It's Night Side with Dan Ray. I'm Boston Radio.
Thanks very much, Nicole.
Hope you have a very happy and enjoyable weekend and the weather holds for everybody here in New England.
My name is Dan Ray.
I am the host of Night Sign and here every weeknight, Monday through Friday from eight until midnight, and we will take you all the way till Saturday morning. If you stay with us now, if you're in the car headed west or north or south, just keep it tuned to ten thirty and your AM dial and we'll provide you with good information and hopefully some entertaining conversation as the evening goes on.
Of course, that's going to.
Depend very very large part if the topics that I've picked click with the listeners, and if the listeners turned themselves into callers. That's the magic of talk radio, and we try to think that most nights. We get pretty magical here, simple as that. So Rob Brooks is back in the control room tonight. He'll be taking your phone calls beginning, but not before not a call.
Now.
We have four really interesting guests this hour, so sit back and relax and enjoy the first of our very interesting guests doctor Michael Barnett. He's an associate professor in the Department of Health Policy and Management at the Harvard th Chance School of Public Health. And we're going to look at the whole question about why is so hard these days to get a doctor's appointment or to actually become a patient of a doctor. Getting a new PCP is not as easy as it once was. Doctor Michael Barnett,
Welcome to Nightside. How are you to this evening, sir.
I'm Jim Great, thanks for having me.
I gotta tell you I was looking for a primary care physician a few years ago, and after having had a great primary care physician for many years, doctor Allan Cole out in Natick. He literally take care of me for thirty five or forty years.
It was tough. What's going on here?
I mean, you know, if I thought to myself, I was in a third world country for a few weeks I wanted I called a couple of doctor's offices, said well, we can get you an interview to be considered as a patient, you know, three or four months from now.
Wow, I haven't heard of interview since like apply.
To be a patient.
But yes, yeah, I mean it's really tough.
Exactly what it was. I never I never said that's crazy.
Yeah, well, you know it is. It is really hard, and you know, I think you can kind of go back to just you know, basic the basic economics of supply and demand. You know, I think, you know, especially post pandemic, we're in a world where they're just growing patient demand. People are older, they're on more medications, they see other doctors, there's more stuff to do, and the primary care supply just hasn't caught up. You know, we don't. We don't. We don't make enough doctors. We don't have
enough time for patients. You know, in our system right now, there's no well one thing.
We have a plethora of our lawyers. But I believe that the AMA has some pretty struck strict standards for getting medical schools up and running. There are some offshore medical schools are which are really good medical schools. There are a lot of smart young men and women graduating from college who would like to become doctors, and they have to go to an offshore medical school.
Am I right or wrong on that? Doctor?
There are a lot of offshore medical schools. I mean, I think another another source of doctors that doesn't receive a whole lot of attention, but it's pretty important. Or also doctors from other countries. You know, there are lots of doctors, say from Europe or India that wants to come to the US, and many of them do end up practicing here, but it's a very, very long road. These are people who are already established physicians in their
own home country. But it is true that we have a lot more demand also for medical schoo but that does if we're talking about primary care, that does kind of look past the facts that you know of people who graduate medical school. Not a lot of people want to go into primary care right now.
Well, well, here's my If I'm wrong here, please tell me. But I was told a long time ago that the American Medical Association is involved in the licensing of medical schools and that they have been pretty reluctant to open up. It's very difficult to get into medical schools because, for example, at UMass out in Worcester is only I have to leave one hundred and twenty seats for the first year medical students.
I think that numbers on the money, Am I correct?
That sounds that right?
Okay, so it seems to me that we have plenty of academic space and we turn out, you know, anthropology majors and you know, well a lot of majors, which maybe a wonderful majors, but we must have seen the baby boom coming. What I'm trying to understand is is why has this pipeline not produced the adequate number of doctors this We're not a third world country. And I guess that's my frustration. And if I'm sounding frustrated, it's only because I've experienced it.
