Buffalo news

• New York governor raising minimum wage for state employees

  10-11-2015 23:52 via wivb.com
  
  NEW YORK (AP) — New York’s governor is raising the minimum wage for about 10,000 state workers to $15 an hour over the next six years.
  Andrew Cuomo’s office says that will initially affect about 1,000 office assistants, custodial workers and lifeguards in New York City, whose hourly wage will reach $15 by the end of 2018.
  Another 9,000 employees upstate will see wages rise to that level three years later.
  New York’s basic minimum wage is now $8.75 and is set to rise
  
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• Joe’s Crab Shack gives no-tipping a try

  10-11-2015 23:52 via wivb.com
  
  AMHERST, N.Y. (WIVB)- Restaurant chain Joe’s Crab Shack is following suit of a New York City restaurateur, and experimenting with no tipping.
  Joe’s Crab Shack is doing away with the practice at 18 of its national stores, but none in New York at this point.
  The thought behind it? It’s no longer the customer’s job to pay a living wage, it’s the restaurant’s.
  The locations that have implemented this policy on a trial-run basis are starting off servers at $12
  
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• Pennies add up for bottle redemption centers

  10-11-2015 23:42 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB)- If you had a nickel for every can you turned in, the bottle redemption center would still have three-and-a half cents more.
  On the corner of Hertel and Elmwood in North Buffalo, Bucks for Bottles is one of the many new redemption centers to pop up around Western New York.
  “The most common question is ‘How do we make money’ basically.” said employee Brad Hoerner.
  The magic number is eight and a half cents. That’s how much this place can sell eac
  
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• Parents want to see equal paid leave for birth and adoptive parents

  10-11-2015 23:38 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — It’s hard for new parents to leave their baby and head back to work, some have to do that earlier than others. New York State doesn’t require employers to pay parents during family leave.
  New parents Tamara and Marc Principe would like to see that change. Tamara Principe looked into her son’s eyes for the first time eight months ago.
  “You’re just in awe every day like, ‘Oh my god, he did that, like look!&rs
  
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• Maid of the Mist sets record as millions board boats

  10-11-2015 23:25 via wivb.com
  
  NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. (WIVB) — One of the most sought after U.S. tourist experiences is found in Niagara Falls, and millions took advantage of that in 2015.
  Maid of the Mist officials say over 1.4 million people hopped aboard Maid of the Mist boats as of Nov. 8, marking the most active season the attraction has ever enjoyed.
  Over two years, ridership is up 30 percent, and patronage increased by 17 percent from 2014 alone. In the attraction’s 130th year in business, officials attri
  
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• Police charge two with burglaries in Chautauqua County

  10-11-2015 22:55 via wivb.com
  
  JAMESTOWN, N.Y. (WIVB) — Two Jamestown residents have been arrested and charged with a string of burglaries acted out in broad daylight in Chautauqua County.
  Police in several different municipalities, including in Pennsylvania, reacted to multiple burglaries in October and early November. Those police departments worked with the Chautauqua County Sheriff’s Office in an investigation that led to the arrests of 28-year-old Eric R. Lewis and 51-year-old William J. Lewis.
  Officers
  
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• A day in the life: Local refugee shares his story

  10-11-2015 21:00 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB)- These day, Babikir Abdalla is all smiles.
  After five years without seeing his family, his wife Samia and two sons are finally here in the U.S. with him.
  His youngest son, he met for the first time at the Buffalo Airport.
  “I wait for that [a] long time. Three years I wait, wait, wait. When they come, I feel very happy, very happy now. [I’m going to] start a new life now,” Abdalla said.
  But that new life didn’t some easy.
  In the midst of civi
  
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• Amherst PD looking for accident information

  10-11-2015 19:43 via wivb.com
  
  AMHERST, N.Y. (WIVB) — Police are looking for information on an accident that occurred in a Wegman’s parking lot on Alberta Drive in Amherst.
  During the Monday afternoon incident, a 44-year-old woman backed out of a parking space and hit the walker of a 77-year-old woman.
  The elderly woman was knocked to the ground and injured. She was taken to ECMC by Twin City Ambulance.
  The accident is under investigation. Anyone who may have seen an elderly woman with a walker
  
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• WNY communities plan tributes to Veterans

