Florida moves to reopen Apalachicola Bay to oyster harvesting in January
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission agreed to consider rules in November reopening the iconic fishery in January, nine months ahead of a schedule recommended by agency staff.
Seafood workers and Franklin County commissioners urged the panel to reopen the bay sooner, arguing that oysters were making a comeback after the shellfish population crashed in 2012.
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Agency staff also recommended limiting the number of oyster harvesters who can fish the bay to 10. But the commission agreed to open it up to anyone who applies and meets licensing requirements.
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Records show officials knew about tree decay before branch fell and killed boy in Calabasas
Crews at King Gillette Ranch raised concerns about a decaying tree a week before one of its branches snapped and killed an 8-year-old boy, according to documents obtained by CBS News Los Angeles. The text and emails from the Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority, which operates King Gillette Ranch, showed that staff requested the removal of "a branch that snapped and was resting on a lower branch" on July 2. A day later, July 3, an employee wrote an email that read in part, "don't know if this limb cracking has anything to do with the health of the tree." On the same day, the division chief wrote: "Wow. That was a massive branch. Thank god that no one was seriously hurt or killed. Thank you so much for taking care of this. I would not have been able to sleep at night knowing that branch was just waiting to fall." Text messages from the people who appear to have hauled the initial limb away expressed their concerns about the health of the tree, writing, "it is somewhat concerning seeing all the decay at the trunk." They also suggest staff thin the canopy to mitigate risk. Six days later, on July 9, another branch fell onto picnic tables and hurt several people and killed the 8-year-old boy, who was attending a summer camp at the ranch. CBS News Los Angeles compared images of the damaged tree from July 2 and the tree at the heart of the deadly incident. The two trees appear to be the same based on their limb structure and decay patterns on the trunk. "The first step you normally take in such a circumstance, if you have a tree and you have concerns about it, you block off the area and you move what are called targets," said master arborist Steve Marshall, who was not involved in the inspection or removal of the tree. Marshall added that targets include swing sets, benches and other items that could draw people to the area. "If you have access to the branch that has fallen, you are going to examine where it split off the tree to see if you can get some understanding of what occurred," Marshall said. He added that fatalities involving trees are incredibly rare, but make the job of a risk assessment critical. Staff have posted warnings at the King Gillette Ranch, alerting people to falling tree limbs. It's unclear how long those signs have been posted. The Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority said they have commissioned an external investigation into the death and the events leading up to the tree falling. The director also reiterated their apology to those impacted. MRCA did not respond to questions about the tree's health prior to the accident.
