Tuesday, April 1, 2008
Former First Daughter slated for Bucknell appearance
LEWISBURG – The former “first daughter” will visit Bucknell University Thursday. Director of Media Relations Tom Evelyn confirms that Chelsea Clinton will make an appearance at 12 noon, at a campus site to be determined. Meantime, The Hillary Clinton for President campaign confirms other Central PA appearances for Chelsea on Wednesday. They include stops at York College, an elementary school in Hanover, and art gallery in Harrisburg.
The younger Clinton is active in Hillary’s campaign for the Democratic nomination for president, as is husband Bill Clinton. The 41st President appeared in Girardville and Williamsport Saturday. More campaign info posted at WKOK’s Election Central 2008. (Matt Farrand)
Sunbury man killed in accident at Reinhart FoodService
COAL TOWNSHIP – A Sunbury man died of asphyxiation today after an industrial accident in Coal Township. Northumberland County Coroner James Kelley says 67-year-old Robert Kratzer was killed at the Reinhart FoodService Distribution Center on Route 61. The incident happened around 2:00 this morning as Kratzer was examining two tractor-trailer rigs. He stepped between the two rigs to examine a problem, when one began to roll backwards, causing the other to jackknife. Kratzer was caught between the two rigs and was crushed. Kelley pronounced Kratzer dead about an hour later. He says the death was accidental and listed the cause as compressional asphyxia.
Reinhart FoodService is the third largest privately held foodservice distributor in the United States. Their Coal Township business is located in the SEEDCO Coal Township Industrial Park.
Richfield man held without bail
SELINSGROVE – 26-year-old Travis Graham, of Richfield, was one of many interviewed through the week while State Police searched for the suspect in the homicide of 46-year-old Jeffrey Stock. Trooper Matt Burrows says Graham was asked Monday to come back to the barracks for questioning and he was eventually taken into custody.
At a press conference Tuesday Snyder County District Attorney Mike Sholley said Stock’s stepdaughter, who is dating Graham, was also called into the barracks for questioning Monday, where she told police that Graham had admitted shooting her stepfather. Sholley says Graham left Stock’s home the night of the homicide after having an argument with his girlfriend. He then took a single shot with a 25-caliber rifle at Stock, who was outside on the back porch of his home. Sholley says the shot came from 150-200 yards away.
On Monday, Graham led police to an area where he revealed the scope he used in the shooting, the torch he used to melt the rifle and the melted metal of the rifle. Graham is being held without bail in Snyder County Prison on charges of criminal homicide. He will face a preliminary hearing April 10th in Middleburg. (Sara Bartlett)
Vegetable oil found in Middle Creek
BEAVER SPRINGS – Crews from the Department of Environmental Protection will be in Beaver Springs again tomorrow following a spill of vegetable oil into Middle Creek. DEP spokesman Dan Spadoni says they were called to a home along Middle Creek on Friday for possible pollution. They were able to determine that an family at an old feed mill disconnected a tank of vegetable oil that made its way through a floor drain and into Middle Creek. About 30 gallons of oil ended up in the creek and the oil is slow to dissipate due to a debris dam down stream that is causing a back up.
Spadoni says they installed containment booms and absorbent pads to soak up the oil and will check in tomorrow to see if they need to be replaced. The Fish and Boat Commission was also contacted in case of a fish kill in Middle Creek, although there was no evidence of that as of Friday. (Ali Stevens)
Ninety warrants served by Milton Police
MILTON – Ninety warrants were served during a sweep in Northumberland, Union and Montour Counties Tuesday. Detective Todd Ulrich, of the Milton Police Department, coordinated the sweep, which involved numerous agencies including Union and Northumberland County Sheriffs Department, Northumberland County Adult Probation, U.S. Marshals Office in Harrisburg, and the US Office of Inspector General through HUD.
