When the coronavirus outbreak hit, Sarah Lang wasn’t worried about feeding her family. She worried about their 550-pound pig, Wilbur.
The pig, named after the “Charlotte’s Web” character, was won by her daughter Grace at a fair. He had grown accustomed to daily scraps of pizza, French toast and pancakes from an elementary school in Bedford, where students threw their leftovers in a bucket with the pig’s face on it.
But with the school’s closing, Lang was forced to serve grain normally reserved for the family’s goats, and Wilbur wasn’t having it. So, Lang turned to Facebook for help, prompting residents in Bedford and several nearby communities to begin dropping off their leftovers this week in a bucket for Wilbur in front of the family’s 22-acre property.
“He loves it. He is back to his old happy-go-lucky self,” said Lang, who has offered to send people photos of Wilbur eating their leftovers. “You hear so many stories in the news about people hoarding stuff and not giving. This shows that people around here are giving and are willing to help people no matter how odd the request.”
A video of Wilbur eating the pizza donated by a local shop is featured on his Facebook page.
An association representing grocery stores is opening an emergency operations center and will be issuing guidance to stores about keeping shoppers and workers safe.
Stores will be encouraged to limit traffic to 50% of their building’s capacity, mark floors to keep people a part from each other at checkout lines, create one-way aisles to allow for greater distance between shoppers and install plexi-glass barriers in front of checkout workers.
State parks will remain open, but Sununu issued a challenge to residents to get their fresh air close to home. He urged residents to explore their hometowns and share photos on social media tagged #homehikechallenge.
Crowds of people, including many from out of state, at popular hiking trails raised concerns about spreading the virus.
Rye selectmen have voted to close all of the beaches in town and nearby parking areas and authorized signs to be put up throughout town to remind residents and visitors to follow “The Rye Way”, which is to stay home, wash your hands, and help others.
“We want potential visitors to Rye to stay at home for the time being so that we can get past this pandemic and open our beaches again,” said Phil Winslow, chair of the Board of Selectmen. “The sooner that people self quarantine the faster we can begin enjoying summer.”
Nearly 550 people in New Hampshire have been diagnosed with COVID-19. Seven people have died, and more than 80 have been hospitalized. The two latest deaths, which was reported Friday, were one male and one female who were over 60 years old.
For most people, the virus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia, or death.
Prison officials are seeking donations to make masks for New Hampshire inmates. The Department of Corrections said inmates have made about 600 masks for use in the prison system but have run out of polyester or polyester-cotton blend fabric and ¼-inch elastic because their manufacturers have sold out.
The popular Story Land amusement park won’t be opening on May 23 as planned. The managers of the theme park in Glen said Friday it’s too soon to say when it might open for the season.
City employees in Rochester, New Hampshire, are getting lunch or dinner from a different restaurant each day in a “Good To Go” campaign to help support the businesses during the coronavirus pandemic.
“The simple act of ordering a meal to go can make a huge difference to restaurant owners in the city while they are unable to have sit-in dining,” City Manager Blaine Cox said.
Participants in the campaign are encouraged to share photos tagged #GoodToGoRochesterNH.