By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 25 September 2020 at 4:13 pm
No tug-of-war or parade, but still lots of fun
Photos by Tom Rivers
KENDALL – Waylon Peet carries a Kendall flag while he and the senior class make their entrance on the soccer during a homecoming celebration this afternoon at Kendall Central School.
The seniors won the homecoming competitions.
There will be a drive-in movie at the school parking lot this evening from 6 to 9 p.m. to cap the week.
Each class from the junior high, freshmen, sophomores, juniors and seniors had a representative compete in different events, including the hula hoop.
Kendall normally has a pep rally in the gym for homecoming but the rally was moved outside to the bleachers and the soccer field.
The pep rally included observing a moment of silence for Richard J. Gilman Jr., who would have been a senior this year. He died on April 18, 2018 due to carbon monoxide poisoning.
Zack Barrett, a sophomore, had the longest soccer kick during one of the events. The school added more events and didn’t do some favorites, including the seniors vs. teachers in tug-of-war due to Covid-19 concerns.
Carol D’Agostino, the high school principal, welcomes students to the homecoming rally. She urged them to spread out – and have fun.
“It’s different but it’s good,” she said about the homecoming week activities. “It’s just good to have some fun.”
The Kendall classes won’t be doing a parade this year for homecoming. They still did hall decorating and dressed up for spirit days with different theme. Instead of the parade, each class had space in front of the school for s display about a movie genre.
“We know it’s not like usual,” D’Agostino told the students. “But we’re real excited to have a homecoming at Kendall.”
Joe Nettles, a senior, was speedy while bobbing for apples and then having to sprint. Only one kid could use the bobbing tub.
Seventh- and eighth-graders are spread out on the soccer field for the homecoming rally and competitions.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 25 September 2020 at 11:50 am
The food distributions will resume next week in Orleans County, but there will be one box instead of three. There may be some additional fruits and vegetables available as well depending on Foodlink’s supply.
There have been three sets of boxes – dairy, meat and produce – at most of the recent distributions. Instead of the three boxes, it will be one combination box, said Melissa Blanar, director of the Office for the Aging in Orleans County.
The box will be approximately 30-40 pounds and contain 10-12 lbs. of produce, 5-6 lbs. of dairy, 5-6 lbs. of meat and a gallon of milk, she said. Foodlink may also have some extra fruits and vegetables.
Another change will be the food will all be delivered by Foodlink instead of another distributor. Sometimes that other delivery truck has been delayed, leaving a long line of vehicles backed up at the distribution sites.
Here is the schedule for October:
• Friday, October 2nd – Community Action Main Street Store. 131 S. Main Street, Albion
• Friday, October 9th – no delivery this week
• Friday, October 16th – NEW LOCATION at Clarendon Fire Hall, behind the Fire Hall at 16169 E. Lee Road (Route 31A). No lines before 8 a.m., line up to the east on 31A-north side of 31, if needed, north on Hulberton Road.
• Friday, October 23rd – Ridgeway Fire Department, 11392 Ridge Road, Medina – no lines before 8 a.m. The entrance will be on Horan Road and the line will be facing north towards Ridge Road. Exit will be on to Ridge Road
• Friday, October 30th – Community Action Main Street Store, 131 S. Main Street, Albion.
All events have a tentative start time of 9 a.m. They may start earlier depending on when the truck arrives and volunteers are ready. No event will start prior to 8 a.m., Blanar said.
She also urged people to stay to the side of the road while waiting and do not block driveways.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 25 September 2020 at 9:36 am
Walk to benefit Alzheimer’s Association goes virtual this year
Provided photo: Nicole Tuohey is pictured with some of the links she sells for $1 to support the Western New York chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association. She has raised about $10,000 in the past decade selling the links. She has 1,170 links so far this year. The chain of links will be displayed later today on Main Street in Medina.
MEDINA – The Walk to End Alzheimer’s is going virtual this year with supporters urged to walk on their own and collect donations for the Western New York chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association.
The group has hosted walks in Medina with fundraising topping $20,000. The Alzheimer’s Association won’t have a community walk like it normally does in Medina, with about 100 people participating at once.
But the Alzheimer’s Association will be displaying flowers at Medina’s Rotary Park on Saturday to signify people battling the disease.
The park will have bright pinwheel flowers in colors that represent reasons people walk: purple to honor someone they lost to dementia, yellow for care partners, blue to honor those living with dementia and orange to show general support of efforts to end Alzheimer’s disease.
