Tuesday’s high, 70; Overnight low 59; .45” of rain
CHANCE TO SHOWERS TODAY. A HIGH 50
SHOWERS TONIGHT WITH A LOW OF 37
. PARTLY SUNNY TOMORROW HIGH 55.
MOSTLY CLOUDY TOMORROW NIGHT LOW OF 38.
SHOWERS ON FRIDAY HIGH 51.
SHOWERS CONTINUING FRIDAY NIGHT WITH A LOW OF 34.
Thief walks off with two shopping carts full of goods at a Dollar General in Tioga County….A Kane man has been arrested for breaking a window to get a dog during an argument…Smethport resident accused of physical harassment…Two NY state men have been arrested by troopers at Lewis Run for drug possession with a child in their car…Successful turkey hunters reminded to report harvest…Gov. Wolf says some Covid regulations will be relaxed later this month…More than 8.7 million PA residents have been vaccinated…. https://soundcloud.com/user-159792485/5-podcasty
Tioga County
Mansfield state police are looking for a daring thief who stole items from the Dollar General Store on Route 259 in Deerfield Township on April 19. The suspect allegedly left the store at around 11:30 am with two shopping cars packed full of unpaid merchandise.
McKean County
State police at Lewis Run have charged 42 year old Dennis Champion of Kane with harassment by communication for an argument over a dog occurring Monday evening. Troopers allege Champion punched the victim’s vehicle several times but was unable to break a window to get the dog, until he retrieved a hammer from his vehicle
A passenger has been charged with underage drinking by state police at Lewis Run. Troopers claim when they stopped a 2019 Volkswagen, for a traffic violation on Barbour Street in Bradford early Saturday morning, they discovered the underage passenger was under the influence of alcohol.
Drug possession charges have been filed against 34 year old David Sibble of Franklin who was stopped on the Lindholm Road in Hamlin Township Sunday afternoon for multiple traffic violations. While talking to Sibble, troopers allegedly found he was driving his 2013 Dodge under the influence of a controlled substance and was in possession of a controlled substance and related paraphernalia.
Troopers at Lewis Run have charged 31 year old Scott Billyard of Smethport with physical harassment for an assault taking place on the evening of April 30 at a house on West Water Street in that town. The investigation allegedly revealed Billyard made physical contact with a 21 year old Smethport woman during a disagreement
Two Salamanca men have been arrested for endangering the welfare of a child. Troopers at the Lewis Run barracks claim that while on routine patrol Sunday afternoon they pulled over a 2008 Chevrolet Silverado for a summary traffic violation. Police allege they found the driver and adult passenger had used a controlled substance and were in possession of the drug and related paraphernalia. A one year old child was riding in the car. Both Drew Ray and JwBova Shelton, each 22, are facing charges in District Court.
Statewide
Pennsylvania’s Spring Gobbler season is underway. Hunters are reminded in every season must carry their valid general licenses and proper identification. And harvest tags must be carried in any season during which harvested game must be tagged.
A recently adopted change to be enacted next license year will allow hunters to carry digital licenses as an alternative to carrying certain paper licenses. But even when this change takes effect, hunters will need to continue carrying their paper harvest tags, and upon harvest, fill them out and securely attach them to the animal, following the directions provided on the tag. Turkeys must be tagged before they are moved from the site where they are harvested.
Successful hunters are required within 10 days to report their turkey harvests to the Pennsylvania Game Commission. Mentored hunters must report turkey harvests within five days.
Hunters may report by going to www.pgc.pa.gov and clicking the blue “Report a Harvest” button near the top of the home page, then filling out a form and submitting. Harvests also may be reported by phone at 1-800-838-4431. This is a new number that was activated in January when a new hunting and fishing licensing system was put in place. The previous number, which still appears within the 2020-21 Pennsylvania Hunting & Trapping Digest, no longer is valid. Hunters also may fill out one of the postage-paid report cards provided with the Hunting & Trapping Digest and send the report by mail.
The Wolf administration, in coordination with the COVID-19 Vaccine Joint Task Force, announced Tuesday that mitigation orders except masking will be lifted on Memorial Day, Monday, May 31 at 12:01 AM.
