Buffalo news

• Virtual reality gives UB students look at future teaching positions

  13-09-2017 23:29 via wivb.com
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — Madeleine Burns walks around an empty classroom at Enterprise Charter school with goggles on her face.  Tilting her head up, left, right – the UB grad student isn’t seeing the classroom she’s in but rather, a virtual one where a variety of scenarios are being played out.
  “With this kind of technology, it’s a way to connect to students in a way you might not be able to do so otherwise,” said Burns who is getting her Master
  
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• Quebec man pleads guilty to fatal Lancaster hit-and-run

  13-09-2017 23:07 via wivb.com
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) – The Canadian man charged with a fatal hit and run in Lancaster took a guilty plea in State Supreme Court Wednesday.
  Police say Sebastian Lavertu, 32, hit Depew man in June.
  In shackles and an orange jumpsuit Lavertu pleaded guilty to hitting Ryan Johns, 28,  with his tractor trailer and leaving the scene.
  It was border agents who noticed his truck was damaged and arrested him after he tried to cross the border at Lake Champlain.
  Lavertu is charged with leav
  
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• 8 die at Florida nursing home in Irma’s sweltering aftermath

  13-09-2017 23:06 via wivb.com
  HOLLYWOOD, Fla. (AP) — Eight patients at a sweltering nursing home died after Hurricane Irma knocked out the air conditioning, raising fears Wednesday about the safety of Florida’s 4 million senior citizens amid widespread power outages that could go on for days.
  Hollywood Police Chief Tom Sanchez said investigators believe the deaths at the Rehabilitation Center at Hollywood Hills were heat-related, and added: “The building has been sealed off and we are conducting a criminal
  
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• Ramp on 400 near I-90 closed due to car fire

  13-09-2017 22:59 via wivb.com
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) – A ramp on Route 400 near I-90 is shut down due to a car on fire.
  PHOTO/NITTECThe vehicle on fire is located on the Seneca Street ramp.
  We’ll have more information as it becomes available.
  
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• 15 Marines taken to hospitals after tank catches fire

  13-09-2017 22:42 via wivb.com
  SAN DIEGO (AP) — The military says 15 Marines have been taken to Southern California hospitals after a seafaring tank caught fire during training at Camp Pendleton.
  Marine 1st Lt. Paul Gainey told The Associated Press that at about 9:30 a.m. Wednesday an amphibious assault vehicle caught fire while the Marines were conducting a training exercise on a beach at the base, north of San Diego.
  Gainey says the Marines were being treated at hospitals in the area, including off the base. He had no
  
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• Niagara Hobby and Craft Mart closes in Cheektowaga

  13-09-2017 21:30 via wivb.com
  CHEEKTOWAGA, N.Y. (WIVB) – After 31 years in business, Niagara Hobby and Craft Mart has closed its doors.
  The Union Road store announced Wednesday that it is now closed.
  In a statement on their website, the store offered its thanks to the people who have helped it operate for almost 32 years.
  We wish to thank our employees- many of whom began with us as high school students and continued with us through, and sometimes past, their college and university years; our suppliers- manufacturers
  
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• Baby falls from second story of home in Niagara Falls

  13-09-2017 20:45 via wivb.com
  NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. (WIVB) — Niagara Falls police responded to a home on Walnut Ave. Wednesday morning, where a baby had fallen from a second-floor window.
  Police went to the home around 11 a.m., where they think the boy fell from an opening. According to authorities, the opening may have been a window at one time, but is now an opening from a makeshift living room-type area to the outside.
  “There is a set of thin louvered doors that had a thin simple hasp to keep them closed,&r
  
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• Police respond to shooting reports at Washington high school

  13-09-2017 20:15 via wivb.com
  SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) — Authorities are responding to reports of a shooting at a high school south of Spokane, Washington.
  The Spokesman-Review reports that first responders were at Freeman High School in Rockford on Wednesday morning.
  Spokane Public Schools said on Twitter that all schools in the district are “being placed into modified lockdown as a precautionary measure.”
  No other information was immediately available.
  
