USPS Just Suspended Services in These Places
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Given the size of the U.S. Postal Service (USPS), it’s not all that surprising that there are sometimes a few bumps in the road. After all, the agency is responsible for delivering mail to every American—regardless of where they live. The latest interruptions affect a handful of local post offices on the East Coast and in the Midwest, with the Postal Service announcing new and ongoing closures this week. Read on to find out where the USPS just suspended services.
RELATED: USPS Is Making These Changes to Your Mail, Starting Sept. 19 .
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Earlier this week, the Postal Service announced that the Chaseburg Post Office, located at 303 Depot Street, in Chaseburg, Wisconsin, suspended retail operations “ due to safety concerns .”
According to a Sept. 2 press release, the post office was temporarily closed as a result of damage to the building .
“No mail has been damaged, and no timetable has yet to be established for the resumption of retail services,” the press release reads.
Chaseburg customers are instructed to pick up mail, packages, and P.O. Box mail at the Coon Valley Post Office, 507 Central Ave. In response to Best Life ‘s request for comment, USPS spokesperson Desai Abdul-Razzaaq said that no further details are available at this time.
RELATED: USPS Postal Inspector Reveals How to Mail Checks to Avoid Theft .
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Following Hurricane Idalia, which hit the west coast of Florida last week, the USPS suspended services at dozens of post offices in Florida and Georgia . A majority of these post offices have been able to resume operations, but as of Sept. 6, two Florida post offices remain closed.
Per a press release from the USPS, the Homosassa Post Office, at 10780 W Yulee Drive, has moved all operations to an alternate location: the Homosassa Springs Post Office, at 4610 S Suncoast Boulevard.
The Suwanee Post Office also remains closed, but the Postal Service is continuing operations from the parking lot. According to the Sept. 6 press release, the post office is helping customers from the Mobile Retail Unit (MRU) outside the office at 23252 SE Highway 349.
“The safety of our customers and employees is our top priority,” the press release reads. “We appreciate our customers’ patience as we completed the necessary repairs.”
Best Life reached out to USPS for updates on the Florida closures, and will update the story with its response.
RELATED: See a Sticker on Your Mailbox? Don’t Touch It, USPS Says .
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On Sept. 4, the USPS also issued an alert about post offices in Hawaii, many of which were closed due to the Maui wildfires .
As of Monday, the Lahaina Post Office, located at 1760 Honoapilani Hwy, was able to resume full operations .
The post office was originally closed almost a month prior, on Aug. 9, but reopened for business (without retail services) on Aug. 19. The same day, mail carriers also resumed delivery to “accessible” addresses where mail receptacles were still standing.
RELATED: USPS Changes Are “Destroying the Postal Service,” Workers Warn .
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At the end of August and the beginning of September, the USPS also noted that post offices in California and West Virginia were closed.
According to an Aug. 29 Service Alert , the Winifrede Post Office, 303 Fields Creek Road, in West Virginia, was temporarily closed “due to safety concerns.” Operations were moved to the Marmet Post Office, at 9303 Maccorkle Ave, in nearby Charleston.
In California, the Arcade Post Office, 506 S. Spring Street, was closed due to fire damage on Sept. 1. Mail and retail services for customers of the Los Angeles-area post office were moved to Alameda Carried Annex, 1055 N. Vignes Street.
- Source: https://about.usps.com/newsroom/service-alerts/residential/wisconsin.htm
- Source: https://about.usps.com/newsroom/local-releases/wi/2023/0902-chaseburg-post-office-temporary-operations.htm
- Source: https://about.usps.com/newsroom/local-releases/fl/2023/0906-usps-northern-florida-update-list.htm
- Source: https://about.usps.com/newsroom/local-releases/hi/2023/0818-lahaina-main-po-to-partially-reopen-on-saturday.htm
- Source: https://about.usps.com/newsroom/service-alerts/residential/welcome.htm
See a Sticker on Your Mailbox? Don’t Touch It, USPS Says
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Your mailbox serves a very simple purpose: receiving mail and leaving outgoing mail for a carrier to pick up. Still, some of us enjoy sprucing up our mailboxes, adding personal flair, color, or even decals to help an otherwise standard mailbox stand out. But if you notice a paw print sticker on your mailbox that you didn’t add, don’t start peeling it off just yet—it’s likely part of a program run by the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) to help keep carriers safe. Read on to find out what these stickers mean and why you shouldn’t remove them.
