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| 2016: linkinglewiscounty.com Lewis County Year in Review 12/29/16 09:00pm |
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wanted to take a look back at some of the biggest local stories of 2016. For linkinglewiscounty.com, 2016 was a huge year, and our first full year since officially launching on June 8, 2015! The year got off to a great start for us, as we officially moved into our downtown Lowville office on January 13th! Our audience size and number of community partners has continued to grow at a rapid pace throughout the entire year. Thank you all for the tremendous support! So without further ado, here is your 2016 Lewis County Year in Review! According to our analytics data, the 5 most viewed articles on our website for 2016 were: No. 5- Lowville Football Captures Sectional Title, Advance to States (11/06/16) No. 4- Climax Packaging in Lowville to Close Immediately According to Employees (04/01/16) No. 3- Officials Hold Press Conference Revealing Charges Lodged in Three- Year-Old's Death (09/09/16) No. 2- Lowville Police Make Arrests in Connection to Apartment Fire (05/18/16) No. 1- Sixteen Arrested in Operation Northern Watch Drug Roundup (09/28/16) A BRIEF recap of some of the top stories by month. For more on any of the stories use the blue link for each month, which is a complete list of articles for that month, by date: January- The year started on a sour note in Lewis County, with three damaging fires and two snowmobile fatalities. On January 7th, an early morning fire caused significant damage to a Town of Watson home on Pine View Dr., owned by Mark Doner, destroying all contents. A quick response by firefighters saved a Gardner Road residence, owned by Tyler Ebersol, in the Town of Lowville on January 13th, but a nearby garage where the fire originated suffered damage. On January 22, Scott C. Schneider, 35, of Vestal , NY, was killed in a snowmobile accident on the Poor Road in the Town of Martinsburg. Just two days later, on January 24, a fatal snowmobile accident in the Town of West Turin claimed the life of Jonathan M. Allen, 42, of Utica. On January 28, a fire destroyed a garage at MJS Rubbish Removal in the Town of New Bremen. February- In February, we learned that the previously announced Kraft Heinz expansion project would require additional infrastructure in the Village of Lowville, a project that is still ongoing. In early February, Michelle Widrick, the former Lewis County Sheriff's Department Dispatcher who was terminated in November of 2015, filed a lawsuit in state Supreme Court seeking a court order requiring the county to hold a grievance hearing in regards to her termination. On February 16, officials with ReEnergy announced that the plant in Lyonsdale could face closure if a 'path to sustainability' couldn't be reached within 60 - 90 days. (The facility is still currently in operation). The Lewis County Sheriff's Office K-9 program was back on track, when Deputy Cory Paczkowski was assigned to take over the program as the handler of K-9 Wyman. In high school sports, the Copenhagen Cheer Team captured the Section III title, while the Lady Knights Basketball team fell just short of a sectional title, losing in overtime of the championship game. March- A two-stall garage on State Route 26 in Martinsburg, owned by Karen and Wayne Overton, was destroyed by fire on March 4, with all contents- including a 2015 Silverado truck lost. It was announced on March 9th that Croaghan Ambulance service would be merging with Lewis County Search & Rescue, effective April 3. A barn located at the Hancock Farm in Deer River was destroyed by a March 20th fire. Lewis County Orthopedics welcomed Stephen Adcock, M.D. to the staff on March 23. A fire on March 25 caused extensive smoke and water damage to a home owned by Danielle Jantzi, on the Whittaker Road in the Town of Martinsburg. Lewis County Emergency 911 Dispatches moved into their newly renovated dispatch center in mid-March. In an order by State Supreme Court Judge Charles C. Merrell, dated March 24 Lewis County Sheriff's Department Deputy Daryl Ortlieb had his petition seeking to rescind his resignation from the department granted. The County appealed the decision. April- April started with what many hoped was a cruel joke, when the Climax Manufacturing plant in Lowville announced on April 1st that the plant was closing immediately, putting almost 160 people out of work. The Town of Croghan celebrated its 175th anniversary on April 9th. Joseph Hirt, a supposed Holocaust Survivor who travelled throughout the country sharing his story, spoke to a packed crowd at Lowville Academy on the evening of April 15th. A South Lewis history teacher later questioned the accuracy of the story, with Mr. Hirt later admitting he was not a Holocaust survivor. A home on the Seven by Nine Road in Barnes Corners, owned by Bob Brotherton, sustained heavy smoke and water damage during a fire on April 17. A large grass fire in Lyonsdale on April 19th burnt nearly 100 acres of land. Lewis County launched its 'Naturally Lewis' economic development campaign in mid-April. The County also learned of a State mandated increase of over $30,000 annually to the salary of the District Attorney in late April. May- The ReEnergy plant in Lyonsdale was placed into standby mode, company officials announced on May 2. Members of the Copenhagen Lady Knights State Soccer Championship team were recognized on a trip to the State Capitol in early May. An early morning fire on May 18th, on S. State Street in downtown Lowville, destroyed an apartment house and damaged two neighboring houses. It was revealed that a meth lab explosion caused the fire, with Lowville Police quickly arresting three individuals as a result. A camp on the Sears Pond Road in the Town of Montague, owned by