An accident is reported in the area of 7032 Route 262, Byron.
A car has struck a pole and there's smoke coming from the vehicle.
Byron and South Byron departments responding along with Mercy EMS.
UPDATE 4:33 p.m.: Units can come in non-emergency.
There was no rain today, but there were a few tears. There were also memories and smiles as Coach Dan Gilbert was honored by his former colleagues and players in a ceremony on the field where he won games and molded men for more than a decade.
The ballpark will now be known as the Daniel Gilbert Memorial Field.
Gilbert passed away March 1 at the age of 47.
"It’s with mixed emotion that I say I’m the varsity baseball coach here at Oakfield-Alabama this year," said Nathan Klos, who took over the varsity team this season after Gilbert's passing. "On one hand, it’s a dream come true for me to come home to the program that built me and that has a great tradition in this community. On the other hand, Dan and I were supposed to coach these boys together this year."
The stories Klos told during his remarks were the stories that perhaps encapsulate the impact Gilbert had on the community. Gilbert became his P.E. coach when Klos was in the first grade and taught him sports and fitness until fifth grade. Klos spent his middle school years looking for ways to impress Gilbert, hoping it might serve him well when his turn came to play varsity baseball.
Gilbert put him on the varsity squad just before the end of the regular season in Nate's sophomore year and it was Klos who came to bat in a Section V playoff game with the game on the line, down by one run, runners on first and second, and on a 3-2 pitch, Klos delivered the decisive base hit and won another Section V championship for the Hornets.
Klos said it was the biggest highlight of his baseball life, and one made possible, because he knew, he said, that Gilbert believed in him.
Klos, Brandon Hall, and James Patrick all said Gilbert was the kind of coach who made great players better and elevated the lesser athletes into top contributors. He had a way of making every player believe that he believed in him.
"He got the very best out of every single us one of us," Hall said. "He focused hard and had more determination than any player actually on the field."
Patrick said Gilbert taught him how to be a family man and how to be a coach.
"One thing that is always in our lives that shows today is the support we have for each other because of an amazing man," Patrick said. "He was a loyal, hard-working guy who believes what is right is right and what wrong is wrong and he always treated kids fairly."
Gilbert was a 1987 graduate of O-A and returned to the school after college to be a teacher's aide and Special Ed instructor. After a stint in another job, he returned and became a teacher and coach.
He loved baseball and his former players described a man who knew the game better than anybody they've met. That passion, they said, came through.
Sue Gilbert said the family will always be grateful for the day in his honor and the field that will carry on his memory.
"Our hope is that all who knew Dan will remember the passion he had for life," Sue Gilbert said. "Whether he was teaching his students, coaching his players or loving and caring for our children, he stayed true to what he believed -- the belief that every child had the potential to be great. Dan had a passion for helping each child become just that, through hard work, determination and drive. His students and athletes overcame obstacles and learned to believe in themselves."
Such a humble man, Superintendent Mark Alexander suggested, might not expect a day like today.
"I’m not sure how Dan would feel about the celebration here today, but he’s earned it and it’s well deserved," Alexander said.
Hall, who played for Gilbert from 1989 through 2003, thought maybe Gilbert was looking down on the day and making sure just this one time, rain didn't ruin something good.
"There’s only two times in all the years I played for him where I seen him upset," Hall said. "That was my freshman year after we lost in a torrential downpour. We had a stellar team and we would have went to states that year. The second time was my senior year, the day we got rained out at states. We were fired up and he was more fired up than anybody. I was watching the weather forecast this week and saw it was going to rain and I thought, ‘you know what, there ain’t no way he’s going to let that happen.' The two times I seen him the saddest was then. He ain't going to let that happen to us today and sure enough," he said as he held his palm skyward, "look."
Mark Alexander, superintendent
Jeff Schlagenhauf, athletic director
Brandon Hall presented Sue Gilbert with a plaque he made to commemorate the day.
James Patrick
Sue Gilbert
The 4H Swine Club held its annual pulled pork lunch sale at the Genesee County Fairgrounds today.
Whiskey 7, the World War II-era plane based in Livingston County, was practicing touch-and-gos at the Genesee County Airport this afternoon.
Previously: Photos: D-Day plane stops for fuel at Genesee County Airport
Thousands of people -- high school soccer players, coaches, officials, and parents -- are in Batavia this weekend for the Empire Cup, a soccer showcase that gives high school players from throughout the Northeast a chance to play against other top players and display their skills for college recruiters.
In the parking lot were license plates from New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Ontario, Canada, and, of course, New York.
Players were at both the Batavia Sports Park on State Street Road and at Genesee Community College.
The event brings an estimated $500,000 into the local economy. The Empire Cup is supposed to go for two weeks, but the boys' event was rained out last weekend.
