Stafford

More than 600 National Grid customers are without power in Stafford between the Thruway and Route 63 on both sides of Transit and Morganville roads.

Emergency dispatchers do not know the reason for the outage.

Power is expected to be out until at least 2 a.m.

Stafford fire has been dispatched to a residence for a lift assist because a woman can't get out of her powered wheelchair.

Rose H. Chiauzzi, 22, of 154 W. Court St., Warsaw, is charged with felony assault and criminal mischief, 4th. Chiauzzi allegedly grabbed a brick during an argument in the Village of Le Roy and struck the victim on the back of the head causing an injury that required an ambulance transport to an area hospital. Chiauzzi also allegedly damaged the windshield and sunroof of the victim's vehicle. Chiauzzi was jailed on $5,000 bail.

Jeffrey W. Scott, 31, of 14 Lake St., Apt. #3, Le Roy, is charged with issuing a bad check. Scott allegedly wrote a check based on insufficient funds at a business in the Village of Le Roy and then failed to make payment for the check.

Heather K. Wilcox-Villa, 43, of 9624 Clipnock Road, Stafford, is charged with petit larceny. Wilcox-Villa is accused of shoplifting at a business in the Village of Le Roy. She allegedly concealed a bottle of perfume in her purse and left the store without paying for it.

Marcus Allen Ciociola, 18, of West Main Street, Corfu, is charged with harassment, 2nd. Ciociola allegedly kicked another person during at dispute. He was jailed on $800 bail.

Andrei Peter Sliker, 23, of Hutchins Street, Batavia, is charged with criminal contempt, 1st. Sliker allegedly violated an order of protection. He was jailed on $5,000 bail.

Todd Patrick Gately, 22, of Long Pond Road, Rochester, is charged with unlawful possession of marijuana, uninspected motor vehicle and failure to obey traffic device. Gately was stopped at 1:40 a.m. Tuesday on Townline Road, Bergen, by Deputy Joseph Corona.

Judith E. Peterson, 53, of Lancaster, is charged with DWI. State Police responded to a report at 11:18 p.m., March 23, on Bernd Road, Le Roy, of one vehicle striking a car parked in a driveway following a report of a domestic dispute. Troopers located Peterson walking on Bernd Road. State Police alleged Peterson was driving the vehicle that struck the parked car and then tried to leave the scene on foot. She allegedly failed field sobriety tests and had a BAC of .17.

Corey S. Snyder, of Route 33, Stafford, is charged with criminal possession of a forged instrument, 2nd, grand larceny, 4th, criminal possession of a controlled substance, 7th, criminal possession of a hypodermic instrument, unlawful possession of marijuana and operating with no front bumper. Snyder's vehicle was stopped by Village of Attica PD on Route 99, Attica, at 10 p.m. Monday for an alleged traffic violation. He was allegedly found in possession of a controlled substance, hypodermic instruments and marijuana paraphernalia. He was also charged in connection to an allegation that he cashed a check that had been reported stolen. Snyder was arraigned and jailed in Wyoming County Jail on $10,000 bail or $20,000 bond.

Gregory Allan Merritt, 27, of Rose Road, Batavia, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, leaving the scene of a property damage accident and unsafe starting. Merritt is accused of striking another vehicle in the T.F. Brown's parking lot at 1:49 a.m. Tuesday and leaving the scene of the accident. The incident was investigated by Deputy Joseph Corona.

Douglas James Hanley, 23, of Batavia Stafford Townline Road, Batavia, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, failure to stop at stop sign and aggravated unlicensed operation. Hanley, while driving a 2013 Chevrolet Cruze, was reportedly involved in a motor-vehicle accident at 10:59 p.m. Feb. 1 on Prole Road, Stafford. Hanley's vehicle reportedly hit a tree. Hanley was transported to Strong Memorial Hospital where he was treated and released. The accident was investigated by Deputy Frank Bordonaro.

Adam Matthew Shultz, 31, of Fargo Road, Batavia, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater and speeding. Shultz was stopped at 3:01 a.m. Tuesday on Main Street, Batavia, by Officer Matthew Lutey.

Bonnie S. Oleandi, 44, of Montclair Avenue, Batavia, was arrested on a bench warrant. The reason for the warrant was not released. Oleandi was jailed on $100,000 bail.

A 17-year-old from Batavia was charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance, 7th. The youth was allegedly found with a controlled substance for which he didn't have a prescription following an investigation by school personnel at Batavia High School.

Charles P. Mitchell, 34, of Sanders Road, Stafford, is charged with criminal contempt. Mitchell allegedly violated an order of protection by sending text messages to the protected person.

