NEWS

Penn College spotlight on 5 esports

According to Pennsylvania College of Technology esports coach Joshua Young, “(This) week will kick off the start of our fourth year in the NACE Starleague Varsity + league for our Rocket League, Overwatch 2, Valorant and CS:GO teams. The regular season will span six weeks and conclude on Nov. 10, with the playoff starting Nov. 13-17 (round of 6), Nov. 27-Dec. 1 (round of 4) and the divisional championship the week of Dec. 4-8. 

“League of Legends will start on Oct. 10 and consist of matches every Tuesday and Thursday through Oct. 31. 

“We are very excited about the start of this season as we have all our team managers returning from last year to support our squads.

“They are:

Rocket League—junior Alex Nazarchuk, of Lebanon;

Overwatch 2—sophomore Frankie Gagliardi, of Pottstown;

Valorant—senior Drew Thomas, of State College;

CS:GO—sophomore Joe Hartland, of Pennsdale;

League of Legends Varsity—sophomore Zachary Rhodes, of Shippensburg;

iRacing—senior Austin DeLong, of Pittsburgh (which began a few weeks ago).

“We had major interest in League of Legends this year that we could start a development/junior varsity team. This team will be managed by one of our esports veterans, senior Jasaiah Capps, of Williamsport. He will work with the players to get them ready for the next level and will be the scrimmage partner for the varsity team. Our varsity team has four returning players from last year and has added transfer student Madison Cuckovic, of Mechanicsburg, to the roster. I am really looking forward to the future of this team with the talent we have on varsity and having the ability to develop new players into our system. This should allow us to create a strong team for the next couple of seasons. 

FIRST News Now

Fatal House Fire Claims 2 Lives

FNN Article © Monday, September 25, 2023.

WESTFIELD, PA – An early Sunday morning house fire is believed to have claimed the lives of a couple on September 24, 2023, in Chatham Township.

The two story home was already engulfed in flames when the Toga County 911 Center received a call from a neighbor about the fire and possible entrapment at the home on Mosher Road shortly after 3:00 AM.

Fire crews from Chatham Township Volunteer Fire Company, Middlebury Township Volunteer Fire Department, and Clymer Township Volunteer Hose Company and a Fire Coordinator were the fire units to respond to the house the fire.

Chatham fire personnel were first to arrive at the home around 3:17 AM and confirmed that the structure was fully involved. Tri-County Rural Electric was requested to turn power off on Mosher Road. Later UGI was contacted to respond and a request was made for the Fire Marshal to respond.

By 3:24 AM a second alarm was called for and fire units from Wellsboro Fire Department, Crary Hose Company from Westfield, Tioga Fire Department, as well as A RIT Team from Elkland and the Rehab unit from Blossburg Fire Department were requested for mutual aid.

Firefighters had to do an exterior attack on the blaze, as the 123-year-old house was fully involved in flames.

Westfield firefighters set up a water supply so tankers could be refilled as fire crews worked hard to bring the fire under control.

The fire was reported under control around 3:50 AM.

It was said that two Fire Marshals arrived at the house fire around 5:30 AM.

An excavator was brought in from Owlett’s Logging and Firewood to assist fire crews at the scene.

By 9:07 AM the fire was reported out, however, firefighters were still taking care of putting out hot spots

The coroner arrived at the scene of the fire as it was confirmed that two individuals had perished in the devastating fire. (It was indicated to FNN that the couple who owned the home were the ones that passed away). The home which was a total loss was owned by Leland and Laura Rouse.

Firefighters were on scene for over 6 hours. All remaining fire units were cleared from the fire location shortly after 10:00 AM.

A cause of the fire has not been provided and with the extreme damage done, the cause may not be able to be determined.

A number of other fire departments were on standby at other stations. Mansfield Hose Company covered Middlebury, Lawrenceville covered for Tioga and Galeton was requested to standby for Wellsboro. Woodhull was also on standby but unsure which department they covered for.

FNN staff extends our condolences to the Rouse family.