Area volunteer firefighters and staff from Emergency Services were at Kiwanis Park in Batavia this morning to learn about setting up a system of booms over water that would be deployed in the case of an oil spill.
The idea is, say, a tanker overturns and accidentally dumps its cargo and it flows into the Tonawanda Creek, which could cause significant environmental damage, including damage to farm fields.
The booms would float on the top of the water and divert the water into an outlet where it could be collected for proper disposal.
The boom system is deployed with a rope gun and consists of booms that are each 50-feet long and can be locked together.
The instructor was David Sweeny, of Gallagher Marine.
A 67-year-old man from Bradford was pronounced dead at the scene of an accident on Route 63 in Bethany this morning after the car he was driving crossed the center line and struck a pickup truck.
Investigators have been unable to determine so far why the 2011 Toyota sedan driven by Gerald D. Makin crossed into oncoming traffic.
Makin was northbound.
A 2013 Ford F-150 was southbound, driven by Robert E. Moore Jr., 50, of Elba. More and his passenger, Christine Moore, 49, were both injured and were transported by Mercy EMS to UMMC.
Makin's passenger, Anna Ayers, 69, was transported to Strong Memorial Hospital.
Coroner Tom Douglas pronounced Makin dead at the scene.
A third vehicle, parked and unoccupied, was struck by Moore's truck. The driver of that truck was working on a nearby water well and saw the accident only after the vehicles struck.
A truck driver from York, Pa., witnessed the accident and provided investigators with a statement.
The accident occurred about a 1/4 mile south of Fargo Road, south of an infamous S-curve that has been the site of prior accidents. There has also been a previous accident in the curve where these cars collided, but Undersheriff Greg Walker said he doesn't believe the roadway was a factor in the accident, nor was the weather, which was warm and only slightly overcast without wind.
Walker said it's unknown if Makin had a medical issue that caused him to lose control of the sedan, nor can investigators say yet if distracted driving was a factor.
The accident is being investigated by Deputy Cory Mower. Assisting at the scene were Walker, Chief Deputy Gordon Dibble, Investigator Chris Parker, the Crash Management Team, including Sgt. Jason Saile and Sgt. Eric Seppala, the Bethany Fire Department, the Stafford Fire Department, the Pavilion Fire Department, Mercy EMS and NY State Police.
Press release:
New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) and Department of Agriculture and Markets (DAM) today announced that eight existing Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) Restricted Zones have been expanded and merged into a single Restricted Zone in order to strengthen the State’s efforts to slow the spread of this invasive pest.
The new EAB Restricted Zone includes part or all of Albany, Allegany, Broome, Cattaraugus, Cayuga, Chautauqua, Chenango, Chemung, Columbia, Cortland, Delaware, Dutchess, Erie, Genesee, Greene, Livingston, Madison, Monroe, Niagara, Oneida, Onondaga, Ontario, Orange, Orleans, Oswego, Otsego, Putnam, Rensselaer, Rockland, Saratoga, Schenectady, Schoharie, Schuyler, Seneca, Steuben, Sullivan, Tioga, Tompkins, Ulster, Wayne, Westchester, Wyoming, and Yates counties.
The EAB Restricted Zone prohibits the movement of EAB and potentially infested ash wood. The map is available on the DEC website http://www.dec.ny.gov/animals/7253.html.
“The expanded Restricted Zone for the destructive pest Emerald Ash Borer will help to slow the spread of this tree-killing beetle, protecting millions of ash trees in New York,” said DEC Commissioner Basil Seggos. “DEC will continue our efforts to slow the spread of this beetle and do what we can to help communities prepare for EAB.”
“It’s critical that we continue to track the Emerald Ash Borer and adjust our efforts to combat and slow the spread of this invasive beetle that damages and kills ash trees in both our forested and urban settings,” said State Agriculture Commissioner Richard A. Ball. “By expanding the Restricted Zone, we can ensure that EAB and potentially infested ash wood does not leave the quarantine areas.”
Emerald Ash Borer (Agrilus planipennis) or “EAB” is a serious invasive tree pest in the United States, killing hundreds of millions of ash trees in forests, yards, and neighborhoods. The beetles’ larvae feed in the cambium layer just below the bark, preventing the transport of water and nutrients into the crown and killing the tree. Emerging adult beetles leave distinctive D-shaped exit holes in the outer bark of the branches and the trunk. Adults are roughly 3/8 to 5/8 inch long with metallic green wing covers and a coppery red or purple abdomen. They may be present from late May through early September but are most common in June and July. Other signs of infestation include tree canopy dieback, yellowing, and browning of leaves.
EAB was first discovered in the United States in 2002 in southeastern Michigan. It was also found in Windsor, Ontario, Canada the same year. This Asian beetle infests and kills North American ash species (Fraxinus sp.) including green, white, black and blue ash. Thus, all native ash trees are susceptible.
