Friday was the first day of spring, and in Delaware, it was also the first day of spray flights to protect against those pesky mosquitos.

Officials from the DNREC Fish and Wildlife said that winter’s deep freeze snow and ice delayed mosquito’s hatching, but the bloodsuckers are still expected to come out in full force.

“They were just delayed in their hatching because of the cold temperatures,” said Tom Moran, of DNREC Fish and Wildlife. “But we documented the first hatching in late February, and now they’re advancing to the point that it’s the best time to treat them.

Mosquitos are not only annoying bugs that can leave scratchy bumps on people’s skin, but they are also a danger because of the diseases they carry.

“Mosquitos are not only a nuisance, but they can be dangerous too because of the diseases they carry,” said DNREC Secretary Greg Patterson.

State helicopters flew up and sprayed over pooled water in wooded areas on Friday. According to officials, this is the best place to fight skeeters now, but they will adapt their strategies as the year rolls on depending on temperatures and rainfall.

“We can look at a ten day rain forecast,” Moran said. “We can look at when the marshes are going to flood with the tide lunar cycles. It gives us a little indication.”

In Delaware, the state handles big areas and if residents call them they’ll even treat public areas near your neighborhood, but they will not take care of people’s private yards.

To keep your home safe from mosquitos, avoid keeping standing water around such as in tires, kiddie pools and gutters. Use repellent and citronella as well.

Outrage is growing after a school crossing guard was punched and knocked unconscious in front of children earlier this week in Delaware County, Pennsylvania.

Darby Borough police said the guard was chased and attacked Monday afternoon while helping students cross the street after school. A driver got out of his car and targeted her after he became angry about having to wait, officials said.

The victim worked for Safe Corridors, a volunteer-driven nonprofit founded in 2012 that provides school support and mentoring. Risa DeSilva-King, the nonprofit’s chief of operations, said Safe Corridors employs about 60 crossing guards across the city of Chester, the borough of Darby and the borough of Sharon Hill.

DeSilva-King said the victim is traumatized and has resigned because she no longer feels safe.

“This is the first time we’ve had a crossing guard intentionally assaulted by a member of the community,” DeSilva-King said. “We were completely shocked, disgusted and dismayed.”

Now, the person stepping into that role said the job feels more dangerous than ever.

“I gotta be visual,” Larry Cottrell, the new crossing guard at the intersection, said. “I gotta constantly look around, my surroundings.”

He’s now working at the same Darby Borough intersection, South 6th and Walnut streets, where the attack happened. Cottrell said the attack is troubling.

“It wasn’t right for the kids to see something like that,” he said.

In response to the attack, Safe Corridors is now working with state Sen. Anthony Williams’ office on proposed legislation that would classify crossing guards as first responders and require a minimum sentence for anyone who assaults them.

“I think the job of a crossing guard can be pretty dangerous, especially depending on the community where that crossing guard is working,” DeSilva-King said.

The organization is also reevaluating safety measures.

“One of the things I learned is that supplying the crossing guards with walkie talkies would be a great start, so they can call in for help,” Jonathan Abdur-Rahim King, the founder of Safe Corridors, said.

DeSilva-King said Safe Corridors provides monthly professional development to its crossing guards and safety advocates.

“I have always instructed our crossing guards to maintain their professionalism,” DeSilva-King said. “That includes not going back and forth verbally with aggressive drivers because that can escalate a situation. Based on my interactions with this crossing guard, as well as my review of the video, this crossing guard was not aggressive with the driver verbally or otherwise. And so this attack was totally unprovoked.”

After school dismissal on Thursday, people in Darby showed support with kind words and appreciation.

“Crossing guards are very valuable to the community,” Tiffany Spisak from Colwyn said. “Not a lot of people respect stop signs, so it’s very important to have crossing guards out there just to make sure the kids are safe.”

Cottrell said he’s prepared if the suspect returns.

“I’ll be waiting for him,” Cottrell said. “If he comes at me like that, I’m going to defend myself.”

Police are asking for the public’s help identifying the suspect. Sen. Williams’ office is offering a $5,000 reward for information leading to an arrest and conviction.

“Increasingly in our society standards of respect and dignity are collapsing, for a man to hit a woman who is at least six to seven inches shorter and probably close to 100 pounds lighter,” Williams said. “I thought the suspect was cowardly in how he ran away. We need to send a message to a generation that possibly thinks it’s OK to do that, that they need to rethink how they handle their frustrations and how they approach people they have difference of opinions with.”

Today marks the first day of March Madness.

As basketballs are bouncing all across America, one road in Delaware has some new orange balls hanging from the sky to keep drivers and infrastructure safe.

The Chapel Street Railroad Bridge in Newark is only 12 feet tall and since 2005 there have been 60 reported incidents where trucks have gotten stuck under the bridge.

Every bridge strike could mean a major disruption on the busy rails that run through town.

“Clanker” balls were installed on the north side of the bridge and the south side balls will go up soon.

The clankers are a series of bright orange and heavy-duty plastic balls that hang at the clearance height down the street before the bridge.

The bridge will also get the same treatment as nearby Casho Mill Road with clankers, sensors, lights and a lot of warning signs.

Casho Mill Road was Delaware’s most frequently hit bridge but crashes have gone down significantly since the balls were installed in 2022.

DelDOT says their clankers at Milford and Delaware Park have worked well but it’s not perfect.

There have been instances where people driving trucks will hit the balls, slow down, look to see what happened but then continue to drive under the bridge anyway.

One popular theory among some is that a few of the strikes are by University of Delaware students who are moving in or out and they are not used to driving rental box trucks.

The clanker balls have been so successful in Delaware that other states have asked DelDOT about their creative solution.

Another set of clankers is scheduled to go up at Low Rail Bridge in Newport.