THE
Wayne & Garfield County
INSIDER
Panguitch • Panguitch Lake • Hatch • Bryce • Tropic • Antimony • Henrieville • Cannonville • Escalante • Boulder • Fremont • Loa • Lyman Bicknell • Teasdale • Torrey • Grover • Fruita • Caineville • Hanksville
What To Do When the Cold Hits
Thursday, October 30, 2014 • Issue # 1072
Old Tree Finds New Home
How Did You Spend Last Week’s 168 Hours?
Part of a series by the Escalante Preparedness Committee GARFIELD & WAYNE COUNTIES - The current Farmer’s Almanac predicts an exceptionally cold winter for 2014/15 with other extreme weather related forecasts. In 2011, Governor Herbert designated the first week of November as Winter Weather Preparedness Week in Utah. Therefore, this month’s preparedness focus is on dealing with the cold. Many homes built over the past 50-60 years have been designed without a fireplace or wood stove for heat. Many fireplaces are for aesthetics rather than function. So what preparations are necessary if the grid goes down or your furnace malfunctions during a cold period? Or in another likely scenario in Utah, you are stuck in your car during cold weather. First, consider why we need to stay warm. Other than for comfort, staying at a certain temperature is vital to our health. Hypothermia is when our bodily functions slow down as the body’s core temperature drops. Mental function is most affected initially. There is a direct relationship in the decrease of brain function and the decrease in body temperature; the colder the body, the less the brain function. The fastest way to become hypothermic is a combination of cold temperatures with wind and rain. Wind will suck the heat out of your body 25x faster than just cold temperatures. The warning signs of hypothermia, low body temperature, are uncontrollable shivering, memory loss, disorientation, incoherence, slurred speech, drowsiness, and apparent exhaustion. If these systems are observed, take the person's temperature. If it is below 95F (35C), seek medical care immediately! If medical care is not available, begin warming the person
slowly to raise their core body temperature. You can do this by rubbing the skin, giving warm drinks, layering with blankets, and placing your body next to theirs to share your body heat. Prolonged exposure to the cold can result in damage done to skin tissue in the form of frostbite. When the cold causes your core temperature to drop, your body will kick into survival mode by cutting off circulation to the outer extremities such as lips, nose, toes, ears, fingers. When warming a person, focus on the core temperature, not the extremities. Hypothermia and frostbite are results of our weather. Winter storms are considered deceptive killers because most deaths are indirectly related to the storm. Fatalities occur in traffic accidents on icy roads, from heart attacks while shoveling snow, and from hypothermia due to prolonged exposure to cold. Of fatalities related to ice and snow: • About 70% occur in automobiles • About 25% are people caught out in the storm • Majority are males over 40 years old • Of deaths related to exposure to cold: • 50% are people over 60 years old • Over 75% are males • About 20% occur inside the home Let’s lower these statistics through thoughtful planning. Before traveling, prepare your vehicle for inclement weather. Fill the tank, check your tire treads, and have chains and/ or kitty litter to prevent getting stuck. If things become extreme, think igloo. Snow is What to Do
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Insider
Kendall Farnsworth, Park Manager at Escalante Petrified Forest State Park, sits with the 150 million year old tree that is now on exhibit at the state park. Farnsworth says that locals who would like to come out to the park and check out the tree can enter the park free-of-charge. ESCALANTE - It’s true: trees are not normally known to move. But a particular tree of a certain age and beauty last Tuesday found itself trekking a few short miles from where it has lain in the sand for the past 150 million (or so) years to a new concrete pedestal at Escalante Petrified Forest State Park. The 50-foot tree, one of the largest known specimens of petrified wood in our area, was unearthed and removed from a BLM-managed area southwest of Escalante known locally as “Little Desert.” Kendall Farnsworth, Park Manager at the Escalante Petrified Forest State Park spearheaded the project, obtaining permission and permits from BLM to remove the tree for a new display at the state park. Having already naturally fractured into 10 or 11 pieces, the tree was carefully hoisted piece by piece by crane and trucked to the state park where it will serve as a dramatic example of a petrified tree for park visitors. The two-day project was conducted by Utah State Parks. Thirty-five feet of the tree had been lying out in the open, but top 15 feet had been buried and needed to be excavated prior to the move. The root ball, which is five and a half feet in diameter and weighs 2 tons, was the toughest part of the move.