  10-11-2015 19:03 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) – Veterans groups around Western New York will take time on Wednesday to honor and celebrate those who have served our country. Here are some of the ceremonies you can attend around town:
  The Erie County American Legion will salute veterans at Forest Lawn Cemetery at 9am in front of the American Legion Memorial Monument.  Flags will be placed on the graves of veterans buried in the Field of Valor.
  The West Seneca Veterans Committee will honor veterans everywhere w
  
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• Congress votes to ban transfer of Guantanamo detainees to US

  10-11-2015 18:54 via wivb.com
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — Congress has passed a $607 billion defense bill that bans moving Guantanamo Bay detainees to the United States — something Barack Obama has been trying to do since he was sworn in as president.
  The Senate’s vote of 91 to 3 gave final legislative approval to the measure. The House has already passed it with a veto-proof majority, 370-58.
  Obama does not like the Guantanamo provisions. But so far, the White House has not threatened to veto the bill.
  The legislati
  
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• Rex Ryan wears Clemson helmet, talks Thursday game

  10-11-2015 18:35 via wivb.com
  
  ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (WIVB) — Buffalo Bills head coach Rex Ryan appeared at Tuesday’s press conference not just in his usual hat — but in a helmet — a Clemson University helmet.
  Rex's press conference attire today. For real. pic.twitter.com/gfa43iOzhD
  — Buffalo Bills (@buffalobills) November 10, 2015ESPN.com reports Ryan’s son as a player for Clemson. During the conference, Rex spoke about his recent decision to make Ik Enemkpali a captain in Thursday&rsquo
  
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• Sawicki sentenced to 6 months in jail for fatal hit-and-run

  10-11-2015 17:50 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — Ashley Sawicki, 22, has been sentenced to six months in the Erie County Jail and five years probation after that.
  As part of the conditions of her probation, the judge is requiring her to speak at high schools and colleges about the consequences of drinking, driving, and leaving the scene of an accident.
  Back in August, Sawicki pleaded guilty to leaving the scene of 2014 accident resulting in the death of Jennifer Martello.
  Sawicki told police she had been drink
  
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• Sheriff’s Office looking for two vehicles stolen from Erie County Park System

  10-11-2015 17:43 via wivb.com
  
  SARDINIA, N.Y. (WIVB) — Two vehicles are reported stolen from the Erie County Department of Parks, Recreation and Forestry.
  The Department says a utility vehicle and an all-terrain vehicle from the Bureau of Forestry were taken. The vehicles are identified as a 2015 Polaris Ranger ATV and a 2004 Yamaha Kodiak 450 QUAD.
  Thieves reportedly broke into the facility’s locked storage shed on Sunday night.
  “While this equipment is used by the Erie County Parks Department, th
  
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• R.I. veteran graves vandalized days before holiday

  10-11-2015 16:46 via wivb.com
  
  WEST BRIDGEWATER, Mass. (WPRI) — Police in West Bridgewater, Massachusetts, are investigating after vandals damaged several veterans’ headstones at a local cemetery, just days before the celebration of Veterans Day.
  In Pleasant Hill Cemetery, a toppled tombstone – etched with the words “Forever soul mates” – marked the grave of Joyce and Gerry Comeau.
  Officials were first notified about the vandalism on Sunday, when workers found two tombstones pushed over, va
  
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• WYRK morning hosts discuss big country acts coming to WNY

  10-11-2015 16:30 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) – In the last few weeks, big name country artists Blake Shelton and Carrie Underwood have announced Buffalo tour dates. WYRK Morning Hosts Clay, Dale and Liz discussed what they think these shows will be like for a WNY audience and other country music headlines when News 4 cameras visited their studio for “Wake Up on the Radio” week.
  
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• Conjoined twin boys sharing heart, lungs born in Georgia

  10-11-2015 15:36 via wivb.com
  
  AUGUSTA, Ga. (WJBF) – The first set of conjoined twins, sharing a heart and lungs, were delivered at Georgia Regents Medical Center on Monday morning.
  26-year-old Brittany Crafton is the mother of the twin boys, Chandler and Chance.
  A C-section was scheduled to help deliver the babies. Currently, there are no updates on the conditions of Crafton or the twin boys.
  Georgia’s WJBF News Channel 6 is told Crafton is being treated at GRMC. The twins are at the Neon
  
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• Lancaster PD investigating overnight vehicle thefts