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• Hyde Park Lake living shoreline project finished

  13-09-2017 20:01 via wivb.com
  NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. (WIVB) — It’s been a two year effort but the Hyde Park Lake Living Shoreline project is finally complete.
  The project was started last Fall and was officially finished at the end of July. Today, city officials celebrated Hyde Park Lake by sharing the vast improvements it underwent. Over 1300 different plants, trees, and vegetation were planted along the shoreline around the lake to help improve water quality for wildlife. The replanting of these native specie
  
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• Free adoptions at Erie County SPCA Saturday make way for hurricane rescues

  13-09-2017 18:16 via wivb.com
  WEST SENECA, N.Y. (WIVB) — Dozens of cats and dogs will be up for adoption for free this Saturday at the Erie County SPCA. You can give a pet a forever home and help the SPCA help pets impacted by hurricane Harvey.
  “This event helps us make room for more animals. So we’re taking in animals from hurricane Harvey right now and this helps those animals from the south who probably would’ve sat there for a while,” said Bethany Kloc, SPCA Serving Erie County Communication
  
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• 3 train cars derail near Main and Greenfield

  13-09-2017 18:05 via wivb.com
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — First responders at the scene say a trail derailed at Main and Greenfield streets in Buffalo.
  The incident happened shortly before Noon on Wednesday.
  Three cars were derailed and eight storage boxes came off the cars.
  The Canadian Pacific train was en route to Chicago before the incident.
  There is no immediate hazard because of the derailment.
  (Photo courtesy of Frank on Facebook)(Photo courtesy of David on Twitter)
  
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• Lancaster elementary students helping Texas school damaged by Harvey

  13-09-2017 17:59 via wivb.com
  LANCASTER, N.Y. (WIVB) – As students at John A. Sciole Elementary School go about their daily business during this new school year, it’s easy to take for granted the fact that their school building is in good shape. It is a very different picture at Moore Elementary in Houston, which was severely damaged by Hurricane Harvey.
  This photo from a YouCaring site meant to raise money for Moore Elementary shows the school surrounded by water after Harvey.“They actually have been tempo
  
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• 88-year-old accused of trying to kill his wife released on bail

  13-09-2017 17:32 via wivb.com
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — The 88-year-old Cheektowaga man accused of trying to kill his wife was released on $10,000 bail.
  Martin Turkiewicz struck his wife, 86-year-old Rita Turkiewicz, multiple times with a claw hammer on Saturday night, Cheektowaga police say.
  The incident happened at Garden Gate Healthcare Facility, where Martin visited Rita many times a day, authorities say.
  Afterwards, police say Martin told facility staff what had happened, and subsequently surrendered himself to
  
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• 88-year-old accused of trying to kill his wife granted bail

  13-09-2017 17:32 via wivb.com
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — An elderly Cheektowaga man accused of trying to kill his wife was granted bail Wednesday morning.
  Martin Turkiewicz appeared in Cheektowaga Town Court before Judge Paul Piotrowski, who granted the 88-year-old $10,000 bail or $50,000 bond on his two B felony charges.
  Turkiewicz is charged with Assault in the First Degree and Attempted Murder in the Second Degree.
  The 88-year-old waived his right to a felony hearing Wednesday.
  It’s alleged that he struck his wife
  
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• Dunkirk officers seen escorting daughter of fallen officer to pre-school

  13-09-2017 16:59 via wivb.com
  DUNKIRK, N.Y. (WIVB) — After one of their own lost his life in August, Dunkirk police escorted the fallen officer’s daughter to preschool.
  Last month, Officer Matthew Hazelton died after a battle with ALS. He was diagnosed with the illness around Christmas this past year.
  He was only 39 when he passed away, leaving behind a family.
  This week, officers were seen escorting Hazelton’s daughter to pre-school.
  The photo above was shared with News 4 by Liz and Joshua Ehmke.
  
