Morning New Brief

Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz says migrants from New York City who will be arriving in this area in the coming days will likely be staying at SUNY Buffalo State University. Poloncarz said yesterday the school has plenty of rooms for those individuals to live in and migrants could remain there longer than this summer. There still isn’t word on just how many migrants will be coming. Poloncarz said this past weekend issuing an emergency order to keep migrants away would be morally repugnant.  Monroe County as well as Genesee and several neighboring counties have done just that.

A 69-year-old man was arrested Wednesday evening after driving into a Rochester Police Department patrol car.  Police said the suspect crashed into the back of a patrol car occupied by two officers on Culver Road near University Avenue just before 6 p.m.  RPD said when those officers got out of the car to confront the suspect, he backed his vehicle up and rammed it into the patrol car once again.  Officers then quickly took the man into custody without further incident.  Both vehicles only suffered minor damage, and nobody was injured at the scene, according to police.  The driver is charged with DWI.

The New York State Department of Health is planning to repeal the COVID-19 mandate for health care workers. The mandate was put in place back in 2021 and required that health care workers be fully vaccinated to help slow the spread of the illness. But, over 30-thousand workers either quit or were fired for refusing to get their shots. Guidance involving this change will be sent out to health care facilities and hospitals statewide in the next few days.

Drivers should be careful during the upcoming Memorial Day holiday weekend and summer travel season.  According to AAA, the period from Memorial Day to Labor Day is traditionally the most dangerous time on the roads for teen drivers, with an uptick in fatal crashes.  Police are reminding all drivers to be proactive about being safe on the roads.  Nearly 3 million more drivers are expected to be on the roads this summer compared to last.

Multiple operating rooms at the University of Rochester Medical Center are offline due to water damage following a water main break Monday.  A URMC spokesperson announced that a water main near Elmwood Avenue was briefly punctured during construction work, resulting in a “significant volume of water” reaching the hospital and seeping into operating rooms in the basement.  That included several rooms where surgeries were actively taking place, according to URMC. The patients were moved to other areas and were unharmed.  URMC said normal surgical schedules have resumed using other UR Medicine facilities.

Iconic actress Jodie Foster stopped by the Flower City ahead of receiving a prestigious award.  Foster visited the Dryden Theatre at the George Eastman Museum Wednesday night, to introduce a screening of the 1991 movie “The Silence of the Lambs.” She won the Oscar for best actress for her role in that film.  Tonight, Foster will receive the George Eastman Award for her contributions to cinema, during a ceremony at the museum.