(Matt Drzik/Beaver County Radio)

The temperature read single digits. The wind chill was heading for record lows.

Yet the only number concerning the County Commissioners was 10, as in the time that the trio was to call to order Wednesday’s work session as per the usual schedule.

During this particular work session, Public Works Director Dan Colville had a slew of updates regarding his department, including:

• A request to have a plaque dedicated at Brady’s Run Lodge in honor of a recently deceased Public Works member
• The need to restore/replace the pipes at the Brady’s Run Recreational Facilities; some of which are 40+ years old
• A snow truck having a malfunction and needing immediate repair

The last of these led Colville to reveal that the Department does not have a credit card in their name, a revelation that shocked Commissioner Sandie Egley:

 

Later during the meeting,  Commissioners’ Chairman Dan Camp spoke about the current situation involving the Beaver County Transit Authority, as he said that the recent changes have led to a slew of complaints that have arrived steadily:

 

The routes that are experiencing changes are Route 1 (from Chippewa to Pittsburgh via Route 65) and Route 11 (Rochester-Beaver-Brighton-Vanport), and the BCTA public meetings will be Monday at 5:00pm & 7:00pm at the Transportation Center in Rochester.

The meeting lasted 30 minutes before the Commissioners exited for executive session and those in attendance braved themselves back into the cold.

President Donald Trump is insisting that congressional negotiators working on a compromise border security deal include money for his proposed wall between Mexico and the southern U.S. border. Trump tweeted that if the negotiators, scheduled to hold their first meeting Wednesday, aren’t “discussing or contemplating a Wall or Physical Barrier, they are Wasting their time!” Trump’s insistence on a wall led to an impasse with Democrats that resulted in a 35-day partial government shutdown.

(File photo from previous fire in the City of Beaver Falls)

BREAKING NEWS: A KITCHEN FIRE BROKE OUT AT A HOME IN BEAVER FALLS THIS AFTERNOON. BEAVER COUNTY RADIO NEWS CORRESPONDENT SANDY GIORDANO HAS DETAILS. Click on ‘play’ to hear Sandy’s report…

Wolf renews bid to put state’s minimum wage among highest
By MARC LEVY, Associated Press
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Gov. Tom Wolf is rolling out a second-term proposal to raise Pennsylvania’s minimum wage after similar first-term proposals by the Democrat fell flat in the Republican-controlled Legislature.
Wolf said Wednesday he wants to raise Pennsylvania’s hourly minimum to $12 this year, making it one of the highest in the nation, with annual 50-cent increases to bring it to $15 an hour in 2025. He says it would boost pay for a million workers and provide savings in programs for the poor.
Pennsylvania has been at the $7.25 federal minimum since 2009.
Most states and each of Pennsylvania’s neighbors have increased minimum wages above the federal minimum.
Wolf’s administration is also considering a regulation to boost pay for hundreds of thousands of salaried employees by making them eligible for overtime pay.

The state is reporting that another five Pennsylvanians have perished from influenza as the virus remains an officially widespread situation.  According to data released yesterday, the fatality count in Pennsylvania due to the flu has risen to 25 for the current season, including the first confirmed flu-related death of someone age 18 or younger.  There have been 19-thousand-757 reported cases total state-wide, over four-thousand more than a week ago.

Big changes are in store for hunters in western Pennsylvania this year. The Pennsylvania Game Commission approved yesterday a Saturday start to the deer-gun season instead of the traditional Monday opening. Commissioners are also working on rules to allow semi-automatic rifles to be used in hunting big game, including deer, elk and bears.

Gov. Tom Wolf is renewing his call for lawmakers to toughen Pennsylvania’s gun laws, after a truck driver walked into a Pittsburgh synagogue and fatally shot 11 people. The Democrat spoke Tuesday at an anti-gun violence rally in the Capitol, joined by the ex-wife of a man badly wounded in the synagogue shooting. The state House GOP’s majority leader, Bryan Cutler, says Pennsylvania says policymakers might find agreement on mental health interventions.

A secretary for Big Beaver’s Municipal Authority is accused of taking thousands of dollars. Sheri Horinka was charged last week after an audit showed two checks were cashed by the 51-year-old totaling 13-thousand-500 dollars. Horinka had served the authority as a part-time secretary and treasurer dating back to 2015. She’s free after positing 15-thousand-dollars bail.

WEATHER FORECAST FOR WEDNESDAY, JAN. 30TH, 2019

 

*** WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 10 AM EST THIS MORNING… …WIND CHILL WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 5 PM EST THURSDAY… * A LINE OF BRIEFLY MODERATE TO HEAVY SNOW THIS MORNING AND DANGEROUSLY COLD WIND CHILLS. WIND CHILLS AS LOW AS 25 BELOW ZERO. SNOW ACCUMULATIONS OF UP TO ONE INCH. WINDS GUSTING AS HIGH AS 35 MPH.
PLAN ON SLIPPERY ROAD CONDITIONS THIS MORNING. THE HAZARDOUS CONDITIONS MAY IMPACT THE MORNING COMMUTE. THE COLD WIND CHILLS COULD CAUSE FROSTBITE ON EXPOSED SKIN IN AS LITTLE AS 30 MINUTES. A WIND CHILL WARNING MEANS THE COMBINATION OF VERY COLD AIR AND THE WIND WILL CREATE DANGEROUSLY LOW WIND CHILL VALUES. FROSTBITE CAN OCCUR QUICKLY AND EVEN HYPOTHERMIA OR DEATH IF PRECAUTIONS ARE NOT TAKEN. A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR SNOW MEANS PERIODS OF SNOW WILL CAUSE PRIMARILY TRAVEL DIFFICULTIES. EXPECT SNOW COVERED ROADS AND LIMITED VISIBILITIES, AND USE CAUTION WHILE DRIVING.

TODAY – WINDY WITH SNOW SHOWERS THIS MORNING.
PARTLY CLOUDY LATER. HIGH – 7.

TONIGHT – BITTERLY COLD. SOME CLOUDS THIS EVENING
WILL GIVE WAY TO MAINLY CLEAR SKIES
OVERNIGHT. LOW – MINUS 2.

THURSDAY – SUNSHINE. HIGH – 12.

A FEDERAL GRAND JURY HAS FILED ADDITIONAL CHARGES AGAINST A MASS MURDERER. BEAVER COUNTY RADIO NEWS CORRESPONDENT SANDY GIORDANO HAS DETAILS. Click on ‘play’ to hear Sandy’s report…