FILE – A black plume rises over East Palestine, Ohio, as a result of a controlled detonation of a portion of the derailed Norfolk Southern trains, Feb. 6, 2023. West Virginia’s water utility says it’s taking precautionary steps following the derailment of a train hauling chemicals that later sent up a toxic plume in Ohio. The utility said in a statement on Sunday, Feb. 16, 2023 that it has enhanced its treatment processes even though there hasn’t been a change in raw water at its Ohio River intake. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar, file)

Harrisburg, PA – In light of the ongoing clean-up efforts in East Palestine, Ohio, the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency has launched an online train derailment dashboard in coordination with other relevant state agencies to better inform concerned residents in western Pennsylvania.

“As clean-up efforts continue, our agency wants to make sure residents had an easily accessible online resource containing accurate and relevant information to refer to if they have questions,” said PEMA Director Randy Padfield.  “Our priority continues to be ensuring that every concerned resident has the information and resources they need to make important health and safety decisions for their families.”

Air and water monitoring has been in place since the incident began, including during the controlled vent and burn, the fire afterward and in the days since. Thus far, no concerning readings have been detected and state agencies and testing will continue for the foreseeable future.

The online dashboard is accessible at https://www.pema.pa.gov/derailment or by visiting the PEMA homepage at pema.pa.gov and clicking on “Train Derailment Dashboard.”

Harrisburg, PA – The Shapiro Administration today announced that the application window is now open for grants to help Pennsylvania’s rural communities increase protection from wildfires. Governor Josh Shapiro is committed to keeping our communities safe and ensuring our Commonwealth is ready for a wide range of emergency situations. This new funding will build on the Shapiro Administration’s continued investment in communities across Pennsylvania.

“We are pleased to the support the men and women who volunteer with the fire companies that serve our rural areas and communities across Pennsylvania with these grants,” Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) Secretary Cindy Adams Dunn said. “Having well-equipped and highly trained wildland firefighters is critical to protecting the commonwealth’s natural resources and we encourage eligible fire companies to apply for this grant round.”

Acting State Fire Commissioner Thomas Cook noted volunteer fire companies’ service to communities close to home, adding that many volunteer firefighters often join DCNR’s Bureau of Forestry crews battling wildfires across the U.S.

“Grants programs like these are vital financial lifelines for the volunteer fire companies that keep our communities safe, and they fund increasingly necessary training and equipment that firefighters would otherwise go without,” Cook said. “Certainly, the last few years have underscored that the ability to tackle wildfires is a key competency fire departments will need to focus on going forward.”

Grant applications must be electronically submitted through DCNR’s grant website by 4:00 PM, Thursday, May 11, 2023. To expedite applications and decision-making processes, DCNR is accepting only online applications. Visit DCNR’s website for more information about the Volunteer Fire Assistance (VFA) grants.

Local firefighting forces in rural areas or communities with fewer than 10,000 residents qualify for the aid, which is used for training and equipment purchases directly related to fighting brush and forest fires. Grant recipients are selected based on vulnerability and adequacy of existing fire protection. The key objective is to better equip and train volunteers to save lives and protect property in unprotected or inadequately protected rural areas.

Priority will be placed on projects that include the purchase of wildfire suppression equipment and protective clothing. Grants also may 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 provided to them by the department.

Local firefighting forces may receive grants up to $12,500. Aid is granted on a cost-share basis. Grants for any project during a fiscal year cannot exceed 50 percent of the actual expenditures of local, public, and private nonprofit organizations in the agreement.

Cook and Dunn noted the dedication volunteer fire companies demonstrate when they answer assistance calls coming from other states, while also responding regularly to local woodland and brush fires. They noted the wildfire grants help enable smaller companies to concentrate more on public safety and training while easing their fiscal constraints.

In 2022, nearly $763,000 was awarded to 122 volunteer fire companies serving rural areas and communities where forest and brush fires are common. The grant program, offered through DCNR and paid through federal grants from the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service, has awarded more than $13 million since it began in 1982.

Monaca, Pennsylvania — Stoelzle Glass Group proudly announces the opening of a
decoration facility at Stoelzle Glass USA. The site offers screen-printing to customers in the USA.
“We are thrilled to add more services and contribute to the expansion of our US facilities with this new decoration site in Monaca,” said August Grupp, Head of Business Unit Spirits. “The Monaca plant continues to see success for Stoelzle Glass Group. North America represents one of the most important markets for the liquor and spirits industry globally, and now we will have more to offer new and existing customers.”
The installation of the CNC machine enables printing in larger quantities, in addition to screen-printing. Decoration options will include ceramic colors, precious metals, organic and UV colors, printing around corners and in 360-degree motions, as well as more services. The machinery is equipped with a fully automatic control camera system and will allow for annual capacity of up to 20 million bottles.

HARRISBURG – Schools in the Mohawk Area and Wilmington Area school districts were awarded state grants that will help upgrade their facilities to continue to provide critical food service to students, according to Rep. Marla Brown (R-Lawrence).

 The grants were awarded by the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE). The department awarded more than $2.7 million in competitive grants to 130 elementary, middle and high schools across the state for the purchase of new food service equipment for cafeterias.

Schools receiving funding locally include:

• Mohawk Area Senior High School – $15,334 to be used for a reach-in refrigerator/freezer.
• Mohawk Area Elementary School – $1,759 for a mixer.
• New Wilmington Elementary School – $13,466 to be used for a hot serving counter.

