AREA PREPARED TO CELEBRATE JULY 4 WITH ASSORTMENT OF ACTIVITIES

Mother Nature may provide some aerial fireworks of her own Thursday as area residents celebrate the Fourth of July.

The National Weather Service says there is a chance of thunderstorms, but it is unlikely the holiday will be a total washout since the storms will be scattered.

For the rest of the holiday weekend, the weather service says it will be cooler and drier on Friday, with highs in the upper 80s. There's a chance of scattered thunderstorms and higher humidities again on Saturday and Sunday, with highs climbing back into the low to mid-90s.

With the exception of retail stores, most other normal activity will cease Thursday in observance of the 215th birthday of the United States.

There are a number of special events in the area to celebrate the holiday.

In Cape Girardeau County, the Jackson Jaycees will hold a daylong event in Jackson City Park Thursday. At West Park Mall, the 1140th and 135th engineering groups of the Missouri National Guard are displaying military equipment throughout the week.

In Scott County, the Oran Knights of Columbus will sponsor their annual July Fourth picnic.

All area banks and financial institutions will be closed Thursday, but will re-open Friday.

License fee offices in Cape Girardeau, Jackson, and Chaffee will be closed tomorrow. The offices in Jackson and Chaffee will re-open on Friday, but the Cape Girardeau office will be closed until Monday.

There will be no Missouri driver's license examinations given by the highway patrol in Cape Girardeau on Thursday or Friday.

Offices will be closed and classes suspended Thursday at Southeast Missouri State University. The offices will be open on Friday, however, classes that day have been canceled.

City offices in Cape Girardeau, Scott City, Chaffee, and Jackson will be closed for the Fourth. The offices will reopen on Friday, except for Chaffee City Hall, which will remain closed until Monday.

There will be no solid waste pickups in any of the four cities on Thursday.

In Scott City, Thursday's trash route will not be made up. The regular route will run on Friday.

In Chaffee and Jackson, the Thursday routes will be combined with the Friday routes.

In Cape Girardeau, Thursday's routes will be run today, but there will be no special pickup today. The regular routes will be run on Friday.

The Avenue of Flags will be on display Thursday at the War Memorial in the Cape County North Park. But Park Superintendent Chet McCain said the large American flag that flies atop the big flagpole may not be up.

"The cable broke earlier this week, so we had to take it down. We're trying to get our pole climber so he can check the top of the pole to make sure everything is okay before we repair the cable," McCain said. "We hope to have the flag back up by today."

The National Safety Council predicts between 400 and 500 people may die in traffic accidents, and another 18,000 to 22,000 suffer disabling injuries over the long Fourth of July weekend.

This year, the holiday officially begins at 6 p.m. today, and ends at 11:59 p.m., Sunday.

The Missouri Highway Patrol is concerned about the upcoming 102-hour holiday weekend. The patrol said past experience has shown the long Fourth of July holidays have led to a high number of traffic fatalities in the state.

There have been 11 such extended holiday periods in July since the patrol began keeping traffic records in 1947. During that period, 218 people have been killed - an average of 20 per year.

Last year, Missouri recorded four fatalities during the short 30-hour Independence Day holiday period.

The patrol superintendent, Colonel C.E. Fisher, urged motorists to use extra caution and obey all traffic laws if they plan to be traveling this extended holiday weekend.

"I encourage everyone to put forth every effort to keep their names off the traffic death toll list as they travel," he said.

Fischer said speed and the use of seat belts play a vital role in traffic safety.

He said speed played a part in 41 percent of all fatal accidents that claimed the lives of 500 people in 1990.

Fisher noted that last year, an average of 34 percent, or 339 out of the 994 drivers killed in motor vehicle accidents were ejected either partially or totally from their vehicles. He said many of those killed may have survived if they had been wearing a seat belt.

Since 1978, the patrol, along with the Illinois State Police, will participate in Operation CARE (Combined Accident Reduction Effort during the holiday weekend.

Interstate 70, and other interstate routes and major highways with a high volume of traffic, will be patrolled by all available troopers who will watch for violations such as speeding, drunk driving and careless driving.

Authorities said traditionally, the greatest volume of traffic during the holiday period (and the greatest danger of accidents) will come this afternoon and evening, and again on Sunday afternoon and evening.