Nassau County Contacting Villages to Coordinate Emergency Response Plans -- Muttontown Mayor Richard Murcott welcomed Shelly Schecter, APRN, BC of the Nassau County Office of Public Health Preparedness to their Monday, April 10 board meeting. Ms. Schecter came to speak on the need of local villages to prepare for the Cities Readiness Initiative (CRI). She explained that the county has to prepare for a health emergency, be it SARS - the bird flu or an attack using anthrax or any other bio-medical materials. She said the need for planning was to prevent mass mortality and morbidity from diseases for which antibiotics are an appropriate medical countermeasure. FULL STORY

Ed Mohlenhoff knows his frogs. The co-chair of the Theodore Roosevelt Sanctuary gala said the wonderous insect sounds filling the Main Greenhouse of Planting Fields on Friday, March 31 were frogs. To the uninitiated, it sounded like a host of crickets, but greenhouse manager Paul Dose confirmed that although he has never seen one - the chirpers are the Northeastern tree frog that inhabits the greenhouse. FULL STORY

Each year, thousands of boat owners across Long Island will use at least some part of Memorial Day weekend as the time of year to clean the boat and then head out for the first time to their favorite fishing or anchoring spot for a day on the water with family and friends. Unfortunately, just getting the dust off the boat and taking it for a spin to get the engine revved up does not mean it is seaworthy. FULL STORY

5K and 10-Mile Run to Benefit Spinal Cord Injury Programs -- The Long Island Spinal Cord Injury Resource Center (LISCIRC), a project of the Testaverde Fund for Spinal Cord Injury, announced its second annual Race for Spinal Victory - a 5K walk/run and a more challenging 10-mile run to take place on April 30 at Jones Beach. Proceeds of the event will go to fund spinal cord injury research and to support LISCIRC whose focus is on community and family outreach and spinal cord injury education programs. Registration forms and sponsor sheets can be downloaded at www.testaverdefund.com or can be obtained by contacting Race Coordinator, Robin Waltman, at 221-6162. FULL STORY