One Medina woman also is continuing her annual fundraiser for the organization. Nicole Tuohey sells “elephant links” for $1. She adds a link to a chain that will be displayed later this afternoon on Main Street. That chain is usually displayed at the start of the Alzheimer’s walk.
Tuohey is up to $1,170 or 1,170 links so far and will keep selling links until the end of October. On Thursday an anonymous man came into her mother’s cookie business and donated $500 to the cause. Nicole stayed up late last night making the 500 links.
Nicole has Triple X Syndrome. She hasn’t let that disability prevent her from being a tireless advocate against a disease that took the lives of her grandparents, Don and Jane Bradley.
Mary Lou Tuohey, Nicole’s mother, is owner of Case-Nic Cookies and has a raffle fundraiser for the Alzheimer’s Association until 5 p.m. today where people can win several different packages. The winners will be announced on Saturday.
About 100 people walked in Medina in October 2018 in an event organized by the Western New York chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association. This year the walk will be virtual with participants walking on their own, and not in a community event.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 25 September 2020 at 8:16 am
The Villages of Orleans hasn’t had any new Covid cases since late May
Photo by Tom Rivers: The flag is lowered in this photo from May at The Villages of Orleans Health and Rehabilitation Center in Albion, out of respect for the victims of Covid-19. The state has had more than 25,000 people die after contracting Covid-19, including 30 at The Villages.
ALBION — The state has fined The Villages of Orleans Health and Rehabilitation Center $20,000 for its response to Covid-19. The fine is based on an inspection at the Albion nursing home in May.
The Villages is one of 23 nursing homes in the state that have been fined for failing to provide proper infection prevention and control measures.
The fines of the nursing homes ranged from $2,000 to $50,000. The $20,000 fine at The Villages was the seventh highest in the state, according to a report from The Buffalo News.
At The Villages in Albion, 89 residents tested positive for Covid-19 and 30 died after getting it. The 120-bed facility hasn’t had any new confirmed cases since late May.
The state Department of Health inspected The Village son May 9 and said there was a threat of “immediate jeopardy to resident health or safety.”
The Villages corrected the failings according to a follow-up inspection on June 15.
DOH inspectors on May 9 said facility staff weren’t following proper infection prevention and control measures. One example included certified nursing aides and licensed practical nurses entering and exiting a room of a person with Covid, and then entering rooms of other residents without Covid.
The staff “passed breakfast trays, assisted with the residents’ meals and provided hands on care without wearing PPE and completing proper hand hygiene,” according to the DOH report.
The DOH said personal protective equipment wasn’t readily available to staff. Several employees told DOH there wasn’t adequate PPE for workers. DOH reported the director of nursing showed DOH staff a PPE storage room that had 1,000 surgical masks, 88,500 gloves, 600 powder free gloves, 480 N95 face masks, 1,950 gowns, 308 face shields, 19 pairs of goggles, 1,900 surgical masks, and 100 pairs of booties. The DON told the DOH inspectors that that only she and the assistant director of nursing had keys to this storage room.
The Department of Health also reported that many nursing home employees, including agency staff, did not seem educated on infection control policies, standard/droplet precautions and Covid-19.
“If employees are not following the proper measures for infection control, there is a risk for transmission and spread,” the DOH said in the inspection.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 24 September 2020 at 8:12 pm
SHELBY — Western New York Energy is considering a $25 million upgrade to its Bates Road plant for the company to produce high-purity ethanol.
That ethanol would be sold for beverage, pharmaceutical and industrial purposes, allowing the company to diversify its revenue stream and provide a supply with a known demand in the state, the company stated in an application to the Orleans County Planning Board and Town of Shelby.
The County Planning Board this evening voted in favor of the site plan and also a variance request for the project.
Tim Winters, company president and CEO, spoke with the board and said the ethanol plant was able to provide alcohol for sanitizer during the Covid crisis.
“That allowed us to keep the doors open and maintain the workforce,” he said.
The company has seen there is a proven need for higher-purity alcohol from natural fermentation, rather than synthetic processes, Winters said.
The company opened in Medina 13 years ago and produces about 60 million gallons of ethanol annually from about 20 million bushels of corn.
The expansion would allow the company to add at least eight full-time employees, and buy 5 to 10 percent more corn, Winters said.
