elba

A possible silo fire is reported at 3869 Drake St. Road in Elba. The location is between Pekin and Weatherwax roads. Elba fire is responding along with mutual aid from Oakfield.

UPDATE 1:13 p.m.: A tanker from the Town of Batavia is requested to the scene.

UPDATE 1:20 p.m. A crew from the Town of Barre in Orleans County is asked to stand by in quarters.

UPDATE 2:16 p.m.: A fire truck from Alabama is called to a draft site on Fisher Road to assist in fighting the silo fire.

Debra Jean Bastiano, 55, of South Main Street Road, Elba, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, speeding (55 in 40 mph zone) and possession or consumption of alcohol in a motor vehicle. Bastiano was stopped at 9:31 p.m. Wednesday on Route 5, Pembroke, by Deputy Patrick Reeves.

Thomas Riley Munger, 18, of Glidden Circle, of Hamlin, is charged with unlawful possession of marijuana. Munger was arrested following a report to College Village security of individuals smoking marijuana in a vehicle on College Village grounds.

An adult male was struck by a tree limb at 6124 Quaker Hill Road in Elba. He is conscious and alert but on the ground. Mercy Medics and Elba Fire responding.

UPDATE 12:45 p.m.: Mercy Flight 6 out of Batavia responding to the scene.

UPDATE 1:08 p.m.: Mercy Flight 6 is off the ground.

A minor injury accident at 64 S. Main St., the Yellow Goose in Elba, Mercy Medic 3 and Elba Fire Department are responding. Fire police are now requested.    

Update 11:15 a.m.: Elba assignment back in service and Mercy Medic 3 out at Strong Hospital in Rochester.

A structure fire is reported at the Plum Creek Driving Range, 5141 Batavia Elba Townline Road, Batavia.

Elba fire was initially dispatched and it's now gone to a second alarm, with East Pembroke, Byron, Bergen, Alexander and the city's Fast Team among units dispatched.

UPDATE 3:58 p.m.: Elba crews had the fire out by the time most of second-alarm companies were arriving on scene. The blaze started with a Gator-type vehicle in a work shed. Also responding were Town of Batavia, Oakfield and Bethany.

UPDATE 4:20 p.m.: Elba and all other units back in service.

Crash Team members were called to the scene of a fatal one-car accident in Elba yesterday evening, but their initial investigation reveals no reason why the Toyota Highlander driven by 69-year-old Vincentia Smith veered off the roadway and slammed into a tree.

All they know at this time is Smith was westbound on North Byron Road at 4:44 p.m. when her vehicle crossed the eastbound lane, went off the roadway and hit the tree.

There were no skid marks.

Smith was unconscious when first responder's arrived.  Mercy Flight was called, but she was apparently not stable enough for air transport, so she was taken to UMMC by Mercy EMS, where she was pronounced dead.

The location of the accident, North Byron Road, a tenth of a mile east of Log City Road, is just yards from where Elba resident Linda Brown was killed one year and eight days ago in a single-car accident.

It's too early to determine if there is any common factor between the two fatal crashes.

"It’s a straight road, you’ve got some hills, you’ve got some deer out here, any number of things could be a factor here, or not," said Investigator Timothy Weis. "It could be simply, she drifted off the road."

A medical examiner will try to determine if Smith, a resident of Miller Road, Elba, had a health issue that contributed to the crash and investigators will take a look at her car and try to determine if there were any mechanical issues.

"If (the mechanical inspection) comes back fine and the medical exam comes back fine, this could be one where we never know the reason," Weis said.

Assisting at the scene was the Elba Fire Department and State Police. The investigation is being conducted by Weis, Deputy Kevin McCarthy and Sgt. William Scott.

(Initial Report)

A serious injury, motor-vehicle accident is reported at North Byron and Log City roads in Elba. A car has plowed into a tree and the female driver is unconscious. Mercy Flight out of Buffalo is going to respond. Elba fire and Mercy medics are responding.

Fire police are called to the scene and to the juncture at North Byron and Strouts roads.

UPDATE 4:55 p.m.: Mercy Flight has a five-minute ETA.

UPDATE 5:03 p.m. Mercy Flight has landed.

UPDATE 5:06 p.m.: The patient has been extricated. A crash team and investigator are called to the scene.