Well, I mean I think, you know, I totally understand your frustration. I mean, I hear it from my patients who are also struggling to get appointments for their family members and they beg me to, you know, get them appointments. I totally get it. Yeah, the you know, the growth in I mean basically the growth and physicians in this
country hasn't really kept up with population growth. And also another thing that we found in our research is that over the past you know, you know, two or three decades, physicians are also working fewer hours than they used to, probably because the job is really hard and so per physician, we also get fewer hours from them. Than we used to,
and so you know, that creates an increasing gap. And you know, you pointed out the baby boomer generation is kind of you know, they're getting to an age where they have an increasing number of medical issues that have to be dealt with, and that creates a lot more demand. One thing I do want to add here is that mds are not meeting demand, but one group that is rising really really quickly as nurse practitioners and physician assistants
to a lower extent. And so, you know, one thing that we're seeing a lot of is that a lot of health systems and offices are hiring nurse practitioners like gangbusters, and there's the growth in that profession has just been like double digits for years, I think because it's a huge market to fill.
Well, I understand that, but I guess what I guess what my frustration is is that and I've had I've dealt with physic PA's physicians assistance nurse practitioners, and frankly, there are nurses who sometimes have a better bedside manner than some doctors. Maybe, so that's wonderful. But I had a conversation within the last hour with a former nurse
who is dealing with a serious medical matter. Very bright woman at a big teaching institution here in Boston, someone that everyone knows, and she has been bounced around for months months, and she is someone who knows what the proper medical care is.
I think that I think we got a huge.
Problem coming up here. And I'm going to ask that question again. Am I correct when I say that the American Medical Association is involved in the licensing the number of medical schools in this country? Because I had been told that and I don't want to spread an accurate information.
Do they have some input in who would way or medical schools open up?
So I'll have to confess I don't know. I don't know the exact like policy pathway where people uh, you know, for approving new medical schools. I think the key organization here, which you know might as well be the am for probably a lot of people, is called the American Association
of Medical Colleges or double or double AMC. And I think though that one of the biggest bottlenecks is not so much that there are a lot of places clamoring to build medical schools and being denied, but rather it's like a really expensive complicated proposition to start a new medical school. It's way more profitable to do something else.
You know, if with the amount of energy and resources the health system could put into building a medical school, you know, they could build a new cardiology building, or you know, expand their on collogey practice or do something. And so I think also, it's just it's very expensive, and training doctors is expensive.
Well, I think we've identified some of the problems.
I'm not sure that we've been able to figure out the solutions, but I would think that well, I would think that some bright minds in the medical field could could address this. We can't turn this ship around overnight,
but for future generations we better. We better do a better job of turning out people and not necessarily sending qualified students out of some of the best colleges and universities in this country to to offshore facilities and places like Granada and and Caribbean islands to go to medical schools. And they come back and they're great doctors. But it's being done. It's being done offshore. I'm sorry to be so frustrated, but I don't.
Often Okay, I get it, I get it, and you know, I just I just also want to point out, you know, like the people who go to the offshore medical schools, you know, when they come back, we also need them to want to be primary care doctors, if you know, if you know, if we're seeing kind of seeing that as the key bottleneck because a lot of people don't want to go into primary care. So you know, it's it's not you know, I'll give you I'll give you
a quick example, right. I think there's a lot of there's a lot of you know, hype and celebration around n YU made their medical school free for students, like several years ago, who think is before the pandemic, and everybody was all excited about it, and they're like, oh, we're going to do this because we don't want tuition
to affect which specialty medical students choose. Well, it's several years later, their medical students have I'm sure enjoyed free tuition and they're not treating any more primary care doctors. It's it's no different than it was before.
Uh.
Well, to do that, you could you could execute a contract with students and if they agree to become primary care physicians or if they agreed to practice in a rural area, rural part of America who are in desperate need of PCPs UH and if they do not comply with that contract, then they could be a clawback provision to get the medical school tuition back. I I think that creative minds could come up with with a solution,
UH to the to this problem. But look, I'd love to have this conversation with you, maybe in an entire hour some night and take phone calls if you'd be willing.
I'm I promise, I mean hard time.
