Stafford

A tractor-trailer is on its side on Ellicott Street Road near Fargo Road. No injuries are reported but traffic is blocked. 

Traffic being shut down at East Road and at Texaco Town. 

Bethany and Stafford fire departments responding. Pavilion handling traffic at Texaco Town. 

It will be an hour before a heavy wrecker is on scene to right the truck.

A two-car accident is reported at Route 63 and Fargo Road. The occupants are conscious. There is entrapment. Bethany Fire Department and Mercy medics are responding, along with mutual aid from Stafford for fire police and a rescue unit. Mercy Flight is not able to fly due to weather.

UPDATE 4:51 p.m.: An ambulance from Le Roy is requested to the scene.

UPDATE 4:59 p.m.: There are four victims.

UPDATE 5:04 p.m.: An ambulance from Byron is requested. It will be the fourth ambulance in.

UPDATE 5:07 p.m.: An ambulance from Alexander is requested to fill in at Bethany's fire hall.

UPDATE 5:19 p.m.: Two patients have been extricated.

UPDATE 5:20 p.m.: "Third patient extricated, one more to go."

UPDATE 5:27 p.m.: The fourth and final patient is extricated. So far, two ambulances are transporting patients to Strong Memorial Hospital.

UPDATE 5:38 p.m.: Bethany is taking a patient to UMMC.

UPDATE 5:39 p.m.: A total of three patients went to Strong. Two flatbed tows are called. Traffic is backed up. Command says when it clears up a crew should respond ASAP to salt the road. Once that is done, they'll go in service, he says.

UPDATE 6:40 p.m.: The roads are reopened. The Bethany assignment is back in service.

With the sun out this morning, I went for a short drive out to the Bethany area thinking, "the sun before the storm."

Our previous winter storm watch has been upgraded to a warning and between tonight and tomorrow night, we could get up to 10 inches of snow.

Heading down Clipnock Road, I spotted a group of trainers working out harness racing horses.

Bottom picture, a broken barn door on Transit Road.

A car slammed into a tree, close to a house, at 8802 8807 Prole Road. One person, believed to be injured, is still in the vehicle. Several others -- from three to six subjects -- were seen running from the scene. The accident is just south of Route 5. Law enforcement and medics are responding.

UPDATE 11:13 p.m.: Stafford Volunteer Fire Department is on scene. "All units can back it down. One subject is in the vehicle and I've got him," says a deputy.

UPDATE 11:25 p.m.: Stafford fire is leaving the scene, in service. A tow truck is en route.

UPDATE 11:44 p.m.: Le Roy Ambulance is transporting the patient to Strong Memorial Hospital. The deputy is also going to Strong to follow up on the accident.

UPDATE 11:35 a.m. (by Howard Owens): The driver has been identified as Douglas J. Hanley, 23, of Batavia Stafford Townline Road, Batavia. Charges are pending. The accident was investigated by Deputy Frank Bordonaro.

Charles Paul Mitchell, 34, of Sanders Road, Stafford, is charged with harassment, 2nd. Mitchell is accused of causing unwanted physical contact with another person during an argument.

Maya Simone Washington, 40, of East Main Street, Batavia, is charged with petit larceny. Washington is accused of shoplifting from Kmart.

Eric Swede, 25, of Perry Road, Pavilion, is charged with disorderly conduct. Swede was arrested after Batavia PD was dispatched to Sport of Kings restaurant at 3:45 a.m. Sunday for a report of an intoxicated male causing a disturbance. Swede was issued an appearance ticket.

A serious injury, head-on collision is reported at 6372 Route 5 in front of A.D. Call & Sons Trucking company. One victim has a compound leg fracture. Extrication will be needed. Two Mercy rigs are called. Route 5 is completely blocked in both directions and will be shut down at Route 237. Mercy Flight is in route. Stafford Fire Department is responding along with mutual aid from Le Roy. Law enforcement is on scene.

