 EVA” were sold to a private buyer at a Sotheby’s New York auction for $1.82 million. Running 2 hours, 24 minutes, the “unrestored, unenhanced and unremastered tapes” – as described before the auction – including Neil Armstrong’s famous lunar declaration: “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” But that sale perhaps would have never happened if George’s father hadn’t looked a little closer at the peculiar tapes. George had decided to donate any leftover tapes to a Texas church that produced a syndicated television show. That way, he said, he could write them off come tax time. His father, Chet, helped him load the remaining tapes into the family’s 1963 Pontiac station wagon. Scanning the labels on the boxes, Chet noticed something that seemed impossible. On three of the boxes were small labels identifying the metal reels as “Apollo 11 EVA.” George took the three reels out of the pile and put them in a safe place with three other reels that seemed worth keeping: A Bob Hope special recorded at NASA as a benefit for the Apollo 1 astronauts who died in a tragic fire.

New Hampshire

Concord: Three public school teachers have received fellowships as part of a program aimed at retaining educators in the northern part of the state. The New Hampshire Charitable Foundation says the winners of the Louise Tillotson Teaching Fellowships are Melissa Jellison, STEAM Coordinator at White Mountains Regional High School in Whitefield; Kate Moore, a second-grade teacher at Brown Elementary School in Berlin; and Deborah Sargent, Art Educator at Pittsburg School. Each winner will receive $10,000. Since 2007, the Louise Tillotson Fellowship has awarded $445,100 to North Country public school educators.

New Jersey

Voorhees: Residents of a southern New Jersey nursing home have returned to their rooms after a malfunctioning air conditioning system forced them to be evacuated for several hours during last weekend’s heatwave. Officials say 183 residents of Voorhees Care and Rehabilitation were evacuated Sunday afternoon while repairs were made. Most were taken across the street to Eastern High School, while some went to other medical facilities. Residents returned to the center around 8 p.m. Sunday. Officials say at least one patient was taken to a hospital, though it wasn’t clear if that case was heat-related. Officials said outside temperatures were reported at 99 degrees when the cooling system failed, with the heat index around 110 degrees. Some patients’ relatives said temperatures inside the facility reached into the 90s.

New Mexico

Albuquerque: Five trees planted in New Mexico from seeds taken to the moon during Apollo 14 and given to the state by NASA have died or been forgotten. KOAT-TV reports officials, where the trees were planted decades ago, admit they have lost track of the trees. Other states have kept up with moon tree locations. Moon trees were grown from 500 seeds taken into orbit around the moon by former U.S. Forest Service smokejumper Stuart Roosa during the 1971 mission. NASA says the resulting seedlings were planted throughout the United States and the world. A NASA list of moon trees only cites one New Mexico tree. That one was planted in Albuquerque and city officials say it died.

New York

Buffalo: After more than 20 years and $50 million, the restoration of an estate designed by architect Frank Lloyd Wright for a patron in Buffalo is complete. Work on the Darwin D. Martin House complex has been ongoing since the early 1990s and involved restoring or rebuilding the main house and several smaller structures, including a carriage house, glass-roofed conservatory and covered walkway. The complex was built between 1903 and 1905. The 1.5-acre estate is a National Historic Landmark and has received $24 million from the state over the years. On Monday, officials announced the completion of the Wright-designed landscape, the final piece of the project. The estate is seen as an example of Wright’s vision of architecture that promotes harmony with the natural world.

North Carolina

Raleigh: North Carolina lawmakers are cracking down on robocalls and telephone scammers in a bill that has passed both chambers of the General Assembly. The state Senate voted 45-0 on Monday and sent the bill to Gov. Roy Cooper to be signed. Under the bill, any telephone solicitor who masks their real number on caller ID so that the call appears to come from a local number or a familiar number can be fined up to $5,000. The practice of using fake numbers or names is illegal under federal law, but this bill gives North Carolina more leverage to go after scammers. It requires callers to use their real information or the information of the business they’re representing. The bill also applies to text message solicitations.

North Dakota

Northwood: Sheriff’s officials say an overweight semitrailer loaded with dried beans caused a more-than-century-old bridge to. Grand Forks County sheriff’s officials say the bridge over the Goose River near Northwood collapsed Monday afternoon. Photos show the wooden and iron span buckling under the weight of the vehicle. The bridge is partly submerged in the water. The 56-foot-long bridge was built in 1906 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It has a 14 ton weight restriction. Sheriff’s officials say the semitrailer was 29 tons over that limit. The driver, who was not injured, faces an $11,400 overload fine. Officials say it will cost up to $1 million to replace the bridge. Northwood is about 200 miles northeast of Bismarck.

Ohio

Columbus: Gov. Mike DeWine has declared a state of emergency in 63 counties where severe weather caused serious highway damage last month. The 63 counties covered by the emergency declaration have had weather-related damage to roads and/or bridges after mild temperatures and significant rains in June saturated the ground. Some roads still have lane restrictions or are closed completely. The governor said in a statement Monday that the emergency proclamation allows the state Department of Transportation and local governments in the 63 counties to access federal emergency relief funds to help fix the damage.

