A high price for feeding the birds
After numerous supposed warnings, a North Bergen woman received more than $4,000 worth of fines and $33 in court fees for feeding Canadian geese along the Hudson River waterfront, according to published reports.
Livia Prochnow, who unsuccessfully appealed the Edgewater court decision in state appeal court earlier this month, must pay the fines by Oct. 30, according to the published reports. The incidents occurred on May 26 and June 25 when Prochnow was seen feeding geese, according to the appeals court decision. A local resident and an Edgewater code official reported Prochnow after she was seen allegedly feeding the birds seeds. – Tricia Tirella
Menendez’s mother passes away
U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez (D-NJ’s) 90-year-old mother Evangelina Menendez passed away on Friday. She lived in Union City, where the senator was once mayor. Robert Menendez now lives in Hoboken.
According to the local daily newspaper, “Evangelina Menendez left Cuba with her late husband, Mario, in 1953. She lived in New York City for many years before coming to Union City. For several years she worked as a seamstress in the Hoboken area while raising her three children.”
A viewing was held Monday, 2 to 4 p.m. and 7 to 9 p.m., at Leber Funeral Home in Union City, 20th Street and Kennedy Blvd. The funeral was be held Tuesday at 11 a.m. at the same funeral home. She was to be buried at Weehawken Cemetery.
Meadowlands Commission partners with Liberty Science Center
The New Jersey Meadowlands Commission on Monday approved a joint project between the NJMC and Liberty Science Center designed to increase the educational programming offered by the commission through its Meadowlands Environment Center in nearby Lyndhurst.
The joint effort calls for MEC staff to work with educators at Liberty Science Center to develop additional programs focused on earth sciences and astronomy, with a special emphasis on the connectivity between the region’s two major rivers, the Hudson and the Hackensack, and their common aquatic ecosystem. The programs would complement the arts, science and environmental education programs already offered at the MEC for people of all ages.
New programming could also potentially include additional summer camp activities, programs for older adults and weekend astronomy events.
More prenatal care at Hoboken hospital
Hoboken University Medical Center planned to mark the official opening for the new and expanded Center for Maternal Fetal Medicine on Thursday, Oct. 29 at 2 p.m. Offering the best in specialized prenatal care for routine or complicated pregnancies, the Center for Maternal Fetal Medicine boasts the latest in diagnostic testing, including Hudson County’s first 4-D ultrasound.
The hospital noted: “With a team that includes New Jersey’s leading perinatologist, registered nurses and other specialists, on-site genetic counseling, expert care and a brand new treatment suite that’s more convenient and comfortable, we’re improving quality every day.”
The hospital can be reached at (201) 418-1000.
Monitoring for epidemics, terrorist gas
The New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services’ Medical Coordination Center recently gave a grant to Jersey City Medical Center’s EMS to buy computer software to monitor epidemics and terrorist situations so that first responders can take appropriate actions to help both staff and patients.
FirstWatch, a program that now rides on top of the existing Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) system, can identify potential outbreaks like the H1N1 (swine) flu or a nerve agent.
“The surveillance tool continually monitors the underlying data once certain key words are marked as triggers,” said Christopher Rinn, EMS director. “In the case of swine flu, for example, it documents cases of infection and sends notifications to handheld devices.”
FirstWatch, which appears like a dashboard on the computer screen in the hospital’s EMS dispatch center, works by scanning the real-time data streams that a fire, police or EMS department produces. This allows paramedics and EMTs to recognize patients who might be sick or contaminated.
The technology is being used by police, fire and emergency departments in about 85 metro areas across the U.S. and Canada. This marks its first use in Hudson County.