WCDO Radio News

28-year-old Devan Ellsworth of Norwich has been indicted for manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide, for allegedly causing the death of his 20-month-old daughter in August in Norwich. Ellsworth was originally charged with assault following the August 27th incident, where first responders were called to Ellsworth’s home on Henry Street following the report of an unresponsive child, who died the following day in a Syracuse hospital. Ellsworth remains held in the Chenango county jail pending court action.

The annual fundraiser for the Foothills Performing Arts Center will be this Sunday, featuring a dinner, and /or the performance by Craig Karges. Foothills Director Bill Youngs comments:

(Bill Youngs 10-26-18)

Tickets & more information are available at 431-2080 or at foothillspac.org.

The Delaware County Board of Elections Office will be open extra hours in the days leading up to the General Elections on November 6th. Added Hours will be tomorrow, October 27th & Saturday November 3rd from 9:00 AM to 12:00 Noon and Thursday November 1st until 7 p.m. for absentee voting. More information is available at 832-5321 or stop at the office at 3 Gallant Avenue, in Delhi, Monday through Friday, from 8:30 AM to 4:00 PM, voters can view sample ballots at the Board of Elections website: www.co.delaware.ny.us/departments/elec/elec.htm

The Jericho Arts Council announced that acclaimed Bluegrass act “The Corey Zink Band” will perform at the Town Hall Theater Saturday night, Council Treasurer Phil Wade comments:

(Phil Wade 10-26-18)

Tickets are available at the box office; reservations can be arranged by calling 288-3882

The Bainbridge Chamber of Commerce will hold their annual “Commitment to Community” Dinner Saturday night. The event will be held at the Sundown Golf & Country Club starting @ 6:00 pm. This year's guest speakers will include State Senator Fred Akshar and Assemblyman Cliff Crouch.

The 20th Annual Norwich Pumpkin Festival will be held in Downtown Norwich Saturday night, with festivities beginning at 5:30 PM. Rylee Lum is scheduled to perform.

The 2nd annual “Scare Fest” will be held on Saturday at 12:00 Noon at the Otsego County Fair Grounds in Morris. Events planned are Hayrides, pumpkin carving contest, pumpkin painting, pumpkin bowling and trick-or-treating on the fairgrounds from 2:00 to 3:00 PM. There will also be Food vendors, craft vendors & a face painting. more information is available at the Otsego County Fair Facebook page.

The City of Norwich Police Department will be participating in the Drug Enforcement Agency’s National Drug Take Back Day on Saturday from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm. Police will be accepting unwanted or expired prescription medications at the rear of the Police Department headquarters at 18 East Main Street, syringes or non-prescription medications will not be accepted.

Author Gray Basnight of Bethel New York has published his 3rd book, “Flight Of The Fox” a mystery thriller that takes place in Upstate New York, & is tied in to the 50th anniversary of the Woodstock Music & Arts festival in Bethel in 1969. Basnight told WCDO about his novel:

(Gray Basnight 10-22-18)

Basnight will appear at the Huntington Memorial Library on Chestnut Street in Oneonta this Saturday starting at 11:30 AM for a book signing. The book is Published by Down & Out Books.

THE SECTION 4 BOYS AND GIRLS SOCCER CHAMPIONSHIPS ORIGINALLY SCHEDULED FOR SATURDAY IN ONEONTA AND NORWICH HAVE BEEN POSTPONED DUE TO TO THE WEATHER. THE GAMES HAVE BEEN RESCHEDULED FOR MONDAY AFTERNOON. FOR A FULL UPDATE ON GAME TIMES & LOCATIONS PLEASE VISIT WCDO SPORTS DOT COM AND SEE NATE LULL'S TWITTER FEED ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE PAGE

The State Department of Labor today released preliminary local area unemployment rates for August 2018. The State’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate decreased from 4.3% to 4.2% in August 2018. Locally, Chenango County had 3.8% unemployment, Delaware county registered 4.2% & Otsego County 3.9% in August.

Today is National Voter Registration Day, which is celebrated on the second Tuesday of September, to remind those of legal voting age to make sure that they don’t miss registration deadlines. Those who want to vote in the November elections must register to vote in person at your County Board of Elections by October 12th, if you are registering by mail, the application must be postmarked by October 12th and must be received by the Board of Elections by October 17th. Address changes must be made by October 17th.

