Local News-Friday, Sept. 1st

It looks like the remnants of Tropical Storm Ernesto could make for a soggy weekend in our area. The storm continues to wind its way up the eastern seabord, dumping heavy rains in its wake. In Schuylkill County, the rains we've received over the past week have saturated the ground, and a deluge of rain could present the potential for localized flooding. The National Weather Service has issued a Flash Flood Watch for Schuylkill County, from Friday evening through Saturday morning. Stay tuned for updates.

Republican candidate Lynn Swann made a stop in Schuylkill County Thursday night. While making a campaign swing through the area, he visited the Yuengling Brewery outside Port Carbon, prior to attending a reception at the Pottsville Club. Swann is facing incumbent Democrat Ed Rendell in the November election for Pennsylvania's highest office. You can hear an interview with Lynn Swann on For Your Information, Tuesday at 3pm, on WPPA.

FEMA has extended the registration deadline for Pennsylvanians to register for disaster assistance from the June flood. The federal agency has approved the state's request to extend the application deadline for Pennsylvania residents and business owners to apply for federal disaster assistance. The deadline to apply is now October 3, 2006. FEMA officials stress that individuals should apply for assistance even if they do not believe they are eligible. Even if someone suffered only small losses, or insurance covered some, but not all of them, they should still apply for assistance. To date, more than 11-thousand Pennsylvanians have registered for disaster assistance. More than $15-million-dollars in housing assistance has been paid to more than 7-thousand people. SBA loans totaling more than $31-million-dollars have also been approved. To apply, call 800-621-FEMA, between 8am and 8pm, seven days a week.

A Thursday morning fire destroyed a barn in Union Township. Firefighters were called to the scene on Aristes Road, to the home of Robert Murray. A two story barn was fully engulfed in flames. By the time it was fully extinguished, there was nothing left to the structure. Hay and some farm equipment were stored in the barn. Emergency responders from Ringtown, along with companies from neighboring Columbia and Luzerne counties battled the fire. The cause is unknown.

An area hospital has been awarded accreditation for its laboratory services. The Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center's Main and Blood Gas Labs have received accreditation by the Commission on Laboratory Accreditation of the College of American Pathologists, based on a recent on-site inspection. The program, started in the 1960's, is recognized by the federal government as being equal to or more stringent than the government's own inspection program. Good Sam's lab is one of more than 6-thousand Cap-accredited labs nationwide

Who says you can't go home? Representatives of Upper Schuylkill Downtown are gearing up for a big weekend, beginning tonight, to celebrate a first of its kind event, the Upper Schuylkill homecoming weekend. The boroughs of Ashland, Frackville, Girardville, Mahanoy City, Ringtown and Shenandoah have planned numerous events to compliment the 106th Annual ABA Mummers parade in Ashland Saturday night. The Pennsylvania Tourism office awarded a $10-thousand-dollar grant to the organization to bring people to northern Schuylkill County.
Many events will span the weekend, and provide something for all ages and interests. STS will provide transportation for people who live in the Upper Schuylkill region who wish to attend the festivities. However, you must contact the transportation company to make reservations. Their number is 429-2701, or toll free, at 888-832-3322.

A northern Schuylkill County borough will be checking for seatbelt use and drunk drivers this Labor Day weekend.
Frackville Borough will be making those checks as part of Operation BOLT, which gets its name from the first two letters of the word booze and the last two letters of the word belt . The program's goals are to educate motorists about the state's seatbelt law and to deter or detain impaired drivers. Twenty-eight local law enforcement agencies around the state will be conducting Operation BOLT checkpoints. Operation BOLT, which was started in 2004, will run through the Labor Day holiday weekend. It is a joint effort between PennDOT and Buckle Up Pennsylvania.

The Schuylkill County Commissioners approved a healthcare agreement with Capital Blue Cross during their board meeting Wednesday. Capital Blue cross will provide healthcare benefits for county employees at a premium of $7.9 million dollars, for the coming year. In other business, the Commissioners awarded a contract to Hutchison Construction of Hazleton for the Foster Township roof replacement project. The firm was low bidder at $21,497 dollars. Bids for the Tremont Community Center Heat Pump Project opened last week were rejected as being too costly and the project will be re-bid. Bid opening is scheduled for September 20th with a contract award date of September 27th.