Smoke in the basement is reported at 10423 Bethany Center Road. The location is between Cackner and Jerico roads. Bethany Fire Department is responding along with mutual aid from Stafford.

UPDATE 6:26 a.m.: Stafford is told to stand down.

UPDATE 6:36 a.m.: Issue resolved. Bethany is back in service.

The temperature in Stafford early Tuesday morning was about 4 degrees.

Crista Boldt was on her way to work when she spotted four red birds in a ditch off Transit Road near East Bethany Le Roy Road.

"I thought they were pheasants," Boldt says.

When Boldt returned an hour later to see if they were still there, she found four domestic Red Star chickens huddled together and not moving. Boldt could tell they were suffering from hypothermia. She immediately placed the chickens in her van and transported them to her barn.

Boldt owns a horse farm in Stafford and she has eight horses. One of her horses is currently being boarded elsewhere for training. The one empty stall in her barn is now home to four lucky Red Star chickens.

"I was very upset when I spotted them," Boldt said. "I had to go back and get them, it just wasn't fair. They were left out in extreme temperatures and with no survival skills since they are domestic."

This morning Boldt noticed one the chickens has developed labored breathing and it might have pneumonia.

Dr. Catherine Homrig, a veterinarian at Pumpkin Hill Veterinarian Clinic in Byron says, "These domestic chickens are used for laying eggs and are usually found living in a coop. To ask them to fend for themselves in subzero weather in deep snow on the side of the road is beyond their ability."

Homrig says sometimes pet owners find themselves in financial trouble, having to move, or unable to care for their animal any longer.

"There are lots of situations," she says. "There are better ways and people need to be more compassionate about their animals."

The Genesee County Animal Shelter on West Main Street in Batavia does not accept chickens since they are considered a farm animal. 

According to Ann Marie Bradley, an Animal Control Officer with Genesee County, there are other options.

Abandoning your farm animal or pet along side a road is a misdemeanor charge under the the Ag and Markets law. Animal owners who are found guilty of dumping their pets or farm animals can face up to a year in jail and or a $1,000 fine or both.

Bradley says, people with farm animals can re-home the animal, process them for meat, euthanize the animal or take them to Lollypop Farm, a Humane Society in the Rochester area which is equipped to take in farm animal such as geese, ducks, chickens and horses.

Crista Boldt says her almost 7-year-old son Alex has become quite attached to the four chickens in her horse barn over the last few days.

"He already has names for each of them, Carla, from the 'Tractor Mac' book series, Chloe, Cluck and Claira."

Boldt will keep the rescued chickens at her horse farm until April 1.

After that a friend in the Pavilion area who is set up to take care of chickens, will be welcoming the four Red Stars to "Cluckingham Palace" where they will be cared for very well each day.

"We are always willing to give people advice by giving them information on other agencies that might be able to help," Bradley said.

Anyone who might need help or advice on what to do with an unwanted pet or farm animal can call the Genesee County Animal Shelter at 585-343-6410.

(Above picture provided by Crista Boldt.)

Metal can be molded, shaped and welded together so that it becomes something stronger.

So can the youth of our community.

In a manner of speaking, Tim Adams does both.

As owner of Adams Welding and Manufacturing in Stafford, Adams makes and repairs farm equipment and commercial products.

As a community member who grew up on a local farm, Adams remains deeply committed to 4H and donates hundreds of hours of his time each year to the organization.

Adams grew up in 4H and even after turning 19, he remained involved.

"You don't realize right away the impact 4H has on you and the values it instills in you until later on," Adams said. "It's not that you're out of 4H at 19 -- you don't realize at 19 all the values that you've taken from 4H until later on. This last year really hit home that without people who are willing to volunteer there's not going to be organizations like 4H."

This commitment to our community, both as a volunteer and a local business owner, is the reason Adams will receive a Geneseean of the Year Award from the Chamber of Commerce on Saturday night.

"I'm surprised to be getting the award," Adams said. "That's not why I did it. I didn't do it to get an award. I do what I do to help 4H. It's truly an honor to get it, but I never thought what I did was that much more than anybody does. I just did what I did to get it done."

The son of Mike and Debbie Adams, Tim grew up on their farm in East Bethany, where he developed an appreciation for farm equipment that is in good working order.

"I was pretty meticulous about it," he said.

At first, the Adams farm was a hog farm (later adding replacement heifers) and Tim got involved with the 4H Swine Club, where he met the late Ron Komer, whom he said was a big influence on his life and his view of leadership.

"He was always there to help you if you needed something," Adams said.