UPDATE 6:55 a.m.: Stafford Fire Hall will be the landing zone.

UPDATE 6:57 a.m.: Mercy Flight has landed.

UPDATE 7:09 a.m.: Town of Batavia's Engine 24 is at the Stafford Fire Hall. The state DOT is notified that a lot of salt will be needed on the roadway before Route 5 can be reopened.

UPDATE 7:17 a.m.: The victim has been extricated.

UPDATE 7:22 a.m.: An ambulance is transporting a patient to the landing zone at the fire hall.

UPDATE 7:30 a.m.: Mercy Flight is airborne and headed to Erie County Medical Center.

UPDATE 7:34 a.m.: Le Roy is returning to service. The second ambulance called in is also back in service.

UPDATE 8:01 a.m.: The roadway is reopened. Stafford and mutual aid back in service.

UPDATE 9:20 a.m. (By Howard): One person suffered leg serious leg injuries in the accident. Because the Chevy sedan's airbags didn't deploy and the driver did not appear to be wearing a seat belt, there is concern of internal injuries. The patient was transported to ECMC by Mercy Flight. He had not yet been identified.

The driver of the pickup truck was Timothy Parmenter. Parmenter said he was westbound on Route 5 when he saw the sedan on the north shoulder heading eastbound. The sedan's driver tried to correct and get back into the eastbound lane.

"I was trying to head away from him, but he was kind of following me and I couldn't get away from him," Parmenter said.

Parmenter was not injured.

He said when he got out of his truck, another person was tending to the driver of the sedan, "trying to calm him down."

Deputy John Duyssen said it appeared that the front windshield of the sedan was completely iced over -- on the inside.

Duyssen said there were two uninvolved eastbound cars that were immediately behind the Chevy sedan. The drivers did not stop at the scene. He said it's very important the drivers in those cars contact investigators and provide witness statements. He's asking that the drivers immediately call either Investigator Kris Kautz or Deputy Chris Parker at (585) 343-5000.

UPDATE 5:19 p.m.: The driver of the sedan has been identified aas Robert C. Putney, 55, of Main Road, Stafford. Citations were issued for allegedly driving on the wrong side of the road and not wearing a seat belt. Putney reportedly told Deputy Chris Parker that his windshield was not defrosted and that he couldn't see clearly.

Angela Irene, 44, of South Grand Road, Medina, is charged with grand larceny, 4th. Irene was arrested as a result of reports on The Batavian and OrleansHub of a purse being stolen from a shopping cart in the parking lot of the Batavia Walmart and a gift card subsequently being used to purchase a cake at the Walmart in Albion. As a result of the publication of the surveillance photo from the Albion Walmart, the suspect turned herself in to local law enforcement. The Sheriff's Office also received numerous phone calls identifying the suspect. The case was handled by Investigator Kristopher Kautz and Deputy James Diehl.

Jillian E. Dibble, of Akron, is charged with DWI and driving with a BAC of .08 or greater. Dibble was stopped at 7:50 a.m. Sunday on Route 77 at Reynolds Road, Darien, by State Police.

Alexander E. Dills, 23, of Stafford, is charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance, 7th, possession of a hypodermic instrument, unlawful possession of marijuana, criminal possession of a weapon, 4th, and aggravated unlicensed operation. Dills was arrested by State Police at 8:55 a.m. Saturday. No further details released.

Darrnell J. Barnes, 51, of Alabama, is charged with DWI and driving with a BAC of .08 or greater. Barnes was stopped at 7:42 p.m. Saturday on Alleghany Road in Alabama by State Police.

Bruce J. Brade, 33, of Galloway Road, Batavia, is charged with identify theft, 2nd, and grand larceny, 4th. Brade is accused of fraudulent use of a debit card. Brade allegedly used the card to purchase items over the Internet. Following arraignment in Batavia City Court, Brade was released under supervision of Genesee Justice.

