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SERVING TIPTON COUNTY SINCE 1886 | COVINGTONLEADER.COM | VOL. 124, NO. 36 | THURSDAY, JULY 8, 2010
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Fossil found in Brighton backyard may rewrite modern science books
Couple inundated with global media attention By ECHO DAY eday@covingtonleader.com BRIGHTON – All Jim Leyden wanted was a swimming pool, but he ended up with the world in his backyard. Last week, while digging a drain line, an unusual discovery was made by subcontractors. Leyden was at work when he received the phone call. “My wife (Deanne) thought they were kidding her,” said Leyden, a sailor stationed at NSA Millington. “They were taking pictures … she was surprised to see this huge tooth.” The large molar – and the jaw it was once attached to – is believed to belong to a prehistoric mammal called a trilophodon and its discovery by Advanced Pools contractors has created a worldwide media buzz. Scientists believe trilophodons, a close relative to mastadons and predecessor to the modern elephant, lived in North America approximately 10 million years ago. The species is believed to have migrated to Asia, Europe and Africa after a drop in sea level during the Tortonian epoch. A swamp-feeding animal, the trilophodon had a long, pointed chin, short trunk and four tusks – two short tusks on the bottom and two larger tusks from the skull that curved downwards and were covered in enamel. Memphis Pink Palace Conservator Roy Young believes the fossils found last Tuesday belonged to an adult standing 7-8 feet tall, 12-15 feet long and weighing up to two tons. The wishbone-shaped jaw is two feet long and 18 inches wide; one large tooth, measur-
Left, Jim and Deanne Leyden hold one of the fossils found in their backyard during a pool dig. They plan to donate all of the artifacts to the Pink Palace Museum. Top right is a three-dimensional artistʼs creation of a trilophodon, the animal whose prehistoric teeth and jaw were found in the backyard of Jim and Deanne Leydenʼs Tanner Lane home in Brighton. The location of the fossils casts doubts about the animalʼs estimated date of extinction. Above is a closeup of the animalʼs molar which was dislodged from the jaw of trilophodon during the dig. The couple was scheduled to appear on FOX & Friends today. Media attention has been swirling around the Leydens since last weekʼs discovery. Photos by Echo Day
SEE FOSSILS, PAGE A3
Hydratrek offers search, rescue along Gulf Coast By TIFFANY HOLLAND tholland@covingtonleader.com
GULF OF MEXICO – As the oil spill disaster in the Gulf Coast rages on, one Covington company is providing aid in a very unique way. Hydratrek Inc. is a local business that builds hydratrek machines - amphibious machine that provides seamless transition from land to water. They are a sister company of Rose Construction and located at 240 Industrial Road.It is the only Hydratrek company in the world. With the ability of the machines to travel the land and water, they provide an exclusive way to navigate over many difficult terrains. There are currently eight hydratreks deployed in Theodore, Ala., Gulfport, Miss. and Venice, La. They are being used to navigate the beaches and coastal marshes for search and rescue. They assist in finding tar balls, rescuing endangered mammals and containing spots of oil. The hydratreks are amphibious vehicles that will allow them to travel in waters too deep for a truck and too shallow for a boat. They have become a vital part of the relief efforts in the oil spill. Online sources and media outlets cite that the spill followed a blowout
Phone calls alert Munford residents By ECHO DAY eday@covingtonleader.com
Above, Hydratrek offers its amphibious vehicles for use during search and rescue efforts in the Gulf of Mexico following the BP oil spill. Courtesy photo
that caused an explosion on the Deepwater Horizon offshore drilling rig, which then sank off the coast of Louisiana. The oil spill covers a surface area of at least 2,500 square miles according to estimates reported on May 3 by CNBC. The oil spill, originating from a deepwater oil well 5,000 feet below sea level, is discharging an estimated 5–25 thousand barrels of crude oil daily. The spill is expected to eclipse the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill as the worst US oil disaster in history, according to several sources. Experts fear that it will
result in an environmental disaster as the oil from the well site reaches the Gulf coast, damaging the Gulf of Mexico fishing industry, tourism industry, and habitat of hundreds of bird species. With the oil creeping on to the Gulf Coast shore, the hydratreks are being used to decrease the damage. The sales and marketing manager at Hydratrek, Craig Simonton, was present when the hyrdratreks were leased out. In April, he and Karen Coons at Rose Construction attended a trade shows in New Orleans and in
Hattiesburg where they held demonstrations of the hydratrek machines. After seeing this, several people involved in rescue efforts to use the machines for missions. “We are really glad to help with the oil spill,” said Simonton. “Even though Tennessee isn’t involved this has a huge impact on our country and a lot of people here travel down there. I am just glad we have a piece of equipment that can help.” Hydratrek was launched in 2008 and now has 25 machines built this year alone. They range from $60,000 - $90,000 and are SEE GULF, PAGE A3
MUNFORD – Just after midnight thousands of Munford residents received phone calls while first responders dutifully searched for a missing teenager. The calls were part of the Amber Alert system and a mass-dial made sure more than 64 percent of residences were aware of the search effort. “We’ve used it in the past, but always during waking hours,” said Munford Police Chief Jim Harger. “Some people were inconvenienced by it, but we’ve also received a lot of compliments.” According to police reports, a 13-year-old was reported missing from his home in the area of Dacus and Vermont, near Centennial Park, at 10:25 p.m. The child had last been seen at 9:15 p.m. A search of the house and a half-mile radius was conducted by officers and an Amber Alert was sent out at 10:46 p.m., resulting in phone calls to those residents within the search area. By 12:30 a.m. the search effort had increased. The police department was joined by firefighters and search dog teams and the search radius expanded. The expansion of the search area meant more phone calls by the Amber Alert system. A total of 3,731 residences were called. Just before 1 a.m., the teen was found hiding behind a trashcan, wet and shivering, next to a shed in a yard. He was returned to his mother. Some residents expressed a feeling of inconvenience, said city officials, but there have also been compliments. “We’re pleased to have this tool available for locating lost children and it’s certainly a good thing no matter what time of day it’s used,” said mayor Dwayne Cole. “It’s not meant as an inconvenience, but a tool to find lost and abducted children.”
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