UPDATE 5:41 p.m.: Mercy Flight left the scene about 15 minutes ago.

UPDATE 6:24 p.m.: It's been confirmed with authorities that this was a fatal accident.

UPDATE 7:03 p.m.: The victim has been identified as 69-year-old Vincentia Smith, who was taken by Mercy EMS to UMMC where she was pronounced dead.

UPDATE 8:33 p.m. (by Howard): The cause of the accident remains undetermined at this time.  We'll post a fuller story on the accident later tonight or in the morning.

Press release:

YWCA of Genesee County has announced this year's Fabulous Females recipient.
Beth Allen, DVM, of Elba, has been chosen for her courage, dedication and willingness to share her life's experience with the community.

The yearly award goes to a woman who has given exemplary service and has served as a role model through personal or professional endeavors. Allen fit the bill through her work as a veterinarian and animal advocate and her volunteer work as facilitator for a bipolar support group at Mental Health Association in Genesee County.

A victim of domestic violence and sexual abuse, Allen has dealt with her own mental illness, including bipolar disorder and depression.

"I believe with all my heart I am here for a purpose," Allen said. "And to pass on as much as I can about what I learned through all this to others going through recovery from trauma or mental illness."

She has also been active in Crossroads of Harmony, as a photographer and artist.

The 14th Annual Fabulous Females brunch is set for noon Nov. 17 at Batavia Downs on Park Road. Doors open at 11:30 a.m. and the event includes a delicious sit-down meal and white chocolate raspberry torte.

The event will serve to honor Allen and offer some inspirational moments from guest speakers Diana Beechler, of Oakfield, who will give an update on how she is recovering from a horrific farm accident and Melinda Rath Sanderson, who heads the Women's Business Center at Canisius College.

Tickets are $25 each or $160 for a table of eight. For more information or to reserve seats, call  343-5808.

Roque Guillermo, 45, of Mechanic Street, Elba, is charged with incest in the third degree, a Class E felony. Guillermo is accused of having sexual relations with a member of his family Sunday evening. Guillermo was arraigned in Town of Batavia Court and jailed on $20,000 bail. The case was investigated by Deputy Chad Minuto and Investigator Kris Kautz.

Paul Nawotka, 41, of Mead Road, Medina, is charged with unlawful imprisonment, criminal possession of a weapon and harassment, 2nd. Nawotka was arrested following an investigation into a domestic incident Feb. 6. Nawotka was allegedly found in possession of a billy club. The case was investigated by Deputy Brian Thompson and Trooper Caton Baines.

What started as a conversation among friends turned into a community-wide charitable effort to provide aid to people in Staten Island, who were struck last week by Superstorm Sandy.

Sarah Norton and Laura Luft started out with a simple posting on Facebook seeking a few donations after an Elba native and Staten Island resident let them know people in his neighborhood needed help.

The response was immediate and so they scheduled a drop-off time for Sunday at the Elba Fire Department Rec Hall.

The community was encouraged to bring food, water, toiletries and clothing between 4 and 6 p.m., but donations started piling up at one o'clock and by 3:30 the cars were streaming in.

Community members donated 21 pallets of supplies, and that count doesn't include clothing, bedding and coats.

Volunteer firefighters helped. Boy Scouts helped. Cub Scouts helped. And just about any community member with a little time to spare helped with the sorting and stacking of donations.

"We're absolutely blown away," Norton said. "I never thought we would see this magnitude of things coming and people coming to help. It’s just amazing. This is not the vision we originally had. It’s wonderful it turned out to be this, but we’re just blown away."

Norton and Luft said people coming to the rec hall weren't just Elba residents, but people from all over Genesee County.

A local trucking company has volunteered to deliver the donations to New York City.

The donation and volunteer effort is important, Norton said, because some day, Genesee County might need similar assistance.

"This is paying it forward," Norton said. "If you pay it forward hopefully people will come together and help you when you’re need."

Calling all Good Samaritans! A local emergency aid drive is under way for the victims of Hurricane Sandy and ground zero for donations is the Elba Firemen's Rec Hall at the corners of routes 98 and 262. (That's two miles or so north of the Batavia Thruway exit.)

Bring donations to the Elba fire rec hall from 4 to 6 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 4. "Absolutely NO monetary donations!"