Douglas Robert Brown, 45, of South Main Street, Elba, is charged with criminal possession of a weapon, 4th. Brown was arrested following an investigation into a complaint of an irate truck driver who made a delivery to Automotive Corp., Inc. Brown was allegedly found in possession of a billy club.

Thomas James Rose, 18, of Ford Road, Elba, is charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance, 7th, criminal possession of a hypodermic instrument, criminal use of drug paraphernalia and unlawful possession of marijuana. Rose was found to allegedly possess drugs and paraphernalia during an investigation by Deputy Joseph Corona and Deputy Howard Carlson of an incident at a residence in Byron at 2:30 a.m., Saturday.

Arthur Mack Osborne, 47, of West Main Street Road, Batavia, is charged with criminal contempt, 2nd. Osborne is accused of violating a complete stay away order by going to the residence of the protected person and being in contact with that person.

Paul Joseph Kirch, 27, of Angling Road, Corfu, was arrested on a warrant out of the Town of Amherst related to a disorderly conduct charge. Kirch was located when a deputy checked on a vehicle parked on the shoulder of a roadway. Upon investigation, Kirch was identified as a suspect with an active arrest warrant.

Cynthia Louise Reschke, 50, of Transit Road, Stafford, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, failure to keep right, moving from lane unsafely. Reschke was stopped at 1:36 a.m. Sunday on Morganville Road, Stafford, by Deputy Joseph Corona.

Stephen A. Getty, 43, of Gilbert Street, Le Roy, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, moving from lane unsafely and drinking alcohol in a motor vehicle on a highway. Getty was stopped at 5:11 p.m. Friday on Main Road, Pembroke, by Deputy Kevin McCarthy.

Louis Levon Wooden, 28, of Salina Street, Rochester, is charged with petit larceny. Wooden is accused of shoplifting at Walmart. Also charged with petit larceny is Tymekia T. Gaskin, 39, of Champlain Street, Rochester.

Ann Lee Cox, 42, of Main Street, Attica, is charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance, driving while ability impaired by drugs, driving while ability impaired by combined drugs and moving from lane unsafely. Cox was arrested following an investigation by Deputy Kevin McCarthy into a single-car accident on Route 98, Alexander, at 4:22 a.m. on Oct. 20.

Emily Grace Lemen, 19, of Lake Street, Le Roy, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .18 or greater and moving from lane unsafely. Lemen was allegedly driving a vehicle at 4 p.m. on Jan. 6 that went down an embankment at the 490 off-ramp at Route 19. The accident was investigated by Deputy Matthew Butler.

Route 5 will be shut down at Transit and Clipnock roads due to low-hanging wires in the roadway. Stafford Fire Police are responding, along with law enforcement. National Grid is in route. "We have a ton of cars up here we're trying to get turned around along with at least three tractor-trailers."

UPDATE 3:45 p.m.: The line is either cable or phone, but National Grid has agreed to snip it so it can be removed from the roadway. The appropriate company will be notified of the action.

UPDATE 4 p.m.: Stafford Fire Police are back in service.

In lieu of flowers, the family of David M. Russo are asking donations be made for an education for the two children Russo leaves behind.

Russo died yesterday following an accident on a snow-covered Route 63 in the Iroquois National Wildlife Refuge.

The 43-year-old Stafford resident had two children, Josilynn and David.

There will be visitation for family and friends from 4 to 7 p.m., Sunday, at Falcone Family Funeral & Cremation Service, Inc., 8700 Lake Road (Route 19), Le Roy, with a prayer service at 7:30.

For the full obituary, click here.

More than 2,100 National Grid customers are without power and have been since about 2 a.m.

Freezing rain apparently caused some transformer issues.

The outage area is triangle-shaped with the western tip near Clinton Street Road just north of East Main Street and spreading east nearly to Le Roy with the northern boundary just north of the Thruway and southern edge running along Route 63 to East Bethany.