The current order requiring Pennsylvanians to wear masks will be lifted when 70% of Pennsylvanians age 18 and older are fully vaccinated. Face coverings are required to be worn indoors and outdoors if you are away from your home. In accordance with the latest Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidance, fully vaccinated Pennsylvanians are not required to wear a mask during certain activities.
Requirements such as testing and reporting new cases will remain in place for hospitals and long-term care facilities. Maintaining requirements for hospitals and long-term care facilities will allow Pennsylvania to continue to closely monitor COVID-19 spread while lifting other restrictions.
The Department of Health recommends that Pennsylvanians refer to CDC guidance and recommendations regarding ongoing COVID-19 safety measures and procedures.
These updates will not prevent municipalities and school districts from continuing and implementing stricter mitigation efforts.
The governor’s Proclamation of Disaster Emergency for the COVID-19 pandemic remains in place.
All Pennsylvanians ages 16 and older are eligible to schedule a COVID-19 vaccine. The provider map is available on the Department of Health’s website. Pennsylvanians with questions about the vaccination process can call the Department of Health hotline at 1-877-724-3258.
The Pennsylvania Department of Health today confirmed as of 12:00 a.m., May 3, there were 3,133 additional positive cases of COVID-19, bringing the statewide total to 1,161,619. Here at the Black Forest Broadcasting service area McKean County has 2690 confirmed cases. Tioga, 2431; Elk 1545; Potter 941 and Cameron 196 confirmed cases. Across the border in New York State Cattaraugus County has 5433 and Allegheny County 3329 confirmed cases.
There are 2,151 individuals hospitalized with COVID-19. Of that number, 484 patients are in the intensive care unit with COVID-19. Most of the patients hospitalized are ages 65 or older, and most of the deaths have occurred in patients 65 or older.
The trend in the 14-day moving average number of hospitalized patients per day is starting to come down, after peaking at 2,661 patients which is slightly below what it was at the height of the spring 2020 peak of 2,751 patients on May 3, 2020. The full 14-day moving average since the start of the pandemic can be found here.
Statewide percent positivity for the week of April 23 – April 29 stood at 7.6%–an improvement over the previous week.
As of 11:59 p.m. Monday, May 3, there were 58 new deaths identified by the Pennsylvania death registry, reported for a total of 26,334 deaths attributed to COVID-19.
According to the CDC, as of Tuesday morning, May 4, Pennsylvania has administered first doses of vaccine to 50.6% of its entire population, and the state ranks 10th among all 50 states for first doses administered by percentage of population.
According to the CDC, as of Tuesday morning, May 4, Pennsylvania ranks 5th among all 50 states for total doses administered.
Vaccine providers have administered 8,754,703 total vaccine doses as of Tuesday, May 4.
3,592,845 people are fully vaccinated; with a seven-day moving average of more than 83,800 people per day receiving vaccinations.
1,863,243 people are partially vaccinated, meaning they have received one dose of a two-dose vaccine.
5,456,088 people have received at least their first dose.
This week, a total of 8,938,480 doses will have been allocated through May 8:
323,520 first/single doses will have been allocated this week.
288,320 second doses will have been allocated this week.
To date, we have administered 8,754,703 doses total through May 4:
First/single doses: 5,456,088 administered
Second doses: 3,298,615 administered
Mask-wearing is required in all businesses and whenever leaving home. Fully vaccinated people are permitted to participate in some activities without a mask based on CDC guidance. Consistent mask-wearing is critical to preventing the spread of COVID-19.
There are 154,801 individuals who have a positive viral antigen test and are considered probable cases and 639 individuals who have a positive serology test and either COVID-19 symptoms or a high-risk exposure.
There are 4,422,407 individuals who have tested negative to date.
In licensed nursing and personal care homes, there are 70,779 resident cases of COVID-19, and 14,842 cases among employees, for a total of 85,621 at 1,588 distinct facilities in all 67 counties
Approximately 27,806 of the total cases are among health care workers.
All Pennsylvanians age 16 and older are eligible to schedule a COVID-19 vaccine. A commonwealth COVID-19 vaccination guide explains the current process for getting one. Pennsylvanians with questions about the vaccination process can call the Department of Health hotline at 1-877-724-3258.
Vaccine provider map to find a COVID-19 vaccine provider near you.