Shutdown

You're probably wondering how the government shutdown is affecting us out here.  Since this isn't an official USFWS blog and I do it on my own time, I won't go into it too much other than to say that we are officially shut down like all of the other refuges.  Since the visitor program and volunteer program were already suspended, at least we didn't have to send anyone home.  The three FWS employees on island are still working since we are responsible for the health and safety of the island population.  Our duties are somewhat limited at the moment though.  The taxiway work can still continue, since that was is a safety issue that started before the shutdown and we're still an emergency airport.

   

 We had a small going away dinner at Captain Brooks' for the crews from Northwest Demolition and Iniki Enterprises.  They are done working for this season but will be back next year to continue to remediate the lead paint on the older buildings and help to keep our wildlife healthy out here.

The barge is back again on Midway from a quick turnaround to Hawaii to pick up more materials for the taxiway upgrade.

 A batch plant has been set up on the abandoned taxiway for processing of the aggregate for resurfacing.

 There is a lot more heavy equipment than ususal.

A Masked booby is sitting on one of the range markers in the lagoon.

This is another photo of Sand Island with the "dramatic" setting on my Olympus camera.