EAB larvae can be moved long distances in firewood, logs, branches, and nursery stock, later emerging to infest new areas. These regulated articles may not leave the Restricted Zone without a compliance agreement or limited permit from the Department of Agriculture and Markets, applicable only during the non-flight season (September 1 - April 30).
Regulated articles from outside of the Restricted Zone may travel through the Restricted Zone as long as the origin and the destination are listed on the waybill and the articles are moved without stopping, except for traffic conditions and refueling. Wood chips may not leave the Restricted Zone between April 15th and May 15th of each year when EAB is likely to emerge.
For more information about EAB or the emergency orders, please visit DEC’s website. If you see signs of EAB attack on ash trees outside of the Restrictive Zone, please report these occurrences to the DEC’s Forest Health Information Line toll-free at 1-866-640-0652.
Press release:
Students in the sixth, seventh and eighth grade at St. Joseph School had the opportunity to participate in their annual spelling bee this past week. Twenty five brave students gathered on the stage for a spelling competition that lasted 35 rounds.
In the end, three eightth-graders took the top three places winning cash prizes:
- First Place -- Rachel Nickerson
- Second Place -- Katelyn Zehler
- Third Place -- Anne Marie Kochmanski
The other top spellers are: James Weicher II, Gabriel Weicher, Andrew Ricupito, Lucia Sprague, Madalyn Bochicchio, Sarah McGinnis and Isabelle Cooper.
Congratulations to this year’s top 10 spellers!
Submitted photos and info:
Assemblyman Stephen Hawley visited fourth-graders at Pembroke Intermediate School. Students have been studying the history of New York State, the government of New York, and how New York has helped shape America.
Assemblyman Hawley discussed his responsibilities and duties, while students participated in a question and answer session. Earlier in the year, students from Mr. Brown's Social Studies class wrote to Assemblyman Hawley after learning about the branches of government in New York.
Leonard E. Hahn IV, who committed his sexual assaults on young children when he was only 17, will spend 10 years in prison and then spend another 20 years on parole, Genesee County Court Judge Chuck Zambito determined this afternoon.
Zambito could have considered Hahn for youthful offender status, but that would have limited his maximum prison term to only two years and then once released, Hahn would not have been required to register as a sex offender.
Hahn, now 18, is clearly a threat to children in the community, Zambito said.
"I think it will be important for the public to know who you are and where you are," Zambito said.
The 10-year term was the maximum number of years Zambito could give Hahn under the terms of the plea arrangement.
The plea saved the victims from being forced to testify and trial. His guilty plea was connected to a single victim, whom Hahn assaulted in a bathroom even as other people were in the residence, according to Assistant District Attorney Melissa Cianfrini.
The victim, just a child, was traumatized by the rape, Cianfrini said.
"She didn't even understand what was going on," Cianfrini said. "This is going to trouble her for years and years to come."
Defense Attorney Lisa Kroemer said Hahn regretted his actions -- Hahn didn't speak in court -- but suggested that even he didn't comprehend his crime.
"I understand the seriousness of the crime," Kroemer said. "I understand that this happened to a young child, but I'm not even sure he understands why this occurred."
The investigation into Hahn's crimes began with a single complaint from a student at school and included law enforcement officials in Genesee and Wyoming counties.
During the investigation, additional children came forward and made similar allegations.
Hahn was initially charged with multiple counts of rape.
All of the children involved under 11 years old.
Zambito said he put Hahn on parole for 20 years, the maximum time period available under the law, because Hahn will still be only 28 years old when he gets out of prison.
A former UMMC employee who was stealing medical equipment and selling it on eBay entered a guilty plea in Genesee County Court to grand theft, 3rd, a step down from the original charge of second-degree grand theft, and agreed to pay $30,000 in restititution.
District Attorney Lawrence Friedman said she already paid back $10,000 and will make payments of $344 per month for five years in order to pay off the balance.
The plea deal could still lead to a prison term for 48-year-old Kim Diamond, of Livingston County, of two-and-one-third to seven years, or she could get probation when she's sentenced on Aug. 14.
David Burke is the winner of the 2017 Spring Art Show hosted by the Batavia Society of Artists at the Richmond Memorial Library. Burke received his award at the show's opening last night.
Richard Ellingham received second place and Kevin Feary received third place.
Rachel Beck, a Genesee Community College student and resident of Attica, received the Carr-Mumford scholarship.
Four area high school students were honored by the Arc of Genesee Orleans on Thursday night at the agency's annual meeting with scholarships from the Mary Anne Graney Memorial Scholarship Fund. The scholarship is awarded to students interested in working with people with disabilities.
The scholarships were awarded to Natalie Bigelow, Batavia HS, who plans to attend Daemen College and study Physical Therapy; Alyssa Weaver, Pembroke HS, who plans to enter a Physician's Assistant Program; Hannah Bowen, Notre Dame HS, who plans to attend Clarkson University, and she will pursue a career in Psychology; Marlaina Fee, Byron-Bergen HS, who plans to study Elementary Education at Geneva College, with a focus on Special Ed and Sign Language.
