Sports • C1
Religion • B1
DEACONS BULLIED
Lean on me
MSU outlasts Wake for bowl win
Military wives turn to the Bible
Satu r day, D e c e m b e r 31, 2011 • 50¢
www.v ick sburgp ost.com
Ever y day Si nC E 1883
Gov. picks Crevitt for Port board By Danny Barrett Jr. dbarrett@vicksburgpost.com
SAM ANDREWS•The Vicksburg Post
Wild hogs are seen in bottomland just off Graveyard Road in the Vicksburg National Military Park.
Wild hogs wreaking havoc in park ‘It’s an inviting place for them’ By Danny Barrett Jr. dbarrett@vicksburgpost.com If Mike Madell had some posters handy, he’d have the ugly mugs of seven wanted feral hogs plastered all over Vicksburg National Military Park. “We’ve removed 11 so far since mid-October,” Madell said. “And we’ve just sighted the group of seven. It’s definitely a problem.” Wild hogs have made the northern third of the 1,800-acre park their rooting grounds since a mass migration of hogs, alligators, coyotes and other wildlife moved down the Mississippi River as it reached record flood marks in May, said Madell, the park’s superintendent. Dense brush between Graveyard Road and North Union Avenue has turned into a pig’s playground — earth is scoured throughout the woods, particularly around a marker for the Indiana Regiment. “For whatever reason, they like it,” Madell said. “They must have found some food there.” The park has enlisted the help of the U.S. Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service to trap and shoot the nuisance animals to head off any movement south or east where they could cross paths with joggers on the tour road. “We can’t transport them live,” said Virginia DuBowy, the park’s natural resources manager. “So, we do it in a humane way.” Wild swine weigh up to about 200 pounds and can be aggressive, usually around piglets. They may be hunted in Mississippi year-round without firearm restrictions. Concealed
ONLINE
www.vicksburgpost.com VOLUME 129 NUMBER 365 4 SECTIONS
eli baylis•The Vicksburg Post
Vicksburg National Military Park Superintendent Mike Madell, right, and Natural Resources Program Manager Virginia DuBowy inspect an area damaged by wild hogs in the park.
Online
http://www.aphis.usda.gov/ publications/wildlife_damage/content/printable_version/feral_swine.pdf weapons may be carried in the park, but must remain inside one’s vehicle, said Rick Martin, the park’s chief of operations. Visitors may be cited by rangers for hunting in the park, which can prompt an appearance before a federal magistrate, Martin said. Wild boars spotted at Riverfront Park in Vicksburg forced the city to close the park for nearly two days in the week leading up to the river’s record 57.1-foot crest May 19. No records are kept when boars are shot by agents with the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks, the agency has said. Park officials saw an initial wave of hogs as the river rose and fell slowly. Some were believed to be the last of a group that had escaped from
WEATHER Today: sunny, highs in the lower 70s Tonight: chance of rain, lows in the lower 50s Mississippi River: 37.3 feet Fell: 0.3 foot Flood stage: 43 feet
A7
DEATHS • John Wesley O’Banner • Barbara James Newsome
A7
Martin Crevitt has been appointed by Gov. Haley Barbour to the Warren County Port Commission, the local industry veteran said Friday. A letter from the governor’s office made the appointment official a week ago, Crevitt said. The governor’s office of communications could not be reached Friday, a state government holiday. Crevitt, 51, a manager at Goggin Warehousing on U.S. 61 South, is the second appointee to the industrial development management board this month. Robert Morrison III was appointed by the Warren County Board of Supervisors Dec. 19. Crevitt is a former Vicksburg Warren County Chamber of Commerce board member and has managed several hotels in Vicksburg. Morrison and Crevitt will cast their first votes when the commission meets Jan. 17. Crevitt said he expects to meet before then with executive director Wayne Mansfield, who, when reached Friday, said Crevitt is “very eager to serve.” “He’s very familiar with the community,” Mansfield said. The five-member port board, which oversees and manages development at the Port of Vicksburg and Ceres Research and Industrial Interplex off of Interstate 20 in Flowers, are appointed jointly by Warren County, the City of Vicksburg and the governor. Morrison and chairman Johnny Moss are the county’s appointees. Appointments of the city’s two commissioners, John Ferguson and Rusty Hawkins, have been tabled by the Board of Mayor and Aldermen. Crevitt replaces Mike Cappaert, appointed by former Gov. Ronnie Musgrove in January 2004 before he left office. Cappaert did not return calls Friday.
U.S. Defense Department: Rolling Fork native, sailor killed in Bahrain in July By Danny Barrett Jr. dbarrett@vicksburgpost.com
Virginia DuBowy inspects a trap baited for wild hogs. farmland near the park about two years ago, DuBowy said. “The food source for them is tremendous, with the grubs and plants,” she said. “They’ve got a lot of water and a lot of cover. It’s hard to get to — but the pigs don’t seem to have a problem with it. It’s an inviting place for them.” Extensive crossbreeding has varied the appearance of
wild boars, in terms of shape and coat color, according to a report issued by USDA in August. The agency says estimates of the U.S. feral pig population in 2010 reached 5 million over 37 states, up from 16 states in 1982. The animals cause more than $1 billion in damages to public and private property annually, the report said.
TODAY IN HISTORY 1759: Arthur Guinness opens his famous brewery at St. James’s Gate in Dublin. 1879: Thomas Edison first pub-
licly demonstrates his electric incandescent light in Menlo Park, N.J. 1946: President Harry S. Truman officially proclaims the end of hostilities in World War II. 1951: The Marshall Plan expires after distributing more than $12 billion in foreign aid.
The death in July of a sailor and Rolling Fork native in Bahrain was announced by the Department of Defense on Thursday. Petty Officer Stacy O. Johnson, 35, died July 18 in Bahrain while supporting Operation Enduring Freedom, a release from Naval Support Activity Bahrain said Thursday. Services for Johnson were Aug. 6 and he was buried at Pleasant Grove Cemetery in Issaquena County. Johnson, who lived in San Diego, attended school in Rolling Fork and was survived by his wife, Randa, of San Diego; three sons Jordy Johnson of Rolling Fork, and Demonte Fagan and Dallas Johnson, both of San Diego; and a daughter, Nashira Johnson, also of San Diego. A review of Johnson’s orders prompted the Navy to conclude he died in direct support of Operation Enduring Freedom, said Jennifer Stride, public affairs officer for the Naval Support Activity. Johnson was a master-at-arms assigned to Naval Security Force Bahrain, the release said. An announcement in July said Johnson died at Manana, the Persian Gulf island nation’s capital. DOD has identified 1,844 U.S. service members who have died as part of the Afghan war and related operations.
CONTACT US
INDEX
Call us
Business...........A6 Classifieds........C6 Comics............. D2 Puzzles..............C6 Dear Abby.......C5 Editorial............A4 People/TV........C5
Advertising....601-636-4545 Classifieds....... 601-636-SELL Circulation......601-636-4545 News................601-636-4545
E-mail us
See A2 for e-mail addresses