Friday News Brief

Lancaster police are expecting to file charges in connection with a crash that took the life of a 10-year-old boy. The two-vehicle collision happened last Friday in the area of Broadway and Schwartz Road. The impact killed Levi Zielonka, who attended St. Joseph School in Batavia, and left two other people in the vehicle he was riding in hurt. The driver of the vehicle that hit Levi’s vehicle may be charged with speeding and driving under the influence.

 

 

No injuries have been reported after a large fire tears through a building in Lockport and displaces 16 people. Crews were called to battle the blaze around midnight yesterday at the corner of Locust Street and Genesee Street and arrived to find heavy smoke and flames pouring from the structure. Residents who were forced to leave the building are being helped by the American Red Cross. The cause of the fire is still under investigation.

 

 

Members of nurses’ union at Rochester General Hospital are expressing relief that a tentative deal has been reached on a new labor contract. The agreement with the hospital was struck Wednesday night and if approved, it will be in place for 42 months. The deal includes wage increases and also takes steps to address staff shortages. Union members were planning to go on a five-day strike this Monday, but that work stoppage has been called off.

 

As reported by Tom Tharp this morning: The GEICO Insurance company is having mass layoffs that will include our region. The company says it is reducing its workforce by roughly 2,000 associates or 6% of its total workforce. This impacts about 5.5% of the workforce in our area. Those impacted were contacted yesterday. The company is offering career transition assistance, including individual career coaching sessions, assistance with resume updates, on-demand interviewing and networking resources, and tips to enhance one’s social media presence. GEICO is also asking workers to return to the office after allowing people to work from home for the last few years.

 

Genesee County Office for the Aging is hosting an event on October 23rd at 2pm to help elderly citizens be on guard against financial fraud. Criminal organizations target elderly individuals to scam them out of their money and the number of incidents is on the rise. The Office for the Aging encourages all Genesee County residents to attend the event to arm themselves with information to protect their finances. Both M&T Bank Financial Crimes Unit and the AARP sponsor the presentation.

 

National Drug Take Back Day is one week from tomorrow, October 28th, from 10am to 2pm. There are 3 locations across Genesee County where the public has the opportunity to safely dispose of expired, unused, and unwanted prescription drugs. The Batavia Police Department will be accepting prescription drugs and sharps in the Alva Place parking lot across the street from Batavia Showtime. The Genesee County Sheriff’s Office will accept prescription drugs ONLY at the Pembroke Town Hall, 1145 Main Rd. Corfu. The LeRoy Police Department will also be accepting prescription drugs ONLY at their headquarters located at 3 West Main Street, LeRoy.

 

 

Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz and his challenger Chrissy Casilio have laid out their vision to voters during a debate. Poloncarz and Casilio were at the Saint Joseph’s Collegiate Institute yesterday where they discussed a variety of issues including last year’s deadly blizzard, migrants and the protest at the U.S. Capitol in 2021. Poloncarz is seeking a fourth term and says he won’t run again if re-elected. The next debate for the candidates is this Tuesday.

 

The New York State Police have announced a plan to begin a brand-new recruitment campaign. Applications for the upcoming New York State Trooper Entrance Exam open on Monday, and they’ll be accepted through March 4th. The final day to take the actual test is March 17th. Some of the qualifications to be a Trooper include being a United States citizen, being between 20 and 34 years old and having a high school diploma. The starting salary for a Trooper is over $59,000 a year.

 

The Buffalo Bills will be on the road this weekend as they hope to pick up a win against a division rival. The reigning AFC East champions are taking on the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, Massachusetts. Last Sunday night, the Bills beat the New York Giants 14 to 9 and improved their record this year to four wins and two losses. Kickoff this Sunday is set for 1:00.

 

ELSEWHERE…

 

More American workers are back in the office. U.S. work-from-home rates have dropped to the lowest since the pandemic. According to the latest Census data, fewer than 26% of households still have someone working remotely at least one day a week, a sharp decrease from the early 2021 peak of 37%. Data also shows only seven states and Washington D.C. have a remote-work rate above 33%. All 50 states have seen work-from-home rates fall from their pandemic highs.

 

The well-over-month-long United Auto Workers strike rolls on as Ford Motor Company announces more layoffs. The automaker says an additional 150 workers have been temporarily laid off. Negotiations with the Big Three automakers seem to have stalled, and as the strike rolls on, supplies of some of the most popular vehicle models are starting to shrink.

 

Pfizer is upping the cost of its COVID-19 medication Paxlovid by more than double what it was. As the U.S. transitions out of the pandemic’s emergency phase, the drug maker is changing the list price of the drug before insurance to nearly $1,400 for a five-day course, according to the Wall Street Journal. That’s up from $530 per-course, which was paid by the government.

 

A U.S. soldier who crossed into North Korea is now charged with several crimes, including desertion, assault and soliciting child pornography. Private Second Class Travis King was kicked out of North Korea in September, two months after he ran across the heavily militarized border with South Korea, where he had been stationed.

 

 

 

Today is Friday, October 20th, the 293rd day of the year.

October 20 in history…

 

…In 1957, Walter Cronkite began hosting his weekly documentary titled “The 20th Century.” The show focused on major events that helped shape the world. The title of the program was later changed to “The 21st Century.”

 

 

…In 1962, Bobby “Boris” Picket and the Crypt Kickers hit the top of the charts with “The Monster Mash.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

…In 1965, The Beatles received a gold record for their hit song “Yesterday.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

…In 2003, a judge ordered Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant to stand trial on sexual assault charges, stemming from a June 2003 incident involving a 19-year-old hotel worker at a posh resort in Vail, Colorado. Bryant said the sex he had with the woman was consensual. Almost a year later, in September of 2004, prosecutors dropped the sexual assault charge against Bryant.