WCDO Radio News

P.M. NEWS Thursday 8-12-21

New York Attorney General Letitia James and the U.S. Department of Labor announced landmark agreements with United Healthcare to resolve allegations that United unlawfully denied health care coverage for mental health and substance use disorder treatment for thousands of Americans. United will pay approximately $14.3 million in restitution to consumers affected by the policies, including $9 million to more than 20,000 New Yorkers with behavioral health conditions who received denials or reductions in reimbursement.

Catholic Charities Sidney office is taking pre-registration through tomorrow for their School Supplies & Backpack Program for the 2021-2022 school year. Households who have children enrolled in the Sidney Central School district and meet our income requirements may qualify for FREE school supplies and backpack, call 604-4071 for more information.

Downtown Norwich continues with the Thursday evening NBT Bank’s free Summer Concert Series. The weekly musical performances are presented by the Chenango Blues Association, to East Park, tonight, Johnson & Johnson 1-shot COVID vaccines are available from UHS Chenango Memorial Hospital. “We will have several doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine on-hand on a first come, first serve basis with no appointment necessary, set up opposite the stage near the gazebo; from 6:30 pm. to 8:30 pm., for those 18 & older.

State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli today announced the audit of the Town of Butternuts. The audit found that the board did not provide adequate oversight of the disbursement process and exceeded its authority under New York State Town Law by authorizing insurance claims and annual contracts to be paid before audit and approval. The board also exceeded its authority by allowing a third-party vendor direct access to the town's bank account that, at times, had more than $500,000 on deposit. In addition, the board allowed debit cards to be used, which resulted in a circumvention of the town's disbursement controls. Auditors found that the142 disbursements totaling $142,200 they reviewed were for proper purposes and adequately supported. However, the board, did not audit and approve 53 of these claims totaling $15,600 before payment as required.

Delaware County Sheriff's Office announced that State Route 206, between the Village of Walton and Lower Third Brook Road, was closed to traffic for several hours Tuesday morning as a result of a tractor trailer accident. At approximately 9:30 am., Tuesday morning, Deputies, members of the Walton Volunteer Fire Department and Emergency Squad and State DOT workers responded, the driver, 59 year-old Rogelio Rodriguez, of Decatur, Indiana, was driving an empty milk tanker when he momentarily took his eyes off the road causing the truck to strike the guide cables and a tree. Rodriquez was not injured in the collision.

Delaware County Sheriff's Office announced that a Downsville man is facing a charge of criminal contempt following a report of a domestic dispute in the Town of Colchester. On Tuesday evening, Deputies responded in the Town of Colchester, 53 year-old Michael Colao, of Downsville violated the terms of an order of protection issued by Delaware County Family Court. Colao was charged with criminal contempt, he was released & will appear in the Colchester Town Court on a later date.

Delaware County Sheriff's Office arrested 21 year-old Shawn Zimmerman, of Gloversville, for endangering the welfare of a child and forcible touching, Zimmerman is accused of inappropriately touching a juvenile female in the Village of Stamford. Zimmerman was arraigned in the Town of Harpersfield Court where he was issued a temporary order of protection prohibiting him from having contact with the victim, he was released in his own recognizance pending a future appearance in that court.

Due to an increased spread of COVID-19, Chenango County is requiring mandatory face masks in all County Buildings and Offices at the start of business on Monday, August 16, 2021. All employees and members of the public (vaccinated and unvaccinated) fall under this requirement. It is also at this time recommended that Chenango County businesses, organizations and schools immediately implement a face mask requirement for their vaccinated and unvaccinated employees, patrons and students.

Otsego County is currently at a SUBSTANTIAL level of community transmission, and is on the verge of becoming HIGH level of community transmission. CDC & Otsego County Department of Health recommends everyone to wear a mask indoors in public if you are in an area of substantial or high transmission, to maximize protection from the Delta variant and prevent possibly spreading it to others. This week there have been several cases of individuals having a repeat COVID-19 infection. This occurs when someone is infected with COVID-19 and 90 or more days later tests positive again for COVID-19. These repeat infections are mostly occurring in unvaccinated individuals. This reinforces that immunity from natural infection diminishes after 90 days. It is important if you have had COVID-19 and are not vaccinated please consider getting vaccinated to prevent a reinfection. In Otsego County. there are 82 active cases, 19 new cases reported today, with 5 hospitalized, there have been 2614 total cases in 2021.

