UPDATE: In a story posted at 5:27 p.m., the Buffalo News reports that officials are pointing to a smoldering cigarette as the likely cause of the fire.

Genesee County Emergency Management Services coordinator Timothy J. Yaeger said the victim's mother, Judy Clark, 41, had been smoking in an nclosed porch about half an hour before the fire broke out ... 

---

WBTA reports that a discarded cigarette may have been the cause of the fire Friday morning that took the life of 17-year-old Erik Mooney.

The investigation continues and no conclusion has been reached.

The News 8 video report (warning: pre-roll advertising) says that Erik suffered from asthma and that may have contributed to his in ability escape the smoke-filled house.

The Buffalo News story includes quotes from officials and students at Erik's high school.

Erik was known among his classmates for his sense of humor and love of video games.

Fellow sophomore Roosevelt Little, 16, who shared several classes with Erik, described him as “laid back,” someone who loved to crack jokes and brighten others’ lives. Roosevelt said Erik was capable of getting all of the students he shared a table with in the cafeteria to laugh.

Erik was well-liked among his peers and became more outgoing as he got to know others, Roosevelt said.

“Some students were crying when they found out [about Erik’s death],” Roosevelt said. “Some were trying to hold in emotions. A lot left school early today.”

“Sometimes it feels like these things happen all at once,” he added, referring to another recent tragedy in the community.

The D&C story hasn't been updated, but a video has been added (again, pre-roll advertising).

Our Previous posts: Post #1, Post #2 (with our own video).

Interesting story this morning from the Buffalo News on struggles faced by chambers of commerce in the region  in recruiting and retaining members.

Part of the problem is the increasingly global and distributed economy, and part if it is the "bowling alone" syndrome.

Local quotes:

At the Genesee County Chamber of Commerce, the nearly 900 members pay dues that start at $190 per year. Chamber President Lynn Freeman said about 80 percent of members are 50 years old and up, and 20 percent are under 50. But beyond the age discrepancy, he said there is more pressure than before to produce results and show younger members “that this is not an old man’s club.”

In Genesee County, the chamber and the Junior Chamber, an unconnected group of 21-to 39-year-olds, are mutually beneficial, said Melissa George, the 2006 president of Batavia Area Junior Chamber. George, who is executive assistant for the Genesee County Chamber of Commerce, said the JC promotes chamber of commerce membership.

We say: Join the Chamber.  Join Rotary or the Lions or get involved with a literacy program or the animal shelter.  There are all kinds of civic and community groups that need your support.  Involvement and engagement is what fosters strong communities, drives the local economy, reduces crime and increases property values ... in other words, there are any number of "selfish" reasons to get involved beyond just plain feeling good about helping out and doing the right thing.

There are no new developments this afternoon in the Lewiston Road fire that claimed the life of 17-year-old Erik Mooney (previous post).

Attempts to contact fire officials this afternoon were unsuccesful.

We also tried contacting somebody with the area Red Cross to see what arrangements were being made to assist the family, but were unsuccessful.

Below are yearbook photos of Michael, 15, and Erik (right).

UPDATE: Video story from WHAM.

UPDATE II:  Here's News 8 coverage.  Watch the video to about 3/4 of the way in and notice how the reporter and producer insinuate that there is something suspicious about Erik not getting out of the house. Classic Mainstream Media technique to remain "objective" while pumping up the story with some controversy.  It's not just a TV thing.  Print does it, too. (Also, warning -- obnoxious pre-roll advertising on the video).

WKBW in Buffalo also posted a video report.

WIVB out of Buffalo has two video reports posted.  Good, detailed, balanced and sensative stories.