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In 2023, more than 5,800 Postal Service workers were attacked by dogs while delivering mail, up from 5,300 in 2022, according to a USPS press release.
Larger cities had the highest numbers of attacks, with Los Angeles, Houston, Chicago, St. Louis, and Cleveland claiming the top five spots.
“Even though a customer’s dog is friendly to most people, it can always have a bad day,” said letter carrier Tara Snyder . “I know, from experience, even when a dog is in the house, customers need to make sure their door is secure so their dog can’t push it open and bite the letter carrier.”
To her point, the USPS writes that “all dogs can bite, even those perceived as nonaggressive.” In fact, many of the attacks that letter carriers report are by dogs whose owners told them, “My dog won’t bite.”
Such an attack can result in consequences for the homeowner, too. According to data from the Insurance Information Institute, the average cost per insurance claim for a dog bite is $64,555, the USPS states.
“When a postal employee suffers an injury, the owner could be responsible for medical bills, lost wages, uniform replacement costs, and pain and suffering for the employee,” they explain.
RELATED: USPS Is Making These Changes to Your Mail, Starting Now .
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To combat dog bites, the Postal Service shared tips on how pet owners can “support safe mail delivery.” These include keeping dogs inside the house or behind a fence, away from the door or in another room, or on a leash.
“Pet owners also should remind children not to take mail directly from a letter carrier as the dog may view the carrier as a threat to the child,” they state.
Mail carriers also follow protocol to keep them aware of areas where dogs might be present, and they’re equipped with scanners to remind them of possible dog hazards, as well as dog warning cards that are added during mail sorting.
In 2020, the USPS added another preventive measure: the PAWS Program . First introduced in Pennsylvania, the program uses mailbox stickers to keep carriers safe.
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The PAWS Program uses color-coded stickers affixed to mailboxes to inform mail carriers about dogs in the area. An orange sticker with a black paw print tells carriers that there is a dog at this home, while a yellow sticker with a black paw print tells them there is a dog at the next house.
Citizens are informed ahead of time that the stickers may appear on their mailboxes. In a notice sent to Lakewood, Ohio, residents, the Postal Service wrote, “Carriers will soon be placing a paw sticker on mailboxes to indicate that a dog or dogs live in the area —yellow indicates dog nearby/orange indicates dog at residence. The sticker will act as a reminder to the carrier that they should proceed with caution, especially when delivering packages to the door.”
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Removing these stickers may do more harm than good, as your mail service can be halted if your carrier feels unsafe. Not only does this affect the home of the dog owner, but it also applies to the entire neighborhood, the USPS said in a previous press release . Service isn’t restored in these instances “until the aggressive dog is properly restrained.”
At the end of the day, these stickers are put in place to “reduce the risk of dog bites and attacks that occur while delivering mail,” which is just another reason you should leave the sticker on your mailbox.
“We all love our dogs,” Kimberly Tilley , acting postmaster for Winston-Salem, told WGHP. “We love our animals, but we … have to take responsibility to protect the carrier and the people around us as well from our animals.”
Tilley added that dog bites are more common than you think, and they can be traumatic for carriers. “Once a carrier has been bit, it sets some fear in them long term for the rest of their life,” she told the outlet.
However, although these stickers are strongly recommended, if you object to having a sticker placed on your mailbox, you can opt out , Kyle Stevens , Southwest Carrier Annex station manager in South Dakota, told KELO in 2021. To do so, the first step would be to contact your local post office.
This story has been updated to include additional entries, fact-checking, and copy-editing.