A.M. NEWS Thursday 8-12-21

Broome County Sheriff’s Office responded to a fatal motorcycle crash Tuesday night in West Corners at Glendale Drive & Campville Road at 11:44 pm. 42-year-old Jason Krissel of the Town of Union was ejected off of his motorcycle & was pronounced dead, Krissel applied the brakes aggressively at the intersection, after traveling at a high rate of speed. The investigation is continuing.

The State Education Department today released a health and safety guide to help schools and school districts as they plan for the 2021-22 school year. The guide provides strategies, based on information from the Centers for Disease Control and the American Academy of Pediatrics, to position schools and districts to manage the risks for students and staff from COVID-19. The health and safety guide, as well as other back to school resources, are available on the Department’s Back to School website.

Bassett Healthcare Network’s FoxCare Center in Oneonta remains closed today due to a water outage. Officials say all patients with scheduled appointments will continue to be contacted by their provider’s offices. Pharmacy patients are encouraged to call the Cooperstown clinic at 607-547-5127 for medication assistance.

P.M. NEWS FRIDAY 8-28-20

Governor Cuomo & the State Health Department are anticipating clusters of COVID 19 cases as college students return to campuses across the state.  The Health Department issued guidance that establishes a threshold, where if a college experiences 100 COVID cases or an outbreak equal to 5% of its student body, whichever is less, that college MUST go to remote learning for 2 weeks. If the local health department finds after the 2 week period, that the college cannot contain the number of cases, and then further remote learning could be required, the guidance for colleges is available at governor.ny.gov.

New York State United Teachers  Union called on the state to update Department of Health school reopening guidelines to make mandatory the wearing of masks at all times indoors during the school day, except for appropriate break periods and in cases of medical accommodation.  In a letter to state Health Commissioner Dr. Howard Zucker, the union cited ongoing concerns with school reopening plans across the state and different mask policies among school districts. The Union urged the state to look to scientific research regarding mask efficiency and recent guidance from the American Academy of Pediatrics that recommends the universal use of face masks.

The Sidney community rallied behind the Sidney Police Department with a fundraising campaign that allowed for the purchase of a storage unit at the Police Departments firing range, about a mile away from their station.  Erin Insinga of the Delaware Valley Humane Society was one of the people involved in the fundraiser:

(Erin Insinga 8-28-20)

The Sidney Police Department now has their shed to store all the training accessories; a picnic table has also been donated for their site.

A.M. NEWS FRIDAY 8-28-20

Otsego County Department of Health is investigating 7 new cases of coronavirus, 6 of the cases are SUNY Oneonta students. The other case has been associated with a gathering of high school students.  Currently there are 13 cases in SUNY Oneonta students and 5 cases in high school students. All cases are have been investigated and contacts are being notified.  Otsego County has 135 total confirmed cases, there are 21 active cases, and no one is hospitalized.

Delaware County received 1 new positive test result for COVID-19 Thursday and 1 additional recovery has been reported. The known active cases in the County is 3, all are recovering at home. To date there have been 103 confirmed positive cases of COVID-19 in Delaware County, with 30 people now under mandatory quarantine,  6 people have died and 94 have fully recovered.

On Wednesday morning, troopers investigated a crash where a car struck the rear of a horse-drawn Amish buggy on State Route 11B in Dickinson. Troopers determined the driver of the car who hit the buggy was not paying attention, the buggy’s occupants, including two young children, only had minor injuries. The horse also had a minor injury and was transported from the scene.

State Police arrested 22 year old Keegan Allen of Schenevus for 2 counts of Petit Larceny, for entering at least 2 vehicles; one on Murdock Avenue and another on Madison Avenue in Oneonta and stealing change.  Troopers were advised by the Oneonta City Police that Allen was in the East End Laundromat and he was taken into custody & was also charged with Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance.  He was issued appearance tickets for town of Oneonta court on September 8th and was released.