UPDATE: Funeral Services Announced:

For some unknown reason, Solomon’s words Facebook page is temporarily unavailable. Bookmark our solomonswords.net page so you don’t miss anything.

The Pennsylvania Game Commission has announced that 30 to 40 deer found dead in the vicinity of State Game Lands 214 in North Shenango and Sadsbury townships, Crawford County, the week of Sept. 8, succumbed to hemorrhagic disease.

Hemorrhagic disease (HD) affects wild cervids and is caused by viruses — either epizootic hemorrhagic disease virus or bluetongue virus — that are spread by biting midges.

Clearfield, PA – The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) announced the following schedule of maintenance activities in McKean County the week of September 22. PennDOT performs year-round maintenance in its mission to provide a safe, efficient transportation system, and the scope of work in McKean County for the coming week is as follows:

Bridge Maintenance & Cleaning

• Route 346 in Bradford Township. Monday, September 25, through Friday, September 29. Flaggers in the roadway will provide traffic control during daylight hours.

Pennsylvania has some of the oldest bridges in the country, with an age of more than 50 years on average. Preventive maintenance is vital in extending the life of the structures. As such, PennDOT maintenance crews perform some bridge deck patching and structural repairs.

Manual Patching

• Route 6 in Hamlin and Wetmore township and Kane Borough. Monday, September 25, through Friday, September 29. Flaggers in the roadway will provide traffic control.
• Route 46 in Foster, Keating and Otto townships. Monday, September 25, through Friday, September 29. Flaggers in the roadway will provide traffic control.
• Route 546 in Otto Township. Wednesday, September 25, through Friday, September 29. Flaggers in the roadway will provide traffic control.

Most permanent pothole patching is completed in the spring/summer when temperatures stay consistently above freezing. If maintenance crews were not repairing potholes, the road surface would break up further and require more expensive corrective measures.

Pipe Replacing & Cleaning

• Route 770 in Bradford and Lafayette townships. Thursday, September 28, and Friday, September 29. Flaggers in the roadway will provide traffic control.

Pipe replacement and cleaning are essential in maintaining water flow around state roadways. Controlling water flow is one of the most important aspects of maintaining pavements. Uncontrolled water flow will damage both the pavement surface and the area under the pavement, which causes deterioration across the length of the pipe.

Shoulder Maintenance

• Route 2004 (Christian Hollow Road) in Norwich Township. Monday, September 25, through Wednesday, September 27. Flaggers in the roadway will provide traffic control.

Shoulder cutting removes excess material and debris from unpaved shoulder areas. Shoulder grading involves the shaping and stabilizing of those same areas. Both operations improve drainage, allow water to leave the roadway, and eliminate shoulder drop-offs. These are crucial highway maintenance operations because when drainage systems do not function properly, water collects on the road, weakens pavement, accelerates the formation of potholes, and creates the potential for icing conditions in the winter months.

Side Dozing

• Route 6 in Liberty Township. Monday, September 25, through Thursday, September 28. Flaggers in the roadway will provide traffic control during daylight hours.

Side dozing removes excess material from beneath guide rail areas, which improves drainage and allows water to sheet flow off the roadway. Side dozing is a crucial highway maintenance operation because when drainage systems do not function properly, water collects on the road, weakens pavement, accelerates the formation of potholes, and creates the potential for icing conditions in the winter months.

PennDOT urges motorists to exercise caution in these and all work zones to ensure their safety and the safety of county maintenance staff.

This schedule is subject to change due to weather conditions, emergencies, or other unforeseen interruptions.

Customers can report road concerns by calling 1-800-FIX-ROAD. If calling after hours, please leave a name and phone number.

For more information on PennDOT’s maintenance activities, visit www.PennDOT.pa.gov/about-us/maintenanceactivities.

Cameron County Chamber of Commerce hosted the Sinnemahone Gravel Race Saturday.  More than 80 riders took to the gravel roads in Elk State Forest.   Participants came from Oklahoma, New York, Maryland, Connecticut, and Pennsylvania.  Riders had their choice of a 14 mile course, 26 or 55 miles. 

