Local News

McLaren Health Care Corp., a 14-hospital health system with a location here in Port Huron, has jumped on the emerging telehealth bandwagon by offering a new service called McLarenNow to employees, patients and anyone who has a non-emergency primary care condition.  For a $49 fee, people are able to register at McLarenNow with their smartphone or computer and use a web camera to talk with one of five board-certified family physicians on McLaren’s hospital staffs.  Common conditions might include back strain, cough and cold, ear pain, headaches, pink eye, rash, sore throat sinus problems and flu symptoms.  The program ran as a pilot trial in the month of February for hospital employees and the full telehealth service opened up to all March 1.  Authorities say about 200 telehealth consultations have been delivered, with 82 percent women, mostly mothers inquiring about their children’s medical condition.

Thursday of last week was “Bring Your Child To Work Day”, and that is what County Administrator/Controller Karry Hepting did.  When Karry made the weekly call into WGRT, she mentioned her daughter Lexie was working with her and Lexie wanted to give the information to our listeners about the “empty the shelter event”.  Lexie informed listeners that the County is hosting this event on Tuesday, May 4^th beginning at 10 a.m. – Adoption fee will be $25 and area residents can be pre-approved by contacting the shelter in advance at (810) 984-3155.  The Animal Control Shelter is located at 3378 Griswold Rd

The Michigan Department of Transportation will invest $2.1 million in bridge repairs and
improvements along I-94 from Meisner Road in Casco Township to Water Street in the city of
Port Huron. Work includes deck patching, joint replacements, pavement markings, and epoxy
sealing on 32 bridge structures. The project will begin on Monday, May 6th and the estimated
completion date is set for September 2019. I-94 traffic will be maintained with single-lane
closures in each direction. Local roads spanning I-94 will be maintained with temporary signals
during work. If you want to stay up to date with the latest road closings and construction in and
around St. Clair County, follow MDOT on Twitter.

If you’re a Michigander, you know what Pure Michigan is. Whether you love to hike through the
state’s trails or enjoy the sound of nature, you can now listen to the breeze, run through trees
and much more with a new single by Pure Michigan. Pure Michigan is a branch of the Michigan
Economic Development Corporation that promotes the state through highlighting tourism and all the great features Michigan has to offer. Recently, the organization released its second single in Pure Sounds of Michigan called “Forest Trails”. The first single released by the group is called
“Childhood Memories” that features the sounds of summer in the Great Lake state. To listen to
either of the songs they’re now available for streaming through Apple Music, Spotify, Google
Play, Amazon Music and Sound Cloud.

Before traveling this warm weather season, you should be cautious about those pesky bugs.
The Center for Disease Control is warning travelers to take extra precautions to avoid bug bites
this summer season. Bugs, including mosquitoes, ticks, fleas, and some flies, can spread
diseases such as malaria, yellow fever, Zika, Lyme, all of which have the risk of severe and
lasting consequences. Several diseases like Zika and Lyme disease that are spread by bug
bites cannot be prevented or treated with vaccines or medicine. Some steps you can take to
prevent bug bites include using insect repellent, covering all exposed areas and avoiding bugs
by choosing accommodations wisely while traveling. For more on how to avoid bug bites visit
cdc.gov/travel

Several local law enforcement and first responder agencies were hard at work this weekend for
special training related to active shooter situations. In October 2018, the Office of Community
Oriented Policing Services approved a $24,941.00 grant under the 2018 COPS STOP School
Violence: School Violence Prevention Program to the Port Huron Police Department. This grant
provides funding for area departments to train for Active Killer events. The first training took
place Saturday at Port Huron Schools Early Childhood Center. Agencies participating in the
training included the Port Huron Police and Fire Department, Michigan State Police, U.S. Border Patrol, Tri-Hospital EMS among several others. The Port Huron Police Department will be hosting more first responder training sessions under this grant in 2019 and 2020. Training will provide first responders with information on: how to respond, quickly engaging the
killer/stopping the threat, tactical first aid, working with fire and EMS and more.