Black Forest Broadcasting

 

…State police withhold name of suspected litterbug….Austin teen arrested for shoplifting…Vandalism investigated by Mansfield state police…DCNR awards wildfire fighting grants….

McKean County

While the suspect’s name implicated him in a scattering of rubbish incident in Liberty Township, state police at Lewis Run are keeping  his name from the public. Troopers claim the 23 year old Port Allegany man discarded household waste on Wildwood Drive and was identified because his name was contained on some of the items.

Elk County

A 17 year old Austin boy has been arrested for shoplifting at the St. Marys Walmart. The theft allegedly took place on the afternoon of September 3 and the investigation is continuing.

Tioga County

State police at Mansfield investigated a criminal mischief in Liberty Township August 31 or September 1 at 765 Urban Road. Vandals drove onto the front yard at the Clyde Mitstifer and made one “donut” causing $50 in damage to the grass. Anyone with information is asked to call the Mansfield barracks at 570.662.2151.

Region

The Department of Conservation and Natural Resources has  awarded $762,414 in grants to help Pennsylvania’s rural communities increase protection from wildfires. The grants were awarded to qualifying local firefighting forces in rural areas and communities with fewer than 10,000 people. The funding may be used for training and equipment purchases directly related to fighting brush and forest fires. In making the announcement, officials thanked volunteer fire companies for their service to communities close to home, as well as those members who often join DCNR’s Bureau of Forestry crews battling wildfires far beyond Pennsylvania’s borders. Several crews have been sent to western states to fight wildfires caused by hot, dry summer conditions, while also responding regularly to local woodland and brush fires. Grants are awarded on a cost-share basis. The maximum grant awarded in 2022 is $12,500, and grants awarded cannot exceed 50 percent of the actual expenditures of local, public, and private nonprofit organizations in the agreement.

Departments in the Black Forest Broadcasting Service Area receiving grants are:

DERRICK CITY VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT DERRICK CITY McKean 4,000.00

NORWICH TOWNSHIP VLNTR FIREMANS ASSN INC DBA NORWICH TOWNSHIP FIRE DEPT CROSBY McKean 1,000.00

BLOSSBURG VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT BLOSSBURG Tioga 2,374.00

MANSFIELD HOSE COMPANY MANSFIELD Tioga 10,000.00

 The full list of recipients is available on the Department’s website.

 Priority was placed on projects that include the purchase of wildfire suppression equipment and protective clothing. Grants may also be used for purchasing mobile or portable radios, installing dry hydrants, wildfire prevention and mitigation work, training wildfire fighters, or converting and maintaining federal excess vehicles. The vehicles are presented to the local departments exhibiting the greatest needs and those that commit to outfitting them for fire suppression.

In 2021, more than $602,306 was awarded to 109 volunteer fire companies. The grant program, offered through DCNR and paid through federal grants from the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service, has awarded more than $15.1 million since it began in 1982.