In today's Daily News:

• The lead story is about the tragic death of Erik Mooney, 17, in an early morning fire on Lewiston Road.  Exceptional lede from Scott DeSmit: "Despite smoke detectors, a barking dog and the screams of his mouth, a 17-year-old boy was unable to make it out of his burning house on Lewiston Road early this morning."  The Batavian posted about the fire at 7 a.m. this morning.  The Daily News story ads no new information.
• In budgeting utility prices for the new Sheriff's Office, the Building and Grounds department did not factor in continuous use of the communications center.  .... What??? .... That nugget is buried in the sixth graph of a story by Paul Mrozek about utility costs being $71,000 over budget.  That's a pretty significant, "oops."
• Joanne Beck writes about this year's Dancing Under the Stars fundraiser for United Way, which is June 7 at Genesee Community College's Stuart Steiner Theater, 1 College Road.
• Nice picture page today on page A-10.

Subscribe to the Daily News at BataviaNews.com, or pick up a copy at a local newsstand, such as Main Street Coffee.

Press Release from the City of Batavia:

Please be advised that the Charter Review Commission for the City of Batavia will hold a meeting on Monday, June 2, 2008.  The meeting will begin at 6:30 p.m. in the Council Work Room on the second floor of the Batavia City Centre.  

The public can speak at the meeting by signing in with the Chairman prior to the start of the meeting. 

WBTA reports this morning:

• Officials believe an accident on Dodgeson Road went undiscovered for several hours. At about 5:30 this morning, a wrecked car was discovered with the driver inside, conscious but trapped.  Power tools were needed to open the car.
• David Bellavia won't challenge a GOP-endorsed candidate for congress. UPDATE: Here's the Buffalo News coverage.

Listen to WBTA AM 1490 for news updates throughout the day.

News 10 reports this morning that a 2 a.m. fire at 7881 Lewiston Road took the life of a 17-year-old boy.

Firefighters found him at the top of a staircase. He was taken to United Memorial Medical Center where he was prounounced dead at 3:30 a.m.

His brother managed to escape the fire by jumping from a bathroom window, but injured his arm in the fall.

The mother of the two boys escaped without injury.

The chief said the fire started on a porch and spread to the house. There were heavy flames when they arrived on scene.

The WHEC web story includes video.

We imagine WBTA will update its news page soon and will likely have the names of the victims this morning along with the latest additional information.

UPDATE: The names of the victims have not been released yet, WBTA reports.

UPDATE II: WBTA reports:

The Genesee County Sheriff's office has identified the boy as Erik Mooney of 7881 Lewiston Rd.

Erik, his mother, 41-year-old Judy Clark and 15-year-old brother Michael were all at home when the fire started. Judy suffered smoke inhalation. Michael cut his arm jumping from a bathroom window. Both were treated at UMMC in Batavia.

UPDATE III:  The D&C reports:

Another resident, Scott Clark, 47, was not home when the fire broke out, deputies said. He was at work.

The brothers are both students at Oakfield-Alabama Central School District. District Superintendent Christopher Todd this morning said the mood in the 1,000-student distinct was somber and that many of the students were “having a tough day.”

“It’s awful, but we’ll band together,” he said. Grief counselors are available at Oakfield-Alabama Middle/High School today to assist students, faculty and staff, Todd said.

...

Judy Clark told firefighters that a sounding smoke detector and barking family dog alerted her of the blaze.

Genesee County Fire Coordinator and Manager Tim Yaeger said authorities are trying to confirm a report that Judy Clark attempted to extinguish the blaze with a garden hose this morning. He said authorities did not know whether that occurred before or after she called 911.

UPDATE IV: WHAM coverage can be seen here. 

The D&C profiles Batavia's Brothers-All-Natural, which makes healthy crispy snacks.

Buried deep in the story is some pretty big news:

Brothers-All-Natural recently signed a multi-year license agreement with the Walt Disney Company to co-brand its product with Disney characters, to go into stores in July at Toys "R" Us, Kids "R" Us, Babies "R" Us and Wal-Mart.

"This is a huge stamp of approval when you get a name like Disney to associate themselves with your brand," said Matthew Betters, 36, co-CEO of Brothers-All-Natural.

Near the end of the story, we also learn the 15-employee company has offices in Ecuador and North Carolina, in addition to Batavia, but manufactures its products in China.

