Le Claire, Iowa, April 2, 2012 - Mississippi River Distilling Company invites the public to come to LeClaire on Friday evening, April 6, from 5:30-8:00 PM for our First Friday Feature!  We'll do an abbreviated tour at 6 pm and 7 pm.  There will also be specials on bottles of River Baron Artisan Spirit, River Rose Gin and River Pilot Vodka.  The entire evening is free and is the perfect opportunity to join us in LeClaire to kick off the holiday weekend!

Each First Friday is an open house social evening with special cocktails prepared just for the evening and food prepared with MRDC products for tasting.  Spirited Chef Stephanie Godke will prepare Seafood Soup made with River Rose Gin and a Mud and Rocks Cake featuring River Baron Artisan Spirit in a caramel, creamy cake with chocolate chips and toffee bits.  The signature cocktails for the evening are the Sparkling Rose and LeClaire Spring Punch.  The Sparkling Rose is a mixture of River Rose Gin, frozen lemonade concentrate and champagne.  The LeClaire Spring Punch combines River Pilot Vodka with Chambord, sweet and sour mix and a splash of champagne.  Both are refreshing sippers on any bright spring day!  All recipes can be found on our website, www.mrdistilling.com.

Mississippi River Distilling Company was also recently handed a big honor when named as one of the best in the nation when it comes to fine gin.  MRDC's River Rose Gin received a Gold Medal from TheFiftyBest.com after its Premium Gin Tasting.  River Rose tied for sixth place in the completion behind other big names such as Tanqueray and Hendrick's.  In total, 24 gins competed for the title of best gin.

Mississippi River Distilling Company is open from 10 AM to 5 PM Monday through Saturday and from 12 to 5 PM Sundays.  Free tours are offered to the public daily on the hour from 12 to 4 PM or by appointment.  The tour takes visitors through the entire distilling process.  Tours end in the Grand Tasting Room with free samples of products for those patrons over 21 years of age.

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CARBONDALE - Lt. Governor Sheila Simon will kick off the Southern Illinois University School of Law Civil Union Symposium on Tuesday. The event will explore the first year of civil unions in Illinois, and what steps might be taken in the future to bring full marriage equality to Illinois.

DATE: Tuesday, April 3

TIME: 5:30 p.m.

PLACE: Hiram H. Lesar Law Building Auditorium, 1150 Douglas Drive, Carbondale

Washington, D.C. - Congressmen Dave Loebsack (IA-02) and Bobby Schilling (IL-17) have sent a joint letter in support of the Quad Cities' I-74 bridge to United States Department of Transportation (DOT) Secretary Ray LaHood and Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) Administrator Victor Mendez.  The Congressmen met with members of the Quad Cities Chamber of Commerce in Washington, DC in February, when they discussed issues of importance to the region including the Rock Island Arsenal and the need to replace the I-74 bridge.

"[The Illinois Department of Transportation] has previously stated that the I-74 Bridge is a high priority for the state of Illinois, but that they require federal funding to complete this project with the state of Iowa," the Congressmen wrote.  "We encourage you to place the I-74 Bridge as a high priority for the U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration's Highway Bridge Program.  Doing so will not only address the safety of our citizens, but will also support the commerce that goes through our country and boost our economic viability."

Previously, Loebsack has met with representatives from the Iowa DOT about the importance of the I-74 bridge.  He has also expressed the need to replace the bridge to Secretary LaHood, and urged the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee to take action.  Schilling and members of the Illinois Congressional Delegation on February 29 had the opportunity to meet with IDOT Secretary Ann L. Schneider, who confirmed that IDOT is well aware of the need to replace the I-74 bridge.

April 2, 2012- According to a recent report released by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), 610 civilian deaths in the United States were attributed to smoking material fires in 2010, a number at or near the all-time-low and well down from the 1980 levels. During 2010 there were an estimated 90,800 smoking material fires resulting in $663 million in direct property damage.

Several factors, including a decline in smoking and stricter fire resistant standards on mattresses and upholstered furniture have been credited with the decrease in smoking material fire deaths over the last 30 years. The most recent drops in fatalities and injuries, though, owe much to the "fire-safe" cigarette legislation.

In 2003, U.S. states began requiring that all cigarettes sold must be "fire-safe," that is, have sharply reduced ignition strength (ability to start fires), as determined by ASTM Standards. By 2010, fire-safe cigarette legislation was in effect in 47 states. From 2003 to 2010, the number of civilian deaths in smoking-material fires fell by an average of 21 percent.

2012 is the first year all 50 state laws are effective, and all inventories of pre-standard cigarettes should have sold out. A projection linking the percentage decline in fire deaths to the percentage of smokers covered suggests that when smoking material fire death numbers are analyzed for the year 2012, the reduction in civilian deaths will reach roughly 30 percent.

According to Lorraine Carli, NFPA's vice president of Communications, "The adoption of fire-safe cigarette legislation is proving to be a giant step forward in reducing the leading cause of home fire deaths."

"NFPA is very encouraged by these numbers, which show the requirements are having the intended consequences," said Carli. "It is clear that our efforts have already made an impact on public safety and will continue to provide further progress in the years to come."

Other key findings in this report show:

• Older adults are at the highest risk of death or injury from home smoking-material fires, even though they are less likely to smoke than younger adults.
• One fatal victim in four (24 percent) of home smoking-material fires was not the smoker whose cigarette started the fire.
• Sleeping is the primary human factor contributing to ignition cited for one-third (32 percent) of home smoking-material fire deaths.

As with virtually all types of fires, there are many steps that people can take to prevent smoking-material fires. NFPA has developed the following safety tips focusing on safe storage and disposal of cigarettes:

• Whenever you smoke, use deep, wide, sturdy ashtrays.
• Ashtrays should be set on something sturdy and hard to ignite, like an end table.
• Before you throw out butts and ashes, make sure they are out. Dowsing them in water or sand is the best way to do this.
• Check under furniture cushions and other places people smoke for cigarette butts that may have fallen out of sight.

About the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA)

NFPA is a worldwide leader in fire, electrical, building, and life safety. The mission of the international nonprofit organization founded in 1896 is to reduce the worldwide burden of fire and other hazards on the quality of life by providing and advocating consensus codes and standards, research, training, and education. Visit NFPA's website at www.nfpa.org for more information.