  10-11-2015 15:14 via wivb.com
  
  LANCASTER, N.Y. (WIVB) — Lancaster Police say they have taken several reports of residents’ vehicles being burglarized overnight in the village.
  On Facebook, the Police Department posted a number of tips to help prevent future crimes. Here is what they said:
  Please remember to remove all valuables from your vehicles or put them out of sight in the trunk or a locked compartment.
  Make sure that your vehicle is locked and windows are up. All of the vehicles entered recently were not loc
  
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• Boxing belts stolen from Canastota museum

  10-11-2015 15:07 via wivb.com
  
  CANASTOTA, N.Y. (WIVB) –  Six championship boxing belts are missing, stolen from the International Boxing Hall of Fame in Canastota, N.Y.
  Police say they are investigating a break-in they believe happened on Thursday, November 5.
  Three display cases were broken into and six belts taken.
  Four of the belts belong to former Rochester resident Carmen Basilio.  The others belonged to Tony Zale.
  Anyone with information is asked to contact Canastota Police  at 315-697-2240.
   
  
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• Man jailed on $50,000 bail after alleged car chase through Niagara County

  10-11-2015 13:43 via wivb.com
  
  WILSON, N.Y. (WIVB) — A Niagara Falls man was arrested after Niagara County Sheriff’s deputies say they chased him through various towns in the county Monday evening.
  Deputies say they witnessed Adam Linton, 45, driving erratically and without headlights in Sanborn.
  When deputies tried to pull Linton over, he fled northbound and continued through the towns of Wheatfield, Lewiston, Cambria and Wilson.
  Linton’s vehicle eventually crashed into a guard rail at the intersection of N
  
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• Chimney fire starts early Tuesday morning

  10-11-2015 13:13 via wivb.com
  
  GETZVILLE, N.Y. (WIVB) — A chimney on a Getzville home caught fire early this morning just before 1 a.m.
  The fire started at a home on Wyeth Drive and firefighters were able to keep the flames from damaging the house.
  The two people inside the home made it out safely.
  
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• Authorities: 1 killed in officer shooting on college campus

  10-11-2015 12:59 via wivb.com
  
  SPARTANBURG, S.C. (AP) — Authorities say a vehicle hit a college campus police officer, who fired on it and killed a person inside.
  The campus of Spartanburg Methodist College was placed on lockdown Monday night as authorities investigated the shooting.
  South Carolina Law Enforcement Division spokesman Thom Berry told local news outlets that that the officer was investigating a possible vehicle break-in. When the officer arrived, Berry says both suspects ran off, but one was quickly captur
  
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• List of Veterans Day events across western New York

  10-11-2015 12:49 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — Wednesday, November 11 is Veteran’s Day, a time to show appreciation for U.S. service members.
  Various events and celebrations will be happening across western New York. Here is a list of them:
  AMHERST
  The Amherst Senior Center will host a ceremonial tribute to veterans and lunch from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m. on Tuesday, November 10.
  BUFFALO
  Veterans will be honored at ceremonies on Forest Lawn on Delaware Ave starting at 8 a.m. Included are the Erie County Am
  
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• Best Buy to open at 5 p.m., Macy’s and Target at 6 p.m. on Thanksgiving Day

  10-11-2015 11:02 via wivb.com
  
  NEW YORK (AP) — Best Buy announced it will be open at 5 p.m. on Thanksgiving Day.
  The stores will close at 1 a.m. and re-open at 8 a.m. on Black Friday.
  Macy’s and Target will open their doors at 6 p.m. on Thanksgiving, the same time as last year.
  But the Minneapolis-based Target says shoppers don’t have to trek to a store after eating turkey and stuffing; it says the same deals will be available online at Target.com on Thanksgiving morning.
  Target says it will also o
  
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• Erie Canal officials approve $5 million Outer Harbor project

  10-11-2015 03:44 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) – The Erie Canal Harbor Development Corporation (ECHDC) Board of Directors approved a $5 million improvement plan for generating more activity along the lakefront, Monday, calling it the Buffalo Outer Harbor Access and Activation Project.
  The $5 million is for a laundry list of improvements at the Outer Harbor, that officials are calling the “Blueprint”, for what is now the Buffalo Harbor State Park, and an adjacent 160 acres of state owned land along the O
  
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• Buffalo police arrest man in connection with attempted robbery of a student

  10-11-2015 03:43 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — Buffalo Police have made an arrest following the attempted robbery of a City Honors student Monday morning.
  Police say a female student was approached by an individual while she was waiting for the bus at East Lovejoy and Bailey Avenue just before 7 a.m. The individual reportedly asked the student for money and dragged her down the street.
  The student was able to break free and reported the incident to school officials.
  The individual has been identified as 35-year-o
  
