Jefferson City, Missouri - With heavy rain forecasted across the state over the next few days, the Missouri Department of Transportation cautions motorists that some state routes are expected to close due to flooding.  The already saturated creeks and streams are expected to rise with flash flooding conditions across the state.

Current road closures are posted on the department's Traveler Information Map, located at http://www.modot.org/. The majority of flooded roadways are expected on lettered and numbered routes with low traffic volumes.

"MoDOT crews are closely monitoring roadways and are prepared for more temporary closures as the rivers across the state continue to rise," said MoDOT State Maintenance Engineer Beth Wright. "We encourage travelers to visit our Traveler Information Map before hitting the road to check the latest road conditions and closures."

MoDOT offers the following driving tips that can help avoid delays and unsafe conditions during rainy weather:

•Slow down, use caution, and don't use cruise control when driving in rain to avoid skidding and hydroplaning. Leave plenty of following distance.

• When windshield wipers are needed, turn on your headlights. It's the law.

• Never move or drive around barricades placed on roadways due to high water. Barricades are a warning designed to protect you from an unsafe condition. You can put yourself at serious risk if you proceed into a flooded section of road.

• If a road is closed, find another route.

• If a road is covered in flood water but is not closed by a barricade, do NOT drive into the high water. Stop and turn around. Notify local police, the sheriff or the Missouri State Highway Patrol.

•"Turn Around - Don't Drown" as highways become impassable.

MoDOT crews will open roads after the water recedes and routes are cleared for safe travel. For more information, visit http://www.modot.org/ or contact the MoDOT Customer Service Center at 1-888-ASK-MODOT (888-275-6636).

Jefferson City, Missouri - Installing and maintaining smoke alarms in your home can make the difference between life and death and is why all Missourians are encouraged to use Fire Prevention Week, Oct. 5-11, to make sure their families are protected with smoke alarms.
 
“People need to understand how crucial smoke detectors are in fire safety and do all they can to have them in the home,” said Acting State Fire Marshal Greg Carrell. “Most home fire deaths occur where there are no working smoke alarms and about half of those deadly fires happen at night when people are asleep.”
 
Carrell said home fires often grow so quickly and produce so much smoke that people are often overcome before they can respond. Working smoke alarms can alert family members to the danger, providing enough time to safely escape.
To help make sure smoke alarms to work properly, replace smoke detector batteries at least once a year. Doing it at the same time each year, such as the return to Standard Time, when we set our clocks back an hour, makes it easier to remember. This year, Standard Time goes back into effect at 2 a.m. Sunday, Nov. 2. Smoke alarms should also be installed in every bedroom, outside all sleeping areas and on every level of the home, including the basement. Each device should be tested every month by pushing the test button and replaced as soon as they don’t work properly or when they are 10 years old.
 
The Division of Fire Safety suggests creating and practicing a family fire safety plan that includes home fire escape routes and establishing a location outside the home where family members are to meet if they become separated.
For more than 85 years, fire departments and the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) have observed Fire Prevention Week, making it the longest running public health and safety observance on record. For more information on “Working Smoke Alarms Save Lives: Test Yours Every Month!” visit www.firepreventionweek.org.

Dexter, Missouri - As area residents drive between Dexter and Bloomfield on Highway 25, travelers often see the signage of area businesses, but often are not fully aware of what takes place just past the tree line or over the hillside. 

Republic Services pulled back the curtains this past Friday as they hosted an informative, educational open house, complete with tours of their Dexter facilities. Guests were also treated to a BBQ lunch prior to being offered a tour. 

Jefferson City, Missouri – Many Missourians need help with putting meat on the dinner table. Deer hunters can help by sharing their harvests through Missouri’s Share the Harvest program. Share the Harvest connects deer hunters with hungry Missourians through participating meat processors and local hunger-relief agencies around the state.

To participate, hunters simply take their harvested deer to one of more than 130 participating meat processors and let the processor know how much venison they wish to donate to the program. Hunters can donate a few pounds to a whole deer. The processor will package the ground meat, which will be given to local charitable agencies for distribution to hungry Missourians.

The program is administered by the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) and the Conservation Federation of Missouri (CFM).

The National Institutes of Health state that children need protein in their diets for proper growth and development, and adults need it to maintain good health. Yet many Missourians and their families can't afford or can't get good sources of protein. Deer meat, or venison, is a local source of much needed lean protein.

“Conservation makes Missouri a great place to hunt for more than 500,000 deer hunters who harvest more than 200,000 deer each year,” said MDC Director Bob Ziehmer. “By sharing part of their harvest, these deer hunters can help feed many hungry Missourians in their communities.”