Jeff Murrock and Ben Alexander, was destroyed in a May 30th fire. The following day, May 31, B&H Saw Mill on Route 126 in Castorland, was destroyed by fire. June- The annual Relay for Life event was held at the Lewis County Fairgrounds on June 3. Also in June, the Lowville Lions Club kicked off a fundraising campaign for the 'Lowville Square' project at the vacant lot at the main four-corners in downtown Lowville. On June 23, former Climax employees filed a class action lawsuit seeking federal assistance. July- On July 5th we learned Manslaughter and other charges were reinstated, by an appellate court, against Brenda Roth, regarding the death of Derek Holton, 15, in December of 2014 in Deer River. On July 14th, the Lewis County Sheriff's Office arrested Derrick McDermid, 21, of Deer River charging him with assaulting a three-year-old child. It wasn't until September that more serious charges were filed against Mr. McDermid (murder) and Shelby Poore-McIntosh (manslaughter) in connection to the death of three-year-old Kyralea Poore- McIntosh. The NYS DEC issued a drought watch for all of New York State on July 15th. The Lewis County Fair returned for its 196th edition from July 19 - 23. In late July, the Old Lowville Cemetery was recommended for placement on both the State and National Registries of Historical Places. August- The Village of Harrisville announced it was launching a study to look into dissolving the village in early August. A crew spent a week filming scenes in the Lyons Falls area for a film adaptation of Justin Torres' best selling novel titled "We the Animals". An ATV accident in the Town of Croghan on August 6 claimed the life of Colin Barr, 33, of Binghamton, NY. On August 11 it was announced that Tammy Suiter, RN, was appointed Director of Patient Care Services for Lewis County General Hospital's Home Health Care Program. The National Weather Service in Buffalo NY confirmed a small tornado touched down near Constableville in Lewis County New York on August 16th. A small section of a cornfield on Highmarket Road was flattened by the weak tornado, which was caught on video. A new high-speed internet company, North Country Broadband, started serving the Lowville area in late August. An overnight fire caused heavy damage to the Greig Store on August 22nd. A camp in the Town of Pinckney, owned by John and Shelly Caso, was destroyed by fire August 24th. September- September was an active month for news, with some of the year's biggest stories unfolding during the month. On September 7, Shelby Poore- McIntosh was arrested and charged with Manslaughter, in connection to her three-year-old daughter's death in July. Officials held a press conference on September 9th, detailing all of the charges filed against Ms. Poore- McIntosh and Derrick McDermid, who was charged with second-degree Murder. Lewis County General Hospital CEO Eric Burch was first placed on indefinite paid leave and later it was announced he was out as CEO of the hospital, in September. The annual Cream Cheese Festival drew crowds of people to Lowville on September 17th, with Congresswoman Elise Stefanik on hand to cut the first slice of the giant cheesecake. Leo Sammon - girls soccer coach at Lowville Academy - became the all-time winning girls' soccer coach in Section III with his 407th win against Indian River on September 17th. A fatal ATV accident in the Town of Greig on September 24th took the life of Timothy A. Bohling, 27, of Sauquoit, NY. On September 28th, state, local, and federal officials held a press conference announcing the arrest of sixteen individuals in the drug roundup "Operation Northern Watch". October- October saw Lewis County go pink to raise awareness to breast cancer. A number of events were held for Domestic Violence Awareness month during October as well. NYS Lt. Governor Kathleen Hochul visited the American Maple Museum in Croghan, in early October, and met with area maple producers. On October 7th, Lewis County General Hospital welcomed Mark A. Prashall, M.D., to the emergency department. A large fire October 23rd destroyed the milk parlor in a barn on the East Road in Turin, owned by Matt and Don Partridge. Marks Farms, just south of Lowville, hosted a group of wounded Veterans for a week-long hunting retreat in late October. A home owned by Rick and Lorrie Thompson in Copenhagen suffered heavy damage after a fire on October 27th. The same day a home on the Cutoff Road in Beaver Falls, owned by Ramona Zehr, suffered heavy smoke and water damage in a fire. November- November started on a tragic note, with a motor vehicle accident claiming the life of Jesse J. Ritz, 26, from Harrisville. The Lowville Academy & Central School Red Raider football team captured their first sectional title in eighteen years with their November 6th victory over General Brown, at the Carrier Dome in Syracuse. A State Regional loss to Newark Valley the following weekend ended the Red Raiders remarkable post season run. Election Day on November 8th had a few local contests, but the attention was at the top of the ticket Presidential race, which saw two-thirds of Lewis County voters casting a ballot for eventual President-Elect Donald J. Trump- who lost the overall vote count in New York State to Hillary Clinton. On November 10th it was announced former Climax workers were denied their petition for federal assistance, which they will appeal. On November 18th, North Country Broadband announced the expansion of their wireless high-speed internet service to the Harrisville area. A spike in the number of suspected opioid and heroin related overdoses and deaths involving county residents gained the attention of a concerned community in late November. Twelve fire departments battled a large fire on Thanksgiving Day, at the former Paul Baker Saw Mill in Deer River. December Article Archive |
