“Brewster Animal Control received a call from a caring person about a Gannet she had seen on the Brewster flats. She noticed the bird did not appear to be moving and she was concerned about it. She provided great landmarks, and even sent photos, to make locating the bird a little easier.

Brewster ACO found the Northern Gannet and noticed it had a lure and hook attached to it. It was captured and transported to the Cape Wildlife Center in Barnstable for treatment. We are very fortunate to have the Cape Wildlife Center as a resource on Cape Cod to help sick and injured wildlife.” -Brewster Animal Control.

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“It was all hands on deck this week to triage this Northern Gannet that was rescued by Brewster Animal Control after it was found entangled in a fishing lure with multiple hooks. The hooks had embedded in both the wing and the leg of the bird completely immobilizing it. In order to fully assess the injury our veterinary team sedated the gannet for radiographs and hook removal.

Brewster Animal Control photo.

Fortunately none of the hooks had perforated deep enough to damage any joints, however one section had punctured part of the patagium of the wing. The patagium is a membraneous tissue that extends the length of the wing and aids in flight and in this species diving. If it is damaged it can contract and effect range of motion. To reduce inflammation and infection in the wing we started him on anti-inflammatories and antibiotics.

Northern gannets are a pelagic species of seabird that are quite unique. There are a few anatomical differences we have to take into account when treating these birds. As plunge divers they can dive to great depths at high speeds so to protect their organs they have air sacs that are more superficial then in other species. These subcutaneous air sacs act almost as deployed airbags as they impact the water. These air sacs connect to their lungs like in other birds so we can not rehydrate them by giving subcutaneous fluids because that could potentially drown them.

Instead all fluids and most medications are given by mouth. Another adaptation to prevent them from ending up with a nose and mouth full of water during diving is that they lack nares which are usually located on their upper beak. This is important to note for our restraint technique because typically with birds that have sharp pointy beaks we restrain them by gently holding their mouth shut to prevent them from stabbing or biting us. However without nares gannets would suffocate if we held them this way so to prevent this we have them bite down on a towel to ensure there is enough space between their upper and lower beak for air flow.

These differences certainly make them more challenging to treat but we are always up for a challenge! We hope we got to this one in time before the lure caused any permanent damage to the wing. We’ll keep you posted on his progress!” -New England Wildlife Center.

Brewster Animal Control photo.

“Could you please share this?

This is my daughter Leidy Pineda Alvarez. She is 12-years-old has brown hair and eyes and is ‘ft tall.

She has been missing since 11/17/22 from New Bedford. A missing person report has been filed with New Bedford police.” -Elizabeth Portillo.

“Governor Charlie Baker today filed a $139 million Fiscal Year 2023 (FY23) supplemental budget to support the Commonwealth’s response to substantially increased demand on the emergency assistance shelter system. The targeted funding and policy changes in this bill will provide resources to expand emergency shelter capacity to address an uptick in need for these services, which is driven in part by a recent increase in migrant entries to Massachusetts, due to federal immigration policy.

“Massachusetts’ emergency shelter system provides support for thousands of families each year, but a recent uptick in new migrant arrivals, coupled with a strained housing market have led to a need for greater capacity across the system,” said Governor Charlie Baker. “These expanded resources will help us quickly and effectively address this humanitarian crisis, especially as we enter the winter months. We look forward to working with our partners in the Legislature, the nonprofit community and local government as we all address this unprecedented challenge, which is unfortunately driven by the federal government’s inability to address our country’s immigration challenges.”

“This legislation is a comprehensive response to the shelter capacity challenges we are facing across the Commonwealth,” said Lt. Governor Karyn Polito. “The bill includes important provisions such as funding for school districts that will see an increase in enrollment as we expand the shelter system statewide to meet our statutory and moral obligations to provide shelter for families in crisis.”

Building on $20 million provided in the recently signed economic development bill to support the needs of immigrants and refugees, this bill proposes a $130 million reserve to meet immediate needs across the multiple agencies that play a role in responding to the needs of families in need of emergency shelter placement.