Ulrich says the investigation with the Federal Housing and Urban Development department originated as they were targeting fraud in low-income housing areas, where they found numerous people who lied or gave false information on their applications. The warrants ranged from parking tickets to felony drug delivery and assault charges.
Those served with warrants were taken to the Milton Borough Building, where they were fingerprinted. They were then either arraigned before District Justice William Kear or sent directly to Northumberland County Prison. Ulrich says Milton PD has conducted warrant roundups before, but have never worked with the Office of the Inspector General. Sunbury Police recently conducted a similar sweep in the city. (Sara Bartlett)Two still hospitalized following weekend crash in Columbia County
BERWICK – Two people remain hospitalized at Geisinger Medical Center following a crash in Columbia County on Saturday. 18-year-old David Nolte of Scott Township is in serious condition and 47-year-old Paula Novak of Nescopeck is in critical condition. Police say Nolte was fleeing from a previous accident when his van hit a pickup and a car on Old Berwick Road in South Center Township. Nolte was thrown from his vehicle along with the driver of the pickup, Novak and her passenger, 21-year-old Lonnie Gordner of Unityville. The investigation into the crash continues and charges are pending against Nolte. (Ali Stevens)
Sunbury Riverfront Project: Let The People decide?
SUNBURY – Should creating openings in the Sunbury floodwall be put to referendum? In recent months, many residents have been opposed to the idea of floodwall openings and believe a referendum is needed before proceeding with the idea. WKOK spoke with Sunbury City Councilman John Shipman on the matter of a referendum, and he says city officials are elected to oversee changes in the city and make important decisions for the residents. He believes if all decisions go to referendum, it will slow the process of getting things done in a timely matter.
Shipman says a number of people have expressed their concern about openings in the floodwall and the topic keeps coming up at council meetings and other public meetings. However, he says people don’t have enough information on the project to understand that the floodwall openings pose no danger to the city. The idea is to bring the city of Sunbury closer to the river visibly and bring recreational opportunities to the city. The riverbank will also be stabilized as part of the project. Shipman spoke about the project on today’s edition of “On the Mark”. (Ali Stevens)
“Good landlords” vs. “slumlords”
SUNBURY – There is quite an extensive history when it comes to rental properties coming to the city of Sunbury. City Councilman John Shipman spoke about rentals in Sunbury on today’s On the Mark program on WKOK. He says the problem goes back several decades when HUD built three high-rise buildings and one development in the city to help low-income families. As the elderly sold their properties to move into the high rises, many of their homes were purchased by local business-owners for investments. Shipman says to be a landlord; you can’t do it for a hobby, but need to be actively involved in the upkeep of the property.
Shipman says there are a lot of good landlords in Sunbury, but there are also some slumlords too. He says they let the property go and then no one wants to buy it or live there and it becomes abandoned. Shipman says the city tried to get rid of one low-income development and HUD and state officials said there was nothing they could do because the state owns it. (Ali Stevens)
Final master plan for Sunbury to be presented April 21st
SUNBURY – A final comprehensive master plan for parts of Sunbury will be presented by the Penn State landscape architecture students on Monday, April 21st. The students were able to identify 10 key points through responses from the community on Cameron Park, Stroh Alley, the Hill Neighborhood and the historic district. The students also hung posters at city hall and other locations in Sunbury to reach citizens and answer several questions on the survey. All residents of Sunbury are invited to fill out a survey card and they are also encouraged to attend the final master plan meeting at 6:30 p.m. on the 21st in the 2nd floor council room at City Hall. (Ali Stevens)SnyCo murder solved: Richfield man admits shooting victim
SELINSGROVE – 26-year-old Travis Graham, of rural Richfield walked quietly and expressionless into the Union County Courthouse last night. He is charged with an open count of criminal homicide in the March 22nd death of 46-year-old Jeffrey Stock, of Richfield.
Selinsgrove Police say a female relative of Stock’s came to their barracks yesterday and said Graham had admitted shooting and killing Stock. Shortly after, Graham himself came to the barracks to turn himself in, admitting that he had gotten into a fight with the female at Stock’s home on Seven Stars Road in West Perry Township, Snyder County the night of the shooting.
