Monday, March 1, 2010

Market Street closed while Sunbury Police headquarters is vented

SUNBURY – Portions of the 400-block of Market Street in downtown Sunbury were blocked to traffic early Monday afternoon after firefighters were called to the Sunbury Police station.  A natural gas leak was reported, streaming from the basement of the department’s headquarters.  Venting of the building took about an hour, and the street was reportedly open to traffic again at about 2:45 p.m.

Swearing in Snyder County’s new commissioner

MIDDLEBURG – Well-wishers packed a room at the Snyder County Courthouse for Monday’s swearing in of the county’s newest commissioner.  Peggy Chamberlain Roup is filling the unexpired term of commissioner Bud Bickhart, who stepped down earlier this year.  The long time local newscaster is up for the new challenge, and says the first matter of business she wants to deal with is the county budget.  Commissioner Chamberlain Roup is the lone Democrat on the board, and will serve with Republicans Joe Kantz and Malcolm Derk. 

Chamberlain Roup is also the first woman on the Snyder County board, but not the first woman commissioner to serve in the area.  After being sworn in, she cited the accomplishments of other women who’ve served as commissioners in neighboring counties.  They included the late Eleanor Kuhns, who served in Northumberland County. 

Union County Commissioners were also Monday’s swearing-in, as well as State Representatives Merle Phillips (R-108^th, Sunbury), Russ Fairchild (R-85^th, Winfield), and State Senator John Gordner (R-27^th, Berwick).  (Ali Stevens) 

Volunteer firefighters honored

SUNBURY – Nearly 200 volunteer firefighters and their families attended the annual Sunbury Firemen’s Banquet over the weekend.  Sunbury Fire Chief Dean Weirick introduced and honored many current and past volunteers and chiefs.

A national medal of honor for gallantry was also given to Bloomsburg University student Mitch Lehman who is a Sunbury Fire Department and Bloomsburg Fire Department volunteer.  He responded to a devastating building fire last October in Bloomsburg, and helped a resident escape, likely saving his life.

Also speaking at the banquet was Sunbury Mayor David Persing who commended the volunteers for their proactive approach to safety.  He says their hard work makes a different in the city of Sunbury and will ultimately held improve the community. (Sara Bartlett)

Local students collect Haiti quake relief donations

MIFFLINBURG – Students and teachers at Mifflinburg High School have raised over $3,000 for earthquake victims in Haiti.  Several events were organized, including a hat day where students and faculty could donate money and wear a hat to school.  $3,538.31 was presented to the American Red Cross and all of the money will go to the Haiti disaster relief fund. 

Mifflinburg man jailed after threat

MIFFLINBURG – A Watsontown man is in jail after threatening a Mifflinburg woman.  Police say around 11:30p.m. Sunday 27-year-old Brian Weaver threatened to kill the 26-year-old woman.  Police were summoned and confiscated a handgun belonging to Weaver.  He was charged with terroristic threats and harassment.  Weaver was unable to post $10,000 bail, and is in Union County Jail. (Sara Bartlett)

Selinsgrove man killed in snowmobile accident

HOWARD – A Selinsgrove man died Sunday morning following a snowmobile crash near Bald Eagle State Forest.  Around 11:15a.m., 54-year-old Robert Sprenkel was driving a snowmobile near the Centre/Mifflin County line, when he failed to negotiate a curve and exited the roadway.  Sprenkel went down an embankment and was pinned against a tree. 

Police say other riders with Sprenkel noticed the snowmobile tracks over the embankment and called for help.  Sprenkel was pronounced dead at the scene.  Assisting State Police in the incident was Mifflinburg and Penns Valley EMS, along with the Centre Hall Fire Department. (Sara Bartlett)

Police: Turbotville man a scammer

WATSONTOWN – A Turbotville man has been charged after theft from a home in Watsontown.  Police say Kevin Mariano was hired by a resident to do repair work in a home.  The resident found Mariano’s services from an ad on Craigslist. 

Mariano reportedly stole a number of electronic items from the home while doing work.  The resident reported the incident after viewing her stolen items listed on Craigslist for sale. 

Mariano was taken into custody after agreeing to sell some of the electronics, and did so in the presence of an undercover police officer.  Charges of theft and receiving stolen property have been filed against Mariano. (Sara Bartlett)

Smoke shop hit by fire

Bucknell excels in volunteerism

LEWISBURG – An after school tutoring initiative, a program to alleviate poverty in Uganda, and free hot meals for local residents are among the ways Bucknell University students volunteered their services last year. The university has once again received a national community service award.