The reserve includes $73 million to expand the overall capacity of the shelter system, which will fund the provisioning of more than 1,300 additional temporary shelter units and shelter provider rate increases to support recruitment and retention. It also includes $20 million to establish and maintain a temporary central intake center, where families during their first few days in shelter can receive timely case management services and various intake assessments. The remaining $37 million will support the costs associated with placing new students in local schools through the end of FY24.

“This supplemental spending proposal will provide the state with resources urgently needed to respond to increasing demand in the emergency shelter system,” said Administration and Finance Secretary Michael J. Heffernan. “The Commonwealth has sufficient revenues to finance these appropriations and measures in Fiscal Year 2023, and we hope to see this legislation quickly acted upon to ensure we are able to continue providing critical services and shelter to all families in need in Massachusetts.”

“These much-needed additional resources and policy changes will support the ongoing efforts of our team at the Department of Housing and Community Development and contracted service providers to meet the increasing demand for safe shelter that we are experiencing in Massachusetts,” said Housing and Economic Development Secretary Mike Kennealy. “As a right-to-shelter state, we have a statutory and moral obligation to create adequate family shelter capacity for new arrivals and families experiencing homelessness. This legislation will give the Commonwealth the necessary tools to effectively address this humanitarian crisis.”

The bill also includes several policy changes that will enable the state to more quickly and efficiently respond to increased need for emergency temporary shelter. It also includes a section that allows the Commonwealth, in consultation with local school districts and subject to appropriation, to enroll students from state-placed families to nearby districts to help local communities better manage the impact of an increase in student enrollment.

The bill also re-files a request for $9.2 million for the Registry of Motor Vehicles (RMV) to implement the Work and Family Mobility Act (WFMA), which will enable the RMV to begin hiring now to ensure it has the staffing needed to meet the increased demand for services and enable the RMV to efficiently and securely develop new processes and transaction types required by the legislation.

To read the Governor’s filing letter, click here.” -Mass.gov.

“Mayor Jon Mitchell has submitted a proposal to the City Council for a loan order of $150,000 to pay for the costs of a schematic design/feasibility study for an accelerated repair project at the Ellen R. Hathaway Elementary School on Court Street.

On October 26, 2022, the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) voted to invite the City of New Bedford into the Accelerated Repair Program to conduct a Schematic Design Study at the Ellen Hathaway Elementary School for a potential windows and doors replacement project.

The reimbursement rate from the MSBA on the project would be 80%, therefore the City’s financial obligation for the Schematic design would be $30,000.

THE CITY COUNCIL FINANCE COMMITTEE APPROVED THE PROPOSAL AT ITS MEETING YESTERDAY, NOV. 17; THE PROPOSAL NOW AWAITS FINAL APPROVAL FROM THE FULL COUNCIL.” -City of New Bedford.

“On November 16, 2022, at 7:00 PM the City Council hosted a Celebration Meeting in the City Council Chamber. At this meeting the Council recognized and issued City Citations to members of the New Bedford Fire Department for their critical roles during three recent fires.

Congratulations to these New Bedford Firefighters for their heroic efforts! Your service is admirable and the recognition is well deserved!!!

July 18, 2022
Structure Fire – Roosevelt Apartments

• Engine 6 – Lt. Jason Beaulieu & FF Mark Pacheco
• Ladder 3 – FF Jason Barker
• Ladder 1 – Lt. Daniel Jackson, FF Jesse Andrade, FF Bryce Fortes & FF Derek Santos
• Engine 7 – Lt. Kevin Farnworth & FF Nicholas Corvi

October 1, 2022
Structure Fire – 64 Madeira Avenue
• Ladder 4 – Lt. Keenan Martin, FF Steven Correa, FF Nacean Purnell & Darien Jacintho

October 3, 2022
Structure Fire – 108 Tremont Street
• Engine 1 – Lt. Steven Torres, FF Marco Delima, FF Joshua Messier & FF Moises Rodriguez
• Ladder 1 – Capt. Kenneth Silva, FF Joseph Lopes, FF Brandon Medeiros & FF Matthew Paulson
• Ladder 3 – Lt. Louis Miranda & FF Kenneth Letourneau
• Command Unit 2 – District Chief Scott Gomes.”