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• McDermott recalls knowledge of Panthers ahead of Sunday game

  13-09-2017 16:49 via wivb.com
  ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (WIVB) — The Bills are preparing to take on Head Coach Sean McDermott’s old team, the Carolina Panthers, this Sunday.
  McDermott says he is familiar with the strengths and weaknesses of the Panthers. He previously served as their defensive coordinator.#Bills Sean McDermott: Cam Newton practiced everyday vs McDermott's defense. He's familiar with what we do.
  — Josh Reed (@4JoshReed) September 13, 2017
  Bills defensive tackle Marcell Dareus’ hip had no impa
  
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• Mayor: 5 dead from nursing home that lost power

  13-09-2017 15:59 via wivb.com
  BROWARD COUNTY, Fla. (AP) — Broward County Mayor Barbara Sharief says five people have died from a Florida nursing home that had lost power after Hurricane Irma roared through the state.
  Police and fire crews began evacuating the Rehabilitation Center at Hollywood Hills on Wednesday morning. Sharief confirmed during a news conference that three residents died at the center and two died at the hospital.
  Sharief said there are no details about the cause of the deaths. No further details were
  
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• iPhone X puts exclamation point on Apple’s pricing strategy

  13-09-2017 15:22 via wivb.com
  CUPERTINO, Calif. (AP) — Apple has made a luxury iPhone that punctuates its technological swagger with a high-priced exclamation point. And that exclamation point appears to be a sign of things to come.
  The long-anticipated iPhone X unveiled Tuesday will sell for $999, double what the original iPhone cost a decade ago and more than any other competing device on the market. That’s very much in line with Apple’s long-term positioning of itself as a p
  
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• Florida police officers’ viral selfie draws thousands of saucy comments

  13-09-2017 14:35 via wivb.com
  GAINESVILLE, Fla. (WCMH) – A photo posted by the Gainesville Police Department has been shared more than 100,000 times after drawing some flirtatious comments.
  The police department posted the photo of Officers Nordman, Hamill and Rengering getting ready to get to work after Irma worked its way through Florida.The post was almost immediately flooded with comments from interested ladies.
  “That moment when you don’t care about getting the ticket because one of them is t
  
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• Governor: ‘Work to do’ for Florida to recover after Irma

  13-09-2017 14:24 via wivb.com
  LOWER MATECUMBE KEY, Fla. (AP) — Parts of Florida inched back toward normalcy with workers restoring power, clearing roads and replenishing gas supplies, even as teams scoured the state’s southernmost islands and authorities warned of mass devastation.
  Residents drifted back from shelters and out-of-state hotels to see Hurricane Irma’s scattershot destruction. Flooded streets remained, and the count of damaged and totaled homes ticked upward. But positive signs includ
  
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• Buffalo dad and daughter raise money to fight lunch shaming

  13-09-2017 12:10 via wivb.com
  Lunch shaming, as it’s commonly known, happens when kids get ridiculed for not being able to pay for lunch, while others get singled out for eating free or reduced price meals.
  News 4 spoke with a father and daughter who are trying to fight against the shaming.
  They’ve started a Go-Fund-Me page to raise money for people who can’t pay for a hot lunch, in hopes of raising money for a lunch for everyone in school.
  Anna Zobrist, a 6-year-old and second grade student at the Charter
  
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• Schroeder undecided about running for mayor on Reform line in November

  13-09-2017 06:39 via wivb.com
   
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — When the dust settled before midnight Tuesday, Mark Schroeder was 1 and 1.
  Despite losing the Democrat line to three-term incumbent Mayor Byron Brown, Schroeder handily won the Reform Party line, besting write-in candidates and Ashleigh B. Somers.
  That means he’s technically eligible to run on that line in November, again against Brown.
  But Schroeder, the city comptroller from south Buffalo, said it was still too early to decide whether he would be up to
  
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• Update: Silver Alert for Sloan man called off

  13-09-2017 05:04 via wivb.com
  CHEEKTOWAGA, N.Y. (WIVB) – A Silver Alert Issued for a missing 24-year-old man has been called off.
  Randy J. Pierog, 24, is a white male, 5’6″, 165 lbs., who was reported missing from Curtis Street in Sloan.
  The Erie County Sheriff’s Office announced the Silver Alert was cancelled around midnight; there is no official word whether Pierog is okay.
  
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• Byron Brown wins Democratic primary election for Buffalo mayor

  13-09-2017 04:57 via wivb.com
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) – Buffalo’s incumbent mayor Byron Brown won the Democratic primary Tuesday night, with 52 percent of votes. Challengers Mark Schroeder and Betty Jean Grant took 36 percent and 13 percent of the votes, respectively.
  If Brown wins in the 2017 election this November, he will become only the second mayor of Buffalo ever to serve four terms.
  Schroeder and Grant both conceded the election Tuesday evening.
  