National Grid expects power to be restored by 5:30 a.m.

UPDATE 5:17 a.m.: Earlier this morning, the power outage affected 4,538 customers. And, emergency dispatchers are aware there are people in the county without power. No, they can't help you get your power restored. It's best to restrict calls to dispatchers in situations like this to actual emergencies or others calls for service.

UPDATE 5:50 a.m.: There are multiple reports throughout the county of wires down, wires arcing and flooded basements. Town of Batavia's chief has requested all available manpower to the two fire halls to be ready for new incoming calls.

UPDATE 10:35 a.m.: There are at least a dozen power outage areas in Genesee County. The two largest at the moment are in the Elba area, with 317 customers without power. Power has been out since 4:49 a.m. and a repair crew is not yet assigned to the outage. In Bergen, 1,060 customers are without power. The outage started at 7:04 a.m. and there's no ETA for repairs. Fire departments from throughout the county are still handling calls for power lines down, trees down and cellar pump details.

UPDATE 12:19 p.m.: The largest power outage reported in the county now is in the Byron area, 838 customers. Power reported out at 5:01 a.m. A repair crew is assigned. No ETA for repairs.

A two-car accident has been reported at Clinton Street Road and Griswold Road in Stafford.

One person is complaining of a back injury.

Stafford fire and a Mercy medic have been dispatched to the scene.

UPDATE 9:11 a.m.: One person is being evaluated and one person is refusing any medical attention. A deputy is on the way to the scene.

A working house fire is reported at 8261 Gully Road in Le Roy. Le Roy Fire Department and Ambulance Service are responding, along with mutual aid from Bergen, Stafford and Pavilion. The location is at the curve, between Oatka Trail and Hebbard Road. The house has been evacuated.

UPDATE 6:39 p.m.: The city's Fast Team is called to the scene. Command says the interior fire is pretty much knocked down except the second story.

UPDATE 6:44 p.m.: Oakfield is called to stand by in the city's fire hall. The Town of Batavia Fire Department is called to stand by in its own quarters. An extension ladder is needed at the scene to access the second story at the rear of the structure.

UPDATE 6:49 p.m.: Stafford "will be the standby crew for the district." National Grid is called in.

UPDATE 6:55 p.m.: They will be working to open up the roof line. South Byron is asked to stand by in its own quarters, at the request of Stafford.

UPDATE 7:01 p.m.: Fire Police will be providing traffic control at Route 19 and North Road.

UPDATE 7:08 p.m.: Howard is at the scene and says it's not a big blaze. A small portion of the roof caught fire due to overheated wood around the stovepipe at the roofline.

UPDATE 9:10 p.m. (by Howard): Firefighters with a thermal imaging camera have checked the roof line and report no more hot spots.

After leaving the accident scene in Stafford this morning, I stopped on Route 237 to take a picture of this line of trees along Britt Road.

A motor-vehicle accident with injuries is reported at the intersection of routes 237 and 33, Stafford. Stafford Fire Department is responding along with two Mercy medic units and law enforcement. Mercy Flight is available if needed.

UPDATE 9:32 a.m.: A responder reports one male has head injuries and another has chest injuries.

UPDATE 9:34 a.m.: A medic says Mercy Flight will not be needed.

UPDATE 9:51 a.m.: One patient is being transported to Strong Memorial Hospital. Two flatbed tows are called in.

UPDATE 10:02 a.m.: The second patient is also being taken to Strong.

UPDATE 10:16 a.m.: The Stafford assignment is back in service.

UPDATE 12:35 p.m. (by Howard): The white Suburban was driven by Barry Taylor who was traveling south on Route 237. He approached the stop sign and stopped. The Toyota, operated by Kevin Huber, of Pembroke, was eastbound on Route 33, at which time Taylor reportedly entered the intersection, according to Deputy John Duyssen.