Wayne County Halloween Party--Once Again the Place to "See and Be Seen"
According to Farnsworth, the project fulfills several purposes. One is to protect the tree itself, which had been vandalized in several places, and the root ball was beginning to erode away from the rest of the tree. Farnsworth stated that, “The park has the facility to display, protect and interpret the rock for visitors. That’s what the park is all Gail Delfosse The petrified tree before it was removed, about.” “Plus,” he with state parks southwest region mainadded, “We need tenance crew member Aaron Hall. to keep it here in Garfield County. A lot of our ago the tree was felled during local fossils are getting shipped a flash flood and quickly buroff to other parts of the state ied, allowing it to decay very and country. This is one of the slowly. Over time, the organic last known full tree petrified material was replace by minerwood specimens in the area, als, creating what we now call and we want to keep it here.” petrified wood. Farnsworth says that Farnsworth says the Esthe tree is not preserved well calante Petrified Forest is the enough for an exact identifica- only example of petrified wood tion, but that park officials are in the Morrison formation. almost certain it is an extinct Other regional petrified wood species called Xenoxylon mor- fossils, such as those in the risonense, a conifer that is re- Wolverine Loop off the Burr lated to the Norfolk pine that Trail, are in the much older is common and can be found Chinle formation. in most supermarkets and Prior to the move, a connurseries. These trees could crete pad was erected to disget several hundred feet tall play the tree. Additional stone and this tree would have had a work and landscaping will take large crown, as the lower limbs place to create a more naturalwould have been trimmed off looking setting for the display. by long-necked dinosaurs. ―Insider Many millions of years
PANGUITCH - Have you ever thought about how you spent last week’s 168 hours? Add it up: How many hours sleeping, eating, working, exercise, TV, Social media’s Facebook, twitter, instagram, family time? Where are you spending most of your time? If you add it up, most find they spend very little time with their family and kids. Spending time with our kids is a very important part of their lives. According to research the more time we spend with our kids the less likely they will participate in substance abuse and anti-social behaviors. One of the best’s ways to get in the quality family time is eating dinner together. This is becoming something so important that September was named as National Eat Dinner Together Month. Panguitch Prevention Coalition sponsored an event in May to encourage this. At the annual Community Family night a free BBQ Burger dinner was offered to those attending, music was provided by some classes from the elementary school. There were bouncy toys for the children and an entertaining, educational presentation by Liz Edmonds, a very enthusiastic “Food Nanny”. Citing research that shows teens who regular eat as a family around the dinner table 5-7 times a week are 33% less likely to use alcohol. Liz said families should eat dinner together at least 3times a week. A scrumptious meal and pleasant conversation will help main tin physical and mental health. The Foo d Nanny then showed how to create a two-week meal plan for cooking dinner 5 nights a week. Making and using such a plan insures a meaningful dinner time the entire family, and can reduce the grocery bill by 50%. The Panguitch Preven168 Hours
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USDA Releases New “Made in Rural America” Report for Utah
Photos: Annette lamb
Monsters, ghouls, princesses, and characters of all stripes including punsters Nan and James Anderson, who were dressed as "Ceiling Fans" enjoyed this year's Halloween party hosted by the Rim Rock Restaurant. TORREY - The final event in the Harvest Time Scarecrow Festival was the annual Halloween Costume Party sponsored by the Entrada Institute. From zombie cheerleaders to a preschool princess, the Rim Rock Restaurant was filled with party goers. The Adaptors played popular Halloween tunes from
Ghostbusters to Monster Mash along with other dance music. Carol Gnade presented costume contest winners with prizes. In the individual category, Shauna Sudbury won first prize for her artist Vincent VanGogh costume with second prize going to Vicky Bower. In the couples category, An-
REGIONAL Weather forecast for some but not all regions represented in our newspaper coverage area
Thurs. ocT. 31 - wed. nov. 5 CHANGEABLE. Thurs/Fri will remain warm-ish with highs in the upper 60s, lows in the upper 30s. A drop in temps is expected on Saturday with possible wind and rain, highs in the upper 40s and 20s at night. Warming again the beginning of the week with highs by Tuesday/Wednesday in the upper 50s/low 60s, & sunny.
nette Lamb and Larry Johnson won first prize for their “Deer in the Lights” costumes. Nan and James Anderson received second prize for their “Ceiling Fans” costumes. In the family category, first prize went to the skeleton Sabala family and second prize to the Rosales family. Finally, Brynna and Abbey Malmrose won in the children’s category. Thanks to the Rim Rock Restaurant staff, the Adaptors, and the Entrada Institute for a great event. ―Annette Lamb
SALT LAKE CITY - On behalf of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) commitment to strengthening rural economies, USDA Rural Development State Director for Utah Dave Conine announced new data highlighting USDA investments in rural Utah. This data summarizes specific USDA investments in rural Utah’s businesses, manufacturing, energy, water and other infrastructure development. It also outlines how USDA is helping rural Utah attract businesses and families by investing in housing and broadband. This information is part of USDA’s national "Made in Rural America" report illustrating the impact of USDA investments in rural America. The report for Utah may be found at http:// www.usda.gov/documents/ UtahRuralMade.pdf. "Supporting our ru-
I never guess. It is a capital mistake to theorize before one has data. Insensibly one begins to twist facts to suit theories, instead of theories to suit facts. ―Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (1859 - 1930)
ral communities benefits all Utahns" said Conine. "USDA has made dedicated investments in manufacturing, energy and small businesses in rural Utah. At the same time, we are bringing reliable services like water, housing and broadband to make these same communities attract and retain a talented workforce. This data shows that the entrepreneurial spirit is strong in rural Utah." In Utah, USDA has made investments to help 99 rural businesses thrive and grow, including $24 million investment in rural manufacturing alone. Rural manufacturing supports 6,033 jobs in Utah. In addition, USDA has helped 15,143 families purchase or repair homes and has invested $66.4 million to support efficient water support, treatment and storage facilities, and wastewater treatment systems. This investment
has improved the health of thousands of rural Utahns who now have access to clean water and reliable sanitation. More information is available at www.usda.gov/opportunity. The “Made in Rural America” report reflects USDA’s efforts to strengthen the "four pillars" of a new economy in rural America by developing a robust bio-based economy; promoting exports and production agriculture fueled by increased productivity and research; encouraging conservation including land management, stewardship and outdoor recreational opportunities; and building a strong local and regional food system to harness entrepreneurial innovation and help small and medium-sized family farms succeed in rural America. ―USDA Rural Development Agency
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