All photos by the New Bedford Fire Department:

“Presented on Medicare’s updated Care Compare platform, Hospice Care from Southcoast Health’s Visiting Nurse Association earned a 4-star Family Caregiver Survey Rating from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), officials announced.

“The 4-star Hospice Family Caregiver Survey rating demonstrates the Supportive Care Center’s commitment to providing the highest quality care and making a positive impact on the lives of patients we care for and their families as they navigate this difficult time,” says Patricia Buiocchi, Senior Vice President of Post-Acute Services for Southcoast Health’s Visiting Nurse Association (VNA).

Hospice is a specialized kind of care that offers comfort and support to patients who are no longer seeking active treatment, and instead are just managing chronic conditions. This form of supportive care works to improve the quality of life, provide pain relief and comfort measures for terminally ill patients.

Southcoast Health photo.

All Star Ratings are based on results from the Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (CAHPS) Hospice survey, created by CMS to help patients compare and select a hospice program. They were publicly reported for the first time in August 2022 for all hospices with 75 or more completed surveys from Quarter 2 2019 – Quarter 4 2019 and Quarter 3 2020 – Quarter 3 2021.

The survey consists of 47 questions assessing eight quality measures, including communication with family, getting timely help, treating patients with respect, emotional and spiritual support, help for pain and symptoms, training family to care for patients and willingness to recommend the hospice to others.

It is administered to the primary informal caregiver or descendant of a patient who died while receiving hospice care. Of hospices ranked, 39 percent earned a 4-star ranking with only 10 percent earning five stars. CMS will continue to display overall Hospice CAHPS star ratings on the public reporting platform, care compare. Star Ratings will be updated every other quarter, taking into account eight rolling quarters of data.

Southcoast Health VNA’s Supportive Care Center consists of an expert team of physicians, nurse practitioners, certified hospice nurses, social workers, chaplains, bereavement counselors, home health aides, and specially trained volunteers.

Southcoast Health photo.

At home and in inpatient settings, these providers care for patients with all kinds of life-limiting diseases such as cancer, dementia, diabetes, Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis, heart, lung, or kidney disease and more.

To learn more about Southcoast Health’s hospice services please call (800) 698-6877 to schedule a consultation or contact us online.

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About Southcoast Health

For more than 25 years, Southcoast Health has served communities across southeastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island as the largest provider of primary and specialty care in the region. The not-for-profit, charitable system includes three acute care hospitals – Charlton Memorial in Fall River, St. Luke’s in New Bedford (a Level II Trauma Center), and Tobey in Wareham – as well as a network of over 700 physicians, hospitalists, and midlevel practitioners.

With upward of 7,500 employees, Southcoast Health is the largest employer in southeastern Massachusetts, and one of the largest employers in the Commonwealth, according to the Boston Business Journal. More information is available online at www.southcoast.org. Connect to Southcoast Health through social media on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn. Southcoast® is a registered trademark of Southcoast Health System.

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Southcoast Hospitals Group, which includes Charlton Memorial Hospital, St. Luke’s Hospital and Tobey Hospital, is a 2020 Newsweek’s World’s Best Hospital.“

“Today, Governor Charlie Baker announced the commutation of the first-degree murder sentence of Ramadan Shabazz to second degree murder, making him immediately eligible for parole. The Parole Board, serving in its function as the Advisory Board of Pardons, recently recommended Mr. Shabazz’s commutation.

The Massachusetts Constitution grants the Governor the power to commute, or remit, a portion of a criminal sentence and the power to issue a pardon. Governor Baker issued updated Executive Clemency Guidelines in February 2020. Petitions for commutation and pardon are reviewed by the Advisory Board of Pardons. The Board evaluates the petition, weighing the factors laid out in the Executive Guidelines, and makes a recommendation to the Governor.