UPDATE: Here's the video.  Original post below.  We have no additional information at this time.

Fire dispatchers received a call of a house fire at 8700 S. Lake Road in Corfu area at about 2 p.m.

Apparently, nobody was home and there were no reported injuries. 

A family of five rents the two-story structure.  Reportedly, their cats were in the house and may have perished.

The fire appears to have started in the kitchen area, which sustained the most damage, and spread to the living room and up the stairs.

The Red Cross has been notified.

A cause has not been determined.

Units from Pembroke, East Pembroke, Corfu, Akron, Batavia and others responded.

We expect to post a video within a couple of hours (assuming no technical difficulties).

A reporter from WBTA was also on scene, so tune into 1490 for further reports.

6:05 a.m., 8 Masse Place, criminal mischief
7:10 a.m., 136 W. Main St., accident
12:13 p.m., 40 City Centre, larceny
3:34 p.m., 10 W. Main St., criminal contempt
5:25 p.m., 116 State St., fight
6:02 p.m., 260 State St., larceny
9:45 p.m., Ellicott St., harassment
 

I forgot to count the total number of items, frankly.  We don't include noise complaints, domestic disputes and routine police business.

UPDATE:  Also, we received a press release from the BPD on an arrest made yesterday at 5:15 p.m.  Charged with meanacing 2nd degree and criminal possion 4th was Kim R. Ransom of 218 State St. Ransom was held on $1,000 bail. She was charged after she reportedly displayed a knife and threatened another person.

From today's Daily News:

• Scott DeSmit reports that Le Roy trustees voted Wednesday to merge its dispatch operations with the county. Trustees hope to transfer some jobs to county dispatch, but recognize that may difficult since Batavia agreed to the same consolidation previously and is already slated to transfer two jobs.
• Cold War veterans may get a tax break. The County Legislature is pursuing a 10 percent tax credit on the first $60,000 of a home's accessed value for Cold War veterans.  The Batavian posted on this story two weeks ago.
• Holli Gass, 17, when she graduates from Pembroke High School, will represent the fifth generation from her family to graduate from a school in the Pembroke district.  Kristen Kotz, a Daily News intern, wrote a nice feature story on the family.  It's the center package of today's paper.  Nice clip, Kristen.
• The Genesee-Orleans Regional Arts Council at 201 E. Main St. will host a "Building a Vibrant Community Identity" workshop from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., June 5.  It's all about "building a brand" that people remember is geared primarily toward non-profits, but writer Joanne Beck suggests that some commercial businesses are participating.  The deadline to register is Monday.
• Hot Shot's Caffe has opened a second location at 56 Harveter Ave., according to an article on page A2.
• Scott DeSmit passes along a reminder from fire officials to check your smoke detector.  You want to make sure your smoke detector doesn't have a dead battery or otherwise won't function properly in an emergency.
• A letter to the editor from Rose M. Ruhlman praises Lt. Eugene Jankowski and questions the wisdom of passing him over for the chief-of-police role.  She makes good points.  The Batavian broke the story last week that Jankowski was apparently out of contention for top post.
• Former Buffalo Bills guard Joe DeLamielleure will be at Terry Hills Golf Course from 3 to 4:30 p.m. Sunday signing autographs.  Joe D. is in town for the Jim Kelly Celebrity Golf Classic, which takes place Monday at Terry Hills.
• Former Batavian Patric Donaghue was inducted into the Rochester United States Bowling Association Hall of Fame.  Before moving to Rochester in 1981, Donaghue started his bowling career at Mancuso Lanes.

The Daily News is available at local news stands, including at Main Street Coffee, and you should subscribe, and can do so on the Daily News web site.

WBTA has posted several items available in it's June 7 "Father's Day" auction.

Interesting items include:

• One night at Delta Toronto East
• Four-pack to Martin's Fantasy Island
• Birthday party blow out at the Gravel Pit

The auction will run from 9 a.m. to noon.

Dan Fischer just told me that he'll be posting more items this afternoon.

