Thomas G. Fern to Serve as State Director for Rural Development in Kentucky

LEXINGTON, Ky., Dec. 1, 2009– The Obama Administration has announced that Thomas G. Fern will return to the position of Kentucky State Director for Rural Development at the USDA. Fern previously served as State Director from 1993-2001.

“Thomas Fern will be an important advocate on behalf of rural communities throughout the state and will help administer the valuable programs and services provided by USDA that enhance the economic success of Kentucky’s residents and communities,” Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said.

Fern began his career in USDA more than four decades ago, after graduating from Morehead State University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in General Agriculture, Economics and Sociology.

“I grew up in a rural community and I’m personally familiar with the needs of rural Kentuckians,” said Fern. “To have the opportunity to return as state director for an agency that has so many programs structured for enhancing their quality of life is an honor.”

Fern joined USDA in 1965 and worked his way up the ranks, starting out as an Agriculture Management Specialist, County Supervisor, in Vanceburg. He held this position until he was promoted to District Director of the Farmers Home Administration in Morehead in 1978. He remained there until his first appointment as State Director during the Clinton Administration. Fern also served as the director of advertising and marketing for the Kentucky Tourism Development Cabinet, Department of Parks, from 2001-2003.

Full details are in the Gazette print edition

PFC Hurst

PFC Dustin Lee Hurst, 21, passed away Sunday evening. PFC Hurst was a member of the 299^th Chemical Co., Army National Guard, Maysville, Ky. He was born in Morehead on May 25, 1988. His parents are Jimmy Hurst, Hillsboro, and Ruby Rigdon Applegate of Tollesboro.

PFC Rigdon is survived by one son, Justin Lee Hurst of Hillsboro; one stepdaughter, Kaylee Tackett; three sisters, Amanda (Josh) Wilson, Tollesboro, Natasha Applegate, Ewing, and Rachel Applegate, Ewing; and by three brothers, Timothy Forest Hurst, Hillsboro, Christopher (Kim) Hurst, Flemingsburg, and Billy Hamilton, Tollesboro.

He is also survived by maternal grandparents Lonnie and Bonnie Rigdon, Hillsboro, and paternal grandmother Clara Black, Hillsboro.

Funeral services will be 11 A.M. Friday, Dec. 11, at the Boone-Nickell Funeral Home with Rev. Harley Sexton officiating. Burial will be in the Rigdon Christian Cemetery with full military honors.

Visitation at Boone-Nickell Funeral Home after 6 P.M. on Thursday.

State highway crews ready for snow season!

Priority routes established

FLEMINGSBURG, Ky. – Winter’s officially here, at least for the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet’s Department of Highways District 9!

Highway crews logged their first miles Dec. 5-7 on snow-covered roadways, treating them with nearly 400 tons of salt to clear lanes.

Throughout the Transportation Cabinet’s “snow season,” typically November to March, district highway crews remain at the ready – prepared to keep about 2,000 miles of state roads in Bath, Boyd, Carter, Elliott, Fleming, Greenup, Lewis, Mason, Nicholas and Rowan counties passable during inclement weather.

To accomplish that mission, crews plow and treat roads using a priority system based on the amount and nature of traffic within each individual county. Priority A routes include major through routes and are those most heavily traveled. Priority B routes include other important, but lesser traveled, state routes. Other roads fall into Priority C.

While it’s the Transportation Cabinet’s goal to treat all routes within eight hours of a routine winter storm event, higher priority routes are treated within a one- to four-hour turnaround time.

In Fleming County, Priority A routes include US 68, KY 11, KY 32 east of Elizaville, KY 32X (Flemingsburg Bypass) and KY 165. Priority B routes are KY 32, KY 57, KY 170, KY 111, KY 559, and portions of KY 344 and KY 158. Other routes are Priority C.

“The Transportation Cabinet recognizes how important roadway conditions are to Kentucky motorists,” said Randy Stull, Project Delivery and Preservation Branch I manager. “During a winter storm, our highway crews often spend long hours away from home to keep roadways clear and safe for the traveling public. We appreciate their service.”

More detailed information about the Department of Highways’ snow and ice response plans, including maps of priority routes in each county, is available on District 9’s web site at www.transportation.ky.gov/d9/ by clicking the “District Snow Operations!” link.

Throughout “snow season,” Transportation Cabinet response teams serve weekly on-call rotations. The teams monitor weather reports when snow is in the forecast and determine when to activate the cabinet’s arsenal of snow and ice equipment across the state, including more than 1,000 snow plows.

In District 9, more than 100 crew members operating 75 snow plows – plus 10 contract plows and crews – are involved with snow removal operations. And, approximately 23,180 tons of salt are currently stockpiled to battle winter precipitation. Crews work around the clock until storms pass to keep roadways in the best possible condition.

Motorists are reminded to give a wide berth to plows, salt trucks and other snow-clearing heavy equipment. To be effective in dispersing de-icing material, trucks tend to travel at a slower speed. Also, snow plows may create a snow cloud which can cause a white out or zero visibility condition, so keep a safe distance away from the trucks.