Oklahoma

Edmond: First-degree murder charges have been filed against two people in the shooting death of the manager of a medical marijuana dispensary. Oklahoma County court records indicate charges were filed Monday against 38-year-old George Stewart Watson and 37-year-old Lyndsi Mae Mayabb. The records do not list an attorney for either defendant. Authorities say they are charged in the death of 24-year-old Andrew Sawyer English, the manager of a medical marijuana dispensary in Edmond, whose body was discovered by police in his home on June 27 with three bullet wounds in his back. Investigators tracked the suspects to St. Augustine, Florida, earlier this month, where Mayabb told detectives that Watson allegedly shot English after learning she had a relationship with him. Edmond Police spokeswoman Jennifer Wagnon said Tuesday that the suspects have waived extradition.

Oregon

Astoria: Wildlife officials have proposed new regulations to avoid entangling whales in commercial fishing gear used by the state’s Dungeness crab industry. The Daily Astorian reports state fishery officials presented recommendations to avoid unwanted whale interactions to the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission during a June meeting. Officials say there were 12 cases of entangled whales as of July 16, half associated with commercial fishing and a third with commercial crabbing. Fisheries say recommendations include new gear identification tags and equipment cleanup requirements before the season’s end, eliminating a two-week, postseason grace period. Commercial fishermen say they can clean up earlier, but other changes could be contentious. Officials say Oregon has also applied for a federal permit allowing fishermen to take a small number of whales each year while fishing.

Pennsylvania

Pittsburgh: Scores of police officers, officials and members of the community gathered to pay their respects to an off-duty Pittsburgh police officer shot to death in a street confrontation more than a week ago. Relatives of 35-year-old Officer Calvin Hall were among those speaking during Tuesday’s service at Soldiers & Sailors Memorial Hall and Museum in Pittsburgh’s Oakland neighborhood. Hall’s sister remembered her brother as “the rock of our family.” His father performed a song he wrote and dedicated to his son. Hall died last Wednesday, three days after he was shot three times in the back during a street dispute in the Homewood neighborhood as a party was going on. Charges were announced against a suspect Monday afternoon as a viewing for the slain officer was being held.

Rhode Island

Newport: A developer wants to demolish the former Newport Grand slots parlor and build hotels, apartment buildings, offices and retail space. The Carpionato Group says Tuesday it wants to create “Newport North End,” a $100 million mixed-use development project at the site. The project would include two six-story hotels, two six-story apartment buildings, offices and medical, retail and restaurant space. The project needs approvals from the city and state. The slots parlor closed nearly a year ago, when the Twin River Management Group relocated its gambling operations in the area to the new Tiverton Casino Hotel. City officials said then they expected to lose roughly $800,000 in annual property taxes and casino revenues. The Carpionato Group says its project would generate $1.5 million in tax revenue for Newport.

South Carolina

Columbia: Highway crews are closing a lane on the main highway north out of downtown Columbia as they prepare to build a bridge. The state Department of Transportation said the lane closure on state Highway 277 north bridge over Interstate 77 will continue until Thursday. Crews are preparing to build a $25 million bridge to carry the freeway from downtown Columbia to I-77 north. DOT engineers say the current bridge is getting old and its intersection with I-77 doesn’t match current safety standards. Crews hope to finish the new bridge by August 2020. They say they will have to temporarily close I-77 next year when they tear down the old bridge.

South Dakota

Sioux Falls: The leader of Jefferson High School will be hired a full year before the Sioux Falls School District’s newest high school even opens, school officials announced Monday. The searches for the new high school principal and the new Ben Reifel Middle School principal will happen somewhat concurrently, Superintendent Brian Maher said during the district’s annual school board retreat. Both schools are projects tied to a $190 million bond passed in 2018 to help address overcrowding, and both buildings are expected to open by fall 2021. The high school search will begin in January or February and conclude by March or April, he said.

Tennessee

Johnson City: East Tennessee State University researchers have developed a device to measure environmental preferences of salamanders that live in southern Appalachia. ETSU says plethodontid salamanders are threatened by climate change, shrinking habitats and fungal infections. ETSU biomedical sciences doctoral student Trevor Chapman calls the salamanders a crucial link in the local ecosystem. He says they’re one of the most abundant vertebrate species, are eaten by most creatures that prey on small organisms and they prey on almost any invertebrate or vertebrate they can fit in their mouths. With the help of faculty, Chapman made a four-chambered device that varies temperatures, moisture levels and other factors to monitor the behavior of salamanders within. Chapman sets the chambers at different levels and sees over 24 hours which chamber the animal will stay in longest.