“To prepare healthy meals for hundreds or perhaps thousands of students per day, it helps to have the right tools,” said Brown. “Students perform better in school when they have access to regular, nutritious meals. It is imperative to provide children with the proper nourishment to help them learn and grow.”

Funding for the grants is provided through the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Grants are awarded to schools that participate in the National School Lunch Program.

The image above shows a door boarded and covered in plastic at Bowser Hyundai in Chippewa
Story by Curtis Walsh – Beaver County Radio News Director. Published February 24, 2023 9:50 A.M.

(Chippewa Township, PA) The coroner was called to Boswer Hyundai in Chippewa Friday Morning. Unconfirmed reports have said that a garage door fell on a person. When Beaver County Radio arrived to the scene, a rear garage door was seen covered in plastic and boarded up. It was not clear whether that door was involved. Boswer Hyundai of Chippewa issued a statement confirming there was a “workplace accident involving a construction worker at the property and that individual is deceased”. It is currently unknown what caused the accident.

Story by Curtis Walsh – Beaver County Radio. Published February 23, 2023 5:30 P.M.

(Center Township, PA) The Veterans Affairs & Emergency Preparedness Committee held a public hearing Thursday Morning at the CCBC Golden Dome. Chairman Senator Doug Mastriano led the hearing along with Democrat Chair Katie Muth. First on the agenda was supposed to be a testimony from Alan Shaw, President of Norfolk Southern. Shaw declined to attend the hearing and the committee placed an empty chair on the stage with his name on it. The committee proceeded to start the hearing by listening to a panel of pre-selected residents. A resident who was not preselected attempted to ask Senator Mastriano questions, but he was not given any response by the committee. Residents from the surrounding area of the train derailment shared testimonies of their experience. Many described ending up with cold like illnesses, facial rashes, and burning eyes and questioned why there was little communication to them as the events unfolded. A few broke into tears while speaking. Some said their made them ill. Following the resident panel, a group of administrative leaders were questioned. These leaders included Randy Padfield, Director of PEMA, PA Department of Agriculture Acting Secretary Russell Redding, PA Department of Environmental Protection Acting Secretary Richard Negrin, PA Department of Transportion Acting Secretary Michael Carroll, and Captian John Hopkins of the Bureu of Law Enforcement for the Southwest Region of the PA Fish and Boat Commission. They explained that Norfolk Southern’s model of how the controlled explosion would take place was the one chosen to use during meetings with officials and Governors Shapiro and DeWine, and that Norfolk Southern did not allow any other options for different models. Norfolk Southern was said to have determined that not only one tanker car, but five, needed to be detonated and the officials trusted their roughly one mile evacuation model was accurate, even though other models they had created didn’t add up at first. Intial models other than Norfolk Southern’s were said to have required a much larger evacuation zone. It was stated that Norfolk Southern claimed to be experts of 200 years and didn’t want to listen to anyone else. It was also said that Norfolk Southern acknowledged that the situation was worsened by their failed communications. A panel of local Beaver County leaders, including Commissioners Dan Camp and Jack Manning, Director of Emergency Services Eric Brewer, Darlington Township Fire Chief Chris Laderer, and Assistant Darlington Township Fire Chief/EMA Coordinator William Douthitt were next to take the floor. They gave the committee a run down of the response taken to the derailment by the county. They made it a point to say that they did the best they could with the information they had at the time, noting that Norfolk Southern was not providing good communication. Darlington Township Volunteer Fire Department stated that Norfolk Southern was pushing to do the detonation sooner, but they challenged kids should be released from school first, particularly because the detonation was going to be much bigger than originally planned. This led nearby school districts to be able to dismiss their students. County leaders also stated they were prepared for a much larger evacuation. Camp made a comment near the end of the hearing, that Beaver County should have their own clinic for residents to visit for health concerns. Following the local leaders, legal counsel made presentations.
Information provided for residents:

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg leaves after a news conference Thursday, Feb. 23, 2023, near the site of the Feb. 3 Norfolk Southern train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio. (AP Photo/Matt Freed)
By JOSH BOAK Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House is calling on congressional Republicans to increase the fines levied on rail companies for safety violations in the wake of the train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio. There are still safety and health concerns among residents in the village after dozens of train cars being pulled by Norfolk Southern went off the tracks on Feb. 3 and released chemicals into the area. The White House says that the highest fine that can be charged to companies for violations involving the transportation of hazardous materials is $225,455. That’s less than 1% of Norfolk Southern’s profits last year of $3.27 billion.

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Jaqueline Benitez pushes her cart down an aisle as she shops for groceries at a supermarket in Bellflower, Calif., on Monday, Feb. 13, 2023. Benitez, 21, who works as a preschool teacher, depends on California’s SNAP benefits to help pay for food, and starting in March she expects a significant cut, perhaps half, of the $250 in food benefits she has received since 2020. (AP Photo/Allison Dinner)

(Washington, D.C.) (AP) Nearly 30 million Americans who got extra government help with grocery bills during the pandemic will soon see that aid shrink. An analysis shows for the average recipient, the change will mean about $90 less per month in food stamps. In 32 states and other jurisdictions, the COVID-19 emergency allotments will end with February payments. Other states have already stopped giving out extra foods stamps. The extra help started at the beginning of the pandemic. Government officials and advocates are using texts, flyers and social media posts to make sure recipients know the program is ending.