Local News

Firearm deer season begins today. As hunters head to the blinds this weekend, it’s more than just outdoorsman that need to be on the alert. For motorists, this time of year is when deer are most active as mating season is in full-swing between October and December. Deer are usually most active at dawn or dusk, so be extra aware on your daily work commute. 

For the hunters, St. Clair County Sheriff Tim Donnellon has some safety tips to make sure this hunting season is safe and successful. The biggest reminders- hunting hours begin approximately one-half hour before sunrise and last until approximately one-half hour after sunset. While it can be tempting to wear all-camo, hunters are required by law to wear an outer-item of clothing in “hunter orange” and it must be visible from all sides. Sheriff Donnellon also wants hunters to take the following precautions to prevent injury or death while hunting this season:

• Familiarize yourself with the area where you will be hunting
• Never assume you are alone in the woods
• Never assume other hunters are acting responsibly.
• If sitting against a rock or tree, make sure it is wider than your shoulders so you are not mistaken for a target.
• Be 100 percent sure of your target before shooting.

An Emmett Township family got an early morning wakeup from an unlikely houseguest. Brent and Stephanie Arnold were sound asleep at 2:00 a.m. when they heard the sound of shattering glass. 

When they got up to search the house, they found a gaping hole in an eight by five foot double-paned glass picture window in their living room. Initially, the pair thought a tree had fallen through the window, but were shocked to find an adult Great Horned Owl perched on the back of their couch. The large adult owl flew right through the window and landed on the couch, just a few feet from where someone was sleeping.

The Arnolds can only guess why the owl may have decided to pay them a visit.  The family has a kitten that may have been sleeping on the windowsill, but no one knows for sure. Brent Arnold, an avid outdoorsman and animal lover, used fishing netting to cover the owl and bravely carried it outside. 

Great Horned Owls have claws that they use to crush the spines of their prey and it takes around 28 pounds of pressure to loosen their grip. Once outside, the owl flew onto the roof of the house and then flew away. Mrs. Arnold told us that she will be cleaning up glass for a while, and though homeowners’ insurance doesn’t cover glass breakage, they will be getting a new window soon. Thankfully no humans or animals were hurt during this nighttime break-in, and the Arnolds have a once in a lifetime experience to remember.

Reporting for WGRT, ebw.tv.

More than 900 fifth grade students from across St. Clair County attended a special performance by the International Symphony at McMorran Auditorium last week. Organized by St. Clair County RESA, the event was meant to be a cultural experience for students of seven county school districts. 

Through the special concert, students learned about the orchestra’s instruments through mainly classical music that was chosen specifically to be accessible to a fifth grade audience, many of whom may not otherwise be exposed to a live symphony concert. 

Many students came dressed for the occasion, wearing a suit, vest and tie, dresses and more formal outerwear, and during the performance, four students were even invited to the podium to “lead” the orchestra. Lori Driscoll, of St. Clair County RESA, organized the experience and said, “The orchestra has been providing the musical performance for more than 20 years and plays a performance that is suitable for 10 to 12-year-olds.” According to Driscoll, it’s an appropriate time as those students will soon have the opportunity to join band in middle school.

Reporting for WGRT, ebw.tv.

Next Gen Personal Finance (NGPF) is a free high-school personal finance curriculum and professional development partner helping teachers, like Laurie Gardner, deliver essential money understanding in an easy-to-grasp, engaging way. Gardner, a Marine City High School teacher who uses the NGPF curriculum, was recently recognized on a national level by the educational entity as she was awarded the Neil Milner New Ideas Award to attend the JumpStart National Educator Conference. 

The Conference was conceived and launched under Milner’s leadership, with a good deal of his personal involvement. The Neil Milner Scholarship is awarded to a teacher who thinks outside the box and will never be satisfied in doing things the way they’ve always been done.

The Marine City High School teacher said she was honored to receive the award by explaining that, “This is the first set of awards Jump$tart has given out to honor the past Chairman of the Board.” The award is a scholarship to attend next year’s conference in Atlanta which she believes will be a “ stellar professional development opportunity for personal finance teachers.”

Reporting for WGRT, ebw.tv.

We have good news to report on one aspect of the health of the Great Lakes. Sea lamprey levels are down, which is good news for fish and anglers in the Blue Water Area. 

According to a report by the Great Lakes Fishery Commission, sea lampreys, an aggressive invasive species that are responsible for up to 103 million pounds of fish killed every year, are under control. The Commission credits both comprehensive sea lamprey control methods and environmental factors in this year’s population decline. 

If you have visited the Port Huron Sturgeon Festival, held every year in June, you may have seen live sea lamprey, which are vampire-like parasites that are considered to be the worst of invasive species in the Great Lakes. Sheri Faust, Board President of The Friends of the St. Clair River, told us that “the news of the decline of sea lamprey is good for the Blue Water Area’s local threatened species like Lake Sturgeon and [the] native mussel populations. [Area residents] need to care about mussels because they are natural water filters and are among the most imperiled creatures on the planet. 

St. Clair County’s rivers support some of the most diverse – and endangered – mussel species in Michigan. Invasive species like Sea Lamprey can affect mussel’s survival, as well as important sportfish species survival like Walleye and Northern Pike.”

Reporting for WGRT, ebw.tv.

Monday night’s Port Huron City Council meeting brought discussion of two interesting new developments. Downtown is bustling with several new businesses and increased foot traffic. With that increased commerce, comes increased trash production. Given the idea by a local business owner, City Manager James Freed, has started a pilot program, similar to one that is successful in Sturgis, Michigan, where businesses share dumpsters.This program, if successful, could alleviate the cumbersome practice of storing garbage until curbside pickup day and the eyesore of private dumpsters in parking lots.  

In other discussion, most of the meeting was spent discussing the future of playground equipment that was intended for Knox Field, near the industrial park on the south side of the city.  After extensive discussion, the safety of the location of the current splash pad and the intended playground was called into question. Council member Anita Ashford and city resident Alex Crittenden commented on the proximity to a new gas station and the distance from the neighborhoods from which children would come to play.  Parks and Recreation Director Nancy Winzer encouraged that a decision be made quickly so that the city would not lose money on returning the equipment, and the council then changed course and voted to keep the equipment and install it at Gratiot Park in the spring. Gratiot Park has the equipment most in need of replacement. A new plan for Knox Field is likely to be discussed in the future. In the meantime, the residents in the Gratiot Park area can look forward to new ADA compliant equipment, including a zipline.

Reporting for WGRT, Karly Hurley.