Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, September 13, 1993 TAG: 9309130023
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Ray Reed
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
A: Most cities prohibit the firing of guns, so you can't legally shoot these critters that have chosen to live among us because we took over their territory.
Two avenues are legal: fumigation and trapping.
This advice was provided by John Vest, Virginia Tech extension agent for Roanoke County:
To fumigate, make sure the groundhog is in the hole. The burrow averages 14 feet of tunnel with at least two separate openings, so you'll have to plug all but one. Big chunks of overturned sod work best.
For the gas, use a hose from the engine exhaust of a vehicle for five minutes, or use U.S. Fish & Wildlife gas cartridges from a farm-supply store ($10). These produce sulfur dioxide or carbon dioxide gases and give a lot of smoke, which helps identify all the burrow exits that need to be plugged.
To trap, use cage-type live traps, size 1 1/2 or 2. Avoid steel traps, which can harm pets and children. Bait the traps with fresh produce. Corn, sweet potatoes or apples work well.
Place the trap in front of the burrow where the animal cannot retreat back into the hole.
Immediately after you've been successful, plug all entrances with rocks and maybe a little concrete, and cover with sod. Otherwise, another groundhog will see the vacancy signs and move in.
Windshields beware
Q: Recently I was traveling on Interstate 81 behind a large truck hauling crushed stone, which was bouncing off on the road or on cars. There was a sign on the truck that said, "Stay back 200 feet. Not responsible for windshields." Is the sign itself sufficient to relieve the hauling company of responsibility? D.S., Roanoke
A: Probably not - if the matter ever got to court.
A local quarrying business and an insurance-company spokesperson both said cracked windshields usually are paid for - or partly, anyway - by the car owner's comprehensive insurance coverage. The issue's too small to litigate unless serious loss or injuries occur.
On the other hand, the law requires haulers to cover loads like this with a tarp, and the quarrying company said state police enforce that pretty rigorously.
Winning a claim like this in court wouldn't be easy. Picture the luckless driver on the witness stand being asked this question by an insurance-company lawyer:
"Now, about this stone that cracked your windshield. Did you actually see the stone leave the truck bed before it hit you? Or could it have been thrown up from the road by the truck's tires?"
If the stone could possibly have come from anywhere other than the truck's load, the trucking company probably wouldn't be held liable.
But the decision would have little or nothing to do with the sign. The ruling would be based on proof, or lack of it. A Roanoke lawyer and the insurance company spokesperson agreed the sign has practically no effect on liability.
Got a question about something that might affect other people too? Something you've come across and wondered about? Give us a call at 981-3118. Maybe we can find the answer.
by CNB