A celebrity groundhog dies shortly before his big day

Milltown's popular Groundhog Day festivities are cancelled this year, following the death of the local celebrity, who for the last several years has been given the task of predicting whether there will be an early spring or six more weeks of winter.

Milltown Mel, a groundhog who has for years offered his weather predictions on Groundhog Day, has died, his handlers say. They say Mel "recently crossed over the rainbow bridge" — and their scramble for a replacement rodent before Feb. 2 was fruitless.

Mel rose to celebrity status in Milltown, N.J., giving residents of the Garden State an idea of when to plant their springtime seeds. But he died at "a tough time of year, when most of his fellow groundhogs are hibernating," according to his handlers, who are known as the Milltown Wranglers.

"We will work hard on getting us a new weather prognosticator for next year," the Wranglers said, adding that New Jersey residents should "check out what all of Mel's cousins have to say" about the end of winter.

If it seems like you've heard this story of a New Jersey groundhog dying before, that's not just a Groundhog Day effect: in 2016, Sussex County's prognosticator, Stonewall Jackson, died on Groundhog Eve, according to NJ.com.

Mel spent last year's Groundhog Day in quarantine, due to the pandemic. But that didn't stop him from predicting an early spring for his community, which sits roughly halfway between Trenton and Newark.

"Yay!!! Mel - you are my favorite Groundhog!!! a fan wrote to the rodent on Facebook.

The longest-running Groundhog Day tradition in the U.S. centers around Punxsutawney Phil in Pennsylvania. Other season-predicting animals include Dunkirk Dave and Staten Island Chuck — Mel's neighbors in New York — and Buckeye Chuck in Marion, Ohio.

The tradition of consulting a rodent for a sign of an early spring or a late winter stems from the Christian tradition of Candlemas — which itself has roots in pagan observances.

"Candlemas was originally a Celtic festival marking the 'cross-quarter day,' or midpoint of the season," according to the Almanac website. "The Sun is halfway on its advance from the winter solstice to the spring equinox."

February 1, 2022

Rewrite the following sentences in a way that they mean exactly the same as the ones given

1) Mel has offered his weather predictions for years. Mel has died.

Mel, whose…

2) They say Mel recently crossed over the rainbow bridge.

Mel…

3) "We will work hard on getting us a new weather prognosticator for next year," the Wranglers said

The Wranglers said that…

4) Mel spent last year's Groundhog Day in quarantine, due to the pandemic.

Since…

5) Mel spent last year's Groundhog Day in quarantine, due to the pandemic.

If there…

KEY

1) Mel,, whose predictions have been offered for years, has died.

2) Mel is said to have recently crossed the rainbow bridge.

3) The Wranglers said that they would work hard on getting a new prognosticator for the following year

4) Since there was a pandemic, Mel spent last year’s Groundhog Day in quarantine..

5) If there had not been a pandemic last year, Mel would not have spent Groundhog Day in quarantine.