Since 1992, Missouri hunters have donated more than 3.1 million pounds of venison to the needy through Share the Harvest. In 2013, nearly 4,500 hunters donated more than 227,000 pounds of venison.

"Throughout history, hunters have provided for their communities,” said CFM Director Brandon Butler. “Share the Harvest continues that tradition. Hunters who donate a deer to the Share the Harvest program are making a positive impact in the lives of their fellow Missourians.”

Funds are available to help with processing costs when a whole deer is donated during all portions of the archery and firearms deer seasons. CFM reimburses processors a predetermined amount for each whole deer donated. This allows processors to reduce processing fees to hunters.

Statewide sponsors of the cost-reduction program include MDC, CFM, Shelter Insurance, Bass Pro Shops, Missouri Chapter of Safari Club International, Missouri Chapter of National Wild Turkey Federation, Midway USA Inc., Missouri Food Banks Association, United Bowhunters of Missouri, Missouri Trappers Association, and Missouri Hunter Education Instructors Association.

In addition, many processors have local money available that allows deer to be processed for free or at reduced cost. The cost of processing the deer is the hunter’s responsibility when local funds to help cover the full cost are not available. Be sure to contact individual processors to determine if local funds are available.

To find participating processors or to learn more about the program, visit the MDC website at mdc.mo.gov/hunting-trapping/deer/share-harvest.

MDC’s 2014 Fall Deer & Turkey Hunting Regulations and Information booklet also lists participating processors. Get it at MDC offices and nature center, where hunting permits are sold, and online at mdc.mo.gov/sites/default/files/resources/2010/03/ftd2014.pdf.

For more information on Share the Harvest and how you can help support the program, visit the CFM website at http://confedmo.org/programs/outreach/share-the-harvest/#.

 

Jefferson City, Missouri - The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) reminds deer hunters throughout the state to properly dispose of carcasses from harvested deer to help prevent the spread of infectious diseases in deer, such as the always-fatal chronic wasting disease (CWD).

“Conservation makes Missouri a great place to hunt deer, and deer hunters are key to keeping it that way,” says MDC Deer Biologist Jason Sumners. “Because many hunters process their own deer, they are key players in slowing the spread of diseases such as CWD. One way that disease can spread is by the transportation and improper disposal of carcass parts.”

Deer can become infected with chronic wasting disease if they come into contact with other infected deer or with surface soil containing carcass parts from diseased deer. Deer carcass parts known to concentrate CWD include brain, spinal cord, eyes, spleen, and lymph nodes.

Chronic wasting disease was first found in Missouri in Macon and Linn counties several years ago. In response, MDC established a CWD Containment Zone covering Adair, Chariton, Linn, Macon, Randolph, and Sullivan counties. The disease remains limited to the local area.

“Hunters who harvest deer in these counties should not take whole deer carcasses out of the containment zone, or carcass parts that contain brain, spinal cord, eyes, spleen, or lymph nodes,” Sumners adds, along with the following information.

Proper Carcass Disposal

Avoid cutting through bones, spine, or brain when processing deer carcasses.
Remove meat in the field and leave the carcass behind. Bury it if possible.
If processing harvested deer in camp or at home, place carcass parts in trash bags and properly dispose of them through a trash service or landfill.
Take harvested deer to a licensed commercial processor to assure proper carcass disposal.
For taxidermy work, use a licensed taxidermist to assure proper carcass disposal.

Safe Parts to Transport

Meat that is cut and wrapped, or has been boned out,
Quarters or other portions of meat with no part of the spine or head attached,
Hides or capes from which all excess tissue has been removed,
Antlers, including antlers attached to skull plates or skulls cleaned of all muscle and brain tissue, and
Finished taxidermy products.
The Wildlife Code of Missouri requires hunters who harvest deer, elk, or moose out of state and bring the animal with the spinal column or head attached into Missouri to call toll free, 877-853-5665, and report the animal’s entry within 24 hours. They also must take the carcass to a licensed meat processor or taxidermist within 72 hours of entry. This is designed to prevent introducing CWD into new areas of Missouri from other states. Hunters transporting deer through Missouri en route to other states do not need to call the number.

Donate Tissue Samples

Sumners also encourages hunters who harvest deer within the CWD Containment Zone of Adair, Chariton, Linn, Macon, Randolph, and Sullivan counties to donate tissue samples from their deer to the Conservation Department for its CWD monitoring program. Numerous deer-processing facilities and taxidermists in the area are participating in the effort.

Details about these measures are listed in the 2014 Fall Deer & Turkey Hunting Regulations and Information booklet, which is available at MDC offices and nature centers, where hunting permits are sold, and online at mdc.mo.gov/sites/default/files/resources/2010/03/ftd2014.pdf.