Before leaving the residence, Graham apparently took a rifle from the closet. He told police he drove down a road with the intent to shoot Stock. He then stopped driving after looking back to Stock’s home and seeing Stock standing on his porch.
Graham loaded a single bullet into the rifle and fired it toward the residence, hitting Stock in the abdomen. Police say Graham led them to an area where he revealed the scope he used in the shooting, the torch he used to melt the rifle and the melted metal of the rifle.
Graham was arraigned in front of on-call District Justice Leo Armbruster in Lewisburg, who denied his bail. Graham has a previous criminal record; he was convicted of corruption of minors in 2001. He will face a preliminary hearing for the homicide on April 10th in front of District Justice Willis Savidge in Middleburg. (Sara Bartlett)
Banking I: Banking and financial overhaul called biggest since Great Depression
NEW YORK – How did local bank stocks do Monday, amid talk that the federal government wants to go ahead with the biggest overhaul of the financial industry since the Great Depression? Mostly higher, as were other bank stocks.
Treasury secretary Henry Paulson’s “Blueprint for Regulatory Reform” suggests the Federal Reserve share authority over banks, securities firms and insurers, to monitor corporate disclosures and other rules. That could make it easier for the Fed to step in to avoid future economic crises.
Any proposal would require Congressional approval, and some observers doubt there will be any action by this year. Dow components JP Morgan Chase and Citigroup both enter the new day higher. Local bank stocks are mostly higher as Susquehanna Bancshares, West Milton Bancorp, Sovreign and MidPenn Bancorp all advanced.
FNB Corp was 2.9% higher at 15.61, and takeover target Omega Financial was up 2.2% to 31.20 on its last day before takeover by FNB. Only M&T Bank retreated. 1.6% to 80.48. Elsewhere Sara Lee was up 2.3% to 13.98, but Community Health Systems, Weis Markets, and Conagra were each down a fraction. (Matt Farrand)
Banking II: Bloom U. Prof: Fed banking intervention happened before
BLOOMSBURG – Banks and brokerages face changing many of the ways they do business, if a 218-page plan presented Monday by the Bush administration becomes the rule. Professor of Economics at Bloomsburg University Pete Bholing says a similar initiative was taken in the 1970’s after some banks took big risks in foreign currency trading.
He says the trading practice was among the improprieties that brought down Franklin National Bank, the 20th biggest bank in the nation at the time. Treasury secretary Henry Paulson says a strong financial system is important not only for Wall Street, but for all Americans.
It was prompted by widely reported abuses in mortgage lending and securities trading. The plan could even affect local mortgage brokers and insurance agents, and is already drawing criticism from Democrats who say it does not go far enough. (Matt Farrand)
Pennsylvania voters elect few women, blacks
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) - Voters in Pennsylvania rarely elect black and female candidates. But they'll have to choose one or the other in the April 22nd Democratic presidential primary between Senators Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton.
Political operatives and scholars don't have a consensus explanation for the political glass ceiling in a state that currently has only one black and one woman in its 21-member congressional delegation and has never had a black or female governor.
Some chalk it up to the parties' failure to recruit more women and blacks, and a tendency to favor incumbents over untested upstarts. Some theories hold that juggling young families and political careers deters women from seeking full-time office. And some believe the concentration of blacks in urban areas works against black candidates for statewide office who must seek votes in predominantly white rural counties.
Another female senator backs Obama
LANCASTER, Pa. (AP) - Senator Amy Klobuchar says she was "between Barack and a hard place," so she's choosing Obama. The freshman Democrat from Minnesota is the second female senator to endorse Obama's presidential bid. Klobuchar says Obama is "able to dissolve the hard cynical edge that has dominated" politics in recent years.
