Somerset —
The Lake Cumberland District Health Depart-ment is urging parents to consider allowing their preteens and teenagers to receive vaccines which fight meningitis. LCDHD Medical Dir-ector Dr. Christine Wey-man says two cases of bacterial meningitis have been confirmed in Pulaski County this summer. Bacterial meningitis is a more severe strain of the meningococcal meningitis illness — yet it’s very preventable, Weyman says. “If people will get the vaccine, we can prevent all this stuff,” she said. The vaccine is covered by private insurance companies — and children who don’t have insurance can obtain it at the health department for a nominal fee. Cases of viral meningitis are quite common and much less severe. Weyman says several cases of viral meningitis have spread throughout the county recently. “You tend to see more of it in the summer,” she said. “There have been cases, but it’s not necessarily an outbreak.” The bacterial form of the illness can be spread from direct contact — such as kissing, coughing, or sharing drinks. Weyman says those who contract viral meningitis, which is spread through fecal contamination, can make full recoveries following the illness. Individuals who contract bacterial meningitis, however, can die from the illness — or suffer from severe after-effects. Weyman says one person was hospitalized with bacterial meningitis in June. Another individual, an older person, is currently hospitalized with the illness, Weyman reports. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention defines meningitis as “a disease caused by the inflammation of the protective membranes covering the brain and spinal cord known as the meninges. The inflammation is usually caused by an infection of the fluid surrounding the brain and spinal cord.” Symptoms of meningitis include high fever, headache, and a stiff neck. The symptoms can develop over several hours or in one to two days. Other symptoms may include nausea, vomiting, sensitivity to bright lights, confusion, and sleepiness. Infants with meningitis may appear slow or inactive, have vomiting, be irritable, or be feeding poorly.Local News
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Big Bang Theory
Pulaski County is not at war. The booming you may hear at dusk is mock cannon fire to scare away birds.
Stuart Spillman, environmental director for the Lake Cumberland Health Department, said at least three cannons are on loan from the department to residents who want to scare away swarms of starlings and blackbirds settling in to roost.
He said a cannon is being used by a resident on Laura Lane off Ky. 39; another is in the Oak Hill Road area and a third is on Ashurst Street in the eastern part of Somerset.
Spillman said a timer on each cannon allows it to “fire” at whatever frequency is desired. The cannons must be used as the birds circle before going to roost. “After they settle in, nothing will chase them out,” Spillman said.
The Health Department doesn’t operate the cannons unless there is a specific complaint in an area where there are lots of birds, Spillman noted. He said so far this year the birds are not as bad as in the past. -
Boil water advisory is lifted countywide
The water controversy that Pulaski County has been boiling over — so to speak — for the last week is finally over.
At 10 minutes after noon Wednesday, the “boil water” advisory for the Western Pulaski Water District was lifted — almost a full week after the problems began around 1 p.m. last Thursday.
Prior to that, the Somerset Water Service — along with the other water providers in its system, including Science Hill Water, Southeastern Water, and Eubank Water — lifted their advisories, with Somerset on Saturday afternoon and the last, Southeastern, by Monday morning. Western Pulaski was the last in the system to complete sample testing for potential contaminants, due to not being able to access its Pikeville-based testing lab until Monday.
Somerset Mayor Eddie Girdler thanked the public for its patience and understanding during the duration of the boil water advisory — put in place to keep citizens from drinking water that could have been contaminated after an accident last Thursday at the water plant site — and also thanked all the city employees for their hard work during this time.
“The boil water advisory went about as well as would be expected,” said Girdler.
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