Visit Personalizedbysanta.com to find the best personalized ornaments for your family's Christmas tree. Enter coupon code “batavian2013” and receive 20% off your entire order. Offer good through December 31st. All orders over $50 will receive free shipping. Our store is located on Route 5 in Stafford approximately ¼ mile east of the Red Osier. Customers are encouraged to complete their orders online, but we can make an accommodation for anyone wishing to pick up their order in person at our shop in Stafford. Just use the comments section during checkout or the “Contact Us” button on the home screen to let us know that you would like to come by the shop.

For the remainder of this season, we will remain an online-only business. But we are very excited to announce that our business on Rt. 5 will be changing its name to Main Road Christmas and be open to the public beginning in September 2014. Main Road Christmas will feature selections from some of the nation's most sought after and cherished Christmas collections including Christopher Radko, Willow Tree, Fontinini, Byer's Choice, Department 56, Jim Shore, Snowbabies, and last, but certainly not least, Old World Christmas. The store will maintain the largest collection of Merck Family's Old World Christmas ornaments of any retailer in New York State. Follow us on Facebook, follow us on The Batavian, or make an appointment to see the shop. For now, just visit www.personalizedbysanta.com -- Merry Christmas!

The main issue the Englerths have with James Pontillo, Tom Englerth Jr. said in an interview Monday, is that Pontillo has never asked their permission to be on their property to work on his building at the corner of Main Road and Morganville Road in Stafford.

"He never had permission from us as property owners," Englerth said. "One time he asked a guy that worked here (at their tenant's business), but he had no authority to give permission."

Two years ago, police were called to the location when Tom's dad, Tom Englerth Sr., complained that Pontillo and his work crew were trespassing. The same issue came up a little more than a week ago.

Pontillo started restoration work on the building two years ago after outbidding Englerth to purchase the property at auction. At the time, he was talking about opening a pizzeria downstairs, but then worked stalled as he became tied up in personal issues. First, his sister developed cancer and passed away. Then his grandmother had a stroke and later passed away. Then a sink hole developed on one of his properties in the city.

"It's just been one thing after the next," Pontillo said.

Now his permits for putting on a new roof and building a restaurant downstairs have expired. He believes town officials are going to try and deny him new permits.

Englerth said he doesn't believe Pontillo will be able to pull new permits.

If work can resume, Pontillo doesn't believe he can have workers complete the new roof without getting access to the parking lot on the west side of his building, property owned by the Englerths and leased to the Stafford Trading Post.

Tom Englerth Jr. is skeptical his father will ever grant such permission at this juncture.

"He never really respected my dad," Englerth said. "My dad's a tough guy, but he's a nice guy. Once you piss him off, it's hard to gain back the respect from him."

Nothing will happen unless Pontillo can produce proof of insurance, Englerth said.

"He needs appropriate insurance and to show us proof," Englerth said. "He then needs to go to my dad and probably apologize and then ask in a nice way. Can that work? I don't know."

Pontillo believes the only permission he needs, he indicated, is from the owner of the Stafford Trading Post and he believes he's gotten that permission before. He doesn't believe he'll ever get a fair shake from Tom Englerth Sr.

Pontillo thinks Tom Englerth Sr. is still angry that he bought the building and kept Englerth from tearing it down.

Englerth Jr. confirmed that his family wanted to buy the building and they were going to offer to help pay for the historical society to move it to another location in Stafford.

"We're not trying to be jerks," Englerth said. "Since he came in there, he's only made nonsense promises, that he was going to open a restaurant, that he was going to open a pizzeria, he was going to put this place here out of business. He's done nothing for the community I don't think. I don't like to talk about people like that, but it's bullshit. It really is."

Englerth was particularly bothered by some of the comments left on The Batavian insulting his father (two name-calling comments were removed) after last week's story was posted, and he just wanted to set the record straight that his father really is a nice guy and is reasonable if treated fairly.