The high-purity ethanol would be used for products “in dire need” and not available on a commercial scale, Winters told the Planning Board. The higher-grade ethanol will support sanitizer production, craft distilleries and other industrial businesses in NY, the company stated in the application.
Paul Hendel, a Planning Board member from Murray, said Western New York Energy has been a proven good business partner for the county and region. Hendel is also chairman of the Orleans Economic Development Agency.
“We’re fortunate to have them here in Western New York,” Hendel said.
County Legislator Ken DeRoller praised the company for pursuing an “amazing diversification.”
“You’re getting ahead of the curve,” DeRoller said.
The company is looking at about a 6,000-square foot addition to accommodate the new equipment and a building for loading and storage of high-purity ethanol.
WNY Energy anticipates the construction to be complete by September 2021.
The company needs a variance because the tallest distillation tower will be about 150 feet tall, above the town’s 35-foot maximum. However that isn’t as tall as some of the grain handling equipment at the plant.
The County Planning Board recommended Shelby approve the variance and also the site plan for the project.
In other action tonight, the Orleans County Planning Board:
• Recommended the Town of Gaines Planning Board approve the site plan for David Oakley, owner of Woodside Granite Industries, to put a 50-by-60 addition on the south side of the current monument business. The property is located at the corner of of Ridge Road and Gaines Basin Road.
Oakley said the addition would mainly be used to store monuments.
• Recommended the Town of Barre Planning Board approve a special use permit for Keeler Construction to add an electrical control building, which Keeler said would allow the company to remove temporary facilities, improving electrical safety.
The electrical control building would be built at 14120 West Lee Rd. at Barre Stone Products.
The cast-in-place concrete building will accommodate electrical starters and controls in a controlled atmosphere to protect equipment and improve safety for servicing equipment, Keeler said in the application. The building will allow Keeler to remove trailers with motor controllers, starters and generators no longer being used. The generators have been replaced with a service from National Grid.
• Recommended the Town of Clarendon approve revisions to the zoning ordinance to allow for large-scale solar and battery energy storage systems for the projects.
• Supported the site plan and special use permit request by Kerri and Cole Glover to operate wedding and events venue, and a bed and breakfast at 13800 West County House Rd. in Albion at the former Pillars. The couple doesn’t intend to run a separate bed and breakfast business but wants to make that option available for wedding parties.
The new business would be known as Maison Albion. They want to expand the parking at the site.
• Voted in support of a special use permit for a recreational pond in the Town of Ridgeway. Steven Miller wants to build the 40,000-square-foot pond at 10749 Ridge Rd.
‘The viability of our cities, our schools, our local governments, our workforce, and our entire infrastructure depends on federal action.’ – Will Barclay
Press Release, State Senate Minority Leader Rob Ortt and State Assembly Minority Leader Will Barclay
ALBION – New York State Senate Republican Leader Rob Ortt and New York State Assembly Republican Leader Will Barclay today urged New York State’s Congressional Delegation to include direct financial assistance for state and local governments in any potential next round of federal coronavirus stimulus legislation.
Without federal aid to New York and its localities, Governor Cuomo and Democrat legislators in Albany have signaled a willingness to deliver devastating tax hikes and service cuts all across the state.
“New York is in a veritable crisis right now. Whether through profligate spending, dishonest projections, or losses incurred throughout the pandemic, One-Party-Rule has failed millions of our neighbors living through a spiraling state economy,” Ortt said. “While we wish our state had been better managed so we could face this and any other disastrous predicament head-on, we don’t believe that local governments, workers, small businesses, and service providers should be penalized for the mistakes of Albany Democrats. To preserve critical services and prevent devastating state tax hikes, we urge you to deliver a coronavirus stimulus package that could help everyday New Yorkers.”
New York is currently facing a $14.5 billion deficit. Though many of these losses were incurred due to the Covid-19 pandemic, New York was more than $6 billion in the hole to start the year, the largest state deficit in a decade. With approval of his Democrat allies in the state legislature, the Governor has begun withholding critical state aid to school districts, local governments and non-profits, Ortt and Barclay said.
“The only way to successfully overcome the significant challenges New York now faces is with help from our partners in Washington,” Barclay said. “The viability of our cities, our schools, our local governments, our workforce, and our entire infrastructure depends on federal action. Years of gross fiscal mismanagement and botched budgeting by Democrats put New York State in a precarious financial position – even during strong economic times. But the unprecedented impact of Covid now threatens families, small businesses, and municipalities in every corner of the state. We know a willingness exists among federal officials to deliver additional Covid relief, and we remain hopeful that they will find a way.”