Merchants who still wish to participate have until tomorrow to contact WBTA.

On June 6 at Batavia Downs, there will be a Festival of Hope to benefit the Genesee Cancer Assistance program.

The event runs from 4 p.m. and includes a Kidsfest starting at 5 p.m.

Children 8 and under can be pre-registered by parents calling Jennifer Lewis at 820-6946.

Tonette Stone of Noah's Ark Animal Workshop sent us a message this morning about her participation in the Kidsfest.

Noah's Ark Animal Workshop will be taking pre-orders for our Hope Bear to be delivered at the event.  The cost is $25, with $5.00 going to the GCA fundraiser.  We will also be selling "Wishing Stars" throughout the event at $3.00 each with all the proceeds going to GCA. 

For more information, click here.

Gas prices are over $4 per gallon now.  That's got to hurt Batavians who commute to either Buffalo or Rochester for work.

And it's quite possible, likely even, that prices will climb even higher.

What's the impact of gas prices on you?  If you commute, does that have you rethinking either where you live or where you work?  What does it mean for your other household spending?

Batavia-based Graham Corp. (AMEX: GHM) has made Business Week's list of fastest growing small companies.

From the article:

This year's Hot Growth ranking also features a whole lot of heavy metal. Dotting the list are small manufacturers with low-cost structures and the ability to make specialized products that can't easily be copied by foreign rivals. Among the success stories: Graham (GHM), a Batavia (N.Y.) maker of heat-transfer equipment, and Haynes International (HAYN), a Kokomo (Ind.) supplier of specialty alloys used by jetmakers and gas drillers.

This morning, the stock opens at $63.50 per share.  It's 52-week high is $71.58 and 52-week low is $13.45

Graham's 2007 revenue was $65 million, with an EBIDTA margin of 11 pecent. Graham employs 265 people.

The company, which claims no long-term debt and $36 million in available cash, is announcing this week that for fiscal 2008 revenue is $86.4 million.

According to it's corporate history page, Graham was founded in 1936 and moved to Batavia in 1942.  The company went public in 1968.

Jerald D. Bidlack, 71, is chairman of the board, and James R. Lines, 46, is president and CEO.

Business Week's description of the company:

Graham Corporation engages in the design, manufacture, and sale of vacuum and heat transfer equipment used in the chemical, petrochemical, petroleum refining, and power generating industries worldwide. Its products include steam jet ejector vacuum systems; surface condensers for steam turbines; vacuum pumps and compressors; various types of heat exchangers, including helical coil heat exchangers marketed under the Heliflow name; and plate and frame exchangers. These products are available in various metal and non-metallic corrosion resistant materials. Graham Corporation’s products are used in a range of industrial process applications, including petroleum refineries, chemical plants, pharmaceutical plants, plastics plants, fertilizer plants, liquefied natural gas production facilities, soap manufacturing plants, air conditioning systems, food processing plants, and other process industries, as well as power generation facilities, such as fossil fuel, nuclear, cogeneration, and geothermal power plants.

From reader Georgia Voss:

My husband and I were honored to have a visit Sunday with a Korean Veteran who was to be honored with 6 others on Memorial Day by Steve Hawley.  I saw no mention of this in the Daily News and am curious if you folks have knowledge of the event and other participants.

So we contacted Assemblyman Hawley's office, which provided the following information on honors handed out Monday:

• Thomas E. Hayes Specialist Four, AUS, of the US Army, received the New York Medal of Merit. Hayes served in Vietnam and his military service covered 1969 to 1971.  He is a Silver Star winner.
• John E. Corrado was awarded a Conspicuous Service Cross.  Corrado served in Vietnam and was in the Army from 1968 to 1970.
• Ettore Ianni also received the Conspicuous Service Cross. Ianni served in Korea and was in the Army from 1951 to 1970.
• Keith A. Weinert also received the Conspicuous Service Cross.  Weinert is a Vietnam veteran and served in the Army from 1967 to 1970.