She says she was forced to choose because remaining uncommitted had become too difficult. Klobuchar joins Missouri Senator Claire McCaskill in backing Obama, who hasn't fared as well with white female voters as Hillary Rodham Clinton has in the primaries.
The two presidential candidates each have the backing of 13 senators now. Those senators will be superdelegates to the convention. Obama is continuing his six-day tour of Pennsylvania today. Recent polls in the state show Clinton holding a double-digit lead. The primary is April 22nd.
Rendell predicts Clinton's lead in Pa. will shrink
PHILADELPHIA (AP) - Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell predicts that Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's lead over Sen. Barack Obama will shrink before the April 22 primary. Rendell, a Clinton supporter, spoke Monday morning on ABC-TV's "Good Morning America." He appeared with Sen. Bob Casey, a Pennsylvania Democrat and an Obama supporter. Casey says Obama is "certainly the underdog in our state."
Rendell also said the Obama campaign doesn't want a revote in Michigan and Florida because Obama's supporters know Clinton would win. He predicted that she would likely win by enough votes to emerge as the popular vote leader. Casey said any revotes in Florida and Michigan should be up to the state parties.
A doctor’s office…in shock in Snyder County
SHAMOKIN DAM – It’s still unclear exactly how much damage was done to a well-known area clinic after both a Sunday night fire, and the rekindle of that fire Monday afternoon. Firefighters initially called the amount of damage done to the Shamokin Dam Health Center “moderate to severe.”
Community Liaison Candie Beiler says there is more fire and water damage at the multi-disciplinary facility than they first thought. And because of the rekindle, Beiler says, “It’s getting worse.” Beiler says staff members are in shock, but assistance offers are coming from community members, including offers of temporary space for the clinic that serves several thousand clients.
The fire could be electrical and nature, and renovations were reportedly being done at the building that houses the office of Dr. Michael Dunigan. Patients can call the office number to get information or to reschedule appointments. That number is 743-4333. The office is closed until further notice but patients can call that number and leave a message with the answering service. (Staff)
Celebrating 25 years of the Children’s Miracle Network at Geisinger Medical Center
DANVILLE – 25 years ago, the Children’s Miracle Network came to Geisinger Medical Center. Sunday, an anniversary celebration was held at the hospital, featuring children helped by CMN over the past 25 years. The Children’s Miracle Network is able to provide needed equipment and other items for the Janet Weis Children’s Hospital at Geisinger.
They have fundraising events each year including their annual telethon and our sister station, 94KX’s Cares for Kids Radiothon. All of the money raised from donations pays for cutting edge medical equipment, research and treatment for seriously ill children.
More than 100 people turned out at the celebration, including families of children helped by the hospital, doctors and therapists who have treated the children and members of the media who have told the children’s stories over the years. (Ali Stevens)
Crash early this morning injures a man from Montgomery
TREVORTON – A crash early Monday morning on Route 890 near Trevorton injured a man from Montgomery. State police say 30-year-old Randy Wolfe traveled off the road and struck a ditch and a tree. The vehicle rolled over and landed on its passenger side. Wolfe was taken to Sunbury Community Hospital where he was treated and released. Troopers say DUI charges are pending against Wolfe following an investigation. (Ali Stevens)
Business in Herndon burglarized this morning
HERNDON – Someone broke into a business in Herndon early Monday morning. State police say someone forced open the door at Zerby Motors off of Route 147 around 1 a.m. Once inside several items were taken. The alarm was activated and the suspect was able to get away before police arrived on scene. Anyone with information on the incident is asked to call State Police at Stonington. (Ali Stevens)
College hazing the topic of discussion on the SU campus
SELINSGROVE – It’s something that is growing in popularity on college campuses and it will be the topic of an upcoming panel. “Hazing on College Campuses: Urban Legend vs. Reality” will be presented by Susquehanna University and the Greater Susquehanna Valley United Way this Thursday on the SU Campus.