In the letter sent to New York’s Congressional Delegation, Leaders Ortt and Barclay endorsed the Problem Solvers’ Caucus recent proposal as a blueprint for the next coronavirus stimulus package. The compromise plan would provide direct aid to state and local governments, enhanced unemployment benefits, stimulus checks targeted to working families, small business loans, and funding for schools and testing.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 24 September 2020 at 4:24 pm
Orleans County has one new confirmed case of Covid-19, a Carlton resident in the 20s. The individual was not on quarantine prior to testing positive, the Genesee and Orleans County Health Departments reported.
Orleans has now had 311 people test positive for Covid-19. The county also has one new recovery to report today and that person has been released from mandatory isolation.
There are five more people on precautionary quarantine due to travel from restricted states.
Genesee County doesn’t have any new Covid-19 cases to report today. The county has two more recoveries.
Genesee has nine more people on precautionary quarantine due to travel from restricted states.
To see an online map of confirmed cases in Orleans, Genesee and Wyoming counties, click here. The three counties currently have 17 active cases with 7 in Wyoming, 6 in Orleans and 4 in Genesee.
• State-wide data: New York’s percentage of positive Covid-19 tests was just over 1 percent on Wednesday. Of the 92,953 test results reported to the state yesterday, 955 or 1.02 percent were positive.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 24 September 2020 at 2:16 pm
Photo by Tom Rivers: Orleans County Legislator Skip Draper present a proclamation to Sheriff Chris Bourke on Wednesday, proclaiming this week as “Sheriff’s Week.” Bourke is joined by several staff in the Orleans County Sheriff’s Office.
ALBION – The Orleans County Legislature issued a proclamation on Wednesday declaring Sept. 20-26 as “Sheriff’s Week.”
In Orleans County, Sheriff Chris Bourke oversees an office that includes county police services, a marine division, the county jail, dispatching 911 emergency services, communication systems, animal control, and serving and executing civil process and victim protection orders for our courts.
Legislature Chairwoman Lynne Johnson said local residents respect law enforcement and treat them with reverence. That was apparent to her during a Sept. 11 memorial service in Albion.
“Today, sadly, our law enforcement community is under assault across the country,” Johnson said. “But not here in Orleans County. We respect you.”
Bourke, during the Legislature meeting on Wednesday, said he is honored to serve as the county’s sheriff.
“These are tough times but we will get through it together,” he said.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 24 September 2020 at 10:18 am
Floats will be stationary with spectators doing drive-through at Medina school campus on Nov. 28
Photo by Tom Rivers: Spectators lined Main Street in medina on Nov. 24, 2018 to watch 45 floats, including a Lyndonville fire truck (pictured). This year, there won’t be a crowd standing to watch the parade. It will be drive-through on Nov. 28.
MEDINA – The 12th annual Parade of Lights is planned for Nov. 28. It will be a different, “a reverse parade,” said organizer Jim Hancock.
Instead of thousands of people lining a parade route on Park Avenue and Main Street, the spectators will be on the move this year. The floats will be stationary on the Medina school district campus. People can drive along the district’s access road, from West Orchard Street to Maple Ridge Road, to see the lighted floats.
“Instead of the parade going by you, you will go by the floats,” Hancock said this morning.
The parade committee wanted to keep the event going. It has become a popular holiday tradition in Medina on the first Saturday after Thanksgiving.
Hancock and the committee have reached out to last year’s participants and 60-70 percent already agreed to participate. Hancock welcomes more participation.
The committee will continue to give out prizes to the top floats.
The parade is usually at 6 p.m., but Hancock said it might start earlier this year to give people more time to see the displays.
“Medina has a very large campus that is spread out,” he said. “We’re still working out the logistics for how it will all happen.”
For more information, call Hancock at (585) 798-2118.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 24 September 2020 at 8:51 am
Village holds first forum for residents to comment on police reform
Photos by Tom Rivers: Cheryl Brady Thompson speaks during a public meeting today about police reform in the village of Medina. About 30 people attended the session at the Medina Theater. The trio on stage are members of the Committee on Police Reform and Reinvention Collaborative. They include Jacquie Chinn, Scott Robinson and Pastor Jovannie Canales. Thompson said she would like to see more diversity and viewpoints on the committee which includes 14 members.