According to Michelle Ostroski and Erin Verratti, an Elba native is traveling from his Staten Island home and coming here this weekend to get badly needed donations for his neighbors.

Locally, "just a group of moms and friends" -- who say they felt helpless watching the TV news coverage and seeing the devastation -- are counting on the citizenry of Genesee County to send this guy packing -- right back to his ravaged neighborhood "loaded for bear."

Needed:

• batteries/flashlights
• bleach
• rubber gloves
• any cleaning products
• large, heavy-duty garbage bags
• new and used clothing of all sizes
• coats, gloves, hats, shoes, boots
• diapers, including adult diapers
• baby formula
• blankets, pillows, towels
• bottled water
• hand sanitizer
• non-perishable foods
• feminine hygiene products
• paper products -- toilet paper, paper towels, paper plates, paper napkins
• cups, plastic eating utensils
• toiletry items: soap, shampoo, lotion, toothpaste, toothbrushes, etc.
• first-aid kits

If you can't come on Sunday and have items to donate, please contact Michelle or Erin and they will make arrangements to pick them up!

Michelle: phone -- 590-6033  or  e-mail: mostroski@elbacsd.org

Erin: phone -- 356-0718  or  e-mail: Erinverratti2@gmail.com

"If you would like help out on Sunday at the rec hall, come on down! Please feel free to spread the word! Every little bit will help!" ... "There are so many people affected, let's pull together and show our kids that we can make a difference!"

For about a dozen years, the Millen family has been giving fellow Elba residents quite a fright.

Each year -- and each year they tend to outdo themselves -- the family decorates the entire front lawn, side lawn, back lawn and garage with ghost, zombies and space aliens so that visiting trick-or-treaters (kiddies and oldies) get a good scare.

I stopped by their house at 32 Church St. late this afternoon as they were putting the finishing touches on the decorations, but before they were in custom. Posing for a photo are Sarah, Sandy and Bill.

One of 32 hand-carved pumpkins in the yard.

A caller is out with an injured Labrador retriever on Bridge Road, just south of Norton Road, Elba.

The dog appears to have been hit by a car.

Law enforcement is responding.

We encourage readers to send us information about closures, cancelations and postponements or rescheduling of events, roads, activities, businesses, services, etc., as we all hunker down in preparation for Hurricane Sandy. I'll add them ASAP.

E-mail them to:

billie@thebatavian.com

or

howard@thebatavian.com

*********************

Phone:

Billie (585) 905-5581

Howard (585) 260-6970

• Canceled: Tuesday night Bingo at the Elba Fire Hall is cancelled.
• Postponed: Muller Quaker Dairy meet-and-greet Tuesday, Oct. 30, at Genesee Community College.
• Canceled: All afternoon and evening activities today in the Oakfield-Alabama school district.
• Canceled: The 4-H Volunteer Training scheduled for tonight at the Cornell Cooperative Extension of Genesee County Building.
• Canceled: All activities scheduled after 5 p.m. today in the Elba Central School District.
• Canceled: All after-school activities in the Byron-Bergen school district.
• Canceled: This evening's classes of the Genesee Valley Educational Partnership Education.
• Canceled: All activities scheduled after 5 p.m. today in the Pavilion Central School District.
• Temporary closure of GCC campuses as of 4 p.m. today: To help ensure the safety of students, faculty and staff, and encourage everyone to remain indoors and avoid unnecessary pedestrian and vehicle travel during this time, Genesee Community College will close today effective at 4 p.m. This closing includes all Campus Centers in Albion, Arcade, Dansville, Lima, Medina and Warsaw, as well as the Batavia Campus. If you have any questions concerning closing and class cancellation procedures, please refer to http://www.genesee.edu/gcc/closing/.
  Classes are expected to resume on a normal schedule Tuesday, Oct. 30. Faculty, staff and students are encouraged to check the local news channels and the college's Web site before leaving for campus Tuesday morning.
• Canceled: Tonight's 7 o'clock Bible Study with Just Joy! Ministries at the YWCA.

I figured this would be the last decent morning for fall photography (considering the weather predicted for next week), so I struck out early this morning and headed up to Elba to see what I could find.

I found myself on Arnold Road, which, I was surprised to discover, I had never been down before. The barn above is on Watson but shot from Arnold.

