As part of a nationwide strike by 45,000 Verizon workers, there are pickets in place outside the Verizon office in Batavia that spans Jackson and Center streets.
Pictured above are Tom Pacia, of Rochester, Darrin Folger, of Akron, Kirk Myhill, of Medina, and Dave Martin, of Batavia.
A paving company suspected last year of doing substandard work is reportedly back in the area approaching local homeowners with the same "leftover asphalt" offer it's used before.
State Police Investigator Leo Hunter said the company, Stanley Paving, completed a paving job for a couple in Stafford on Friday. After the job was done, the couple remembered a media report from last summer about the company.
A Google search led them to contact Hunter, though they're not making any sort of criminal complaint.
The job, Hunter said, was more or less completed as promised, though there was reportedly a price increase in the middle of the job and the couple is unsure of the quality of the work.
Hunter said a representative of the company, which also goes under the name Bithumus, approached the husband on Friday. He said he had some asphalt left over from another job and could repave his driveway for $75 per square foot. The man agreed to the job.
When the job was half completed, the company rep claimed they didn't have enough asphalt to finish the job and would need to buy more at a higher price. It would take another $3,800 to complete the job. The price was negotiated down to $3,300.
The company rep was driving a new white pickup truck.
A CSX train is stopping at the Ellinwood crossing, Corfu, for a possible fire in a train car.
It's unconfirmed that there is a fire, but there was a report of heavy black smoke coming from car.
The train was originally going to stop at Wilkenson Road, so East Pembroke Fire Department was dispatched.
A deputy on scene says he sees the train, but nothing is showing.
UPDATE 2:40 p.m.: A passerby called in the smoke. CSX was contacted and is stopping the train as a precaution. No confirmed fire at this time. Corfu fire is staging in their district at Ellinwood. East Pembroke is staging at Wilkenson.
UPDATE 2:51 p.m.: Nothing found yet. An engineer indicates that one of the diesel engines was blowing some black smoke at some point, but no indication of a fire.
UPDATE 2:59 p.m.: The train is being sent on its way. All fire units back in service.
Roland J. Reed, 40, of Attica, was scheduled to appear in Genesee County Court this morning to be sentenced on a DWI conviction, but when his case was called, he wasn't in court.
None of the attorneys involved in the case were surprised.
A warrant was issued for Reed's arrest June 9 when he allegedly violated the terms of his release under the supervision contract with Genesee Justice.
On Oct. 11, Reed was arrested for driving drunk in the City of Batavia with two children in his car, a 2-year-old and an 8-month-old. He was jailed on $25,000 bail
Reed had two prior DWI convictions at the time of his arrest.
On Oct. 22, Reed entered a guilty plea to felony DWI with a possible sentence of from one to four years in prison. As part of the plea deal, Reed's bail was reduced and he was released under supervision.
Authorities are unaware of Reed's whereabouts and there remains an active warrant for his arrest.
The Batavia PD's confidential tip line number is 345-6370.
UPDATE: To clarify, Reed original plea agreement was for 1 1/3 to 4 years in state prision. By not showing up today, Reed loses his negotiated sentence cap and faces 2 1/3 to 7 years, the maximum possible sentence for a Class D felony.
A Level 3 sex offender convicted by a jury in June of failure to register his proper address will serve one-and-a-quarter to four years in State Prison, the maximum sentence on the charge available to Judge Mark H. Dadd.
Meanwhile, Ronald A. Smith, 19, of Batavia, was given until Friday to decide whether to take a plea offer on three felony counts of sexual abuse in the first degree.
Smith is accused of sexual contact with children under age 11 within months of being released from state custody on a prior sex crime conviction.
Public Defender Gary Horton said Smith indicated that he wished to proceed to trial on sexual abuse charges, but by this morning had a change of heart and wanted time to discuss the plea offer with his family, particularly his mother.
If convicted at trial of all three counts, Smith faces up to 21 years in prison (maximum sentences of seven years each, and if imposed consecutively).
District Attorney Lawrence Friedman has offered a maximum five-year sentence -- the minimum sentence available for a second violent felony offender -- in exchange for a guilty plea.