MEDINA – The Medina Police Department needs to do more community policing, where officers build relationships with residents outside of responding to complaints, a committee was told on Wednesday during a forum on police reform and reinvention.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo and the state have mandated all police departments engage the community about reform and department policies, as well as community resources devoted to policing.
Medina Mayor Mike Sidari said the village is committed to “due diligence” in a state-mandated process looking at police reform. He addressed the group at Medina Theater on Wednesday evening. Sidari holds a manual that must be completed by Medina and submitted to the state by April 1.
Medina’s committee was told the Medina Police Department should reflect the racial makeup of the community and officers need to build more trust with residents.
“We’re not anywhere where we need to be,” Cheryl Brady Thompson said at the forum at the Medina Theater. “We all need to feel safe in Medina.”
She said she worries for her Black sons and biracial grandchildren that any interactions with police could escalate with her family being shot.
She said she was pulled over one time in Medina, and the officer responded by walking up to her car with his hand on a gun.
She said she has been depressed over the incidents of police brutality, which have resulted in nationwide protests, including in nearby Rochester.
“I need to stop watching the news because I see so much hatred out there,” she said. “This has been so heavy on my heart. I talk to God daily about it.”
Scott Robinson is one of 14 members on the committee for Police Reform and Reinvention Collaborative. He said the group is the early stages of reviewing Medina PD policies and perhaps offering recommendations for changes. He expects a survey will be available for residents to share their views on what they want in a police department.
Robinson said he has no doubt there is racism in Medina, and didn’t dispute claims from Black residents that they are often treated differently by police.
The committee needs to complete its plan by April 1 and submit it to the state. Cuomo is requiring all 500 law enforcement agencies in the state to go through a review of department policies, engage the public in the process and submit a plan – or risk having state aid cut off to their municipality.
Village Trustee Owen Toale, left, said the Medina Police Department has tried to do more community policing in recent years, but officers need to make more effort to connect without residents.
Cuomo said many departments may already be meeting expectations in a community and don’t need to make any significant changes. They still need to send a plan to the state, going through the process of engaging with the community.
Village Trustee Owen Toale said he has been on the board for 10 years and community policing has been discussed often. He said Medina officers do car-seat checks, give away bike helmets and try to connect with residents at community events.
But Toale said the department needs to do more.
“We need a solid plan that incorporates everyone in the community,” he said.
Betty Garcia Mathewson of Albion said Medina could be leader for the county and state in how the police department serves its community.
She urged Medina’s committee to look a best practices for departments around the country. She said the village and county may need to shift some resources from police to mental health services. She urged the group of about 30 at the forum to acknowledge everyone carries some racism or sexism that should be acknowledged and worked on.
Committee member Scott Robinson began the forum by saying this was the first of several meetings with the community. Residents will have plenty of chances to comment about Police Department policies and possible changes. Pastor Jovannie Canales is at right.
Garcia Mathewson has lived in Orleans County for 35 years. She said there are many “beautiful people” in the county but it is also “the most racially hostile place I’ve lived in.” She said Western New York has been compared by some experts to the Deep South for racial attitudes.
“We need a long-term plan but it starts with us first admitting the mess we are in,” Garcia Mathewson said.
She urged Medina to expand the committee to include more diversity and “be more reflective of the community so it can be a successful process.”
Mayor Mike Sidari, a member of the committee, said the Village Board would be open to adding more members. He would welcome more events in Medina to foster good relationships between police officers and residents. That include include a community day at the State Street Park.
Sidari said the village is committing to doing “its due diligence” with police reform.
“We are going to do our part as a community to make this work,” he said. “We all have a voice in the process.”
Committee members include Daniel Doctor, Jacquie Chinn, Scott Robinson and Pastor Jovannie Canales, Mayor Michael Sidari, Jacquie Chinn, Lt. Todd Draper, Scott Robinson, Sherry Tuohey, Chief Chad Kenward, David and Cynthia King, District Attorney Joe Cardone and Public Defender Joanne Best.
Press Release, State Senate Republican Leader Rob Ortt
ALBANY – New York State Senate Republican Leader Rob Ortt on Wednesday blasted State Senate Democrats who failed to listen to concerns over witness safety before passing so-called criminal justice “reforms,” after a video tagged “Rat Files” emerged on YouTube. It contains a clip turned over by the Albany District Attorney’s office to a defense attorney.