Topics to be discussed include hazing practices at colleges and what many campus communities are doing about the issue. Panel members include Dr. Roy Baker, the Director for Center and Fraternity and Sorority Life at Penn State.
Also, Dr. Barry Jackson, Director of Peer Awareness With Students at Bloomsburg University, Brian Sevard, a senior student athlete at Susquehanna University and Nikki Tobias, the Assistant Director of Residence Life at SU. The talk is free and open to the public. It will be held Thursday from 7-9p.m. at SU’s Isaac Auditorium in Seibert Hall.
Several people injured in a crash on route 405 in Northumberland County Saturday night
MILTON – A Turbotville man is in serious condition at Geisinger Medical Center following a crash on Route 405 that injured several people. Troopers say 47-year-old David Shaffer crashed into the back of a vehicle driven by 51-year-old Debra McCoy of Watsontown.
Shaffer was taken to Geisinger Medical Center and remains hospitalized in serious condition. DUI charges are also pending against him following results of a blood alcohol test. McCoy and her five passengers, including three kids, were taken to Evangelical Community Hospital. They were all treated and released. (Ali Stevens)
Montour joins Union County with crime victim notification system
DANVILLE – Montour County has joined sixteen other counties in Pennsylvania in implementing a crime victim notification system. The PA SAVIN system will alert participating Montour County citizens by phone and e-mail if a particular inmate is released from custody. Montour County now joins Union County in obtaining the system.
The system is for any resident who signs up, but is particularly valuable for victims to use as a coping method. At a news conference Monday morning, Montour County Commissioner Trevor Finn said the inception of the system shows that the Commissioners board is working jointly with law enforcement. County Prison Warden Gerald Cutchall says it represents and federal, state and local partnership. To register, participants can call 1-866-9PA-SAVIN.
Latest Pennsylvania news, sports, business and entertainment:
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) - The state of Pennsylvania is lifting a ban on drilling new shallow gas wells in state forests, although officials say drilling will be limited. The Department of Conservation and Natural Resources plans to allow shallow drilling if gas is found during the development of deeper gas fields, or on a case-by-case basis. The department will be taking bids to lease 75,000 acres, or less than 4 percent of state forest lands, in response to increased interest. This new position comes five years after a ban was imposed in response to concerns that roads and pipelines were destroying wildlife habitat. Department Secretary Michael DiBerardinis says new provisions in the lease will protect state parks, natural areas and wild areas.
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) - The Rendell administration will give exploration companies thirsty to capitalize on sky-high natural gas prices new territory to drill in Pennsylvania's state forests. The move has met criticism from environmentalists, but applause from the oil and gas industry, which are scouring Appalachia for new drilling opportunities. State officials say they are ending a five-year-old moratorium on allowing new shallow gas wells. In addition, they will auction the rights to drill on an additional 75,000 acres of state forest land for the first time since 2002. New shallow wells will only be allowed on a case-by-case basis if gas is found during the development of deeper gas fields. State forestry officials haven't allowed new shallow wells for five years out of concern that roads and pipelines were destroying wildlife habitat. Department Secretary Michael DiBerardinis says new provisions in drilling leases will protect state parks, natural areas and wild areas.
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) - Pennsylvania will be allowed to regulate nearly 700 medical facilities, colleges and businesses that use certain radioactive materials under an agreement with the federal government. The agreement with the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission makes Pennsylvania the 35th state to be allowed to license, inspect and enforce regulations for such facilities. Most are medical facilities that use nuclear medicine procedures to treat patients. The state's jurisdiction will also include industrial, construction and pharmaceutical companies using radioactive materials, as well as colleges and universities using nuclear materials in academic research. The NRC will continue to regulate the state's nine nuclear power plants and a nuclear research reactor at Penn State University.
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) - Here are the winning numbers selected Tuesday in the midday Pennsylvania State Lottery drawing:
Daily Number
9-9-4
Big 4
8-7-0-3
Treasure Hunt
20-21-22-23-29
(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)