In high school, Adams was taking a class at BOCES and a classmate, Jake Pocock, asked him if he'd ever tried welding. He hadn't. Jake had him put on the protective gear and weld two pieces of metal together.

 "All it took was one stick rod and I was hooked," Adams said.

Two years of welding classes at BOCES and two years of more study at Alfred State and Adams had a career, and with his connections to the ag community in Genesee County, Adams had a place to start to build a business.

In early 2012, Tim Adams and his brother Scott (Adams Trucking) took a big step together for the growth of both of their businesses and built a shop in Stafford on Route 5.

Adams' involvement with 4H includes leading the Swine Club, conducting the tractor safety courses, serving on various committees and taking charge on some key fundraising efforts.

This past year, he helped organize -- with John Duyssen, Keith Carlson, Heather Weber -- the Swine Club's first pulled pork BBQ, which Adams believes is the most successful fundraiser in the history of Genesee County 4H.

This was also the first year the Swine Club sold a club pig at the County Fair's livestock sale.

Among the most cherished contributions Adams makes to 4H is teaching the tractor safety classes. He took his first class from Bob Mullen at age 14 and has been involved in tractor safety ever since.

He said it's such a critical class for farm kids and does a lot to prepare youngsters to help out around their family farms.

"Being involved in 4H teaches responsibility, it teaches community service, it teaches you to take responsibility for an animal and be accountable, and it teaches a lot of life skills," Adams said.

He is also a member of a welding trade association, the Farm Bureau and has helped raise money for Crossroads House.

All of this community involvement has inspired Scott Adams to get more involved.

"It's something to see somebody actually carrying off and pulling off as much effort as he does," said Scott Adams, who's chairing the fair committee this year. "He actually cares about what he does. He goes that extra mile to get something done. From what he does with 4H, he's got me more involved with the fair and the ag society. He's motivated me to get involved more in the community. It's an eye-opening experience that one person can make a difference."

Clearly, making a difference is important to Tim Adams. He wants to make a difference in lives of young people the way people like Komer and Mullen did with him. Maybe today's 4H members will remember what Tim Adams did for them.

"I hope they look back like I did 10 years after I was out and look back and say, 'Hey, he was helping make me the person I am today,' " Adams said. "I'm hoping that's what they'll say."

Heading back from Bethany this afternoon, I stopped along Clipnock Road, Stafford, for a couple of pictures.

Above, a barn and horses and below the windswept snow bank near Route 5.

A tractor-trailer is on its side on Ellicott Street Road near Fargo Road. No injuries are reported but traffic is blocked. 

Traffic being shut down at East Road and at Texaco Town. 

Bethany and Stafford fire departments responding. Pavilion handling traffic at Texaco Town. 

It will be an hour before a heavy wrecker is on scene to right the truck.

A two-car accident is reported at Route 63 and Fargo Road. The occupants are conscious. There is entrapment. Bethany Fire Department and Mercy medics are responding, along with mutual aid from Stafford for fire police and a rescue unit. Mercy Flight is not able to fly due to weather.

UPDATE 4:51 p.m.: An ambulance from Le Roy is requested to the scene.

UPDATE 4:59 p.m.: There are four victims.

UPDATE 5:04 p.m.: An ambulance from Byron is requested. It will be the fourth ambulance in.

UPDATE 5:07 p.m.: An ambulance from Alexander is requested to fill in at Bethany's fire hall.

UPDATE 5:19 p.m.: Two patients have been extricated.

UPDATE 5:20 p.m.: "Third patient extricated, one more to go."

UPDATE 5:27 p.m.: The fourth and final patient is extricated. So far, two ambulances are transporting patients to Strong Memorial Hospital.

UPDATE 5:38 p.m.: Bethany is taking a patient to UMMC.

UPDATE 5:39 p.m.: A total of three patients went to Strong. Two flatbed tows are called. Traffic is backed up. Command says when it clears up a crew should respond ASAP to salt the road. Once that is done, they'll go in service, he says.

UPDATE 6:40 p.m.: The roads are reopened. The Bethany assignment is back in service.

With the sun out this morning, I went for a short drive out to the Bethany area thinking, "the sun before the storm."

Our previous winter storm watch has been upgraded to a warning and between tonight and tomorrow night, we could get up to 10 inches of snow.

Heading down Clipnock Road, I spotted a group of trainers working out harness racing horses.

Bottom picture, a broken barn door on Transit Road.

A car slammed into a tree, close to a house, at 8802 8807 Prole Road. One person, believed to be injured, is still in the vehicle. Several others -- from three to six subjects -- were seen running from the scene. The accident is just south of Route 5. Law enforcement and medics are responding.