The Conspicuous Service Cross was created by the New York Legislature in the 1920s. It is the highest award New York can bestow in its veterans. Recipients must have distinguished themselves by performing particularly brave and heroic acts which earned them individual citations while serving in the armed forces.

I've lived in my share of cities and towns across the country, from Miami to New York City to Albuquerque to Santa Cruz, California.

Everywhere I've lived, the locals tend to have a certain brand of self-deprecating humor, whether it's bad jokes about the tourists, the weather, or the throngs of undergraduates clogging up the streets.

But I have been impressed with the degree that Westen New Yorkers take the art form.

Consider the "You know you're from Batavia when..." group on Facebook.  (You'll need to be logged in to Facebook to see the full thread.)

Here are a few highlights:

• You have gone sledding at Centennial Park at some point in your life.
• You realize no Chinese buffet is like the ones in Batavia.
• You walk into Martins and know at least 10 people working there at any given time.
• Your football team is known for losing homecoming all the time.

It gets a little rougher from there...

Add your own entries in the comments below.

From Wednesday's Daily News:

• The Daily News recaps last night's City Council session, which featured a notable squabble over whether or not City Attorney George Van Nest needs to be present at each and every conference meeting.  Councilman Frank Fernando told the Daily News the conversation is "over for this year," given that the city budget has already passed.
• Genesee County's Empire Zone could be expanded to include more than 100 additional acres near Route 5.  The addition would make more room for a Canadian food processor talking with the Genesee Economic Development Center about becoming the first tenant of the planned Agri-business Park.  According to the Daily News, EDC Chief Executive Officer Steve Hyde "declined to identify" the Canadian company, but the story doesn't mention why he declined.  Maybe he would say it's because they're still negotiating, but I'll try to give him a call and let him say that for himself.  If I lived here, I'd want to know who was coming to town.
• In sports, Batavia scored five goals in the fourth quarter to top Palmyra-Macedon at the Section 5 Class C boys lacrosse tournament on Tuesday.  The lacrosse program is in its second year at Batavia, so winning a playoff game must feel amazing at this stage of the program's development.  Coach Chuck Hammon told the Daily News his team was pretty excited about the big win.  Check out the full Class C lacrosse tournament bracket here.  Batavia takes on top-seeded Penn Yan on Friday.

We recommend you pick up your copy of the Daily News at a local newsstand, or subscribe on the Daily News web site.

Hey there, I'm Ryan Sholin, filling in at The Batavian today for Philip.

I'm at Main Street Coffee at a table facing the window - stop by to say hello and let me know what you'd like to see more of here at Batavia's first online news source.  (I had a good cup of coffee and a great grilled cheese sandwich, but I'm about to hit the road.  Thanks!  I'll be back soon.)

I've got something in mind myself -- One of you wrote in to point out that the old red brick is showing through some unrepaired asphault on Walnut Street.

So I took a drive down Walnut on my way in this morning, and I think I saw the spot in question, close to the railroad tracks, but I've gotta say -- and I drive a ten-year-old Honda -- I was unimpressed with the depth of the pothole.

It seemed like par for the course here in Western New York, but I'm new to the area, so don't trust me -- let us know where the worst potholes are in Batavia.

Use the "Send us news" button to submit your (least) favorite roads in town -- you can even send in a picture of the offensive street.

We'll pass your submissions on the Department of Public Works and see what happens next.

[UPDATE: We've added a Batavia Pothole Map where you can flag spots that need repair.  Check it out!]

Dan Fischer summarizes WBTA's news this morning, including coverage of last night's City Council meeting.

He includes audio clips from the dust-up revolving around whether City Attorney George VanNest should attend council conference meetings.

In our post last night, we mentioned that City Manager Jason Molino took issue with some members of the council repeatedly raising concerns about the expense.  Here's some audio from Molino's quote.

WBTA's coverage also includes the city passing a resolution to borrow $1.5 million as a bridge loan to cover city expenses while waiting for taxes to be collected, more on the proposed agri park, and the $15,000 grant for improvements at Dwyer Stadium.