“The ability to grant pardons and commutations is one of the most solemn responsibilities given to me as Governor, and I have considered each and every request that has been placed before me with careful deliberation,” said Governor Charlie Baker. “Mr. Shabazz’s crime was horrific, but he has not only taken full responsibility for his actions but has also dedicated his life in prison to bettering himself and serving as a mentor to others in prison. Commutation serves as a strong motivation for an incarcerated individual to improve themselves, and Mr. Shabazz serves as a remarkable example of self-development for other incarcerated individuals.”

Ramadan Shabazz is a 72-year-old man who has served fifty years in prison for the murders of Harry Jeffreys and Calvin Thorn. On August 14, 1971, Mr. Shabazz, along with co-defendant Raymond White, shot Mr. Jeffreys and Mr. Thorn, who were working at the Freedom Foods grocery store in Dorchester. After fatally wounding both men, Mr. Shabazz and his co-defendant stole upwards of $19,000 from Mr. Thorn’s car.

On March 21, 1972, a Suffolk County jury found Mr. Shabazz guilty, and he was sentenced to the death penalty for the two murders. In 1976, after the Supreme Judicial Court ruled the death penalty unconstitutional, Mr. Shabazz’s sentences were reduced to life imprisonment. While incarcerated, Mr. Shabazz has participated in over 50 rehabilitative programs, including addiction treatment, anger management and restorative justice classes.

He has worked as a GED tutor and a drug counselor, specifically mentoring incarcerated young men, and has participated in the Companion Program at Bridgewater State Hospital. He obtained both his Bachelor’s and Master’s Degree through Boston University’s prison education program. He successfully completed 48 furloughs before the program was terminated. He has been employed consistently during his time incarcerated, working jobs from kitchen services to law library clerk.

The Governor also announced the pardons of six individuals: Gerald Amirault, Cheryl Amirault Lefave, Brian Morin, Camille Joseph Chaisson, Michael Biagini and Robert Busa.

“The investigations and prosecutions of the Amiraults in the 1980s took place without the benefit of scientific studies that have in the intervening years led to widespread adoption of investigative protocols designed to protect objectivity and reliability in the investigation of child sex abuse cases,” said Governor Baker. “Given the absence of these protections in these cases, and like many others who have reviewed the record of these convictions over the years, including legal experts, social scientists and even several judges charged with reviewing the cases, I am left with grave doubt regarding the evidentiary strength of these convictions. As measured by the standard we require of our system of justice, Gerald Amirault and Cheryl Amirault Lefave ought to be pardoned.

“For the other four individuals that I have nominated for pardons, the charges in their cases also relate to decades-old offenses. Each individual has had clean records since these older charges and receiving a pardon will allow them to move forward in their lives. I urge the Governor’s Council to consider each of these cases carefully.”

“While I stand behind the decisions made at the time by the prosecutors, judge and jury, I believe the Governor’s decision is a fitting end to a very troubled case,” said former Attorney General Tom Reilly, about the Amirault pardons.

For more on Brian Morin, click here.

For more on Camille Joseph Chaisson, click here.

For more on Michael Biagini, click here.

For more on Robert Busa, click here.” -Mass.gov.

“Companies Will Implement Anti-Idling Programs and Pay Penalties under the Clean Air Act.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has settled enforcement actions against two companies that violated state and federal clean air standards by allowing excessive idling of school buses at locations in four Massachusetts communities.

The first settlement resolved EPA’s allegations that AA Transportation Co., Inc. of Shrewsbury, Mass. allowed excessive idling of school buses at three locations: two locations in Shrewsbury, and one in Webster, Mass. A separate settlement resolved EPA’s allegations that Michael J. Connolly & Sons, Inc. of Walpole, Mass. allowed excessive idling of school buses at two locations, in Sharon, and Natick, Mass.