"We're just old-time farmers looking for what else can we do here and there to make a living," Englerth said. "We have to. Our economy is based on looking at what else you can do to succeed."

Verizon crews have been working at the scene of last night's accident all day trying to repair damage to Internet and phone equipment at the location on Route 5 in Stafford.

While electrical power has been restored to the area by National Grid, there was extensive damage done to Verizon's equipment and lines.

A spokesman for Verizon said the company has received only 15 complaints of lost service in the area, but he believes there are more customer either without Internet or phone service.

Repairs won't be completed until tomorrow at the earliest.

Two fiber cables and a copper cable needed repair, he said. The power box at the location -- Route 5 and Clipnock Road -- was also damaged and needs to be replaced.

National Grid reports some 300 customers from Clinton Street Road on the west to Bater road on the East are without power and there is not yet an estimate of when power will be restored.

A small pickup hit a utility pole just before 6 p.m. at Route 5 and Clipnock Road, shearing it off at its base.

One of the main transmission lines for the area was strung to the top of the pole, a National Grid employee on scene explained later. He said when the truck struck the pole, it probably moved 10 feet, causing the line to snap out of insulators on poles up and down the line.

The plan, he said, was for crews to respond to multiple locations and isolate specific outage areas and restore power incrementally to the affected customers.

While the initial estimate for power restoration was eight to 10 hours, the worker said he'd like to keep it to under four hours.

The driver and the passenger of the truck were transported to UMMC with minor injuries. A deputy said the truck was eastbound when it crossed the center line and struck the pole on the north shoulder. He said the cause of the accident remains under investigation.

Route 5 remains close to through traffic at this hour.

UPDATE 11 a.m.: The driver is identified in a Sheriff's Office accident report as Jason C. Penn, 35, of Mix Place, Batavia. His passenger was Blake C. Lind, age 7. The truck struck a fire hydrant and two utility poles. Debris from the accident struck another vehicle, causing the windshield to shatter. The cause of the accident remains under investigation, which is being conducted by Deputy Joseph Graff. No citations have been issued. A reader reports power restored at her Stafford residence at 5 a.m.

(Initial Report)

A motor-vehicle accident with injuries is reported at Route 5 and Clipnock Road, Stafford. Stafford fire and Mercy medics are responding.

UPDATE 6 p.m.: The driver is said to be in and out of consciousness. There are wires down over the vehicle.

UPDATE 6:05 p.m.: Fire police will be shutting down traffic at Route 5 and Sanders Road.

UPDATE 6:09 p.m.: Command asked for Mercy Flight to be put on ground standby if available. Dispatch says Mercy Flight needs to be rerouted and asks if they are needed at the scene. Command says to send a second ambulance. One victim is a minor with a leg abrasion.

UPDATE 6:13 p.m.: Command calls for Mercy Flight to stand by the scene. The ship out of Batavia is available. A landing zone is being established, in case.

UPDATE 6:16 p.m.: Town of Batavia fire police are heading to the scene to assist with traffic control.

UPDATE 6:23 p.m.: Medics have not yet determined if Mercy Flight will be needed.

UPDATE 6:26 p.m.: Mercy Flight is grounded due to weather. They are going to break down the landing zone.

UPDATE 6:37 p.m.: The driver who was said to be in and out of consciousness, has diabetes and is being transported by ambulance to UMMC. National Grid is on scene, and reps for cable and Verizon wireless are requested.

UPDATE 7:06 p.m.: Red Osier's management is acutely aware of the situation and it's impacting the evening's business at the restaurant. A National Grid rep says they are going to try and isolate the area west of Route 5 to get the power on, and go from there. Verizon says it will get someone out there tomorrow.

UPDATE 8:51 p.m.: Town of Batavia's assignment to Sanders Road back in service.

UDATE 8:55 p.m.: Verizon is in route. 2 1/2 hour ETA.