Cobb Burning Ban Starts May 1

From May 1 through Sept. 30, you may not burn leaves, tree limbs or other yard waste, or use air curtain destructors for land clearing.

The Georgia Department of Natural Resources has issued a ban on open burning from May 1-Sept. 30. Fifty-four counties in Georgia, including Cobb, are affected. Cobb County Fire and Emergency Services is responsible for the enforcement of this state-issued burning ban in unincorporated Cobb County and the cities of Acworth, Kennesaw and Powder Springs. From May 1 through Sept. 30, you may not burn leaves, tree limbs or other yard waste, or use air curtain destructors for land clearing.

• Photos (1)

Marietta Police to Hold Another Gun Safety Seminar

The Marietta Police Department's Firearm Safety Seminar is designed for civilians and will cover a variety of topics including: safety, laws and alternative weapon usage.

The Marietta Police Department’s Training Unit will host a Firearm Safety Seminar on Thursday, Feb. 28. This seminar is designed for civilians and will cover a variety of topics including: safety, laws and alternative weapon usage.  The seminar is free of charge.  “This program has been developed to educate the citizens on current firearm laws and weapon safety. We want to equip citizens with the knowledge and skills so they feel confident owning and handling a firearm or weapon if they choose to do so,” said Sergeant Jake King of the Marietta Police Training Unit.  The Firearm Safety Seminar will be held in the Marietta City Hall Council Chambers, located at 205 Lawrence Street in Marietta. The seminar will begin at 6:30 p.m. The …

• Photos (1)

Keep Safe This Halloween

Halloween is creeping up on us in a couple weeks, and local fire officials have tips to keep your kids safe when they go trick or treating and to keep your house safe as you decorate.

Halloween is creeping up on us in a couple weeks, and the Marietta Fire Department offers tips to keep your kids safe when they go trick or treating.

• Photos (1)

Preparing for a Disaster: 5 Things to Do, Just in Case

September is National Preparedness Month.

You've heard all the "no-duh" tips before about preparing for a disaster - keep water and non-perishable food on hand, have a flashlight with extra batteries... But this month the federal government is hoping you will get down to details to make a plan for, not the unthinkable, but the inevitable: wild fires, tornadoes, hurricanes, floods or even terrorism and pandemics. To get the word out FEMA, the Federal Emergency Management Authority, has built an extensive website to help citizens plan and prepare. Ready.gov offers instructions on how to ready your family, your home, your car and even your business for an emergency. The site includes tips specific to disasters common in your area. There are even diagrams on how to seal off your home …

• Photos (4)
• Documents (2)

Expired Heart of Romaine Salad Recalled

Fresh Express made the voluntary recall with the FDA.

Do you throw out food when its use-by date is past? If so, you have nothing to worry about with the voluntary recall of Hearts of Romaine salad distributed by Fresh Express Inc. The limited quantity of 10-ounce bags of salad have an expired use-by date of Aug. 23 and a product code beginning with "G222," according to a release by the FDA. The recall from the FDA said this is a precaution due to a possible health risk form Listeria monocytogenes. But no illnesses are reported in association with the recall and no other Fresh Express products are being recalled. However, if you still have this expired salad in your refrigerator, don't eat it, discard it. Consumers with questions may call the Fresh Express Consumer Response Center at 800-242-…

• Photos (3)

Operation Stop Arm Saves Our Children

Local moms start an initiative to protect children at bus stops.

Local parents Sheri Lewis and her neighbor Mandi Call had watched motorists pass their children’s bus on Post Oak Tritt for years. In 2009 a kindergartner at their children’s school was killed at a bus stop. “We vowed on that day that we would no longer sit by and watch motorists illegally pass school buses without trying to stop it. We would no longer take the “there is nothing we can do” answer from the police department, transportation department, and school district,” said Lewis. Operation Stop Arm (OSA) was born “to bring together the people and departments that have the power to change this behavior and help reduce the number of stop arm violations in our state,” according to Lewis. OSA wants to reduce the incidents and save children…

•  2 Comments
• Photos (5)

Mom About Town

Are Your Children and Pets Safe?

Avoid tragedy by double checking your fences.

A tragedy over the weekend prompted me to write about the necessity for yard safety. Four young children and several adults had the horror of watching one neighbor's beloved dog being ripped apart by another neighbor's pit bull.  The entire situation could have been avoided if either party had filled in a gap between their fence and the ground. It was a small space, but that doesn't matter to an animal. They can squeeze into the tiniest of holes.  This was a terrible tragedy. I feel for both families and all who had to witness it. Hopefully, this will serve to prompt action among other pet owners and non-pet owners to regularly check every inch of their fence line.  If you do not have pets, you may have children in your yard and would not …

• Photos (2)

Fire Safety for Indoor Heating

Tips for staying safe while using various indoor heating methods.

During the months of December, January and February, heating equipment is the leading cause of home fires, according to the National Fire Prevention Association. About two-thirds of home heating fire deaths are caused by portable or fixed space heaters. The Cobb County Fire Department offers the following tips for indoor heating safety during the winter: Wood burning appliances – stoves and fireplaces Do not use flammable liquids to start or accelerate a fire in a fireplace or wood stove.  Keep a glass or metal screen in front of the fireplace opening to prevent embers or sparks from escaping  A wood-burning stove should be burned hot twice a day for 15 to 30 minutes to reduce the amount of creosote buildup.  Don't use excessive amounts of…

• Photos (2)