Latest news with #Hyche
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
New Calera program aims to help law enforcement responses
CALERA, Ala. (WIAT) — A new program in Calera aims to help first responders provide better care for the community. The C.A.R.E. Network stands for Calera Awareness and Response for Everyone. A Calera dispatcher designed it to help give better responses to those with mental illnesses and disabilities. 'I've worked at a few different law enforcement agencies, but that's one thing I've always felt was a need was a way that we could communicate and maintain our safety and our relationships with our entire community, including our special needs community,' said Jessica Davis, the brain behind the C.A.R.E. Network. C.A.R.E. gives people in the community the ability to fill out a form for the police and fire departments letting them know of any mental illnesses or disabilities. This includes anything from Alzheimer's disease to autism spectrum disorder to Down syndrome to mobility, hearing, vision and speech impairments. By filling the application out, dispatchers can let police officers and firefighters know exactly what they'll be walking in to. 'It's went further so far than I originally anticipated it to,' Davis said. 'Within an hour and a half [on the first day], I believe, we had over 20 applicants for the program and then now, I've had a few different agencies, other law enforcement agencies, reach out to me about how we went about setting this program up and the things that we're doing now to get it out there and make sure our citizens know about it.' Parties react to Sen. Tommy Tuberville's run for governor of Alabama Calera Police Chief David Hyche was immediately on board with Davis' idea. For him, this program is personal. 'I have a special needs daughter, and I remember when she was younger, a big concern that my wife and I had was that if we had a tragic event happen at our house or in the vehicle, law enforcement or fire services might not know how to communicate with her,' Hyche said. 'She's blind and autistic, so a firefighter in their gear or a police officer, it would be unusual sounds and touch, and the feel and the sound of a firefighter in turnout gear would be like a monster to her.' Hyche said it's voluntary to fill out the C.A.R.E. Network application, and information is kept private in the system. 'The more information we can have here at the police department, the better and the safer for everyone,' he said. 'It's really used just to make it safer for both the officers as well as the families.' Hyche said he's already talked with some lawmakers and hopes to see this program go statewide. 'My daughter was a part of several different organizations, and I've been around a lot of autistic adults and children,' Hyche said. 'I could see how their misinterpretation of signals could be seen by law enforcement as aggressive or hostile, and the law enforcement officer might not know any different. These are absolutely signals that 'I am in danger,' when in reality it might just be the way that the autistic person responds to certain stimuli.' If you would like to be a part of the C.A.R.E. Network, you can fill out an application here or in person at the Calera Police Department. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
25-03-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Veterans fishing tournament in St. Stephen also served as learning tool for high school biology students
ST. STEPHEN, S.C. (WCBD) – Nearly 100 veterans spent much of the day Tuesday in St. Stephen for the 11th annual Wounded Warrior Veterans Fishing Tournament. Among those participating was retired Master Sgt. Harding Hyche, who recalled his time in the U.S. Army. 'In my career, I've been to Korea a couple of times, Germany a couple of times. I've been to Hawaii, Fort Riley a couple of times, Fort Campbell, Kentucky, and my job was food service,' he said. Hyche retired after 20 years in the Army. Today, he was one of about 84 veterans, which also included a few wounded warriors, enjoying the fishing tournament at the St. Stephen powerhouse. 'We take some of the fish samples, we get some data from them – measurements on the fish, so it's biological data we're collecting. We also partner with Timberland High School. We've got the biology students out here to help collect the fish, and they learn about why we have the fish here, why we collect the data, and how the Shad and Herring that are migrating upstream support fisheries,' said Ronnie June, natural resource manager for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. 'Essentially, we have a bunch of fish that are coming in that are caught from the veterans' fishing event that we're having today. We're getting a lot of biological information off of these fish, which helps form the management of the species. We identify the sex of the fish, we take scale samples to get the approximate age of the fish, and then we get some length characteristics of them as well,' explained Kyle Hoffman, Fish Lift Manager with the SC Department of Natural Resources. Hyche said he enjoys events like these because he can talk with the other veterans in various branches of service. His sons also attended the event. 