UPDATE 11:13 p.m.: Stafford Volunteer Fire Department is on scene. "All units can back it down. One subject is in the vehicle and I've got him," says a deputy.

UPDATE 11:25 p.m.: Stafford fire is leaving the scene, in service. A tow truck is en route.

UPDATE 11:44 p.m.: Le Roy Ambulance is transporting the patient to Strong Memorial Hospital. The deputy is also going to Strong to follow up on the accident.

UPDATE 11:35 a.m. (by Howard Owens): The driver has been identified as Douglas J. Hanley, 23, of Batavia Stafford Townline Road, Batavia. Charges are pending. The accident was investigated by Deputy Frank Bordonaro.

Charles Paul Mitchell, 34, of Sanders Road, Stafford, is charged with harassment, 2nd. Mitchell is accused of causing unwanted physical contact with another person during an argument.

Maya Simone Washington, 40, of East Main Street, Batavia, is charged with petit larceny. Washington is accused of shoplifting from Kmart.

Eric Swede, 25, of Perry Road, Pavilion, is charged with disorderly conduct. Swede was arrested after Batavia PD was dispatched to Sport of Kings restaurant at 3:45 a.m. Sunday for a report of an intoxicated male causing a disturbance. Swede was issued an appearance ticket.

A serious injury, head-on collision is reported at 6372 Route 5 in front of A.D. Call & Sons Trucking company. One victim has a compound leg fracture. Extrication will be needed. Two Mercy rigs are called. Route 5 is completely blocked in both directions and will be shut down at Route 237. Mercy Flight is in route. Stafford Fire Department is responding along with mutual aid from Le Roy. Law enforcement is on scene.

UPDATE 6:55 a.m.: Stafford Fire Hall will be the landing zone.

UPDATE 6:57 a.m.: Mercy Flight has landed.

UPDATE 7:09 a.m.: Town of Batavia's Engine 24 is at the Stafford Fire Hall. The state DOT is notified that a lot of salt will be needed on the roadway before Route 5 can be reopened.

UPDATE 7:17 a.m.: The victim has been extricated.

UPDATE 7:22 a.m.: An ambulance is transporting a patient to the landing zone at the fire hall.

UPDATE 7:30 a.m.: Mercy Flight is airborne and headed to Erie County Medical Center.

UPDATE 7:34 a.m.: Le Roy is returning to service. The second ambulance called in is also back in service.

UPDATE 8:01 a.m.: The roadway is reopened. Stafford and mutual aid back in service.

UPDATE 9:20 a.m. (By Howard): One person suffered leg serious leg injuries in the accident. Because the Chevy sedan's airbags didn't deploy and the driver did not appear to be wearing a seat belt, there is concern of internal injuries. The patient was transported to ECMC by Mercy Flight. He had not yet been identified.

The driver of the pickup truck was Timothy Parmenter. Parmenter said he was westbound on Route 5 when he saw the sedan on the north shoulder heading eastbound. The sedan's driver tried to correct and get back into the eastbound lane.

"I was trying to head away from him, but he was kind of following me and I couldn't get away from him," Parmenter said.

Parmenter was not injured.

He said when he got out of his truck, another person was tending to the driver of the sedan, "trying to calm him down."

Deputy John Duyssen said it appeared that the front windshield of the sedan was completely iced over -- on the inside.

Duyssen said there were two uninvolved eastbound cars that were immediately behind the Chevy sedan. The drivers did not stop at the scene. He said it's very important the drivers in those cars contact investigators and provide witness statements. He's asking that the drivers immediately call either Investigator Kris Kautz or Deputy Chris Parker at (585) 343-5000.

UPDATE 5:19 p.m.: The driver of the sedan has been identified aas Robert C. Putney, 55, of Main Road, Stafford. Citations were issued for allegedly driving on the wrong side of the road and not wearing a seat belt. Putney reportedly told Deputy Chris Parker that his windshield was not defrosted and that he couldn't see clearly.

Angela Irene, 44, of South Grand Road, Medina, is charged with grand larceny, 4th. Irene was arrested as a result of reports on The Batavian and OrleansHub of a purse being stolen from a shopping cart in the parking lot of the Batavia Walmart and a gift card subsequently being used to purchase a cake at the Walmart in Albion. As a result of the publication of the surveillance photo from the Albion Walmart, the suspect turned herself in to local law enforcement. The Sheriff's Office also received numerous phone calls identifying the suspect. The case was handled by Investigator Kristopher Kautz and Deputy James Diehl.

