Latest news with #Pritchett
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Climate
- Yahoo
How Hurricane Helene reshaped Lake Lure
It's hard to forget the images from Lake Lure following the destruction of Hurricane Helene. Over 22 inches of rain fell across the Lake Lure Dam watershed, leading to catastrophic damage to the town and surrounding areas. 'We had water getting funneled down through, it was coming around, over top of the bridges here, carrying with it that construction debris, businesses from up in Chimney Rock,' said Dustin Waycaster, Fire Chief and Emergency Management Director for the town of Lake Lure. 'We had campers, cars, propane tanks.' Waycaster told Channel 9's Danielle Miller he had no idea how bad it would be. 'This storm was just so unprecedented, like, even with that plan in place, it was flooding and debris that we've never had to deal with before,' he said. Eight months later, Lake Lure Mayor Carol Pritchett says the town has made significant strides in rebuilding. 'We're trying to make sure that as we repair the damage that was done from this disaster, we're also doing whatever we can to make it better, so that the next time we won't have this much disaster,' Pritchett said. One thing that's been a constant during recovery efforts in Lake Lure is the US Army Corps of Engineers, which estimates that 1 million cubic yards of debris still needs to be removed from the lake. That's about the amount of 300 Olympic-sized swimming pools. Along with dredging Lake Lure, Mayor Pritchett says there are plans to widen where the Broad River meets the lake. 'It was sort of like a nozzle when everything came down the river and shot it out with such great force. So just by widening some of that would slow that down and that would just be a huge, that would be a huge improvement,' Pritchett said. The Lake Lure Dam is also a central part of recovery efforts. While the 100-year-old dam itself did not fail during the storm, Mayor Pro-Tem Dave DiOrio says the town is working on plans to replace it so it can even better handle future weather events. 'Time moves on and we know more about weather patterns and we know more about the potential for flooding and this dam just doesn't meet the normal, modern standards of what we'd want with a dam both with capacity to absorb a flood,' said DiOrio. Helene's flooding rain not only put a spotlight on the need for a stronger dam, but also the need for a better protected communications infrastructure. The town built emergency sirens after the flood of 1996. Jim Proctor watched that flood from his backyard and says they've learned even more since then about how important the lake is for communication in western North Carolina. 'The main trunk line for internet and telephone between Charlotte and Asheville goes through the Hickory Nut Gorge; 90% of the connectivity between Charlotte and Asheville went away from Helene,' Proctor said. Proctor says plans are in place to bury new lines in the roads that are being constructed and to reset emergency management towers so they don't wash away during a flood. The town also hopes to build a new cell tower, so people can stay in touch during these big weather events. 'We'll build it back and it's coming back, but it's just a process we gotta work through,' Waycaster said. (VIDEO: Lake Lure Dam no longer at imminent risk of failure, officials say)
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Climate
- Yahoo
Lake Lure: Long road to recovery
LAKE LURE, N.C. (WSPA) – 'Immediately, we had no services. We had no sewer. That was probably the worst part of it. We had no water,' Carol Pritchett, Mayor of Lake Lure, said. 'The water was restored more quickly because we have wells. So, that was probably just a matter of a few weeks. Lack of any cell service was tantamount.' It wasn't just Lake Lure that saw its own debris collect in the Broad River, but also from nearby towns as well. Just a few miles up the river, at Chimney Rock and Bat Cave, is where over half a million cubic yards of non-natural debris ended up flooding across Lake Lure. Just a few days later is when natural debris of another 500,000 cubic yards ended up covering that non-natural debris. It was shortly after Hurricane Helene was gone that the US Army Corps of Engineers showed up to begin the cleaning process. Makenzie Leonard, with the US Army Corps, said the contractors are working diligently to get everything cleared. 'The Corps of Engineers and our contractors are out here seven days a week, 12 hours a day, trying to get as much of this done as quickly as possible so that life can go, back to normal for as many folks as possible.' Even after over 230 days of digging and cleaning, they are only 43% of the way done with waterway clearing, including creeks, rivers, and lakes. Lake Lure typically has a season that runs from Memorial Day through Labor Day. Mayor Pritchett said that due to the cleaning, the lake will not be open this year. 'We as a town wanted everybody to know, we need to focus on all the other wonderful things there are to do besides just the lake.' Some of those things include bed and breakfasts and resorts like Lake Lure Inn and Rumbling Bald. Pritchett is also very happy with another nearby feature. 