port huron

OT Announces “Seek God for the City 2022”

Operation Transformation is kicking off their seasonal “Seek God for the City 2022” community Lenten prayer initiative.

The season of Lent starts on Wednesday, March 2nd, with Ash Wednesday. Those who practice the traditional preparation for the Easter celebration have a variety of customs and routines, but prayer is the foundation of the season.

Members of Blue Water Area Churches, a collaboration of multiple denominations in the area, are hosting the 40-day event. Over fifteen churches have chosen evenings to host the one-hour meetings. The content of the community-wide prayer initiative is provided by WayMakers.

The first meeting is Wednesday at 7:00 p.m. at St. Clair First United Methodist Church, 415 N 3rd Street in St. Clair. Each night’s meeting will focus on a different member of the community, like teachers, families, health care workers, and others. There will be scripture readings along with the prayer.

To get the full schedule of nightly meetings and to access the prayer materials, go to bwchurches.org or Operation Transformation’s Facebook page.

Reporting for WGRT – Jennie McClelland

Fire Departments Enter into Mutual Aid Agreement

When there’s a fire on your property, you don’t really care who comes to put out the fire, just how fast they can get there. A new mutual aid agreement between local fire departments has been drafted to increase response time to structure fires and to improve firefighter and civilian safety.

The agreement is between the City of Port Huron, City of Marysville, Port Huron Township, and Fort Gratiot Township. The departments will automatically respond to structure fires in any of the jurisdictions.

To facilitate the mutual aid agreement, St. Clair County Dispatch has adjusted its procedures and modified shared communications, equipment, and tactical responsibilities.

The goal is to get a minimum of fifteen firefighters on the scene of a structure fire in the fastest time possible. The mutual aid agreement will be re-evaluated for effectiveness and efficiency in six months.

The mutual aid agreement was put into practice on Thursday, February 17th, when the departments responded to a fire at the Dunn Paper plant in the City of Port Huron. The agreement went into effect on February 16th.

Reporting for WGRT – Jennie McClelland

Traffic to Canada Flowing Again

According to the St. Clair County Sheriff’s office, traffic is flowing again on eastbound I-94 and I-69 after days of serious backups. Barricades that were placed on eastbound entrance ramps were removed this morning allowing travelers to utilize local freeways without restriction.

Wait times to enter Canada at the Blue Water Bridge were 2 hours for commercial vehicles and no delays for personal vehicles as of 10 AM this morning.

Traffic was backed up for miles in St. Clair County on and off since Monday as truckers attempted to utilize the Blue Water Bridge to enter Canada due to closure of the Ambassador Bridge in Detroit.

The Ambassador Bridge was closed in response to a protest by truckers who are opposed to government mandates that prevent them from cross-border travel unless they are vaccinated against COVID-19.

Protestors insist they will not stop until COVID-19 mandates and restrictions are lifted.

Reporting for WGRT – Jessie Wiegand

City Proposes Addressing Housing Needs, Sidewalk Accessibility, and Cruise Ship Docking

Port Huron City Manager James Freed has presented the proposed goals and priorities for the city of Port Huron. The list covers nine initiatives.

The city administration plans to address housing concerns by developing a community housing strategy to look at current and future housing needs along with addressing workforce housing needs in the community.

As the city prepares to spend the windfall of one-time funding from the American Rescue Plan, investment into city assets like Palmer Park, McMorran, and Department of Public Works facilities are on the docket.

Those who try to navigate the city on foot or in a wheelchair or motorized device will be interested to hear the plan to enhance crosswalks to make them more accessible.

Citizen engagement town halls, sidewalk improvements, improved signage for visitors trying to find their way in the city, and business corridor improvements are also on the list, but the most unique item may be the plan to work with regional stakeholders on docking for the Viking Cruise Line Great Lakes Cruise scheduled for 2023.

Stay tuned to WGRT as these proposals develop.

Reporting for WGRT – Jennie McClelland

Karmanos Center Gets Money to Assist with Lodging for Cancer Patients

The Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute has been awarded a lodging grant by the American Cancer Society. The $50,000 grant is to help those who may face financial barriers to getting cancer treatment.

The Karmanos Cancer Institute has 15 locations, including one at McLaren Port Huron Hospital. The main campus is in Detroit.

Dr. Kathleen Goss, Vice President of Cancer Control for the American Cancer Society said, “Disparities predominantly arise from inequities in work, wealth, income, education, housing and overall standard of living, as well as social barriers to high-quality cancer prevention, early detection and treatment services.”

Over 60,000 Michigan residents learn they have cancer each year. Finding lodging near cancer centers is often a roadblock to getting care, according to the American Cancer Society. 

In Port Huron, free lodging is available at the Hunter Hospitality Houses.

To learn more about supportive services at Karmanos, call 1-800-KARMANOS (1-800-527-6266) or visit www.karmanos.org.

https://www.hunterhospitalityhouse.com/

Reporting for WGRT – Jennie McClelland

Closings for Thursday, February 3, 2022

We have received the following notices of closings and delays in our listening area:

 

St. Clair County:

Algonac Community Schools

Blue Water Choices

Blue Water Community Action (Offices and Head Start Programs)

Capac Community Schools

Cardinal Mooney Catholic High

Council on Aging – Services and centers (including meals and transportation)

East China School District

East Shore Leadership Academy 

Landmark Academy 

Marysville Public Schools 

New Life Christian Academy

Port Huron Schools

St. Clair County Community College – main campus and off-campus locations

St. Mary / McCormick Catholic Academy 

St. Clair TEC 

St. Edwards on the Lake 

Woodland Development Center

Yale Schools

*** NOTE: Port Huron Area School Administration Office will be OPEN

Sanilac County:

Brown City Schools 

Croswell-Lexington Schools