There's a lot if you if you think I've given your hard time tonight, I apologized that was not my intention at all, but I just I wanted to be as honest with you as I could because I think this is going to become a real crisis in this country. Maybe we need to raise and make uh make salaries for primary care physicians more attractive, more lucrative, and maybe we need to back off some of the paperwork that
we're that we're forcing doctors to comply with. So let them let the practice medicine and not just not practic as they're typing.
Yeah, well there's a lot to dig into there. Happy to talk more about it. There's you know, could definitely talk all night.
Sounds great.
Uh, Doctor Michael Barnett, I really appreciate your great sport and and I thank you for joining us tonight because I think we opened up some areas or conversation that probably people around New England and the country will be talking about this weekend.
Thank you so much. Appreciate that.
All right, thank you for having me.
I really appreciate it.
You're welcome. Good night. All right. When we come back, we're going to talk with Paula Fleming.
She's the chief spokesperson of the Better Business Bureau has been a guest in during this hour on several occasions. It's back to school time. Students are being issued school laptops, which is great, but those school laptops also prevent some some stranger danger. We'll talk to Paula with some advice for parents. Coming back on night Side.
Now, back to Dan Ray live from the Window World night Side Studios on WBZ News Radio.
Back by popular demand.
Paula Fleming, chiefs spokesperson of the Better Business Bureau.
Hi, Paula, welcome back.
How are you good evening?
Dan?
I'm well, thank you.
How are you good?
So if there are any children listening to me right now, please have them leave the room because it's back to school time and a couple of weeks kids, I remember this at that time of year when they then the days are getting shorter and uh and the shadows are you know, it's it's a tough time for kids who are enjoying the summer. But they getting back to school and now instead of like getting a box of crayons like we did and had a new notebook, they get
school laptops, which is great, which is great. However, how do you keep your kids safe, particularly young parents who who realized that the children now are going to have some laptops and open up maybe a new world to them, not necessarily a safe world.
Yeah. So it's an important subject that I'm encouraging people, you know, to have within their families. And we want people to educate and empower their children and teach them about online privacy risks and empower them to make smart choices. I can't urge this enough. Younger and younger kids are dependent upon these electronic devices but aren't really educated on
the risks that come along with them. And there are risks, and we want your listeners to be aware of those and to protect and have an open conversation about what can transpire.
How should that conversation and at what age can that conversation really start. I assume you're going to tell me probably it's never too early to start.
I will, yes, I would agree with that, it is never too early. Every household has you know, I'm myself now with a college a child. I remember saying I'm not going to allow electronics a cell phone until middle school, but for convenience purposes. You know, sometimes it was fifth grade. So it's really dependent upon when when you introduce electronics to your child, to your family members, and I think at that point, if not before, you should start those conversations.
You want to keep up with the latest as a parent, as a family on cybersecurity news and resources, and you want to maintain an ongoing dialogue with your children your family members about their online experiences. I think open communication is key. I think a lot of you know, those even for my son who's going to college, I said, oh, I set aside money for college books. But you know what, they aren't using nearly what we did when we went
to college for those hard copy books. A lot of it is online, So those conversations need to happen early, and they need to happen often.
Now, I assume every school district is a little different policy and this, well maybe there is a model policy. But at what age are students in mass it's being given laptops by the school system.
What is a great question. I mean, I can speak to my community. It's middle school, and it's provided by the school, which I have been informed it's white before they receive it, right, But that doesn't necessarily mean and they monitor it and quotes. I'm saying that to the best of their ability. But you also have to take into account with the kids have cell phones. They are
communicating right with all these new different apps. So understand the apps and apps are short for applications, which are downloaded software that operates on various devices such as smartphones. I'm referring to sometimes I get after I have conversations with you people saying I'm not sure what you were talking about.
Yeah, it's a brave new world, and it is, but but what my what my concern is, Okay, they're going to put into your child's hands a laptop. Now, some parents might say, you know, I'm not comfortable with that. But but but they they give.
It to your child, are they able to manage those laptops.
From the school system where certain web web pages are accessible and others aren't. I mean, or is it just they get a it's almost like putting a gun in the kid's hands. I hate to use that that that example, but you know, a laptop with a fifth grade and.
