Here’s a look at today’s headlines:
Five new wildfires were reported today on the Gila National Forest bringing the total number of fires to 15 since Monday afternoon. Many of the fires have been contained or called out at one-half to four acres in size. The lightning-caused fires are scattered across every district of the Forest. The largest fire on the Reserve Ranger District is the Pinon at 44 acres. It is east of Eagle Peak and moving primarily south and west. This fire will be managed to achieve resource objectives. The largest fire on the Wilderness Ranger District is the Moore Fire at nine acres. It is seven miles east of Gila Hot Springs. It may also be managed to achieve resource objectives. New incidents include the Bar Fire on Bar Mesa, the Lost Lake Fire 2 miles north of the Pinon Fire, the Tularosa Fire northeast of Aragon, the Castle Fire 4 miles west of Quemado Lake, and the McMullen Fire 20 miles southwest of Glenwood.
Caroline Baldwin, a resident of Silver City, New Mexico, her daughter Lydia, Nurse Manager in the intensive care unit of Poudre Valley Hospital in Fort Collins, Colorado, and Caroline’s granddaughter Cara Baldwin, who just completed her first year at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, will once again fly Caroline’s Piper Cherokee in a woman-only race, Air Race Classic. They fly as the Baldwin Family Flyers, a unique three family members team. Their race number for takeoff each morning of the race is 29.
U.S. Senator Tom Udall, Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on the Interior, Environment and Related Agencies, announced that he will oppose the Fiscal Year 2016 Interior Appropriations bill unless it is amended to remove dangerous policy riders and address inadequate funding levels.
In response to questions from U.S. Senator Tom Udall during a U.S. Senate Commerce Committee hearing on product safety, Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) Chairman Elliot Kaye agreed that his commission has reason to look into marketing claims that soccer headgear can provide adequate protection against concussions. Udall, who has led the effort in Congress to protect youth athletes from the dangers of sports-related traumatic brain injuries by improving equipment and safety standards and curbing false advertising claims, told Kaye during the hearing that he is concerned that the manufacturers of soccer headbands and headgear are inflating their claims about the safety of their products.
Tom Udall issued the following statement after voting in favor of an amendment which would have placed authority for pursuing military sexual assault cases with military prosecutors, rather than unit commanders. “As a former prosecutor, I believe the way the military handles sexual assault crimes is in dire need of reform. Congress took important steps toward promoting justice for survivors last year, but this amendment I introduced with Senator Gillibrand would go further by ensuring these cases are handled by military prosecutors, not unit commanders. That’s the best way to ensure justice for survivors and a fair trial for the accused. I’m disappointed that the Senate did not advance this measure today, and will continue working to ensure perpetrators of these traumatic crimes are held accountable.”
