A winter storm warning with heavy snow has been issued for Central New York and the western Catskills... while we are just looking at a Winter Weather Advisory. However... it's promising to be a slick commute in the Jamestown-area this morning with a combination of snow and sleet -- totaling about 2 to 3 inches -- through the latter part of this morning. Forecaster Kirk Apfell with the National Weather Service says an area of snow is moving into the area after some freezing rain late last night. Apfell says most of the accumulating snow and sleet will be done by the afternoon as the storm system moves further east. He says -- for the most part -- we will only see about 2 to 4 inches total accumulation... while there'll be about 4-to-8 in Wyoming and Livingston Counties. Our advisory runs until 4 AM Tuesday. Eight to 14 inches of snow are expected to fall in Central and Eastern New York by the time it's over.
Three people suffered only minor injuries after a car swideswiped an oncoming vehicle on Route 60 in the town of Charlotte -- then struck a tree head-on. Sheriff's Deputies say the driver of a southbound car... 18 year-old Tiffinni Keyes of Randolph... allegedly pulled out and made an unsafe pass on a blind corner about 6 PM last Saturday. Officers say Keyes' vehicle sideswipend a northbound car... and, both cars went off the road. Deputies say Keyes' vehicle then struck the tree... while the other car struck a snow bank. Officers say Keyes, the unidentified driver of the other vehicle... and, one passenger were treated for minor injuries at WCA Hospital. Keyes was issued tickets for failure to keep right... and, improper passing from Charlotte Town Court.
Two people from Dunkirk are in the county jail without bail following a one-year long investigation into Heroin sales in the north county city. Agents with the Southern Tier Regional Drug Task Force, and Dunkirk Police... say they arrested 59 year-old Rosa Rodriguez-Vasquez of 58 North Ermine Street on a warrant at a Main Street location early last Friday. Shortly after her arrest... Task Force agents and police raided the Ermine Street residence... and, arrested 42 year-old Julio Torres for alleged trafficking Heroin and other drugs. Task Force members say they found Heroin, "Crack" Cocaine... and, Suboxone inside the home along with scales and packaging material. They also found more than 6-thousand dollars in cash from drug sales... and, a rifle. Police say they also seized a late model vehicle they were allegedy using to sell Heroin from. Both Vasquez and Torres were arraigned on several drug related charges, and sent to the county lock-up. If you have any information about illegal narcotics sales around the county... call the task force at 1-800-344-8702.
"Weekend" drug traffickers from Rochester and Buffalo have been a problem in Jamestown... and, that's been shown by the latest drug raid in the city. One of the three people arrested last Thursday was not allegedly dealing "crack" cocaine from a Bowen Street address every day of the week. That from City Police Captain Bob Samuelson... who says 71 year-old Joseph Robinson -- along with the other two -- is charged with third-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance. Samuelson says their investigation showed Robinson would come into town on Thursdays... and, go back to Rochester on Sunday. Unfortunately... he says "no matter how much enforcement we do..." there's not a lot they can do about it until the matter is investigated -- and an arrest is made. He says that's where their Tip-line has been so important. Samuelson says they received several leads from calls to the tip-line. That number is 483-TIPS... that's 483-8477.
U-S Senator Charles Schumer is urging the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to make measles shots free and widely available... like the flu vaccine. Schumer made the recommendation Sunday, noting that the CDC says at least 102 people have contracted measles in 14 states including New York so far this year. There was a record number of cases last year -- 644 in 27 states. The measles, mumps and rubella vaccine, or MMR, is given in a series of shots.
A barn fire in the town of Arkwright early this past weekend is being blamed on a portable heater being placed too close to combustables inside the building. The Chautauqua County Sheriff's Office says Forestville and several other companies were called to the scene at 92-65 Putnam Road shortly before 11 PM last Friday. Fire dispatchers say county Fire Investigators were called to the scene about 12:15 Saturday morning. Crews were at the scene until well after 1 AM. The barn was extensively damaged. Sheriff's officers say all the animals inside were removed safely... and, no injuries were reported.
A review of New York state's main economic development agency says it needs to do more to evaluate whether its programs are helping the economy. The report released by Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli on Thursday found that the Empire State Development Corporation provides little information about the value of its programs. The report also says the agency ``makes no public assessment'' about whether its programs are cost effective and that it's ``unclear'' to what extent the agency is helping to create good-paying jobs. The corporation runs more than 50 programs designed to boost the economy and oversees tax credits, subsidies and financing tools. In a statement, the agency's leaders said it regularly reports on its own performance and will ``be more than happy'' to direct the comptroller's office to its website.