'The trails are one of them. We have beautiful trails. We did have landslides on some of the trails. We've worked hard and we've had a lot of volunteers from, like, Carolina Conservancy to help us get rid of that and restore the trails. And so those are open for people now.' Pritchett strives to learn from Helene and learn what can be done in the future for whenever the next natural disaster strikes. 'Our emergency management team was prepared as well as anybody could possibly be for what you envisioned might happen. But we're going to capitalize on what we know now.' So, as Lake Lure continues to be cleaned, Pritchett invites travelers to the area. 'We would love to have people come here. We really would. And it's perfectly safe. And we are very dedicated to ensuring that we're not going to promote anything for tourists to come that's not safe.' Mayor Pritchett also said that the water is constantly tested and is safe. And while some of the beach areas may be open, you still cannot get in the water just yet. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
19-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
US special ops forces want in on AI to cut 'cognitive load' and make operator jobs easier
US special operations is using artificial intelligence to reduce the cognitive load on operators. This includes not just combat operations but also paperwork, manual tasks, and data. Various types of AI are already being employed and expanded. From warfighting to paperwork, US Special Operations Forces are interested in getting in on AI to simplify the work. The goal for these elite forces, much like it is for regular people working office jobs and using AI to sort data or compile information, is to lessen the overall cognitive load, or mental effort, required for whatever a task may be. A lot of different types of artificial intelligence are being used, and it's only growing. AI has many potential applications for the US military, from autonomous features in uncrewed systems to AI-enabled targeting to enhanced situational awareness. The Department of Defense is eager to implement this technology to prepare US forces for a high-end technological conflict chock full of data and information. Future wars could be fought in an environment where decision-making may need to happen quicker than humans alone can do, and that's where military officials see the benefit of AI and human-machine teaming. With AI, "we can reduce the cognitive burden of our operators," Col. Rhea Pritchett, the program executive officer of SOF Digital Applications, said at SOF Week in Tampa, Florida, earlier this month. Instead of worrying about other things, operators "will take that precious time to critically think about actions that they need to take next to achieve the effect that they want." AI can sift through massive amounts of data quickly to focus on necessary information in a combat scenario and it can aid in mission planning and command and control functions. This technology can also be used in battlespace awareness tools "to identify the position or location information of objects, people, and terrain — enhancing operator analysis and decision-making capabilities," Pritchett added over email. These kinds of capabilities are already being developed. But there are other functions of AI in SOF, and they aren't unlike the way civilians use ChatGPT or other AI-driven platforms for their jobs and personal lives. That includes paperwork: situational reports, concepts for operations, and forecasting supplies. The tasks that might take an operator a long time to complete and draw their focus away from other aspects of the job. Back-end work, as Ben Van Roo, CEO and cofounder of Legion Intelligence Inc, put it, could also be aided by artificial intelligence. Such work could include better search functions for analyzing DoD doctrine and understanding elements of specific locations, commands, or job positions. One prime example could be using AI tools when entering a new position to quickly get up to speed on the work. When military personnel receive orders for their next job, it can be a lot of work to learn not only the ins and outs of the position itself but also the larger bureaucracy, geographic information, and historical and political context, what their predecessor did, types of weapons and capabilities present, and so on. That is a bit different than how AI in the military is regularly perceived. "People tend to jump to Terminator," Van Roo said. "Actually, the great majority of it right now is just, people can barely even do their jobs with all these archaic systems." While there are many possibilities for AI technology in warfighting systems, such as the AI-enabled drones that are demonstrating just how effective this technology can make an uncrewed fighting platform or the AI algorithms being taught to fly fighter jets, there's much that can be done to improve the mundane. AI has the potential to address some of the headaches and help reform some older technological policies, effectively streamlining the processes. It might even have an application in assessing details for contracts and programs. "The potential to relieve the cognitive load is extremely high," Van Roo said. AI could provide assistance with what some operators might consider the more time-consuming tasks of their job and take a form similar to an AI assistant designed to take notes, gather and review key client data, transcribe meetings, and outline important takeaways. AI systems are already being used in SOF, Pritchett told BI, including generative machine learning, large language models, natural language processing, and computer vision. The rise of AI in militaries has been met with skepticism and ethical concerns from experts and officials about its implementation, especially in combat scenarios. The Pentagon has maintained that its policy on AI will keep a human in the loop for decision-making, though some observers have argued that doing so might not always be possible in a high-speed, data-driven future fight. Some have also cautioned that the technology may end up developing at a much quicker pace than Washington and the Pentagon can regulate it. Read the original article on Business Insider