A second video, also turned over by the Albany District Attorney’s office, with the same witness speaking to Albany police is titled with four emoji rats.
“State Senate Democrats failed to heed our warnings that bail reform and discovery reform presented real danger to real people,” said Ortt, R-North Tonawanda. “Now, in addition to all the failures of bail reform, two videos of a witness posted on YouTube pose a threat to a human being. Why would anyone want to risk their safety to talk to police or testify if sensitive information like this could be circulated on social media? Once again, this is a major public safety fail.”
The videos contain police interviews of an alleged participant in a shooting, who discloses to Albany Police information on another shooter. The interviewee discusses a number of criminal activities including burglary and gun purchases.
The Albany County District Attorney’s office confirmed that the videos that appear on YouTube were turned over electronically as part of mandatory discovery. The identity of the person who uploaded the video is unknown, but “Rat Files” racked up 33,000 views. The other video is uploaded by the same individual.
Discovery reform forces prosecutors to turn over all discoverable evidence to criminal defense attorneys in a short span of time, and prosecutors, police, victims, and Republicans warned it would have a chilling impact on people coming forward with information on crimes, and could lead to acts of retribution against witnesses and people willing to cooperate in cases.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 23 September 2020 at 5:36 pm
Orleans County is reporting two more cases of Covid-19, both are from Albion in the 0-19 age group. Both of the individuals were on quarantine prior to testing positive, the Genesee and Orleans County Health Departments reported.
Orleans has now had 310 people test positive for Covid-19.
The county also is reporting 13 new individuals are on precautionary quarantine due to travel from restricted states.
Genesee County doesn’t have any new cases, and remains at 297 positive cases since March. The county has 6 new individuals on precautionary quarantine due to travel.
• State-wide data: Gov. Andrew Cuomo reported 665 of the 70,930 test results reported on Tuesday or 0.94 percent were positive for Covid-19.
Staff Reports Posted 23 September 2020 at 12:54 pm
‘Congress cannot continue to govern crisis to crisis’
U.S. Rep. Chris Jacobs of Clarence voted to fund the government through December 11. Jacobs and the House of Representatives approved the deal in a 359-57 vote.
Jacobs issued this statement on Tuesday night:
“Today the American people were left worrying their government would shut down during a pandemic, families worried about school lunch program cuts, and farmers braced to go longer without critical aid,” Jacobs said.
“When Speaker Pelosi first introduced this bill, it excluded key programs to address these issues. I am proud to have stood with my Republican colleagues to fight for the inclusion of Commodity Credit Corporation funding for Western New York farmers and additional nutrition assistance for school age kids.
“While I am proud to have secured this vital aid and voted in favor of this bill to provide necessary stability to the American people during this pandemic – the dysfunctional budget process that led us to this point is not acceptable. Congress cannot continue to govern crisis to crisis, and I will work with colleagues on both sides of the aisle to secure a more sustainable process for funding the government in the future.”
Provided photo: FMC Corporation’s Agricultural Sciences Plant in Middleport hosted a special Safety Moment Day recently for FMC employees featuring community first responders presenting on various topics to highlight efforts to reduce the leading causes of unintentional injury and death at work, on the road, and in homes and communities. Participating in the Safety Moment Day (from left to right) are Archie Ames, FMC plant incident commander; Dave Greenwell, Chief Ryan Czaja and Capt. Regan Ginty of the Middleport Fire Department; Brent Sensenich, FMC Middleport plant manager; and Lt. Julie Kratz of the Niagara County Sheriff’s Department.
Press Release, FMC in Middleport
MIDDLEPORT – FMC’s Agricultural Sciences Plant in Middleport recently hosted a special “Safety Moment Day” for employees with area first responders that focused on efforts to reduce causes of unintentional injury and death in the workplace, on the road, and in homes and communities.
Among the participants were the Middleport Fire Department, the Middleport Police Department, DiVal Safety Equipment and the Niagara County Sheriff’s Department, which conducted an interactive simulation for employees of drug and alcohol impaired physical exercises.
“As a company dedicated to our local community, FMC is committed to ongoing safety training that will help keep our employees safe on the job and at home,” said Brent Sensenich, FMC Middleport plant manager. “That commitment has enabled our plant to go more than 18 months as an accident and injury-free workplace without an OSHA recordable incident.”
Among the topics covered were home safety and electrical safety, FMC’s key safety procedures, fork truck safety, office safety, work-related stress, hazard recognition and heat stress.
