Morning News Brief

A two-alarm fire that damaged a home in Le Roy remains under investigation. Fire crews from Le Roy and Bergen responded to 75 Summit Street around 10:30 p.m. last night after the caller reported flames in a second-floor bedroom. Initial crews encountered heavy smoke conditions. A second alarm brought in additional equipment from Pavilion and Stafford with the Town of Batavia covering the Le Roy station. Four occupants inside the home were able to safely evacuate. No word yet on what triggered the blaze.

A statewide COVID-19 vaccine shortage is impacting this area. Genesee and Orleans counties continue to work to distribute the limited supply of vaccine received in their continued response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Genesee County said in a Tweet that “in light of the statewide shortage in vaccines, they will be cancelling this week’s vaccination clinics at GCC. Genesee & Orleans Counties received 300 doses of the vaccine for the week, far less than the originally anticipated 2,500 doses between the two counties. The 300 doses will be used for 1B essential workers. Those over age 65 should continue to seek vaccine from their providers, pharmacies and the state sites. Appointments for vaccine are currently online ONLY.

Batavia High School’s athletic director says he’s beyond excited that high-risk sports, delayed because of COVID, might be able to start their seasons on Feb. 1. That could mean basketball, hockey and wrestling could all start next week but final approval for practices to begin must come local health departments.  Local Public Health officials said they have been on conference calls with other health officials from the Finger Lakes region, with more to come, as they work to develop a uniform approach to restarting specific high school sports.

A Batavia man who already faces a slew of criminal counts is back in jail without bail. 47-year-old Daniel Wolfe is now charged with burglary and criminal contempt. In November 2019, Wolfe is accused breaking into a house on Liberty Street and violating an order of protection. That led to a nearly 24-hour standoff with Batavia police and deputies. At one point, Wolfe allegedly shot at police with a BB gun. He eventually surrendered. Last August, a grand jury indicted him on a dozen counts, including trying to kill a police dog. Additional court action is pending.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo says as New York’s COVID-19 numbers continue to decline, the state can expect to see adjustments for some safety restrictions in the coming days. During a briefing Monday at Roswell Park Cancer Institute in Buffalo, the governor said COVID rates have been dropping since the holiday season spike. The governor said adjustments will be announced Wednesday regarding the state’s micro-clusters – specifically for yellow and orange zones. The governor did not say what these changes will be.

Average local gas prices have dipped, ever so slightly. In Batavia, the price at the pump is down a penny to $2.38. The New York State average is $2.49 – up 2 cents from last week. A year ago, the NYS average was $2.70.

New York State United Teachers applauds the announcement that the state Education Department will seek a federal waiver of grades 3-8 and high school testing requirements amid the ongoing challenges students and educators statewide are facing related to the coronavirus pandemic. In a statement, the Union said “In a year that has been anything but standardized, it’s the right move to seek this waiver to cancel this spring’s standardized exams.”