Business Insider
19-05-2025
- Business
- Business Insider
US special ops forces want in on AI to cut 'cognitive load' and make operator jobs easier
From warfighting to paperwork, US Special Operations Forces are interested in getting in on AI to simplify the work. The goal for these elite forces, much like it is for regular people working office jobs and using AI to sort data or compile information, is to lessen the overall cognitive load, or mental effort, required for whatever a task may be. A lot of different types of artificial intelligence are being used, and it's only growing. AI has many potential applications for the US military, from autonomous features in uncrewed systems to AI-enabled targeting to enhanced situational awareness. The Department of Defense is eager to implement this technology to prepare US forces for a high-end technological conflict chock full of data and information. Future wars could be fought in an environment where decision-making may need to happen quicker than humans alone can do, and that's where military officials see the benefit of AI and human-machine teaming. With AI, "we can reduce the cognitive burden of our operators," Col. Rhea Pritchett, the program executive officer of SOF Digital Applications, said at SOF Week in Tampa, Florida, earlier this month. Instead of worrying about other things, operators "will take that precious time to critically think about actions that they need to take next to achieve the effect that they want." AI can sift through massive amounts of data quickly to focus on necessary information in a combat scenario and it can aid in mission planning and command and control functions. This technology can also be used in battlespace awareness tools "to identify the position or location information of objects, people, and terrain — enhancing operator analysis and decision-making capabilities," Pritchett added over email. These kinds of capabilities are already being developed. But there are other functions of AI in SOF, and they aren't unlike the way civilians use ChatGPT or other AI-driven platforms for their jobs and personal lives. That includes paperwork: situational reports, concepts for operations, and forecasting supplies. The tasks that might take an operator a long time to complete and draw their focus away from other aspects of the job. Back-end work, as Ben Van Roo, CEO and cofounder of Legion Intelligence Inc, put it, could also be aided by artificial intelligence. Such work could include better search functions for analyzing DoD doctrine and understanding elements of specific locations, commands, or job positions. One prime example could be using AI tools when entering a new position to quickly get up to speed on the military personnel receive orders for their next job, it can be a lot of work to learn not only the ins and outs of the position itself but also the larger bureaucracy, geographic information, and historical and political context, what their predecessor did, types of weapons and capabilities present, and so on. That is a bit different than how AI in the military is regularly perceived. "People tend to jump to Terminator," Van Roo said. "Actually, the great majority of it right now is just, people can barely even do their jobs with all these archaic systems." While there are many possibilities for AI technology in warfighting systems, such as the AI-enabled drones that are demonstrating just how effective this technology can make an uncrewed fighting platform or the AI algorithms being taught to fly fighter jets, there's much that can be done to improve the mundane. AI has the potential to address some of the headaches and help reform some older technological policies, effectively streamlining the processes. It might even have an application in assessing details for contracts and programs. "The potential to relieve the cognitive load is extremely high," Van Roo said. AI could provide assistance with what some operators might consider the more time-consuming tasks of their job and take a form similar to an AI assistant designed to take notes, gather and review key client data, transcribe meetings, and outline important takeaways. AI systems are already being used in SOF, Pritchett told BI, including generative machine learning, large language models, natural language processing, and computer vision. The rise of AI in militaries has been met with skepticism and ethical concerns from experts and officials about its implementation, especially in combat scenarios. The Pentagon has maintained that its policy on AI will keep a human in the loop for decision-making, though some observers have argued that doing so might not always be possible in a high-speed, data-driven future fight. Some have also cautioned that the technology may end up developing at a much quicker pace than Washington and the Pentagon can regulate it.