Texas

Corpus Christi: A south Texas state park has reopened for overnight camping nearly two years after Hurricane Harvey battered the coastal area. The Texas Parks & Wildlife Department on Monday announced Mustang Island State Park has overnight camping available after Harvey delayed a scheduled restroom replacement project. Superintendent Scott Taylor says the staff of Mustang Island State Park is excited to again be able to offer camping to visitors from around the world. Mustang Island is in the area where Harvey made landfall in August 2017. Camp officials say the bathroom renovations included major plumbing and electrical work. Additional Harvey repairs are ongoing to the park’s headquarters and maintenance shop.

Utah

Cedar City: Officials are considering whether to preserve a painted image of a Native American and the name “Redmen” on a water tank or allow it to be changed. The Spectrum reports the Cedar City Council reviewed last week two competing resolutions on the Leigh Hill water tank. One measure would designate the tank as a city marker, keeping the image and name of the former Cedar High School mascot. The second measure would allow schools to decide what goes on the tank and a second water tank in town. Under the second measure, representatives from the town’s two high schools would submit proposals for the tanks to the city council. The council is scheduled to vote on the resolutions next week.

Vermont

Bakersfield: The community has dedicated a memorial pavilion to a U.S. Marine killed overseas. NECN.com reports the community honored Lance Cpl. Lucas Williams at a dedication service Friday. Williams was killed in a Humvee wreck during a training exercise in Kuwait in 1998. He was 19 years old. The late soldier’s mother, Rosalie, has been holding youth programs in her son’s name for nearly two decades and has always wanted a permanent structure for where they can be held. She says the memorial pavilion will now be that place for children and the community to gather. Williams says this pavilion would have been Lucas’s wish and that she was “determined to make his wishes come true.”

Virginia

Richmond: The state Department of Health says the number of people in the state needing medical treatment for heat-related illnesses has nearly doubled compared with last July. Data released Sunday show just over 1,000 people visited emergency departments or urgent-care for heat-related illness since the beginning of the month, up from just below 600 during the same period last year. Parham Jaberi, the state’s chief deputy commissioner for public health and preparedness, told the Richmond Times-Dispatch the numbers describe a serious public health threat. Jaberi said there have been four heat-related deaths in the state within the past week, including an infant left in a car. She said the three others were older than 69 and included a woman doing yard work and a person sitting in a car.

Washington

Bainbridge Island: A no-contact advisory for the city’s eastern shoreline north to Indianola has been lifted following a large spill at a Seattle sewage treatment plant. The three-day advisory was posted by the Kitsap Public Health District on Friday following a spill of 3 million gallons of untreated sewage from King County’s West Point Treatment Plant. King County reported the spill was a combination of stormwater and wastewater and said the problem was caused by a power surge early Friday. Workers responded by sending the water into Puget Sound through an emergency outfall pipe for about 30 minutes, in order to prevent flooding in the plant, King County said. The state’s Department of Ecology said backup pumping systems failed during the power disruption and said it is investigating the incident as a violation of the state’s water quality permits for the facility. Following the investigation, the state could levy fines and administrative orders against the county, Ecology spokesman Larry Altose said.

West Virginia

Wheeling: Officials say a suspension bridge will remain closed for another month so crews can make needed repairs and improvements. The Wheeling Suspension Bridge has been closed since a charter bus weighing well over the 2-ton weight limit crossed the span on June 29 and compromised its integrity. The Intelligencer reports state highway officials say along with making structural repairs, the state plans to put a hard barrier at the bridge’s entrances, which would stop vehicles such as dump trucks and tour buses from crossing it. Wheeling Police Department spokesman Philip Stahl has said the driver of the bus was cited for the overweight vehicle and failing to obey a traffic control device.

Wisconsin

Madison: The state Department of Natural Resources is asking wastewater treatment plants to test for polyfluoroalkyl pollution. The substances, also known as PFAS, are man-made chemicals that have been used for decades in products such as firefighting foam, nonstick cookware and fast-food wrappers. Research suggests PFAS can decrease female fertility, increase the risk of high blood pressure in pregnant women and lower birth weights. DNR officials said Monday they have started sending letters to 125 municipal wastewater plants asking them to sample and analyze water flowing in and out of the facilities for PFAS compounds. The DNR picked the facilities because they’re more likely to receive wastewater from businesses that use PFAS. The DNR plans to use data from the sampling to build a plan to reduce PFAS entering the facilities.

Wyoming

Cody: State wildlife officials encourage people who enter the backcountry to carry bear spray, but they declined to make it a requirement. The Cody Enterprise reported Monday that the Wyoming Game and Fish Commission took no action last week on a petition submitted by seven conservation groups earlier this year. The conservation groups had asked the state to consider a bear spray mandate, aiming to reduce the number of grizzly bear deaths from encounters with hunters. Hunters defensively killed 15 grizzlies in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem in 2017. Bonnie Rice of the Sierra Club says bear spray is a proven tool in preventing injury to people and bears. Grand Teton National Park requires elk hunters to carry bear spray when they’re in the park each fall.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 50 states