TODAY'S NEWS: SATURDAY, MARCH 26, 2011

FREE DISASTER TRAINING SCHEDULED IN COUNTY

The Schuylkill County Citizen Corps Council, in conjunction with Lehigh Carbon Community College will be hosting Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) training at the Summit Station Fire Company Banquet Hall. The training is free of charge and will comprise 16 hours and will be held in three parts during the evening Thursday April 14th, between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. Saturday April 16th, with the final day in the evening on Tuesday April 19th. The CERT program educates people about disaster preparedness for hazards that may impact their area, and the program trains participants in basic disaster response skills- preparing them to handle a situation until first responders can access the scene. Topics include fire safety, light search and rescue, team organization, and disaster medical operations. By using the training learned in the classroom and during exercises, CERT members can assist others in their neighborhood or workplace following an event when professional responders are not available to help. Light refreshments will be available during the Thursday and Tuesday sessions and Refreshments and Lunch will be served during the Saturday session. For instructions on how to register please check out wpparadio.com or if you have any questions, contact Rick Deal at 570-622-3739 or via email at rdeal@co.schuylkill.pa.us.

Online Registrations Instructions:

Go to https://banner1.lccc.edu:4443/flexreglccc/index.jsp?frc=A0

Then in the SEARCH BAR ENTER: EMS-610 and hit enter. It should come up with only one result EMS 610-50 CERT-Community Emergency Response Teams Off-Campus. Click Add to Calendar and then Register.

If you are a New Student you will have to create a new account and set up a username and password with LCCC.

Phone Registration Instructions

Call: 610-799-1197 and provide the above class information along with your personal information to register for the class. You may be asked the location of the course, it is located at the Summit Station Fire Company Banquet Hall at 1138 South Route 183, Summit Station, PA 17979.

If you have any questions or trouble registering, please contact Rick Deal at Schuylkill County EMA at (570) 622-3739 or by email at rdeal@co.schuylkill.pa.us.
I 81 ROAD CONSTRUCTION TO RESUME

PennDOT District 5 announced today work is starting back up on a project to improve Interstate 81 between the Luzerne County line and Exit 131 (PA 54) in Schuylkill County. Work was suspended for the winter. Starting Monday (March 28) crews will begin erecting signs and performing other set up work, and motorists may experience daylight lane restrictions on I-81 north or south all next week. On April 1 a 24-hour lane restriction will be implemented on I-81 north. Then on April 8 there will be a 24-hour lane restriction implemented on I-81 south. After they are implemented, the 24-hour restrictions will remain in place until further notice. Motorists are advised to allow for extra time and use caution driving through the area. Updates will be provided whenever traffic patterns change.

ACCIDENT ON ROUTE 61
No injuries were reported when two vehicles collided on Route 61 at R&R Auto Sales in North Manheim Township at 5:03 p.m. Thursday, state police at Schuylkill Haven said. Troops said Lynette Stroup-hauer, 31, of 197 Sweet Arrow Lake Road, Pine Grove, was driving a 1987 Oldsmobile north in the left lane when she made an abrupt stop, causing her to lose control. The woman's vehicle traveled across the right lane and into the car dealership, parking lot where it struck a 2011 Chevrolet Cruz and a 2011 Chevrolet Camaro. Troopers said Strouphauer's vehicle sustained disabling damage to the front, rear and sides and had to be towed from the scene. No fire or EMS units were required at the scene, troopers said.

KOZ ZONES PRODUCTIVE

A PUBLIC HEARING TO REVIEW THE COSTS AND BENEFITS OF PENNSYLVANIA’S TAX FREE “KEYSTONE OPPORTUNITY ZONE PROGRAM” FOR JOB DEVELOPMENT TOOK PLACE FRIDAY MORNING AT POTTSVILLE CITY HALL. STATE SENATOR DAVID G. ARGALL, STATE REPRESENTATIVES JERRY KNOWLES AND MIKE TOBASH AND ED KLEHA REPRESENTING STATE REPRESENTATIVE NEAL GOODMAN JOINED LOCAL BUSINESS AND COMMUNITY LEADERS TO DISCUSS THE KOZ PROGRAM. WEARING “TWO HATS”, COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR AND COUNTY ECONOMIC DIRECTOR MARK SCARBINSKY SAID THE KOZ PROGRAM HAS BEEN THE MOST EFFECTIVE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT TOOL UTILIZED HERE IN SCHUYLKILL COUNTY. AMY BURKHART, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF PADCO, SHARED EYE-OPENING IMAGES OF LOCAL BUSINESS BEFORE AND AFTER WORKING WITH THE KOZ PROGRAM. ALL IN ATTENDANCE SEEMED TO AGREE THAT THE KEYSTONE OPPORTUNITY ZONE PROGRAM TRULY CAUSES A RIPPLING EFFECT, MOTIVATING SURROUNDING BUSINESSES AND HOMES TO IMPROVE.

PHILADELPHIA (AP) - Three Roman Catholic priests and others are heading to trial in a sex abuse case after a Philadelphia judge said the case could proceed. The case marks the first time a church official has been charged with child endangerment for allegedly transferring problem priests to new parishes.

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) - Lt. Gov. Jim Cawley says he expects a newly formed advisory group to discuss the possibility of allowing local governments to impose fees on natural gas drilling operations to help pay the cost of repairs for damage they might cause. But Cawley said a statewide severance tax would not be considered.

PHILADELPHIA (AP) - AAA Mid-Atlantic says highway fatalities rose 5.4 percent in Pennsylvania last year. The group says there were 1,324 lives lost in traffic accidents in the state, up 64 from 2009. The group says significant increases in accidents involving teen drivers and people not wearing seat belts contributed to the rise.

GREENSBURG, Pa. (AP) - An emergency management official says Wednesday's tornado in western Pennsylvania caused about $4.5 million damage when it destroyed 30 homes and damaged about 60 others. But a Westmoreland County public safety spokesman says there probably won't be any federal disaster aid because homeowners surveyed have insurance.

AJDABIYA, Libya (AP) - There's celebration today in the eastern Libyan gateway city of Ajdabiya (ahj-DAH'-bee-yah) where rebels have retaken control. One fighter says international airstrikes on Moammar Gadhafi's forces helped rebels recapture the city. People are driving through streets, honking car horns in celebration after a one-week siege.

SENDAI, Japan (AP) - There's been a switch to fresh water for cooling Japan's crippled nuclear reactors because of fears salt and other contaminants in seawater are hampering the cooling process. The seawater could be clogging up pipes and coating the surface of reactor vessels and fuel rods. Defense Minister Yoshimi Kitazawa says the U.S. made the request to Japan to switch to fresh water. U.S. naval barges are bringing more.

DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) - Syrian activists say about 200 people have been arrested after security troops stormed a protest sit-in near the capital, Damascus. The activists say up to 4,000 people were demonstrating around midnight Friday, electricity was cut and the protesters came under attack. The raid capped a day of a relentless government crackdowns on protesters across Syria, one of the Mideast's most repressive regimes.

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) - NATO says it's investigating an airstrike that mistakenly killed and wounded civilians. NATO aircraft opened fire on two vehicles believed to be carrying Taliban fighters in southern Afghanistan. The helicopter airstrike followed intelligence reports that suggested a Taliban leader and his associates were in the vehicles.

PHOENIX (AP) - Arizona says it's dropping a three-drug protocol used for executions since the 1990s. Corrections Director Charles Ryan says the state plans to switch to using just one execution drug because of perceived concerns about the three-drug method. Three other states have switched to a one-drug protocol.