Former Prince George’s Co. fire chief has died at 60

By Kay Perkins
April 27, 2025 | 11:25 AM

Former Prince George County Fire Chief Benjamin Barksdale has died.

He spent eight years with Prince George’s County Fire and EMS before retiring in 2019. He was chief of the department for the last two years before he retired.

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Before that, he served 25 years with Arlington County’s Fire Department.

Barksdale was said to have been battling cancer. He was 60.

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Maryland Zoo’s lone female elephant moving as facility transitions to all-male herd

By Catherine Chen
August 23, 2026 | 5:48 PM

The Maryland Zoo is preparing to say goodbye to its only female African elephant as it changes to an all-male herd. Felix, a 43-year-old elephant who has lived at the Baltimore zoo for 19 years, will move to another facility later this week. Zoo officials said the move is in Felix’s best interest because it will give her opportunities to socialize with other female elephants. Her interaction with other females have been limited since the zoo’s other female elephant died in 2024. “We will all miss her but having social companionship in a female herd is the best thing for Felix’s overall well-being,” Mammal Curator Erin Cantwell Grimm said.

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