 In a news release today, the school says 85% of its student body volunteers in some way, placing it on a federal list of universities recognized for volunteerism.  Bucknell says, “Among Bucknell's many community service projects are Bucknell Buddies, an after-school tutoring program offered in Lewisburg.”

Additionally, the university cites; Bicycles Against Poverty, a student-initiated program to help alleviate poverty in war-torn areas of Uganda; and Community Harvest, a free hot meal program in nearby Milton.

It’s the second year in a row Bucknell has landed on the Community Service Honor Roll, the highest recognition an institution can earn for service learning and civic engagement. A news release from explains more about the honor. You can see that information at www.bucknell.edu. (Matt Farrand)

Two shootings injure four in Williamsport 

WILLIAMSPORT – Gunfire injured four men in two separate incidents Saturday in Williamsport.  Police are not releasing names, but say three were injured in a shooting at the rear of a residence in the 12-hundred block of West Fourth Street shortly after 4:15 p.m. 

One sustained a gunshot wound to the chest and needed surgery, another is in stable condition at Williamsport Hospital with wounds to the legs, and a third was treated and released.  State troopers and local officials are analyzing evidence, including vehicles that reportedly left the scene but were later found and seized by police in the parking lot of Williamsport Hospital.

Bloomsburg woman killed in crash

Police officer dog bit during Norry fugitive bust

NORTHUMBERLAND – Two people were taken into custody (including a fugitive sex offender) and a dog bit a police officer, during a violent incident this week in Northumberland. The incident happened Wednesday evening at a home in the 500 block of Queen Street.

Officers tell us they went to the home to arrest 25-year-old Maurice Whitchsett Jr. They say he was no known address but was staying with a woman who rents a home there. He was found hiding in the attic of the home and in the process of taking him into custody; police say they arrested 20-year-old Nicole Hafer of Northumberland.

In an ensuing struggle with her, her pet pit bull attacked and bit a Sunbury police officer. The officer sustained a leg wound and did receive medical treatment. The state Department of Health is in on that aspect of the investigation.

The fugitive was jailed and Hafer was arrested for aggravated assault on a police officer, hindering the apprehension of a suspect, resisting arrest and recklessly endangering another person. He is wanted in Texas as a convicted sex offender on $50,000 bail. She was jail on $25,000 bail. The dog was subdued with the use of a Taser.

Boil water advisory in Beavertown

BEAVERTOWN – A boil water advisory is in effect for Beavertown while a water leak is being repaired on Zechman Street.  All residents east of Zechman Street to the borough line are advised to boil their water until further notice. 

Local trainer says good health starts with the…foot

WATSONTOWN – Experts at Geisinger Medical Center and elsewhere say sugary soft drinks are largely what is driving the obesity rate among local children to 42%. That’s measurably higher than the national average. However, a local fitness expert says the sedentary lifestyle lived by many in the area is as big a factor as too many sodas and juice boxes.

Michelle Simons of Lewisburg says many kids are simply stuck in front of computer screens and watching video. Simons now runs a fitness related business based in Lewisburg, but has also coached college basketball, following a distinguished playing career.

She says fitness starts with strong feet, thanks to nerve receptors there that contribute to balance, awareness, and thus strength. Simons spoke last week at the annual meeting and awards ceremony of the Central Pennsylvania Chamber of Commerce. (Matt Farrand)

Wolfgang trial delayed

SUNBURY – The trial has been delayed for the Mount Carmel man charged with killing his wife and dumping her body in a creek. The trial was set for mid-March, but has been delayed until late summer or early fall. The Northumberland County District Attorney’s office tells us the trial has been postponed for Steven Wolfgang, who is charged with killing his wife Sherry Wolfgang of Mount Carmel in January of 2007.

President Judge Robert Sacavage ruled Wolfgang competent to stand trial last week, so the D-A’s office says additional testing needs to be done, since the prosecution is seeking the death penalty. Wolfgang is charged with an open count of homicide after police say he killed his wife and put her body in a box before dumping it in a creek. (Ali Stevens)

Encore ‘mental health update’ with the Dr’s Paolucci

SUNBURY – This weekend on our Roundtable program we have an encore broadcast of one of our award winning ‘mental health updates.’ Dr.s Stephen Paolucci and Susan Paolucci are the guests on the program recorded on the Geisinger campus in Danville—in 2009. We discuss new medicines, the fight against stigma and the federal health care legislation.