I then headed down Watson and met John, a former horse trainer, who let me take a picture of his barn and picnic table.

I started out at at Pine Hill Cemetery.

Tyler J. Pratt, 16, of 41 Vine St, Batavia, is charged with criminal contempt, 2nd, menacing, 1st, and criminal possession of a weapon, 4th. Pratt allegedly called police at 11:35 p.m., Saturday, reporting a subject with a knife at a residence on Roosevelt Avenue. When officers arrived, they allegedly found Pratt in possession of the knife. Pratt reportedly ignored several orders to drop the knife and allegedly brandished it in a threatening manner toward officers. Pratt then reportedly attempted to flee and was taken into custody after a brief foot chase. Pratt is under court order to stay away from the residence of the alleged incident. Pratt was remanded to the Genesee County Jail on no bail. Officers who responded to the call were Frank Klimjack, Daryle Streeter, Eric Bolles and Jamie Givens.

Shari A. Yark, 50, of 4 Roosevelt Ave., Batavia, is charged with criminal contempt, 2nd, and endangering the welfare of a child. Yark is accused of allowing a person at her residence at 11:35 p.m., Saturday, who was barred from the residence and of contacting her daughter while allegedly knowing a stay away order of protection is in place.

Antonio Michael Giglia, 22, of Amherst Street, Buffalo, is charged with grand larceny, 4th, conspiracy, 5th, petit larceny, criminal possession of a controlled substance, 7th, and possession of burglary tools. Giglia was apprehended following a complaint of larceny at Target. The suspects allegedly left stolen merchandise behind and fled the store. Deputies later located the suspects' vehicle. Also arrested was Amanda Rose Renza. Renza is charged with grand larceny, 4th, conspiracy, 5th and petit larceny. The case was investigated by deputies Joseph Graff and Patrick Reeves.

Leon C. Bloom Jr., 30, of 5 Thorpe St., Batavia, is charged with burglary, 2nd, criminal mischief, 4th, and petit larceny. Bloom was taken into custody following a report of a burglary in progress Saturday at a location on Fordham Drive. Bloom was also charged with criminal obstruction of breathing, criminal mischief, 4th, petit larceny and harassment, 2nd. Those charges stem from an unrelated incident earlier in the day.

Kevin Edward Moscicki, 25, of Jakaub Road, Elba, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .18 or greater, refusal to submit to breath test, failure to yield right of way for emergency vehicle and driving left of pavement markings. Moscicki was arrested following a report at 8:16 p.m., Thursday, of a hit-and-run accident on Route 33, Town of Batavia. The suspect vehicle rear-ended a car parked on the shoulder of the roadway and fled the scene. At 9:05 p.m., dispatchers received a report of a Chevy pickup with front-end damage that was stopped at the intersection of Route 77 and Gabby Road, Town of Pembroke. The pickup was located by Deputy Patrick Reeves. Moscicki is also accused of leaving the scene of a property damage accident and moving from lane unsafely.

Melissa A. Williams, of Lake Street, Le Roy, is charged with petit larceny. Williams is accused of stealing two cans of Four Loko from a convience store in the village. Williams allegedly still possessed one can when she was located by Le Roy PD.

John W. Williams III, of 8170 Batavia Stafford Townline Road, Batavia, is charged with DWI. Williams was arrested by Batavia PD on a warrant. Williams was jailed on $1,000 bail.

Danny D. Williams, 24, of 18 East Ave., upper, Batavia, is charged with harassment, 2nd. Williams is accused of punching another person in the face and grabbing that person by the hair during a domestic incident at 10:40 p.m., Saturday. Williams was jailed on $250 bail.

Steven J. Mancuso-Haitz Jr., 28, of 110 Bank St., Batavia, is charged with criminal contempt, 2nd. Mancuso-Haitz turned himself in on a warrant for allegedly sending a letter to a protected party.

Dashawn Butler, 33, of 101 Summit St., right side, Batavia, is charged with unnecessary noise. Butler is accused of hosting an excessively loud party at his residence.

Scott C. Brown II, 24, of 3490 S. Main St. Road, Batavia, is charged with unlawful possession of marijuana. Brown was reportedly asked to leave a local business for allegedly being unruly. When police arrived they found him allegedly in possession of marijuana.