Afternoon News Brief

State Police have released the names of the two people who were killed when a Mercy Flight helicopter crashed in Elba. Troopers say 60-year-old James Sauer of Churchville and 60-year-old Stewart Dietrick of Texas were pronounced dead at the scene of yesterday’s accident. Sauer was piloting and Dietrick was instructing. The crash occurred during the annual Bell Helicopter factory training. Power lines were down at the scene of the crash and a witness observed that the engines were going on and off before the crash. There was no unusual weather and the chopper had only gone 3 miles from the Genesee County Airport. Mercy Flight services have been suspended for the time being. The cause of the crash is still under investigation. A final report could be months away.

Le Roy Central School District is planning to increase the tax levy by $66,000 after calculating how much state aid the district can expect to help cover its $27,708,988 spending plan. The tax levy is the total amount of revenue raised through property taxes. The tax rate is the amount per thousand of assessed value that property owners are billed to pay into the levy. State law requires that all property owners in a district share the burden of education equally so a formula will be applied to Le Roy’s tax rate to make it equitable. As it turns out, property owners in the Town of Le Roy will pay the same rate they did this year, $24.14 per $1000 assessed value, because the district’s spending plan is covered by $16,135,963 in state aid, $10,663,025 the tax levy, and $910,000 in local revenues.

 

Despite the growing number of new COVID-19 cases statewide, Governor Hochul says she has no plans to issue another indoor mask mandate. The governor said yesterday that even though cases are rising, hospitalizations are still far below what they were during the winter surge. Health officials say this latest increase in illnesses is being caused by the spread of omicron sub-variants. The seven-day-average infection rate in the Western NY region is currently sitting at 13.8 percent.

 

 

Data from the CDC backs this up. In fact, the state stands out from the rest of the country, which is mostly in the low transmission category, with only a few exceptions. It was noted that characteristics of New York State, such as colder weather combined with recent holiday gatherings are factors that contribute to higher case numbers. However, as with other surges, this one may be nearing a peak and the numbers will start to go down over the next couple of weeks.

 

 

 

The New York State Department of Health’s last day of COVID-19 contact tracing is this Friday, April 29. One thing that will change is that those who test positive for COVID-19 after April 29 will not receive a text message. State residents who test positive for COVID-19, either with an at-home test or lab-confirmed test, should report their case to the County. The person should isolate for at least five days, with day 0 starting on the day they tested positive. Those who were in close contact with the person who tested positive are not required to isolate, as long as they have no symptoms and they’re vaccinated and boosted. The state recommends wearing a mask around others for ten days following a close contact exposure. If a person is not vaccinated or boosted, they should isolate for five days if they come into contact with someone who is positive. After isolation, they should wear a mask for an additional five days around others. All positive at-home tests should be reported to the Genesee County Department of Health: 585-344-2580

 

A former substitute teacher and coach is facing up to 40 years in prison after admitting to having child pornography. The U.S. Attorney’s Office says 36-year-old Steven Gasiorek worked at both John F. Kennedy Middle School and John F. Kennedy High School in Cheektowaga from March 2014 until April 2019. An investigation revealed he used a fake social media account to receive child porn from minors and that he knew some of the victims. Gasiorek is scheduled to be sentenced in July.

 

 

 

A multi-time Grammy Award winner is going to be bringing his new tour to Western New York later this year. Michael Bublé is scheduled to perform at the KeyBank Center in Buffalo on Tuesday, October 11th. The singer is known for several smash hits including “Everything,” “Haven’t Met You Yet,” and “Home.” Tickets for the show go on sale on Friday, May 6th at 10am and they can be purchased through Ticketmaster.

 

 

 

The National Weather Service has confirmed a weak tornado passed through Alexander early in the evening during Monday’s brief-but-intense storms. The tornado touched down at 6:42 p.m. just north of the Alexander Fire Department and Recreational Hall. A pavilion’s roof was damaged, while a trailer on the property was rolled onto its side. The tornado then tore off shingles and shattered windows at residences along Alexander Road, before producing tree damage, just before crossing Tonawanda Creek. It ultimately crossed a field before snapping two very large trees at Alexander Cemetery and damaged historic gravestones. Alexander Cemetery would appreciate donations to support repairing the damaged stones, some of which date back to 1813. (Photo courtesy of our news partner, thebatavian.com)

 

It’s been over two months since someone won Powerball, and that means there’s a big prize up for grabs tonight. The jackpot for this evening’s drawing will be at least 454-million dollars. The last Powerball winner was back on February 14th when a single ticket in Connecticut won more than 185-million-dollars. The cost to play the popular lottery game is just two dollars and tonight’s drawing will be streamed live online at powerball.com. Please play responsibly.

 

 

In just a few weeks, Monroe County drivers are going to be spending less money when filling up their vehicles. That’s because the county legislature has approved a temporary suspension of the gas tax that’ll begin on June 1st. Based on the current rates, people would save several cents per gallon. The state has already announced it’s going to suspend its own tax on gasoline from June 1st through the end of the year. Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz has sent a resolution to the county legislature calling for a temporary gas tax cap to be put in place. Under the proposal, drivers wouldn’t pay sales tax on gasoline or diesel fuel if the price was over two-dollars a gallon. Based on the current rates, drivers would save several cents per gallon. If it’s approved, the cap would be in effect from June 1st through February of next year. The legislature could discuss Poloncarz’s plan during its next meeting tomorrow.