Former Focus Otsego operators Joseph Zupnik and Daniel Herman pleaded guilty recently to endangering the welfare of an incompetent or physically disabled person, in connection with an incident in which a 94-year-old resident in the facility was left in a recliner for almost 2 straight days. Zupnik & Herman were ordered to pay a fine of $5,000, the maximum fine for that charge. Zupnik & Herman are no longer associated with the facility, which is under new ownership, and is doing business as "Centers Home Health Care"

52nd Street: the Music of Billy Joel will be performed at the Martin W. Kappel Theater in Norwich this Saturday Night at 7:00 PM. Chenango Arts Council Executive Director Alecia O'Neill comments:

(Alecia O'Neill 9-25-18)

Tickets are available at chenangoarts.org at the Box Office or at 336-ARTS.

The Chenango County Department of Health and Area Agency on Aging will be hosting their annual Senior Flu Vaccination Clinic for adults age 60 and over Today, from 9:30 to 11:30 AM at the Norwich Family YMCA. The Chenango County Health Department will administer flu shots, and are available to discuss programs and services. The Norwich Police Department will be doing a drug take back where they will collect any old or unused prescription medications for proper disposal. more information call the Chenango County Health Department at 337-1660.

There will be Red Cross Blood Drives Today in 2 locations. A Walton Blood Drive will be held from 2:00 through 6:00 PM at Pines Brook Church, & another at the The Hancock Central School from 10:30 AM to 3:30 PM. Donors of all blood types are needed, appointments can be made by using the Blood Donor App, visiting RedCrossBlood.org or calling 1-800-RED CROSS.

Some areas have reported minor flooding in the Tri County area, from the remnants of tropical Storm Florence last night, Meteorologist Rich Townsend explains:

(Rich Townsend 9-18-18)

Some areas along the Chenango River & the Lower Susquehanna may see more minor flooding over the next day or two; A Flood Warning remains in effect for parts of Broome & Chenango Counties, Local river gauges can be checked at WCDORadio.com.

Governor Cuomo today announced nearly $224 million in federal funding to support counterterrorism and emergency preparedness efforts in counties across New York. The funding is provided by the FEMA through its Homeland Security Grant Program, to support regional preparedness efforts, including planning, equipment, training and exercise activities that are critical to sustaining and improving community prevention, protection, response, and recovery capabilities. Full details and the amounts allocated to individual counties are available at governor.ny.gov.

The Unatego Touchdown Club will be holding a 5K run or Walk in otego this Saturday. Proceeds raised by the event will benefit Unatego Athletic Programs. The run begins at 3:30 PM at the American Legion on Willow Street in Otego, Pre Registration or more information is available at 725-6315 or at the Unatego Touchdown Club" Facebook Page..

The Chenango County Department of Health and Area Agency on Aging will be hosting their annual Senior Flu Vaccination Clinic for adults age 60 and over on Tuesday, September 25th from 9:30 to 11:30 at the Norwich Family YMCA. The Norwich Police Department will be doing a drug take back, they will collect outdated or unused prescription medications for proper disposal, more information about the event is available at 337-1660.

Governor Cuomo announced the strategic deployment of assets throughout the state as heavy rain and flash flooding are forecast for areas of the Southern Tier, Central New York, Mohawk Valley, Capital Region and Mid-Hudson Valley. Remnants of Tropical Depression Florence are hitting the state today; the DOT is setting up staging areas in Binghamton, & Oneonta locally in anticipation of the need for storm response, with a variety of heavy equipment ready to go if needed.

Some flash flooding is affecting local schools this morning. The Bainbridge Guilford, Oxford & Greene School Districts are closed today, & the Afton & Harpursville School districts are on a 1 hour delay, & the Laurens school district is delayed 2 hours.

The State Department of Transportation will hold a public open house meeting on Wednesday, September 26 at Afton Central School, from 5:30-7:00 pm to discuss 2 bridge replacements on State Route 41 in the towns of Afton and Coventry. The project will replace the bridge carrying Route 41 over Cornell Creek in the town of Afton as well as the bridge carrying Route 41 over Wilkins Brook in the town of Coventry. Both bridges, which were built in the 1930s, are inspected regularly and safe for continued travel. The bridges will likely be replaced during separate construction seasons in 2020 and 2021. More information about the project is available at 721-8167.

Delaware County Sheriff's Department responded to the report of a man with a shot gun near the Charlotte Valley School Monday. The school was in lockdown while deputies investigated, the man with the shot gun was a hunter in the area behind the Davenport head Start, the lockdown was lifted, and no arrests were made.