To the safety of that, it can be. It can be. And to my understanding that the schools are monitoring where they go and what they're doing to the best of their ability, is anything safe, I would say no. I think even you know, we've talked about this before, Dan, where people you know, allow their children in the basement that are playing you know, what they think to be in ascent games online and then before they know it,
they're talking to strangers. So I think I think the most important thing we're back to school, electronic devices are being introduced at a younger age. I feel like every year it gets younger and younger, and I think the the importance of creating accounts and websites that you know, require permissions, making sure everything is up to date, having that open conversation and understanding what your school monitors and what is allowed and not allowed on the devices is important as well.
Couldn't agree with you more, Paula, is there some information on the website that we can send parents to. Obviously your information here is really important, but I'm just wondering if there's some stuff on your website or some places that you could send parents too who maybe frightened by the conversation or just we've just had.
Of course, yes, our information on staying safe on the internet and other tips, it would be BBB dot org. It's BBB dot o RG. We have a lot of information that can help parents navigate through this time. Again, every town and city is different, every state is different. But I and I would encourage open conversations with your school system to see what is in place to protect your child and also to monitor it so they don't
get in trouble. And sometimes it's unbeknownst to them that they don't even realize that it was not allowed in the school system. So I think those open conversations are important.
And that website, which is BBB dot org obviously is an acronym for Boston Better Business Bureau, so it's three vs BBB dot org.
Like Boston, Boston Boston dot Org.
Thank great information. Thank you so much, as always, appreciate your time.
Thank you, and I don't want to scare people. I hope everyone has a fantastic back to school year. And again I appreciate your time, Thanks so much for having me.
I hope they have a couple a good couple of weeks or whatever they have left in the summer before they even think about back to school year.
Although it does still a little bit like fall in the morning already, I'm not I'm gonna tell you.
That, I know.
Thanks all right.
About a year ago, there was a huge fire in Hawaii. I think all of us remember that. And one of the central points of concern in that fire was a one hundred and fifty year old banyon tree which was in Kolua, Hawaii. It was actually, I believe, in a town called a Loan of High And we are going to talk with Kevin eckert Man, who was in charge a year ago and who we talked to about how that tree is going, and we do have some good
news on this. After that, we're going to take you into a swamp, believe it or not, literally into a swamp where they are hunting Florida pythons tonight, and we might even hear a python caught on our ear.
So stay with us is going.
To be a very interesting second half hour, just as the first half hour is interesting.
We'll be right back on Nightside.
It's Nightie with on Boston's news radio.
That's great advice, Nicole.
Now, about a year ago, and I'm not sure the exact date, but I know that my guest will know the exact date. We spoke on this program with Kevin Eckert, President and managing director of Arbor Global in Kolua, Hawaii. There was a huge, huge fire on the island of Maui, the incredible damage. I think all of us remember it. And at the center of that fire was a tree, a one d and fifty ye old Banyan tree, beautiful tree,
which was really hit by the flames. With us, now, is Kevin eckertt Kevin, I forget our first interview with you, I believe was a year ago tonight.
Yes, it's almost exactly the date. A year ago.
Yeah, it was our first interview with what was on August sixteenth, twenty twenty three. Yeah, So, first of all, how how is everyone doing in Hawaii. How has the recovery gone? And then I want to talk about the Banyan tree.
Tell us.
Where does the Maui stand, the towns that were so impacted, what's going on?
You know, thanks very much, and we really appreciate your follow up and the consideration of you and all your listeners out there to what's going on out here in our little islands. But I mean it's still tough. This was devastating, and the fact that we're isolated out twenty three hundred miles from any other land trying to get the logistics together as difficult. So we're moving forward, but not nearly as far along as we'd like to be.
I mean, there's still everyone's pretty much homeless, and we're still in cleanup mode, not so much restoration yet.
Where are people staying at all of that?
I mean, it's it's tough ies exactly. I mean, there's still a lot of places they're putting them up in various homes. People have still taken people in on long term some of the hotels and whatnot, but a number of people have had to lead, you know, go to the mainland for friends and relatives, and they're leaving the islands because of the uncertainty.
How is the Banyan try going on? I don't know why that became such a symbol, but it did.