Jillian E. Dibble, of Akron, is charged with DWI and driving with a BAC of .08 or greater. Dibble was stopped at 7:50 a.m. Sunday on Route 77 at Reynolds Road, Darien, by State Police.

Alexander E. Dills, 23, of Stafford, is charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance, 7th, possession of a hypodermic instrument, unlawful possession of marijuana, criminal possession of a weapon, 4th, and aggravated unlicensed operation. Dills was arrested by State Police at 8:55 a.m. Saturday. No further details released.

Darrnell J. Barnes, 51, of Alabama, is charged with DWI and driving with a BAC of .08 or greater. Barnes was stopped at 7:42 p.m. Saturday on Alleghany Road in Alabama by State Police.

Bruce J. Brade, 33, of Galloway Road, Batavia, is charged with identify theft, 2nd, and grand larceny, 4th. Brade is accused of fraudulent use of a debit card. Brade allegedly used the card to purchase items over the Internet. Following arraignment in Batavia City Court, Brade was released under supervision of Genesee Justice.

Douglas Robert Brown, 45, of South Main Street, Elba, is charged with criminal possession of a weapon, 4th. Brown was arrested following an investigation into a complaint of an irate truck driver who made a delivery to Automotive Corp., Inc. Brown was allegedly found in possession of a billy club.

Thomas James Rose, 18, of Ford Road, Elba, is charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance, 7th, criminal possession of a hypodermic instrument, criminal use of drug paraphernalia and unlawful possession of marijuana. Rose was found to allegedly possess drugs and paraphernalia during an investigation by Deputy Joseph Corona and Deputy Howard Carlson of an incident at a residence in Byron at 2:30 a.m., Saturday.

Arthur Mack Osborne, 47, of West Main Street Road, Batavia, is charged with criminal contempt, 2nd. Osborne is accused of violating a complete stay away order by going to the residence of the protected person and being in contact with that person.

Paul Joseph Kirch, 27, of Angling Road, Corfu, was arrested on a warrant out of the Town of Amherst related to a disorderly conduct charge. Kirch was located when a deputy checked on a vehicle parked on the shoulder of a roadway. Upon investigation, Kirch was identified as a suspect with an active arrest warrant.

Cynthia Louise Reschke, 50, of Transit Road, Stafford, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, failure to keep right, moving from lane unsafely. Reschke was stopped at 1:36 a.m. Sunday on Morganville Road, Stafford, by Deputy Joseph Corona.

Stephen A. Getty, 43, of Gilbert Street, Le Roy, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, moving from lane unsafely and drinking alcohol in a motor vehicle on a highway. Getty was stopped at 5:11 p.m. Friday on Main Road, Pembroke, by Deputy Kevin McCarthy.

Louis Levon Wooden, 28, of Salina Street, Rochester, is charged with petit larceny. Wooden is accused of shoplifting at Walmart. Also charged with petit larceny is Tymekia T. Gaskin, 39, of Champlain Street, Rochester.

Ann Lee Cox, 42, of Main Street, Attica, is charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance, driving while ability impaired by drugs, driving while ability impaired by combined drugs and moving from lane unsafely. Cox was arrested following an investigation by Deputy Kevin McCarthy into a single-car accident on Route 98, Alexander, at 4:22 a.m. on Oct. 20.

Emily Grace Lemen, 19, of Lake Street, Le Roy, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .18 or greater and moving from lane unsafely. Lemen was allegedly driving a vehicle at 4 p.m. on Jan. 6 that went down an embankment at the 490 off-ramp at Route 19. The accident was investigated by Deputy Matthew Butler.

Route 5 will be shut down at Transit and Clipnock roads due to low-hanging wires in the roadway. Stafford Fire Police are responding, along with law enforcement. National Grid is in route. "We have a ton of cars up here we're trying to get turned around along with at least three tractor-trailers."

UPDATE 3:45 p.m.: The line is either cable or phone, but National Grid has agreed to snip it so it can be removed from the roadway. The appropriate company will be notified of the action.

UPDATE 4 p.m.: Stafford Fire Police are back in service.

In lieu of flowers, the family of David M. Russo are asking donations be made for an education for the two children Russo leaves behind.

Russo died yesterday following an accident on a snow-covered Route 63 in the Iroquois National Wildlife Refuge.

The 43-year-old Stafford resident had two children, Josilynn and David.

There will be visitation for family and friends from 4 to 7 p.m., Sunday, at Falcone Family Funeral & Cremation Service, Inc., 8700 Lake Road (Route 19), Le Roy, with a prayer service at 7:30.

For the full obituary, click here.