“Pollution from diesel-powered vehicles is a serious health concern for people throughout New England – that’s why idling diesel school buses is unacceptable” said EPA New England Regional Administrator David W. Cash. “Children, especially those suffering from asthma or other respiratory ailments, are particularly vulnerable to diesel exhaust. We also know that chronic ailments are more likely for people living in historically disadvantaged neighborhoods and communities. Following existing rules to limit school bus idling helps protect the health of school children in communities across the country.”

Idling diesel engines emit pollutants that can cause or aggravate a variety of health problems including asthma and other respiratory diseases, and the fine particles in diesel exhaust are a likely human carcinogen. Diesel exhaust not only contributes to area-wide air quality problems, but more direct exposure can cause lightheadedness, nausea, sore throat, coughing, and other symptoms. Drivers, school children riding on the buses, facility workers, neighbors and bystanders are all vulnerable.

AA Transportation will pay a $23,587 penalty, and Michael Connolly & Sons will pay a $28,500 penalty. Both companies have certified that they are now in compliance with federal and Massachusetts regulations limiting idling of vehicles. In both settlements, the companies agreed to implement various measures to promote compliance, including the use of GPS systems to track instances of excessive idling, modification of automatic shutoff timing systems to prevent excess idling, and increased driver awareness training.

In fall 2021, EPA inspectors observed AA Transportation school buses idling for extended periods of time in school bus lots at 648 Lake Street and 605 Hartford Turnpike in Shrewsbury, and at 175 Thompson Road in Webster. During four separate inspections, EPA observed approximately 48 buses idling, resulting in a total idling time of 407 minutes in excess of the 5-minute Massachusetts anti-idling limit.

In early 2022, an EPA inspector observed Michael Connolly & Sons school buses idling for extended periods of time in school bus lots at 67 High Plain Street in Sharon, and 67 Rockland Street in Natick. During three separate inspections, EPA observed approximately 35 buses idling resulting in a total idling time of 360 minutes in excess of the 5-minute Massachusetts anti-idling limit.

More information: EPA School Bus Idle Reduction.”-EPA.gov.

“The City of New Bedford has roadwork sites for the upcoming week of November 21, 2022 – November 25, 2022, and they are as follows:

Offices will be closed & no construction works Thursday, November 24th and Friday, November 25th.

Eversource:

Eversource will be working on gas main relays and test pits on:
• Phillips Rd from Holly Tree Lane to Route 140

Other:

• Contractor (KR Rezendes, Inc.) will be painting all pavement markings on Monday at MassDOT’s Hathaway Triangle project located at the newly signalized intersection of Hathaway Rd x Nauset St. Lane shifts required, police officers and signage will be posted during operations.
• Contractor (PA Landers) will be raising structures on Clifford St from Ashley Blvd to Acushnet Ave. Contractor will be stabilizing the site to wrap up for the winter season. Sidewalk reconstruction and top paving course to take place in the Spring 2023.
• Contractor (PA Landers) will continue curb installation and sidewalk reconstruction along a portion of Phillips Rd north of Birchwood Dr.
• Contractor (PA Landers) will be working on West Street in the vicinity of St. Luke’s Hospital raising structures in the roadway and stabilizing the site for the winter season. Final top course paving to be done in the Spring 2023.
• Contractor (PA Landers) will be working on wheelchair ramp upgrades along a portion of East Rodney French Blvd from Abbott St to Butler St.
• Contractor (PA Landers & various utility companies) will be working at the MassDOT project, Kings Highway.
• Contractor (PA Landers) will be working on various streets, citywide, completing minor repairs and installations.
• Contractor (PA Landers) will be working on sidewalk reconstruction on Union St from Sixth St to County St. Final top course paving tentatively scheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 22nd.
• Contractor (PA Landers) will be paving top course on Hazelwood Park tennis courts.
• Contractor (SCR Constructors) will continue site work at the future South Coast Rail station platform locations in the city. (Church St at Carlisle St and Wamsutta St at Acushnet Ave.) If you have questions, please email the project team at SouthCoastRail@dot.state.ma.us”