Susan Paolucci, a staff psychiatrist at Geisinger tells us, so far mental health coverage has been carved out of the Washington DC discussions, and that is not ideal. Dr. Stephen Paolucci, the head of the division of psychiatry is the other guest on the program. We discuss the importance of the electronic health record when it comes to mental health care and mental health research.

You can hear the encore Roundtable (Sunday) on Eagle 107 (107.3FM) at 6a.m., 100.9 (100.9FM), The Valley, at 6a.m., Newsradio 1070 WKOK (1070AM) at 9a.m., Talkradio 1380 WMLP (1380AM), 11a.m., 94KX WQKX (94.1FM) at 11p.m., and anytime, at www.wkok.com.

Former congressman: Specter needs to retire

DANVILLE – Former Congressman John Peterson believes it’s time for Arlen Specter to retire. The conservative, formerly from the 5th District, says it’s time for a change and he believes Pat Toomey is the right choice.

Peterson says no one should be elected to congress at the age of 80 and despite being friends with Specter for 40 years, Peterson says now is the time for him to go. Peterson believes Toomey will win the seat held by Specter for 30 years. Peterson also talked about President Barack Obama’s Healthcare Summit.

He says American’s want reform other than what Obama wants. Peterson believes Obama’s plan is a socialized takeover of the healthcare system, where the government will determine what healthcare you get and how much it will cost. Peterson says American’s want market based reforms that will cut costs and improve efficiency with more preventative care. (Matt Bowen)

Gordner questions the A-G’s audits

HARRISBURG – Senator John Gordner (R-27th, Berwick) says he questions performance audits done by Auditor General Jack Wagner regarding mass transit agencies such at the Port Authority. Gordner says a good portion of the revenue is based on the tolling of I-80, which doesn’t exist.

Gordner says tolling hasn’t happened to date, and come July of this year, if the tolling of I-80 hasn’t occurred, there will be about a 50 percent reduction in monies that are available to PennDOT and mass transit agencies. Gordner and many other area politicians are strongly opposed to the tolling of Interstate 80, with a decision looming on whether or not it can be done.

However, the governor has budgeted proceeds from the tolling of I-80 for various projects in the proposed budget, totaling about $460-million in revenue. Gordner is an outspoken critic of this, along with Congressman Chris Carney (D-10th, Dimock) and State Representative Merle Phillips (R-108th, Sunbury). (Ali Stevens)

Latest Pennsylvania news, lottery, sports, business and entertainment

WERNERSVILLE, Pa. (AP) - Authorities say an eastern Pennsylvania man is dead after being attacked by one of his pet bulls.  The Berks County coroner's office says 52-year-old Ricky Weinhold died Saturday after being attacked by a bull on a farm where he leased barn space in Wernersville.  Chief Deputy Coroner Charles E. Sweitzer Jr. says all of Weinhold's injuries appear to have been inflicted by a bull's head and hooves.  Authorities say Weinhold's body was discovered by the son of the farm's owner on Sunday, which would have been his 53rd birthday.  Deputy Coroner Terri Straka says the Reinhold’s man had been injured by one of the animals previously. Authorities suspect that bull was involved in Saturday's attack. 

PITTSBURGH (AP) - Police say a drunk driver damaged a World War I memorial in the middle of a Pittsburgh intersection.  An unidentified 32-year-old man is facing charges in the crash that knocked the monument off its base Saturday night in Pittsburgh's Troy Hill neighborhood.  Investigators say the vehicle was abandoned at the scene and officers used its license plate to track the suspect to a hospital where he was seeking treatment. Police say he had a blood alcohol level nearly three times the legal limit for drivers.  The man is facing charges including driving under the influence and possession of marijuana.  Workers removed the damaged memorial on Sunday.

PHILADELPHIA (AP) - Philadelphia police have arrested a couple that allegedly robbed jewelry store and left their 4-year-old son behind.  Police say 47-year-old John Benson and 31-year-old Sheakia Stubbs were arrested around midnight Monday at a Philadelphia hotel.  Investigators say Benson and Stubbs fled after grabbing a tray of items worth tens of thousands of dollars at the Platinum and Ice jewelry store on Saturday.  Authorities say the store's owner chased the couple, which dragged the boy with them before Benson slashed the owner in the neck. The couple then continued on without the boy.  Police say the child was able to help identify his parents.