Smith is scheduled to reappear in Genesee County Court at 9:45 a.m., Friday, to either plead guilty or request that his case go to trial.
Smith was arrested in January on the sexual abuse and failure to register charges, less than four months after being released on a similar sexual abuse conviction. Smith reportedly lived for a time on Thorpe Street, on East Main Street and in Oakfield. He only ever registered his address on Thorpe Street.
The failure to register charge was tried separately from the sexual abuse charges and a jury returned a verdict in less than two hours on June 22.
Judge Dadd, out of Wyoming County, presided over the trial because Judge Robert C. Noonan was presiding over a civil trial in Orleans County at the time.
Noonan was on the bench today for Smith's plea cut-off hearing, which followed the sentencing by Dadd on the failure to register charge.
A couple of Liberty Street residents splash around in flood waters that covered about 50 yards of the roadway following this evening's heavy rainstorm.
This beagle appeared late this afternoon on the porch of residents on Lyon Street. They're hoping to locate the little guy's masters. Call 813-7362 or 201-1128.
UPDATE 8:16 p.m.: Thanks, readers. The dog's owners have been found.
A deputy investigating a larceny from a car in the parking lot of Darien Lake Theme Park reports there are potentially several other thefts from cars.
The deputy said he's had several women approach him saying they have found the purses of other women in their cars and their own purses missing.
He's currently dealing with another car in the C-1 section that has had several items stolen from it.
If you're in the market for a used fire truck, the Alexander Fire Department has one for sale. It looks like lights and siren are included.
I spent a little time at the Attica Rodeo on Saturday hoping to come away with some pictures of Genesee County residents competing. I came away with two.
Above, Rob Wright of Alexander wrestles with a calf. Below, Tim and Todd Buckenmier compete in calf roping.
Below, a slide show of other photos I took while I was there.
A primary electrical line is down in the area of 9018 Lovers Lane, Corfu.
The line has fallen into a tree and there is smoke coming from the tree.
Corfu Fire Department is dispatched.
A CSX engine reportedly lost some tanker cars as it passed through the Village of Bergen.
The tanker cars came loose from the train and the engine continued.
The cars are reportedly still on the tracks in the parking lot right behind the Ralph & Rosie deli.
Route 19 is not blocked.
Dispatch has received two calls on the situation.
CSX is being contacted to shut down the line.
UPDATE 11:43 a.m.: CSX contacted the conductor who has stopped his train and is now doing an inventory of his cars.
UPDATE 11:44 a.m.: CSX advices there were three trains coming through the area. The train that may have lost the cars was the third train through, so there should be no other trains coming through.
Volunteer firefighters from five companies gathered in Darien today for some specialized training in dealing with big, heavy vehicles involved in accidents.
"We want these guys to know they can do this," said Jason Graber, who was leading the training session. "We want them to come into a situation like this and know it's not hopeless. They have the right tools and the right training."
Three different accident scenarios were set up -- a tractor-trailer with a sedan wedged under it, a cement mixer stuck on a cement barrier and a passenger car that has slid under the back of a school bus.
The firefighters -- from Indian Falls, Darien, Corfu, East Pembroke and Alabama -- were shown what their options were in each situation, what tools they might use to deal with the situation and then given a chance to use the tools the way they might in a real accident.
In most cases, the first thing responders need to do is get the bigger vehicle stabilized so emergency workers can rescue any victims that are trapped.
"It's a system of making sure that everything we do first makes everything safe for the rest of the process," said Graber, who is a former Darien volunteer and now lives in Virginia where he works for the Washington Metropolitan Transit Authority and volunteers for the Leesburg Fire Department.
Marissa Tomczak, of Elba, the daughter of Tim and Lynn Tomczak, is the 2011 Elba Onion Queen.
Tomczak won the crown over a field of eight finalists.
First runner-up was Marissa Pangrazio, of Elba, the daughter of Barbie Pangrazio. Second runner-up was Jamie Pcionek, of Oakfield, the daughter of James and Joyce Pcionek.