2 Broome County residents have been arrested following a break-in that occurred at a residence on Wilson Hill Road in the town of Chenango. Troopers arrested 28 year old Christina Martinez of Johnson City for the Criminal Possession of Stolen Property, She was processed and released on appearance tickets to the village of Johnson City court, on Thursday State Police arrested 44 year old Jamie Levene of Binghamton for 2nd degree Burglary, he was already at the Broome County Jail for an unrelated crime with another agency.  He was transported to SP Binghamton for processing and then returned to the Broome County Jail.

"Unite Chenango" will host a Black Lives Matter event at Kurt Beyer Park in Norwich tonight, 1 of the guest speakers is Reverend LaDana Clark of the 1st Presbyterian Church of Cooperstown, who served in the US Army and also served in the Plainfield New Jersey Police Department in a variety of roles in 2005 through 2011.  She told WCDO News that no one is suggesting that Police be eliminated, and she gave her ideas of what should be happening:

(Reverend Clark 8-28-20)

Tonight's event will begin at 6:00 PM; Reverend Clark also has a website related to her church activities at ChurchNTheHood.org.

Delaware County Sheriff’s Deputies arrested and charged
53-year-old Jason Babcock of Sidney for Driving While Ability Impaired by
Alcohol, and Aggravated Unlicensed Operation of a Motor Vehicle, following an
investigation by Delaware County Probation Officers, alleging that Babcock had
driven to his probation meeting in the Village of Delhi while under the
influence of alcohol. Babcock was released on an appearance ticket for Town of
Delhi Court at a later date.

Starting today, November 1st, 2019, New York State law
requires any child under the age of 2 to ride in a rear-facing car seat. Did
you know that many car seats are designed with greater height and weight limits
and can keep a child rear-facing, even beyond age 2? The American Academy of
Pediatrics suggests that the best way to keep your child safe is to keep them
rear-facing for as long as possible.

Artifacts from the Washington Nationals’ first-ever World
Series title are headed to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum.  Artifacts donated by the Nationals include
n  The ball hit by Howie Kendrick off the
right field foul pole for the go-ahead home run in Game 7, A jersey worn by
World Series MVP Stephen Strasburg,  A
cap worn by starting pitcher Max Scherzer in Game 7 & a bat used by Anthony
Rendon.  The artifacts will be featured
in the Autumn Glory exhibit, which will be on display in Cooperstown through
the 2020 Postseason.

The Delaware County Chamber of Commerce "Hiring Our
Heroes Veterans Business Resource Fair" will be held on November 14 from 1
to 3:30 pm at Sidney American Legion at 22 Union Street.  Delaware County Chamber of Commerce President
Ray Pucci explains:

(Ray Pucci 11-1-19)

The event is sponsored by the State Department of Labor,
Delaware County Veterans Service Agency and the Delaware County Chamber of
Commerce, to register and reserve a table, contact Debbie Bender at 432-4800 extension
101 or email debra.bender@labor.ny.gov.

Daylight Saving Time ends on
Sunday at 2:00 AM, as clocks will be turned back one hour.   The move means that it will get dark an hour
earlier at 5:19 PM Sunday, Standard time will be used through March 8th
2020  when clocks will “spring” forward
an hour to begin Daylight Saving Time.

Last Night’s storms left behind flooding, power outages
& closed roads.  In Chenango County,
State Highway 23 in Pharsalia is expected to be closed for an extended period
of time, Nyseg reported that about 1300 were without power in Otsego County,
about 1700 were out in Delaware County, about
800 in Chenango County and over 1100 in Broome County this afternoon.

The annual meeting of the Delaware County Historical
Association will be held on Sunday, followed by the presentation of DCHA’s
annual Awards of Merit to those individuals who have volunteered their time and
skills to preserve and/or present the history of Delaware County.  The general public is invited at 2:45pm to
hear local historian and author, Bill Birns, give a presentation based on the
life of Congressman John Clarke of Delaware County,    more information is available at 746-3849.