It sure did. Quite frankly, it surprised us a bit. It's a very historic tree planted in nearly eighteen hundreds, over one hundred and fifty years old, and it really has symbolized the spirit of the of a recovery. In other words, I when we look at it and say, if this tree can make it, we can all lahin it can make it. I mean a lot of people in Hawaii, especially now, we grew up with that tree. You know, they took their childhood visits and whatnot. So
it is quite the emblement. It's really important for us to get it back up to speed.
So you know, from the point of view, how long is it going to take? First of all, do we know that a year out will the tree eventually recovered? Do we know that at this point or is that still an open question.
It's very much like someone on intensive care. I mean, we're optimistic. The tree is green, it's put out a lot of leaves, but it was a big tree. There's a number of initiatives that we've taken working with that. Pikus has some special characteristics that we're using that have proven successful and areas with Ficus, so we're working on it. There's a lot of green, but we have some concerns. Like any thick patient, it's contracted a couple of secondary infections.
But we're optimistic we will be able to recover that tree, maybe not in its present form, but we're taking cuttings and we're cautiously optimistic that we back but it's going to be a lot of years.
When you say a lot of years, don't mean to pin you down, Kevin.
Are we talking at least a decade before we'll know if the patient is going to make it.
Well. So I think the patient will make it longer term there, but what we're doing is cuttings. We'll clone it. So we've had to remove about thirty or forty percent of the tree that has died that has died back, but it's it's almost a two acre sized tree with a lot of trunks yep. So we're going to work on replacing those with clones. Cuttings were taken off the
parent tree. Those ree sprouts. We're also working at putting down the air roots, recovering those and building the crown on the currently the current tree that's got leaves on it now. So one way or another, we're keeping our fingers crossed. It's going to be before the tree the whole area is back to its form. We're looking at more than a decade.
Who what what a job? What a task? And this tree is priceless. But what do you think the cost so far have been? You know, if they had said, look the trees are gone and they took it down, obviously, but what has what has has been spent on making sure that this tree survives? How?
How you know? What are we talking hundreds of thousands of dollars?
That's a great question. You know. The challenge is there's been so much donation from contractors that we're working on rec out managing the site. Goodfellow Brothers, for example, gave us the water no charge. The state, the government agents have been doing a lot of arborous like myself. All the time has been donated. So I would have to speculate at best, and that'd be hard with all the volunteers. I mean, I'll take a wild guess and say probably if if they were paying for this, it'd be one
hundred grand at least at this stage. Wow.
And then how weird is this tree? Was it just its location and the damage that this tree absorbed from the fire. Are there banyon trees across the islands of Hawaii or is this a one and a one of a kind?
That's a great question, And really I got to say, first of all, it's a historic banion. It is the largest banyon in the United States, almost two acres in coverage before the fire. The other thing, maybe more importantly, is the cultural connection with the people. Again, a lot of residents grew up with this tree, you know Native Hawaiians, and that this is the tree when they gat their first grade vacations or holidays with the schools and whatnot,
they climbed this tree. They just knew this tree. And the devastation was so horrific in Lahina, and this tree was still standing even that it was browned out pretty good. I think people grab that they're looking for something to grab onto, and I have to think that that's something that they're looking to grab on to. We've got to bring this tree back. This is our you know, our symbol, if you will, our inspiration.
So it's cultural, it's symbolic, h and it is it's something that people so identify with. Look, is there a way in which my listeners can help support?
Is there a fund out there? What?
What can we do other other than prey and root for you? There anything tangible that we can do to help you?
Oh? Wow, No, I appreciate that. I mean there is some funding. We're very cautious right now on what we do because again, it's like a patient. We're working on slowly and monitoring. We don't have anything direct we're doing except the small things we're doing. But there are some funds to support Maui. Okay that the the Maui County is doing and that's probably the best place that that people can support and provide, you know, any any resources that they wish to.
So I'll bet you think that if that if people were, for example, just to google Maui Recovery, Uh, they would be directed to a bunch of websites that they might want to be able to support.
Perfect.