Representing the schoalrship fund was Molly George.
Pictured are: Campbell Anderson, Margaret Cecere, Madison Grover, Celia Flynn, Elizabeth Piedmont, Zachary O'Brien (back), Chyenne Ernst, Madison Moore, Serena Strollo-DiCenso, Abigail Stendts, Cassidy Miller, McKenna Dziemian, and Quenten Branciforte.
An accident with entrapment and possibly serious injuries is reported on Route 63, in the S-curve south of Fargo Road, Bethany.
Bethany fire and Mercy EMS dispatched.
Checking on the availability of Mercy Flight.
UPDATE(S) (By Billie) 11:31 a.m.: CPR is in progress. An engine out of Stafford is called. One Mercy Flight helicopter out of Buffalo is en route and another helicopter in Buffalo is put on ground standby. A Sheriff's deputy is on scene.
UPDATE 11:34 a.m.: State troopers are on scene. Bethany's ambulance is requested. Northbound traffic at Texaco Town is closed; southbound traffic will also be shut down. Extrications of victims are completed. Police patrol at Cedar Street and Route 63 will be set up to divert tractor trailer traffic. Mercy Flight is canceled. Crash Management Team is deployed.
UPDATE 11:44 a.m.: The accident involved a pickup truck and a sedan. It appears that both driver's sides clipped each other; the front-end damage to the sedan is severe. Fire police are requested to divert tractor trailer traffic (didn't catch the location).
UPDATE 11:50 a.m.: The Bethany ambulance is taking one patient to Strong Memorial Hospital. Fire police will divert tractor trailer traffic at East Bethany-Le Roy Road and Route 63.
UPDATE 11:54 a.m.: This is a fatal accident. The coroner has a 30-minute ETA.
UPDATE 12:05 p.m.: Mercy medics also took a patient to Strong.
UPDATE 12:44 p.m.: They are going to shut down/divert traffic at Route 63 and Paul Road in East Bethany.
UPDATE 1:50 p.m.: Undersheriff Gergory Walker said three vehicles (including an unoccupied truck) and four people were involved in this accident. The person who died was the male driver of the sedan. He was in his 60s and lived in another county in New York. His female passenger sustained minor injuries and was alert and talking at the time she was transported to the hospital. The driver of the pickup and the passenger in the pickup both had minor injuries and were transported via ambulance to the hospital. Walker said the passenger car was northbound on Route 63 when, for undetermined reasons, it crossed the center line and struck the southbound pickup truck. The impact was front driver's side to front driver's side. Upon impact, the pickup truck veered over and struck an unoccupied work truck belonging to a man who was servicing a well in the area. The worker heard the crash, then turned around and "saw the end result of it." Weather was not a factor in the collision, nor were drugs and alcohol. It is unknown if any medical issues played a role, pending autopsy results. Walker said it was too early to determine if speed was a factor; there was no indication of any braking by the passenger vehicle before it collided with the truck. Asked about the 'S' curve, Walker said the roadway itself is not considered to be a factor and that "several cars go through this curve every day and most traffic can make it through with no issues," although he acknowleged there have been serious-injury accidents there. The cause of the accident "is all up in the air" at this point and the investigation is continuing.
UPDATE 2:12 p.m.: Route 63 is being reopened.
Members of the Genesee Symphony Orchestra visited Oakfield-Alabama Elementary School yesterday to meet with students from each grade to talk with them about classical music and the instruments they use. Above, Bob Knipe talks about his French horn.
Muris Director / Conductor S. Shade Zajac
Amy Martin and Joe Kusmierczak star in the Batavia Player's production of "The Last Five Years," a musical written and composed by Jason Robert Brown and produced and directed by Kathy White, with performances this weekend at the Harvester 56 Theater.
Show times are 7:30 p.m., Friday and Saturday, and 2 p.m., Sunday.
Leaving Oakfield on Route 63, this hill, with its clean line against the sky, always catches my eye. Yesterday, I thought the clouds stretching off into the distance made it look even more interesting.
Haily Davis, a senior at Oakfield-Alabama High School, reacts to her attempt to keep control of a car in a simulator while also texting. The simulator was part of the Save A Life Tour, which stopped by O-A yesterday, giving students a chance to experience just how distracting distracted driving can me. Another simulator mimicked the difficulty and dangers of driving drunk.
Davis said the simulator really opened her eyes to how hard it is to text and drive at the same time.
"I learned that it’s not as easy to text and drive as I thought it would be and that’s it’s not just you," Davis said. "You have to be careful because of other people running red lights or other people turning when they’re not supposed to be. If you look down and swerve into the other lane you could hit somebody."
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