USA Today
01-05-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Shaw Pritchett leads Alabama-Georgia team to U.S. Senior Challenge win
Shaw Pritchett leads Alabama-Georgia team to U.S. Senior Challenge win Shaw Pritchett recognizes that his U.S. Senior Challenge-winning foursome may look, on the outside, like a bit of a mishmash. The team, captained by Pritchett's good golf buddy Michael Arasin, from Auburn, Alabama, included players from both sides of the Georgia-Alabama line. Montgomery, Alabama, resident Pritchett hadn't even met one of them, Georgian Danny Nelson, until the practice round at Hobe Sound (Florida) Golf Club this week. 'Maybe it was a little bit of a hodgepodge of putting a team together,' said the newly-55 Pritchett, 'but it was nice that it worked out.' Three of the four members roomed together in an Airbnb for the week and generally enjoyed the rare team event in senior amateur golf. And that produced good results for all. Pritchett, who has won the Alabama Senior Amateur the past two years, got the recruiting call from Arasin early in the season to play the national senior team event that rotates to venues around the country. And Pritchett turned out to be a good recruit: He contributed a score each round in the play-four-count-three format. In fact, Pritchett very nearly locked up individual honors in the Senior division. With consistent rounds of 73-75-74, Pritchett finished just one shot behind winner Charlie Stevens of Wichita, Kansas. Pritchett stayed in the game even as winds picked up in the final two rounds and wreaked havoc on a difficult Hobe Sound layout that features several sandy, native areas. 'I think each day the pin positions got a lot harder,' Pritchett said. 'Today they were really, really hard and then the other thing, probably the second and third day, the wind blew about 15 mph consistently, the whole time. It was a grind out there the last two days, just to get the ball in the hole. You hit one in the middle of the fairway and normally you say I've got this, this should be an easy par, let me go find a birdie. That was just not happening on this golf course.' One key indicator of strength of venue stands out on the U.S. Senior Challenge leaderboard: The amount of scoring fluctuation among the top players in the field. Arasin, a talented player who perennially contends in senior amateur tournaments, backed up opening rounds of 72-73 with a final-round 80 and finished T-5 in the Senior division. Stan Humphries, who had been a key player on the Louisiana team that had a six-shot second-round lead, logged rounds of 71-74-83 and was T-11. Hobe Sound is a private course that doesn't often open its doors to national events, and Pritchett found the conditioning excellent though the challenge constant. 'I cannot say enough about the conditioning,' he said. 'The holes were really challenging, pretty much every hole was a challenge. You didn't really have a breather on the entire course.' Thanks in part to Pritchett's consistent play, the Alabama-Georgia team finished at 25 over and just one shot ahead of the Louisiana team captained by Grady Brame, who posted a final-round 73 that was one of the best rounds of the day. It just wasn't quite enough to keep his team in the lead spot, though it did secure Brame a top-5 finish in the Senior division. Team Michigan finished third two shots behind Louisiana and the Florida team captained by William Boockford, which had led after the first round, finished fourth, 10 shots behind that. Led by Charlie Stevens, the Senior division medalist, Team Kansas rounded out the top 5. Donny Phillips of Suwanee, Georgia, claimed the Super Senior division title in a playoff with Memphis resident David Apperson after both finished at 14 over. Chris Hall of Acworth, Georgia, the final member of the winning Georgia-Alabama team, was fourth in that division. Lee Sandlin of Dallas won the Legend division title at 4 over, which was three shots better than Boockford, of nearby Tequesta, Florida. Gary Jeffreys, of El Paso, Texas, was the top Super Legend player at 14 over. That was five shots better than Skip Tellefsen of Jupiter, Florida.