PINE GROVE, Pa. (AP) - Fire investigators are trying to find out what started a blaze that killed a man in a gated community in eastern Pennsylvania.  Schuylkill County officials say 66-year-old Robert Zimmerman was pronounced dead at 9 p.m. Friday after his body was found in a room adjacent to the garage of his home in Lake Wynonah, Wayne Township.  State police at Frackville say the flames started in the garage and spread to the home, which was fully engulfed when firefighters arrived.  County coroner Joseph Lipsett said Zimmerman died of inhalation of carbon monoxide and smoke, and his death was ruled accidental.

NORWOOD, Pa. (AP) – Officials say two teenage girls who were struck and killed by a high-speed Amtrak train committed suicide.  An Acela train traveling from Boston to Washington, D.C., hit the 10th-graders about 10:30 a.m. Thursday in Norwood, about 10 miles southwest of Philadelphia.  The Delaware County Medical Examiner's Office said Saturday that autopsies concluded the deaths were suicides.  Norwood Police Chief Mark DelVecchio says an examination of the girls' e-mail and text messages showed they spoke of their desire to end their lives. He said police did not know what led the girls to suicide.  Family members and classmates at Interboro Senior High School said 16-year-old Gina Gentile and 15-year-old Vanessa Dorwart were upset about the death of Gentile's boyfriend. Seventeen-year-old William Bradley was killed by a car while riding his bicycle last month.

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) - The storm-weary Northeast heard a new word this week as the latest storm bore down: "snowicane." It was coined by meteorologists at AccuWeather, who said the storm promised hurricane-like dangers, from high winds to flooding.  This winter, storms have been dubbed "snowmageddon" and "snowpocalypse." They lived up to their hype - delivering the snowiest winters some cities have ever recorded. But "snowicane" got the best of some forecasters at the more staid National Weather Service, which said its for-profit competitors were overhyping the situation.  State College, Pa.-based AccuWeather defended the word choice. Chief operations officer Evan Myers says his firm does not intend "to panic people" but that the storm "performed as advertised."

PHILADELPHIA (AP) - It's been quite a winter in Pennsylvania, where records have been broken, budgets have been busted and Philadelphia has received nearly as much snow as Erie.  And spring is still three weeks away.  The state has been hit by four major storms this season, but the flakes fell more heavily in some places than others.  A storm over the past couple of days dumped more than a foot of snow on Scranton but left Philadelphia fairly unscathed; a storm that buried Philadelphia with 20 inches in December left Pittsburgh with only a few.  Ruth Miller, a spokeswoman for the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency, says about a third of the state's 67 counties are seeking federal reimbursement for snowfall expenses during back-to-back blizzards in early February.

PHILADELPHIA (AP) - Crews have reopened the Pennsylvania Turnpike in both directions after as many as 20 tractor-trailers were involved in crashes that forced the shutdown of a 60-mile stretch of highway. Spokesman Carl DeFebo says the turnpike had reopened to all traffic by 3 p.m. Friday. A long stretch of the turnpike had been closed in central Pennsylvania since around 8 a.m. when wintry weather led to a series of crashes in the westbound lanes. Officials reported two people sustained non-life threatening injuries. DeFebo says emergency personnel helped motorists from a total of about 90 vehicles. Many were transported to service plazas for food, water and shelter. PennDOT lifted most speed and vehicle restrictions related to the storm by Friday afternoon and utility companies across the state were reporting few outages.

UNION DALE, Pa. (AP) - It could be another day before 57 students at a Philadelphia high school and their chaperones can get home after getting stranded by a strong winter storm during a class trip. The students from Calvary Christian Academy were staying in a hastily assembled Red Cross shelter Friday in northeastern Pennsylvania while they wait for one of their vehicles to be repaired. After being forced to cut short a ski trip to the Elk Mountain resort their buses got stuck in 4-foot snowdrifts Thursday night. Emergency workers transported everyone to a church in Union Dale, about 35 miles northeast of Scranton. Seventeen-year-old Sarah Miller says it's been a bonding experience for the senior class. It was already a star-crossed trip - one boy broke his collarbone while skiing and two girls were also hurt.