The other finalists were: Sydney Gallip, of Elba, the daughter of Stacey and Todd Gallip; Gretel Kauffman (bottom photo), of Elba, the daughter of Bill and Lucine Kauffman; Meg Stucko, of Elba, the daughter of Marty and Amy Stucko; Elizabeth Shuknecht, of Elba, the daughter of Robin and Dale Shuknecht; and Jenna E. Brown, of Byron, the daughter of Kathleen Miller and Gary Brown.
Gretel Kauffman is a correspondent for The Batavian and is currently auditioning four-year universities. She plans to major in journalism.
UPDATE 12:15 a.m.: The winner of the Mustang raffle is Edith Bezon, of Byron. No word yet on whether she'll take the car or the cash.
Six people -- three men and three women -- reportedly kicked in a door at Rolling Hills in Bethany, found there were actually people inside and took off.
Police are being dispatched to the area to look for them.
They fled in a silver sedan on Bethany Center Road. The suspects were carrying alcoholic beverages in their hands.
The quick action of residents on Broadway Road in Darien today may have helped keep a serious accident from turning tragic.
After a 23-year-old mother from Cheektowaga lost control of her car on Route 20, having it turn over multiple times before coming to rest on the front lawn of Debbie Pugilese, residents rushed to the aid of the victims.
One witness, who was driving east on Route 20, called 9-1-1 and then called his wife, Emily Toal, a registered nurse.
Toal reached the scene before EMS personnel arrived.
"I'm an RN so I figured if I could help at all, I should," Toal said. "When I got here, I found a 6-year-old, faint pulses, faint breath sounds, and there was a 12-week-old on the ground and the mother was sitting with the 12-week-old. The mother was in shock. We got towels and tried to keep everybody warm before the shock set in. We tried to keep the 6-year-old's head stable until the EMTs got here."
Deputy Patrick Reeves was impressed by the response of the residents. He described several coming to the scene.
"The residents in the area and the witnesses helped us out tremendously until EMS arrived," Reeves said.
Steve Kidder, who lives next door to Pugilese, and like Pugilese saw the accident, said everybody pitched in to do what they could to help.
"I’m glad to have all these folks as my neighbors," Kidder said.
Both Kidder and Pugilese said they saw the silver Chevy Malibu heading west on Route 20 when the car, for an unknown reason, crossed into the eastbound lane, struck a guardrail and became airborne. The car then hit a ditch and became airborne again and rolled over. It flew over Pugilese's driveway, hit the ground and rolled again, coming to rest on the driver's side.
The 6-year-old girl was ejected.
"When I came down the woman was crawling from the car with an infant," Pugilese said.
State Police said the driver was Jelissa Jones. The names have the children have not been released.
The driver and the infant reportedly suffered cuts and abrasions.
The condition of the 6-year-old is not currently available. The child was transported to Women's and Children's Hospital in Buffalo by Mercy Flight.
Responding to the scene along with the Sheriff's Office and State Police were Darien fire volunteers and Mercy EMS.
A car has reportedly hit a structure, knowns as building #3, at 18 Genesee St., Le Roy.
Le Roy Fire and Ambulance Service dispatched.
UPDATE 4:02 p.m.: There is apparent structural damage to the building. The code enforcement officer requested to the scene. Responding units can come in non-emergency.
A fire coordinator in Orleans County reportedly spotted an old fire truck heading south this morning running lights and sirens.
There was no fire.
With the truck heading toward Genesee County, the Sheriff's Office was notified.
An initial check of the area where it was thought to be turned up no results.
Then, about 9:45 a.m., a deputy spotted the truck on Seven Springs Road.
The truck is registered to a private individual in Hilton. It's labeled on the side "Morrisville."
The truck has appeared in a few parades in the area over the years.
Orleans officials are declining to issue citations.
The Elba Onion Festival is unde rway, with all the fun, games, live music and great food that highlights the event every year.
A big crowd was on hand Friday night for the festivities.
The festival continues today, including the crowning of the Elba Onion Queen at 7 p.m.
Sen. Mike Ranzenhofer has a heck of a fastball.
Slide show of more pictures from Friday night below (click on the button lower right to view in full-screen mode). To purchase photographic prints from this event, click here.
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