28 year old Devan Ellsworth of Norwich appeared in court earlier today, so far he has been charged with 2nd degree Assault & endangering the welfare of a child, in connection with the death of his 1 year old daughter last weekend in Norwich. First responders & Norwich police were called to the Ellsworth apartment on Henry Street in Norwich Sunday for a report of a 1-year-old child with a head injury, the child died Monday after being transferred to Upstate Medical Center in Syracuse. Ellsworth is expected to have his case heard by a Grand Jury & charges are expected to be added, he is being held in the Chenango County Jail without bail.

Operation Merry Christmas will be getting started a little earlier this year, with the sign-ups beginning September 1st through October 30th. Spokesperson Dorene Ireland explains:

(Dorene Ireland 8-30-18)

Ireland said that the giveaway day for the presents will be on December 15th at 12 Whitney Way in Bainbridge. More information is available at 643-6334 or 563-8119.

State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli released an audit today that examined 7 school districts and their compliance with school bus safety requirements, it found that school districts are not confirming all school bus drivers are completing required training and drug testing, and that school bus safety drills and inspections are done. DiNapoli recommended school officials take immediate steps to address the deficiencies, have superintendents annually approve all drivers that transport district students, have all drivers meet the minimum training requirements, & have random drug and alcohol testing, & have all buses have pre-trip inspections conducted. The report can be found at osc.state.ny.us.

State Police arrested 41 year old John Nixon of Sherburne for Driving While Ability Impaired by Drugs, after a trooper responded to the report of a vehicle veered across the center line, into a drainage ditch & then back to the other side of the highway, striking several mailboxes, on State Route 8 in the town of Guilford. Nixon was arrested; he was released to a sober third party and is scheduled to appear in the town of Guilford Court on September 11th.

Governor Cuomo today announced that 100% of all State public
colleges at SUNY & CUNY will have a food pantry or stigma-free food
access for students in need by the end of the fall semester. New York
will be the 1st state to have a program to combat student hunger.
Currently, nearly 90% of SUNY and CUNY campuses offer these
services.

The Chenango County Department of Health and Area Agency on
Aging will be hosting their annual Senior Flu Vaccination Clinic for
adults age 60 and over on Tuesday, September 25th from 9:30 – 11:30
at the Norwich Family YMCA. Senior citizens can receive a flu shot &
attend a health fair where area partners will be available to talk about
area programs and services, plus the Norwich Police Department will
be doing a drug take back where they will collect any old or unused
prescription medications for proper disposal. More information is
available at the Chenango County Health Department at 337-1660.

Alternate Jurors were selected & the trial of Jeremy Coates is underway in Chenango County Court. Coates is charged with 2nd degree murder for the September 2016 =killing of 58 year old Daniel Green in Green’s Oxford home. The trial is expected to take 2 weeks to complete.

DCMO BOCES is hosting an educational forum on Thursday at the Sidney Central School District Auditorium, featuring educational consultant Mark Perna. BOCES Superintendent Perry Dewey told WCDO news about this important forum:

(Perry Dewey 4-10-18)

Dewey said that people can register for this event at DCMOBOCES.com; more information is available at 335-1200

Bassett Healthcare Network is encouraging people to spring clean their medicine cabinets and get rid of unnecessary medications. Bassett Healthcare Network offers 3 locations for residents to drop off unwanted, expired, or leftover medications by collection kiosks and pre-paid mail-back envelopes at the Bassett Medical Center Pharmacy in Cooperstown, FoxCare Pharmacy in Oneonta and O’Connor Hospital Pharmacy in Delhi. National Prescription Drug Take Back Day is April 28.

The City of Oneonta Department of Public Service announced this year’s schedule for curbside residential brush and yard waste pick-up. City residents wards 1 through 4 will be picked up on Monday April 16th, those living in wards 5 to 8 will be picked up the following Monday, April 23rd. Residents should have brush and yard waste out no sooner than the weekend before the scheduled pick-up to prevent possible code violation.

A New York State Budget Presentation will be presented Today at 12:00 Noon, at The Northeast Classic Car Museum, in Norwich. State Commissioner RoAnn Destito of the State Office of General Services will make the presentation.

The Otsego County Planning Department & New York Department of State are hosting a land use training work at the Milford Central School Auditorium, today from 5:00 to 8:15PM. 2 sessions will be offered covering planning, zoning, and General Municipal Law. The sessions offered in this workshop can qualify to meet the state requirement for members of planning boards and zoning boards of appeals. To register, call the Planning Department at 547-4225 or otsegocountyworkshop.eventbrite.com.