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) - More legal fireworks accompanied the end of the fourth week of testimony in Pennsylvania's legislative corruption trial. Judge Richard Lewis cautioned defense attorney Dan Raynak not to "push it" at the end of the day Friday after Raynak complained about a prosecutor's reaction to a witness' testimony. At issue is whether prosecutors in the theft, conspiracy and conflict-of-interest trial of former Rep. Mike Veon will be able to delve into the prior conviction of another former state representative for using his staff to campaign. If Lewis allows jurors to hear details of former Rep. Jeff Habay's case, it could help prosecutors argue that a recent case demonstrated to lawmakers and their staff the legal hazards of using public resources for political campaigns. Three former aides are on trial with Veon.

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) - The Sierra Club and the West Virginia Highlands Conservancy are threatening to sue Consol Energy if it doesn't meet federal water-quality standards within 60 days. The Canonsburg, Pa.-based coal company is developing long-term plans to build mine water treatment plants in the Dunkard Creek watershed, with the first operating by May 2013. The 43-mile long creek runs along the Pennsylvania-West Virginia border and was the site of a massive fish kill last fall. Consol stopped discharging water from the Blacksville No. 2 mine after that. Regulators say golden algae killed the fish, but pollutants created conditions that helped it bloom. Sierra Club's Jim Kotcon says Consol must act faster. He says the creek can't afford years of continuing pollution.

(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

Update on the latest in business:

Dow: + 66.44 (10,391.70)

S&P 500: + 9.46 (1,113.95)

NASDAQ: + 30.59 (2,268.85)

Anthera shares climb in debut after price cut

NEW YORK (AP) - Shares of drug developer Anthera Pharmaceuticals are climbing in their market debut Monday.  The Hayward, Calif., biotechnology company, which failed to make it to the market last week, cut the price of its shares to $7 from between $13 to $15, and boosted the number of shares it offered to 6 million from 4.6 million.  It raised about $42 million rather than $64.4 million.  Anthera Pharmaceutical Inc.'s stock rose 10 cents to $7.10 in afternoon trading. It reached $7.39 earlier in the session.

4 charged with hacking into concert ticket sites

NEWARK, N.J. (AP) - Federal prosecutors in New Jersey say four California men made more than $25 million reselling tickets to concerts and sporting events they acquired by hacking into Ticketmaster.com and other Web sites.    Prosecutors say the men fraudulently obtained more than a million tickets. Authorities in Newark charged 40-year-old Kenneth Lowson, 37-year-old Kristofer Kirsch, 36-year-old Faisal Nahdi and 37-year-old Joel Stevenson on Monday.  The indictment charges the men with multiple wire fraud counts and gaining unauthorized access to computer systems.  Prosecutors say the trio's company, Wiseguy Tickets, allegedly devised computer programs that impersonated individual ticket buyers to bombard ticket Web sites. The programs were able to bypass safeguards meant to restrict the number of tickets each customer can buy.

(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press.  All Rights Reserved.)

Pennsylvania Lottery Numbers:

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) - These Pennsylvania lotteries were drawn on Monday:

 Midday Big 4

     4-4-4-2

Midday Number

     0-8-8

 Midday Quinto

     0-8-7-7-1

 Treasure Hunt

     04-06-18-19-26 

(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press.  All Rights Reserved.)

PlayStation 3 Network plagued by Y2K-like bug

NEW YORK (AP) - Sony says it has found a bug that has knocked some PlayStation 3 users off the game console's online network.  Sony says the problem was likely caused by a bug in the clock functionality incorporated in the system. It's affecting older PlayStation 3 models, not the newest slim version.  Sony would not say how many users were affected by the problem, which comes just as PlayStation 3 sales are picking up.  Errors that PS3 users started seeing Sunday include the date of the systems being reset to Jan. 1, 2000. The problem was reminiscent of the Y2K bug a decade ago.  Sony said in a blog post Monday it hopes to resolve the problem within 24 hours.

Chynna Phillips completes treatment for anxiety

NEW YORK (AP) - A representative for Chynna Phillips says the singer has checked out of an undisclosed facility where she was treated for anxiety.  Phillips entered the facility last month.  Her manager, Lizzie Grubman, says the 42-year-old Phillips successfully completed treatment and left the facility Friday. Grubman says Phillips "happily returned home" to celebrate her daughter Jamieson's 10th birthday with family and friends.  Phillips, of the pop group Wilson Phillips, is married to actor William Baldwin. They have three children.  She is the half-sister of former child actress Mackenzie Phillips, who claimed in a memoir last year that she had a decade-long sexual relationship with their father, pop star John Phillips of the Mamas and the Papas.