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• Interested in adopting a pet rescued from areas affected by hurricanes?

  13-09-2017 04:45 via wivb.com
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) – Twenty-nine rescue dogs from several Houston shelters officially arrived in Western New York!
  Three local animal rescues made the long journey to Texas last week.
  The dogs rescued were already up for adoption before Hurricane Harvey. No animal was taken from an owner or family.
  Houston shelters needed to make space for dogs found during the hurricane that were already owned by people living in the area, otherwise the dogs up for adoption would have been euthanized.
  E
  
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• Hamburg Police, other agencies searching for suspect who fled traffic stop

  13-09-2017 04:23 via wivb.com
  LACKAWANNA, N.Y. (WIVB) – Town of Hamburg Police along with other police units are involved in a pursuit of a suspect who exited a vehicle following a traffic stop and fled into a wooded area along railroad tracks on the former Bethlehem Steel Property, on the west side of Lake Shore Road.
  According to Hamburg Police, officers conducted a traffic stop on a vehicle on Lake Shore Road at the City of Lackawanna line around 8:10 p.m. Tuesday.
  While the stop was being performed the suspect exit
  
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• Erie County Sheriff’s deputy delivers his own son in back of vehicle

  13-09-2017 03:58 via wivb.com
  BOSTON, N.Y. (WIVB) – An Erie County Sheriff’s deputy successfully delivered his own son in the back of the family vehicle on Monday.
  Deputy Szkatulkski and his wife were headed to the hospital on Monday as she was going into labor, but their son was “a bit impatient” and couldn’t wait for a hospital room.
  Just after 9 p.m., the baby- Eli- made his appearance in the back of the vehicle on Boston State Road.
  “Deputies are prepared for everything – ev
  
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• DOJ will not prosecute officers in Freddie Gray case

  13-09-2017 03:18 via wivb.com
  Washington (CNN) – The Justice Department announced Tuesday that it will not prosecute six Baltimore police officers in the 2015 death of Freddie Gray.In a statement, the DOJ said it found “insufficient evidence to support federal criminal civil rights charges” against the officers.“After an extensive review of this tragic event, conducted by career prosecutors and investigators, the Justice Department concluded that the evidence is insufficient to prove beyond
  
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• Injured worker puts civil settlement to work for others

  13-09-2017 03:10 via wivb.com
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) – A Cheektowaga woman who was left paralyzed after an accident at work more than ten years ago is on a mission to help others. Natalie Barnhard is working to bring a spinal cord recovery center to the Western New York.
  Barnhard was a personal trainer and physical therapist at the time she was exercising with a 600-pound piece of gym equipment that fell on her, rendering her a quadriplegic in 2004. Doctors gave Natalie little hope she would ever use her arms or legs ag
  
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• Bills reach injury settlement with QB T.J. Yates

  13-09-2017 01:31 via wivb.com
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) – The Bills have reached an injury settlement and released quarterback T.J. Yates a week after he was placed on injured reserve with a concussion, News 4 Sports has learned.Can confirm what @mikerodak reported: The #Bills have reached injury settlement with QB T.J. Yates. @news4buffalo
  — Nick Filipowski (@NEWS4_NICK) September 12, 2017
  //platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
  Yates, who was signed by the Bills to be the backup to Tyrod Taylor, suffered his head injury i
  
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• After Prospects Challenge, battle for roster spots begins for Sabres

  13-09-2017 01:15 via wivb.com
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) – After a rough start to the Prospects Challenge, General Manager Jason Botterill liked how the Sabres finished the tournament.
  The leaders of the group — Justin Bailey, Hudson Fasching, Nick Baptiste and Brendan Guhle — all stepped up over the final two games against New Jersey and Boston.
  Now the focus for those four shifts to training camp and potentially earning a roster spot with the Blue & Gold.
  “You get to a main camp there is going to comp
  
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• New Yorkers have a chance to vote on state constitutional convention

  13-09-2017 00:39 via wivb.com
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — “We have the power to decide whether we want to take New York in our hands and get it back in good running order,” said Peter Galie, Canisius College Emeritus professor of Political Science.
  Every 20 years people throughout New York state have a chance to vote on making changes to the state constitution through a “constitutional convention.” This November, it will appear on the ballot.
  The last state constitutional convention was back in 1967.
  
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