Yes, Kevin, maybe a year from now we'll have another update if there's any sort of a breakthrough. Uh. That Banyan Tree has a lot of fans here on Night side in New England and around the around the continental of the United States, so don't hesitate to reach back out to us. You're a great interview, it's a great subject. So happy that such great progress has already been made.
Yeah, absolutely, and we really appreciate your consideration and interest that I look forward to talking to you in a year and get be even a brighter outlook.
If not before, well, if I ever get back to Hawaiian, we'll look you up. I was there about five or six years ago, and it is just an amazing, amazing place and I'm absolutely I was in some of the places with the fire, you know, really, yeah, so devastating.
And I'm not Hawaiian.
I've only spent a week or so there, but I'll tell you it was just one of the most amazing parts of the United States that.
I've ever Exactly, you don't have to be Hawaiian to feel the harder the people there and especially seeing that. So I appreciate that and absolutely look me up if you if you get out the next time, I sure will.
Kevin Eckert, thank you so much for taking your time a second time, and we will hopefully talk again, and we'll even have better news, but the news this year was pretty positive. So thanks so much for your time.
Thank you great, thank you, Aloha aloha.
So when we get back, we're going to go from Hawaii to Florida and we're going to take you on an expedition which is underway right now. We're going to take you into the swamps of Florida where a group are actually, believe it or not, hunting brimese pythons right now. We will you will not believe this next interview coming up live on Nightside.
Now back to Dan ray Live from the Window World Nightside Studios on WBZ News Radio.
Well, I don't know how you spending your Friday night.
I'm doing my talk show here and many of you probably are sitting at home with the Red Sox game turned down there winning eight.
To four, interesting game down in.
Baltimore, and maybe many of you are driving anywhere in the United States and picking us up on the iHeart app r on wb BZ over the year. However, we're about to talk with a gentleman named Tom Rayhill. He's the found of a group called Swamp Apes dedicated to serving veterans to serving the wilderness. They are currently on a hunt for the invasive Brumese python. Where exactly do we find you tonight?
Tom, Hey, Dan, thanks for having me on.
I'm out in the Everglades, about ten miles west of any normal roadway.
Wow, how do you get it? You go up by boat?
I assume, well, we go out by boat, we go out by truck, we go out by even bicycle, And in some cases we've had off road wheelchairs with veterans that are otherwise able python hunting from the wheelchairs.
It's been an awesome experience.
Wow.
Now, I got to tell you, there's a lot of things I'd like to do in my life, but python hunting has never been sort of at the top of that bucket list. Tell us what you guys are doing right now and give us a description your eyes and ears on the ground. What's it like? Do you have mosquitos everywhere? Is it one hundred degrees? A week ago tonight I was in in Italy and was about one hundred degrees. I'm back here tonight in a nice, cool studio back in Massachusetts.
Set the scene for us if you would.
Tom, Yeah, it's actually the road has about one foot of snow on it and it's sweeting.
No, I'll just kidding.
Yeah, is it drifting a little bit?
Yeah, drifting a little bit. Man, it's eighty two degrees and definitely mosquitos are out. But if you get out in the Everglades, you're going to be used to the mosquitos. It's part and parcel of a healthy ecosystem. And we're driving in a truck that is a four x four six inch lifted painted in rhinoliner bedliner with led light bars on the top. I've got two veterans with me and a member of the swamp based organization that are all participating in the Florida Python Challenge twenty twenty four.
So the goal of the Florida Python Challenge twenty twenty four is to find some pipe thoughts.
That's dangerous work, is it not?
Well, it can be. You know. You need to know your environment, you know, and the more experience you are as a woods person than the safer you're going to be. But even when you're as safe as possible, things are going to happen. I had a member that was invenomated by a cotton mouth back in January, and he survived and thrived. In fact, I had him down two weeks ago and he caught three pythons with me. So there are there are inherent dangers, but you know, life is
short man. You're born, What are you going to do? You're living? What are you doing?
You die?
What did you do? And for me to be able to be out here in the wilderness helping the wilderness hunting pythons while taking veterans and helping them overcome challenges from their service is an awesome experience.
It's a win win all the way around.
An awesome experience, and it's also a great contribution to their lives. You've been interrupted by military service and in many cases obviously some pretty serious damage.