The first place male finisher in the 14 mile course Christopher McCracken from Curwensville with a finishing time of :52:29.   The first place female in the race was Melissa McCracken from Warren, PA.  She finished in :57:15.

The first place male finisher in the 26 mile course was Cory Hanlon from Pittsburgh who finished in 1:43:24.    The first place female was Vanessa Johnson from Slippery Rock.  Johnson finished in 2:21:05.

Defending his first place finish from 2021 and 2022 and shaving nearly 10 minutes from his time was Curtis Smith from DuBois.  He rode the course in 2:57:33. The top female finisher was Emily Flagg from Pittsford NY.  She finished the race in 4:24:06. 

This was the fifth year for the race.  Each year it has been growing in popularity.  Complete results can be found online at https://www.runhigh.com/2023RESULTS/R092323HA.html

 The final leg of the triple crown is Saturday October 21.  Registration is open till October 20.  Contact the Cameron County Chamber of Commerce office for information.

The Pennsylvania State Police recognized the promotions of 36 new sergeants and 63 new corporals during a ceremony September 20 at the Scottish Rite Cathedral in Harrisburg, Commissioner Christopher Paris announced.

September 20, 2023 — The Leadership Cattaraugus Scholarship Fund at the Cattaraugus Region Community Foundation will be accepting applications from aspiring leaders hoping to participate in the Leadership Cattaraugus 2024 cohort through Oct. 31.

The Leadership Cattaraugus board of directors established the scholarship fund in 2018 to make program tuition more affordable to worthy individuals applying to participate in the leadership program.

The 2024 Leadership Cattaraugus program will take place from January through October. Applications are now being accepted at www.leadershipcattaraugus.org. Scholarship applicants must also apply for inclusion in the 2024 cohort.

Motorists are advised that a crack sealing project continues next week on multiple routes in Lycoming and Tioga counties.

On Sunday, September 24, 2023, the contractor, Vestal Asphalt, will be crack sealing on Route 15 in both directions starting in the Borough of South Williamsport through Armstrong, Clinton and Brady townships to the Lycoming / Union County line. Additional work this week includes the Route 15 interchange ramps at Foy Avenue in Old Lycoming Township. Motorists can expect lane restrictions where work is being performed. 

Rolling Roadblocks

In areas on Route 15 where there is a concrete barrier separating the northbound and southbound lanes, traffic will be controlled using a rolling roadblock. Work in this area is anticipated to be performed on Sunday, September 24, 2023, and Monday, September 25, 2023. Motorists can expect traffic delays and should avoid the area if possible.

Work will be performed between the hours of 6:00 PM and 6:00 AM, weather permitting.

Additional work on this project includes the below routes in Lycoming and Tioga counties.

Lycoming County

Route 14 in Lewis and McIntyre townships

Route 15 in Brady, Clinton, and Armstrong townships

Route 220 in Porter, Piatt, and Woodward townships

Route 405 in Montoursville and Muncy boroughs; and Clinton Township

Route 654 in Armstrong Township

Route 2014 (Lycoming Mall Road) in Fairfield, Muncy, and Muncy Creek townships

Tioga County

Route 287 in Lawrenceville Borough; and Tioga and Lawrence townships

Route 49 in Lawrenceville and Westfield boroughs; and Westfield and Deerfield townships

Route 249 in Middlebury Township

Route 660 in Richmond Township

Route 2005 in Blossburg Borough; Covington and Putnam townships

Work on routes in Lycoming County will be performed between the hours of 6:00 PM and 6:00 AM. There are no work time restrictions on the routes in Tioga County. Motorists can expect single lane restrictions with flagging where work is being performed.  Work on this project is mobile, motorists can expect slow moving vehicle, possible rolling roadblocks on a portion of Route 15 in Lycoming County where work is being performed.

Vestal Asphalt is the prime contractor for the $ 641,243 crack sealing project. Work on this project is expected to be completed in December of 2023, weather permitting. 

Motorists should be alert, slow down, expect delays in travel, and drive with caution through the work zone.