'My sons are here. One was in the Air Force; one was in the Army. So, it was nice to have family to come out with you to enjoy yourself,' he said, adding, 'I caught a couple of catfish. I hope that one of them might be the longest fish. A couple of nice-sized catfish. I see everyone is catching fish around here, so it's nice to be out here and have fun.' The US Army Corps of Engineers holds this tournament once every spring. However, you can come and see the fish lift; it almost acts like a fish elevator out here between now and the end of April. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
18-03-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Tornado affects family-owned Calera business
CALERA, Ala. (WIAT) — Calera was hit by an EF-1 tornado Saturday, according to the National Weather Service. There were no injuries reported in the city or the county. Burton Campers off I-65, however, took a major hit. General manager Jody Garner said 65 to 75 RVs sustained damage or were destroyed. Drone video shot by Mike Bullard on Sunday shows the scope of the devastation to the RV lot from above. 'That's a travel trailer that's flipped up on top of a Seismic,' Garner explained while walking through the service lot. Garner said cleanup on the ground at Burton Campers is underway in the aftermath of the tornado, which flipped RVs over and tipped some onto each other. He said 60% of those affected by the tornado were parked here for the winter or for service. 'The worst thing about it is these people had trips and family and kids, and they were ready to go enjoy their summer,' Garner said. Garner said the business lost three sheds in the storm. It decided to close by noon Saturday and sent all its employees home. 'I'm just super excited that God blessed us all and kept us safe,' Garner said. 'This stuff can be repaired and, hopefully, the insurance is going to take care of everybody and get them in units.' It re-opened to customers by appointment only Monday. Alabama community devastated by tornado comes together like never before Employees at the National Weather Service office in Calera did not have the option of leaving work Saturday. They were standing in its severe weather shelter, something that hasn't happened since April 27, 2011. 'Emotions were very high for multiple reasons,' NWS meteorologist Tara Goggins said. 'One, you're a little nervous,' Goggins continued. ''Hey, we're about to get hit by a tornado.'' She also said it had employees in direct path that it was trying to get in touch with. Goggins said its Atlanta office briefly took over operations, and its office did not take a hit. Calera Police Chief David Hyche said police ended up putting up a family and its pets at the city's police station early Sunday morning after their home was destroyed in the tornado. He thinks this is a gap that needs to be addressed. 'In a smaller event like this where the tornado hit sporadically, and there were not huge numbers of people affected, I think we need to be conscious about taking care of those people in the first few hours after the disaster before the Red Cross and the churches can get activated and come out and provide a little more longer duration help,' Hyche said. The American Red Cross does not send out staff while there is still severe weather taking place, according to regional director of communications Annette Rowland. Hyche said they tried to make the family as comfortable as possible in the jail, where it had access to snacks and beverages, and it was not placed in the area where criminals are typically placed. Hyche said that the city's maintenance director has paid for a hotel room for the family and its pets for eight days out of his own pocket. The man who lost his home works for the city of Calera. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
10-02-2025
- Yahoo
2 charged with drug trafficking in Shelby County
CALERA, Ala. (WIAT) — Calera police announced the arrest of two Colombian citizens on drug trafficking charges Monday. Calera Police Chief David Hyche says probable cause for a search was evident after stopping a car who was traveling with no tag light. The vehicle was searched and CPD recovered 21 kilograms of cocaine. The driver and passenger, both Colombian citizens, were charged with trafficking cocaine. Anniston man arrested, facing firearm and drug charges One of the suspects was reportedly wanted in Atlanta for drug trafficking and failure to appear. 'We believe the two suspects were traveling from California to South Florida. If they chose I-65 to avoid heavy drug interdiction areas, it didn't work out for them. I could not be more proud of the officers that made this stop as well as their entire shift, our dispatchers and investigators,' said Hyche. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
