Kiwanis Community Meal
The Florence Kiwanis offers its annual thanksgiving meal today with about 750 meals planned for distribution. This year the meal was noticeably without turkey. According to the Kiwanis club officials it was mainly due to the amount of turkeys available when planning the meal. Avian outbreaks this year depleted about 7.3 million birds from the supply chain which is about a 20% decrease from last year. The shortage also drove the price of turkeys upwards. The average price of a 16 pound turkey in 2021 was about $23. Depending on where you shopped you could have more than doubled that cost this year although bargains were still seen even in the local Fred Meyer, safeway and Grocery Outlet. Rising grocery cost across the board have effectively risen the price of the annual meal with items like eggs, dairy and fresh vegetables.
Heavy Traffic
Heavy traffic continues to be on the minds of holiday travelers. Reports of delays and rushing motorists were abundant yesterday with more of the same possible for today. AAA Oregon estimated that about a million Oregonians were traveling this holiday and Sunday is expected to be one of the busiest travel days of the year and even of the last 10 years. Gas prices have continued to come down though through the travel weekend. The average price of a gallon of regular gas in Florence is $4.33 a gallon. Three weeks ago gas prices in Florence were upwards of $4.75.
Free Fishing
While family and friends are visiting for the thanksgiving holiday, it would be a good time to introduce them to the outdoors. The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife is holding a free fishing weekend this Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. No license is required to crab, clam or fish, but limits are being enforced. If you have never crabbed before several local businesses will have crab trap rentals available. Jay Cable with Bridgeport Market and Wine Shoppe says they always see an increase in rentals during the free weekends. And it is not necessary to have access to a boat… in old town crabbers can be seen near the ICM and Mo’s end of the dock catching their fair share. According to crabbing experts the best time to catch crab is during slack tide when the water is the calmest for the crustacean.
RSV
RSV is not something that has just appeared on the horizon. It is a regular occurrence during cold and flu season, it has just been tagged with a new three letter moniker. Dr. Willie Foster with Peace Harbor Hospital says they see it every year, but this year the onset of the respiratory virus came sooner and heavier than normal. It is normally seen in younger kids according to Foster who heads the Emergency department at Peace Harbor but it is becoming prevalent in adults this season. And he says it can lead to serious illness in adults and in babies. Symptoms include high temperature, difficulty breathing and signs of dehydration. Emergency room visits for RSV are increasing in Florence, Foster says get a flu shot, update your covid vaccination and wear a mask when exhibiting symptoms.
