Isaac Washes Up Nearly 18,000 Dead Swamp Rats On Mississippi Coast -

Isaac Washes Up Nearly 18,000 Dead Swamp Rats On Mississippi Coast - 



Crews in Mississippi are cleaning up thousands of dead swamp rats that washed ashore from Hurricane Isaac.

The Sun Herald reports that an estimated 16,000 to 18,000 nutria — semiaquatic, rat-like rodents — and other dead animals washed up in Hancock County after drowning in Hurricane Isaac’s storm surge.

A federal contractor, U.S. Environmental Services, will dump the bodies in a landfill rated to take household garbage.

Hancock County Supervisor David Yarborough says county crews tried to deal with a similar problem after Hurricane Gustav and many workers got sick.

“We don’t want anybody out here in the stuff,” Yarborough told The Associated Press. “They’re actually starting to swell up and bust. It smells really bad. So, any sightseers, you might want to second guess this one before you come out.”

Read more - 
http://houston.cbslocal.com/2012/09/05/isaac-washes-up-nearly-18000-dead-swamp-rats-on-mississippi-coast/

Overcrowding At NYC School Forces 8th Graders Into 9:45 AM Lunch... -

Overcrowding At NYC School Forces 8th Graders Into 9:45 AM Lunch... - 



One Queens middle school is facing the problem of having too many students and not enough cafeteria space.

It’s a predicament that has parents up in arms over whether it’s lunch or brunch their children will be eating before 10 a.m. each day.

I.S. 25 in Flushing is one of three schools jammed inside a building on 192nd Street.

The cafeteria there is being slammed by extreme overcrowding, prompting an extraordinary response to the lunch crunch starting when school returns on Thursday.

In a letter to parents, the principal at I.S. 25 wrote eighth grade students will begin their brunch at 9:45 a.m.

“Since they are students who rarely eat breakfast,” the principal wrote, “this will prove to be a good move.”

Beyond the suggestion that eighth graders rarely eat breakfast, the thought of kids being forced to eat a lunch of mozzarella sticks or pasta at 9:50 a.m. is not being well received in the neighborhood.

“That’s absurd I mean they have to do something that’s ridiculous I mean people are eating breakfast at that time,” one parent told CBS 2′s Steve Langford.

Paul Manuele has a son going into eighth grade at I.S. 25 this year and wondered how his child will cope by the time early to mid-afternoon rolls around on an empty stomach.

“That’s a long day and he’s not getting sufficient fuel,” Manuele said.

PTA President Lorraine Kosnar told 1010 WINS’ Carol D’Auria she plans to give her eighth grader breakfast every day and that he won’t be hungry by 9:45 a.m., but will be by 12:30 p.m. or 1 p.m.

Read more - 
http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2012/09/04/overcrowding-at-queens-school-to-force-8th-graders-into-945-a-m-lunch/

Warning Issued About Stolen, Rejected Tampons... -

Warning Issued About Stolen, Rejected Tampons... - 



Kimberly-Clark Corp. says thieves have stolen and sold some rejected tampons that may pose a health risk if used.

The Dallas-based company said 16,000 cases of the Kotex Natural Balance Security Tampons failed an inspection test and some tested positive for things like increased levels of bacteria, the presence of metallic particles or imperfect raw materials.

Kimberly-Clark Corp. Spokesman Bob Brand the company sent the tainted tampons to a company in Oklahoma to be destroyed, but somewhere along the way thieves stole the cases and sold them to retailers.

Brand said so far, the company hasn’t received any complaints from consumers, but they want to keep it that way.

"We have no idea how the product was shipped or stored once it was stolen, so we're advising people not to use it at all. We consider it all unsafe," Brand said.

Brand said the health risk to women is low, but company officials want women to check their tampon products at home to make sure it isn't a tainted box.

He added Kimberly-Clark Corp. is in the process of working to buy back the tainted cases from retailers.

"We think the prospect is low it may have reached consumers, just out of an abundance of caution we want to make sure that folks are aware of what may be the situation and the check their cartons to make sure they don't have one of the impacted lock codes," Brand said.

The products had been scheduled to be destroyed between October 2011 and June 2012.

Read more - 
http://www.nbcdfw.com/news/health/Warning-Issued-About-Stolen-Rejected-Tampons-168515406.html