Mayor Battle's Protest Response + Huntsville COVID-19 Concerns

Happy Saturday, Huntsville! Here's everything you need to know to get this day started off right. Here's everything going on today in town. In today's Daily, we'll take a look at Mayor Battle's office's response to last summer's protest report, COVID-19 concerns in North Alabama, and what you can do this weekend!

First, today's weather:
Saturday is going to be sunny skies with a high of 83 and a low of 59. Sunday will continue with the mostly clear, sunny skies and have a high of 87 and a low of 65.

Here are the top stories in Huntsville today:

1. Mayor Battle’s office has responded for the first time to the report on the police in last summer’s protests. The response included five points of action to move forward including police and event organizers working closer in advance and a “memorandum of understanding” with Madison law enforcement agencies for cases of multi-agency events. (AL.com)
2. WAAY 31 has announced a call-in event July 8 that will feature a team of doctors. The team will be able to answer your questions regarding the COVID-19 vaccine starting at about 4 p.m. (WAAY)
3. The Huntsville Area Crime Stoppers 20th annual auction has ended and successfully raised over $15,000. The biggest hit was a 2005 Ford Taurus donated by the city that raised over $1200. (WAFF)
4. If you’ve noticed a shortage in your favorite fireworks getting into the holiday weekend, you aren’t alone. Between shipping and unloading delays, fireworks are in short supply right now. Gray Fireworks in Madison was one stand that stocked up last year after the shortages at the height of the pandemic, but you’re still likely to see some of your favorites out of stock this year. (WAAY)
5. With numbers for the Delta variant of COVID-19 growing in North Alabama, hospitals are on edge and expect that they will see a concerning number of patients since only 33% of Alabama is vaccinated. The big difference between this summer and last summer is that the patients are turning out to be predominantly younger unvaccinated individuals. Madison County is currently labeled very high-risk. (WAAY)

Today in Huntsville

• Spirit of America Family Fun Festival (10 a.m.)
• Fourth of July Weekend @ MidCity (11 a.m.)
• Fourth of July Fireworks Spectacular @ Toyota Field (5 p.m.)
• Star Spangled Celebration in Madison @ Dublin Park (5 p.m.)

Huntsville Patch Notebook

• Don’t forget it is illegal to buy, sell, or possess fireworks within city limits as you get ready for the Fourth this weekend! (Details)
• Huntsville Hospital CEO David Spillers retired this week. (Details)
• The Huntsville Ballet Company has announced that they expect to have a full season for 2021-2022 with four performances! (Details)
• Downtown Huntsville Inc. is gearing up for a weekend of both food trailers and the Friday Night Art Walk next weekend! (Details)
• Be ready for police checkpoints this weekend! (Details)

Now you're in the loop and ready to start this Saturday. I'll see you soon! If you're feeling these newsletters, consider inviting some of your friends and neighbors to read along. I'll see you back here Tuesday morning!

— Amy Young

Have a news tip or suggestion for an upcoming Huntsville Daily? Email all inquiries to me at huntsville@patch.com.