Monday, June 18, 2012

Grafton, New Hampshire woman attacked by bear

Bear attracted by smell of pot roast

GRAFTON, N.H. - A woman was attacked by a bear in Grafton, after it was apparently attracted by the smell of food cooking, said authorities.

The bear lashed out at Tracey Colburn just as the 46-year-old opened her door to let her dog out at about 10 p.m. Saturday. Colburn was cooking a pot roast.

Colburn fell to the ground as the bear swiped at her, and her dog attacked the bear in its owner's defense, said officials.

A neighbor drove Colburn to the fire station. She was then taken to the hospital with cuts to her arms, said authorities.

Conservation Officer Tom Dakai said the black bear likely would be euthanized because it showed aggression toward a human.

The Grafton Fire Department said the bear was female and had two cubs.

The dog wasn't harmed. Colburn was back at her home Sunday.

New Hampshire Fish and Game is investigating the attack.


VIDEO: http://ow.ly/bEvzX

Second Alligator in a month pulled from a Manchester NH pond



MANCHESTER, N.H. - A 2-foot-long alligator was pulled out of Steven's Pond in Manchester over the weekend. It is the second alligator fished out of the pond in about a month.

Wildlife officials said the alligator is less than 1 year old. They said they don't know if it's male or female.

Officials said they presume it was a pet that someone could no longer care for and set free.

Authorities said someone fishing in the area hooked the reptile and called police.

The alligator is being turned over to New England Reptile Distributors in Plaistow, where it will be cared for.



Read more: http://ow.ly/bEAAp

Saturday, June 16, 2012

Help the EPA send a strong message to Big Coal



Dear Reader,

Take Action!My Neighbor's Well Water
Take Action!
This letter was forwarded for Jimmy Hall, the fifth generation Hall to own property on Mill Creek in Letcher County, KY. His great-great-great grandfather owned the entire mountain range here in the late 1800s. Since then, mountaintop removal coal mining has turned my family's special place into a moonscape. And now mining waste has made our drinking water toxic.

"DON'T DRINK THE WATER" is what the Water Department said when they called us. They found arsenic and lead from nearby mining operations in my well water. It's not just me -- my neighbors have the same problem. Many of them are chronically ill and some have died.

It's gotten so bad that the EPA has vetoed 36 coal permits in the area to keep our water from getting worse. I was glad they decided to help but the State of Kentucky and Big Coal didn't see it that way.


Last week, the EPA held hearings in Kentucky on their plans to protect our water. The Kentucky Coal Association bused hundreds of their supporters to the hearings. They did everything they could to intimidate me and the dozens of other activists who were there to speak out for clean water. They booed, heckled, and kicked us. Someone even threatened the safety of the representatives from the EPA who were there to listen to us.1

Big Coal must be scared. But they can't scare us! Not when the health of our children is on the line. One of my neighbors showed me his well water -- it was rust colored and cloudy. He's forced to use it for drinking, food preparation and to bathe his children.
The EPA passed the Clean Water Act in 1972 to ensure that no one is forced to give their children filthy water to drink.


My courage comes from people like you who stand together to bring these issues like mine to the surface. What the coal companies are doing is wrong, but the state allowing this to continue is just plain criminal. The EPA is our only hope to continue this battle here on our own soil with mountains blowing up all around us, filling the valleys and streams with poison.

If we stand together now and send 30,000 messages to the EPA to protect our water I know we can win.


Thanks for all you do to protect our environment,
Jimmy Hall
Fifth Generation Kentuckian

P.S. After you take action, forward this email, or spread the word on Facebook and Twitter by clicking our handy share buttons below:
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[1] Anderson, Chris. Miners get vocal at hearing. Appalachian News Express. June 8, 2012. 

Friday, June 15, 2012

Daredevil completes walk across Niagara Falls

Daredevil completes walk across Niagara Falls | National News - WMUR Home


CT man rescued minutes before search party was to be called off!

Missing CT man found, lucky to be alive
Another reason not to hike alone and having a plan!


BEACON FALLS, CT (NBC) -- A Connecticut man who has been missing for a week has been found safe.
A state worker found Richard Roncarti, 50, around 12:30 p.m. on Thursday in the Beacon Falls section of the Naugatuck State Forest.

He was rescued just minutes before the search was going to be called off, officials said.

Crews said Roncarti was stranded in the Naugatuck State Forest with severe injuries after falling 100 feet and having no food or water for seven days. Emergency crews said he was lucky to be alive.

“He looked like he had been in the weather a few days. He was beat up pretty good,” Chief Michael Pratt, of the Beacon Falls Fire Department, said....

http://www1.whdh.com/news/articles/local/south/12007749039617/missing-ct-man-found-lucky-to-be-alive/