Starting Today, The Otsego County Planning Department &
Solid Waste announced that Televisions, monitors, and commercial grade
electronics will be charged at $12 per unit at the Oneonta Transfer
Station.  All other electronics will
remain free.  Officials said that the
change is to help cover rising recycling costs related to electronics, more
information is available at 547-4256.

The Sidney Center Improvement Group is holding their Crock
Pot Cook-Off & Lucky Day Auction this Saturday at the Fire Station, Group
President Mike Sellitti explains:

(Mike Sellitti 10-31-19)

Sellitti said that the Crock Pot Cook Off is open to the
public; more information about the Sidney Center Improvement Group is available
at scigny.org.

Delaware County Chamber of Commerce Will holds their next
Membership Breakfast today from 8:30 to 10:00 am at The Old School House Inn
& Restaurant on State Highway 206 in Downsville.  More information is available at
delawarecounty.org.

Sidney Village Police department arrested 6 people following a lengthy narcotics investigation. Charged were 37-year-old Richard Swislosky of Sidney, 30-year-old Stacey Dibble of Bainbridge, 56-year-old Bradley Winner of Mount Upton, 44-year-old Louella Schoener & 31 year old Rebecca Schoener of Greene and Mary Cutting of Unadilla on a variety of drug charges. All were arraigned in Delaware county court & were remanded to the Delaware county jail without bail pending future court action.

The Chenango county sheriffs department arrested 37-year-old Jacob Warner of Oneida for Aggravated Unlicensed Operation of a motor vehicle, Failure to Dim Headlights, Unlicensed Operator, and Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance, following a stop in the town of Columbus. Warner was driving with an expired license that had been suspended 19 times; he was also in possession of suboxone, with no proof that he was legally prescribed the narcotic.   Warner was arraigned & was remanded to the Chenango County Jail on bail pending future court action.

State Senator Tom Libous hosted the annual YES Safe Choices for Kids function, to honor more than 515 area students at their annual Reception.   1 of the 3 winners of the Jill Kavanagh Memorial YES LEADS Scholarship was Shawna Stevens of Afton High School:

(Shawna Stevens 5-27-14)

State Senator Tom Libous also comments:

(Libous 5-27-14)

YES Leaders are middle and high school students who present to local elementary school students about the dangers of substance abuse, the importance of self-esteem and making healthy choices, More information about YES and YES LEADS is available at YesSafeChoices.org.

The number of state workers earning more than $100,000 in 2013 rose 7% compared to 2012. Since 2008, the number of state workers hitting the six-figure salary mark jumped 44%. Union officials claim that the numbers are skewed because there are fewer workers on the state payroll, following layoffs & attrition in recent years because of state budget cuts. Data from the state Comptroller’s Office showed 29,045 state workers made more than $100,000 in 2013. That’s up from about 27,000 in 2012 and 20,000 in 2008.

About 8 in 10 New York voters back the legalization of medical marijuana, as a bill to allow it works its way through the Legislature according to a new poll. 83% of those polled by Quinnipiac University support the drug for medical purposes, o 15% are opposed. 51% are in favor of legalizing marijuana, with 44%% opposed. The state Senate Health Committee last week approved a bill to allow medical marijuana for 20 chronic conditions with a 7% sales tax on the retail price. By a 9-8 vote, it was sent to the chamber’s finance committee, keeping it alive for a potential vote of the full Senate

Legislation was introduced in the state Senate that would prohibit smoking at school bus stops. The bill would prohibit smoking within 15 feet of a designated school bus stop, during the morning and afternoon hours, when children are picked up and dropped off from school. The American Academy of Pediatrics has found that 2nd hand smoke increases the likelihood of smoking-related illnesses.

The 30th annual Senior Council Barbecue and Pie Auction will be held on Tuesday, June 10th at 4:30 at the Delhi American Legion. The event is a fundraiser by the Senior Council to raise money for programs and services for the elderly.  The price of the tickets is $8.00 and can be purchased from Senior Council members, at the Office for the Aging, 6 Court Street Delhi, or at any of the Senior Dining Centers.