What sort of protective gear do you wear out there?
I mean, I got to assume you're not hunting them with bare hands.
I hope nah, you would like my look man.
I'm of Irish mainly and some German and Dutch descent, and I celebrate that because it gives me the fierceness to be able to channel my energy and issues that I may have into the difficulties of being out there. Consequently, I dress in a way that's appropriate for where we're going. I wear sixteen inch snakeproof snake boots, and for anyone that's ever worn them, As the old saying goes, once you go snake boot, you never go back, because they
are really great, great shoes out here. I usually wear a thicker pant even in the heat, because there's a study done that shows that venomous snakes that bite through thick material and venomate the least, so I like that extra protection. I'll have a big belt buckle, country belt buckle. We were gifted with some patches, and we wear swamp baped shirts that celebrate our organization. I wear a safety vest so that when we're out there, law enforcement knows
who we are. I wear a big fedora cowboy hat kind of swamp hat. I kind of consider it to be an everglade hard hat. It keeps the sun off, keeps the rain off, and sure being the leader of the pack, I forced myself through when we go off road through some real dense jungle, and it helps my hard Irish skull be protected somewhat from the from pushing through.
So how many pythons do you think you will encounter and or capture this weekend?
It's really not ideal conditions, you know, like anything else, it has to be right, you know, the temperature, the humidity. And there's actually been less captured so far this year than in years past, and I think it's a consequence of just the weather. So far, a group has captured two. One veteran has captured a six and a half seven footer,
and then I got a wee little hatchling. That was probably the most fearsome reality so far in this hunt because where I got it is in an area that we haven't seen many pythons, and it's in a natural area where just recently I've seen cottontail rabbits, marsh rabbits, raccoons, tossam,
a gray fox, multiple beer ground birds. So when you see a hatchling python, it's scary because that means that you have a successful breeding pair out there, and now that that population is going to be under threat from the moving and now established pythons that are going to start eating. It's a scary kind of thing and we're great grateful to be able to hunt them and remove them, and it's very successful.
Shout out they do the pythons obviously, did they killed through venom or do they they're not constrictors do they swallow their prey.
Yeah, they are constrictors, actually, and they can be large. I caught a seventeen and a half foot python alone one evening in the dead of night out in the center of the state, in the Everglades, and it told me for a while out through the sawgrass and through the mud, and I wrestled this thing. And since they only have one long they bonk easier like a runner runs out of oxygen in his blood, and they get anaerobic, bla black. They builds up. The snakes have that happen too,
So if you're in relatively good shape, you can outlast them. Eventually, that snake just bumped and I was able to be in at least decent enough shape to outlast it. And
I literally walked up the back of this thing. I had it by the tail and just put one foot on the body in the mud and the water, and then put my other foot on it, and it just squorshed down in the water, hurt the snake, and I just walked up the back of this thing and kept walking, kept walking, and eventually got to the head of the snake and was able to drag it sixty feet out of the everglades onto the side of the road where I bagged it up and sent it on its way.
What what actually happened to that snake?
Are they put into some sort of captivity or are they're not let loose back into they into the swamp asome.
No, we we uh, it's it's a problem. You know, every python hunter that I've experienced come across, they really love these animals, I mean, and they have a hard time with this. But there are so many, there are tens of thousands out here, Dan, and it's weaking havoc. So they have to be humanely euthanized. It's a two step process where you where you first of all stunned them and then you have to destroy the brain as quickly as possible to end it suffering quickly.
Tom ray Hill, thank thank you so much for spending some time with us tonight.
And stay safe my friend.
Okay, and I will never be out there with you, but I admire your guts being out there.
Thanks Tom so much.
It's my pleasure, Dan. Just so that you know, in your iHeart contract, there's an addendum that says if you talk to a python hunter, you have to attend one of the Hunts. So I'm looking forward to you coming down.
Yeah, Okay, when I get there, i'll look for you. Thanks, Tom, appreciate it.
Okay, thank you, sir.
We come back.
We've got some good news and that there has been a resolution in some part to the Stewart healthcare crisis. We've talked about it all week. We'll wrap it up tonight after the nine o'clock news