Wisconsin Red Cross volunteers helping after Helene hits southeast (UNDATED)
Volunteers from Wisconsin are helping in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene. Laura McGuire with the American Red Cross of Wisconsin said as of Monday, three emergency response vehicles and 25 volunteers are on the ground in areas of the southeastern US devastated by Helene. That’s part of a larger Red Cross deployment that includes providing overnight stays to more than 18,000 people in 70 emergency shelters. The best way for you to help? Make a financial donation or an appointment to give blood. You can do that by visiting redcross.org or by calling 1-800-RED-CROSS.
Trump holds events in Democratic strongholds (WAUNAKEE)
A local elected official hopes former President Donald Trump moderates his message in Dane County on Tuesday. Supervisor David Boetcher’s Dane County Board district includes Waunakee, where Trump has an afternoon campaign event. He says quite often, national politics hits communities very hard and very divisively. He hopes Trump will dial back his rhetoric on immigration, noting that immigrants and minorities who work around Waunakee, at farms and at the facility where Trump is holding his event. Boetcher said the message that would be great to say is to actually thank immigrants for the work they do and the help in building the community. Trump will be at Dane Manufacturing before heading to a speaking event at Discovery World in Milwaukee. Dane County and Milwaukee are both Democratic strongholds. In addition to Trump, Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff will be in Milwaukee on Tuesday, on behalf of Vice President Kamala Harris.
Sandhill Crane committee to meet at Capitol (MADISON)
A 12 member Legislative Study Committee on Sandhill Cranes meets at the Capitol in Madison today. The big birds with the long bills and even longer legs can be a real problem when they swoop down on farm fields. By the dozens or hundreds, committee members include state lawmakers, farmers and conservationists. They’ve been asked to come up with recommendations, including a possible hunting season – something opposed by the Baraboo based International Crane Foundation.
Kwik Trip plans installation of EV charging network (LA CROSSE)
Electric vehicle drivers will soon be able to recharge their cars at Kwik Trip. The company announced Monday it will be expanding its services at stations in Wisconsin to include both major standards of E V charging plug. Four charging ports will be offered at each location that has the chargers. There’s been an increased demand for charging stations in Wisconsin as most rural parts of the state do not have access, limiting travel for E Vs.
WI DNR restarts PFAS regulation process (MADISON)
The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources will restart the process to change PFAS regulations for drinking water. The Natural Resources Board approved a request for public hearings on the subject at its meeting last week. The D N R wants to set regulations to meet federal guidelines, but the change must go through a full round of hearings and meetings. If the change goes through, DNR staff say 90 water systems will have to be remediated statewide. Legislative Republicans prevented a previous alteration of the standards after the agency used emergency rulings to push for remediation in several parts of the state.