Some areas of Duck Creek Quarry in Howard are closed off to the public to prevent the possible spread of bird flu, December 18, 2023. PC: Fox 11 Online
HOWARD, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — Duck Creek Quarry in Howard is open for the summer season; despite the death of dozens of birds at the quarry this winter.
It was about six months ago when the quarry was iced over and an outbreak of bird flu killed dozens of geese during their migration. Howard’s animal control officer says this year’s situation wasn’t as bad as years past.
According to Matt Atkinson, “We were able, through our monitoring techniques and knowledge, we were able to reduce it down to half from the year before.”
And now that it’s swimming season, officials say nothing should keep people from getting into the water. There is no concern the water is, or ever was, contaminated or at risk of putting people in danger.
“They’ve tested it. They were able to find nothing, and that is being done by a state lab specifically testing for the antigen. They found nothing in the water and routinely test the water. I don’t know what all we test for, because that’s public works, but I do know we test it very highly for water quality and stuff like that,” added Atkinson.
So far this year, the Village of Howard has handed out 1,718 wristbands to residents for swimming privileges at the quarry. Only 727 bands available have been sold to non-residents.
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