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• Hillary Clinton fundraiser could set record

  10-11-2015 03:04 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB)- Hillary Clinton could raise more money here Tuesday evening than any other Democratic candidate has ever raised in Buffalo.
  Mitt Romney once raised about a million dollars, and other Republican candidates have come close, but when it comes to Democrats, $300,00 could set a new benchmark.
  The Hyatt Regency’s Grand Ballroom is already on lock down by the Secret Service, and the marketing manager couldn’t get too specific about the preparations for Tuesday evening&
  
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• “Zombie” properties spread to exclusive Spaulding Lake

  10-11-2015 01:02 via wivb.com
  
  CLARENCE, N.Y. (WIVB) – When you think of “zombie properties”, large mansions with huge lawns probably don’t come to mind, but that is exactly what is happening in Clarence, where two large homes have sat empty–on the same street.
  At 10,000 sq. ft., they could be the biggest single family zombie homes you will ever see, in one of the most exclusive subdivisions in Western York—Spaulding Lake—but the good news is, one is now occupied, and the other could
  
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• Groups work together to improve transportation options in Buffalo

  10-11-2015 00:53 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) – Leaders in Buffalo’s transportation industry  are looking for ways to improve how you get around the city.
  If you don’t have a car and live in Buffalo, transportation officials say it can be challenging to get around. Now the Greater Buffalo Niagara Regional Transportation Council is bringing groups together to find better ways to get people around in cheap and efficient ways.The partners behind this initiative are the NFTA, Go Bike Buffalo
  
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• Ryan set to face Jets with Enemkpali serving as captain

  10-11-2015 00:52 via wivb.com
  
  ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — Saying he’s put his time with the J-E-T-S in the P-A-S-T, Buffalo Bills coach Rex Ryan insisted the focus of attention shouldn’t be placed on him.
  If that’s the case, Ryan certainly had a curious way of showing it Monday.
  In preparing to face his former team for the first time since being fired in December after six seasons in New York, Ryan announced he intends to designate linebacker IK Enemkpali as one of Buffalo’s team captains for the
  
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• Report says teens spend 9 hours a day using media

  10-11-2015 00:41 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) – A new report comes from common sense media, a non- profit focused on helping people navigate the world of technology. The report says on any given day says teens spend about 9 hours of their day on some sort of screen.University at Buffalo Professor Matthew Grizzard says he isn’t surprised to at how much time kids spend on screens these days. “People are almost resistant to acknowledging the media might have an impact in their own life,” he sai
  
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• Catholic Health nurses rally over “staffing crisis”

  10-11-2015 00:35 via wivb.com
  
  CHEEKTOWAGA, N.Y. (WIVB) – Nurses who work for Catholic Health say there is a staffing crisis and are pushing for new state laws that would mandate staffing ratios.
  Dozens of Catholic Health nurses held thousands of forms filled out during the past two years, documenting what nurses deem to be staff shortages at their hospitals.
  Jennifer Tuttle, Upstate Director of the Communication Workers of American, the union representing the nurses, said “They fill out a form alerting management
  
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• Buffalo woman identified in fatal crash near Erie, PA.

  10-11-2015 00:32 via wivb.com
  
  SUMMIT TOWNSHIP, PA. ( WIVB ) –  A Buffalo woman has died following a head on crash near Erie, PA.
  The body of Laura Nicholson, 39, of Buffalo was recovered in a pond following the crash near a trailer park in Summit Township.
  Joseph Gausman, 54, of Erie was also pronounced dead at the scene.
  No passengers were found in either vehicle.
  Investigators said witnesses saw Nicholson leave a white Subaru involved in the crash and head on foot in the direction of a nearby trailer park and po
  
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• Pet funerals becoming common option

  10-11-2015 00:17 via wivb.com
  
  WEST SENECA, N.Y. (WIVB) –In some cases, Man’s Best Friend is getting the ‘best friend treatment’ even at the time of death.
  Edward Jordan has seen his pet burial business boom, especially in the past thirty years. His Pine Rest Pet Cemetery in West Seneca is now the final resting place for 20,000 pets….everything from a skunk to a gorilla. They are pets whose owners thought of them more as family.
  “The pets are so much closer to the owners than they used to
  
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