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A car collided with a jacknifed tractor trailer on the westbound portion of the Thruway this morning around 6:00am just west of Pembroke, according to WBTA's Dan Fischer. The serious crash left the tractor portion of the truck on a guardrail and the trailer in the middle of the highway, blocking both lanes going west.

Other news stations are reporting that Thruway is blocked off between exits 48A and Exit 49. We could not yet find any updates on how long before the lanes reopen. We'll get you an update when that info becomes available.

In other news, Dan Fischer tells us that the Genesee County Health Department will be holding another "Fly Shot Clinic" from 9:00 to 11:00am this morning at the Senior Center on Bank Street. Did you mean "Flu" there, Dan? I think so. Funny typo, though.

UPDATE (9:50pm): WHAM News in Rochester reports that the left westbound lane of the Thruway was, in fact, re-opened shortly after 7:00am this morning, and the right lane was freed up about an hour after that.

Batavia's City Council last night postponed a decision on whether to pitch in $2,750 to look into maybe sharing recreation services with the school district and town, according to WBTA's Dan Fischer. The Batavian reported earlier this week on the proposal by the school district to fund an $11,000 needs assessment.

Fischer reports that Council members Bill Cox and Kathy Briggs were willing to support the study because "it was keeping with council's to share services among municipalities." Councilwoman Rose Mary Christian was opposed to the plan, saying that we already pay enough in school taxes.

Council will take up discussion again at its conference meeting later this month and vote on the request at its business meeting in November.

The Salvation Army has begun its annual Coats for Others donation campaign, according to WBTA's Dan Fischer. Folks can drop off their unneeded winter coats at the Salvation Army Center at 529 E. Main St. Those in need can arrange to pick up coats by contacting that same office (343-6284) or by stopping by. No appointment is necessary. The campaign will run through February.

Not much news to report from WBTA this morning. Batavia's City Council will not meet tonight, since it is Columbus Day. They plan to convene instead Tuesday at 7:00pm at City Hall. This will be, I believe, the city's first business-only meeting. A conference meeting will be scheduled for later in the month. Only one resolution is on the agenda for Tuesday: acceptance of a $150,000 grant to replace city sidewalks.

One of our readers picked up on a story posted on the WBTA Web site yesterday about the Batavia City Schools receiving an award from Promethean Inc., the company that provided the school with its high-tech blackboards.

WBTA's Dan Fischer spoke with School Superintendent Margaret Puzio about the award. Interestingly, the city schools will now become a "beta testing center" for Promethean Inc.

A water main downtown broke this morning leaving folks along Woodrow Road between Main Street and West Avenue without water service. WBTA's Dan Fischer reports that the city has no estimate on when service will be fully restored.

If you're looking to get a McCain-Palin sign to stick in your front lawn this election season, you will have to get in line. Genesee County's GOP headquarters reported that they have not been able to handle the demand for the signs, and they've run out. More should arrive Tuesday.

Replacement of a bridge in Bergen should take about six weeks, and that means motorists will have to take a detour around the site on West Sweden Road, south of Warboys Road, according to WBTA's Dan Fischer. That detour will take you seven miles out of the way, says Fischer. Looking at the map, it seems folks can take Route 19 if they're heading north or south west of that area. Route 237 runs the parallel in the east. Anyone know any other ways in and out of that area?

Medina Memorial Hospital in Orleans County was the site of a fortunate false alarm yesterday, when an unidentified woman was brought in to the emergency room for complaint of a rash contracted after she opened an envelope. Some 40 people had to undergo decontamination. The woman was kept in isolation until postal inspectors later determined that there was no contaminant in the envelope or on the telephone bill inside. Medina's hospital administrator called it good practice!

More than 2,000 Genesee County residents have registered to vote since September 26, and nearly half (850) will be first-time voters, according to WBTA's Dan Fischer. Fischer spoke with the Democratic and Republican election commissioners for the county who attribute the surge in voter registration to the cult of personality: Barack Obama for the Dems and John Mc—oh, wait, no, not him—Sarah Palin for the GOP.

This Saturday will be the last chance to register for those have have not yet. Registration in Genesee County will be open from 1:00 to 9:00pm. Batavians can head down to the fire station on Evans Street or the Batavia Town Hall to register. Visit WBTA's Web site for a complete list of locations around the county.

WBTA reports that you can get a free flu shot (with insurance card) today.

The Genesee County Health Department will offer the shots (along with Pneumonia shots) from 9 to 11 at County Building Two on West Main Street.

Also, the Batavia City School board meets at 7 p.m. tonight Robert Morris School

The Masonic Temple and several buildings around it on Main Street in downtown Le Roy have been demolished, according to WBTA's Dan Fischer. In all, eight buildings have come down, leaving a large swath of downtown vacant until construction begins on the Walgreen's that will be taking their place. Fischer connected with Le Roy's police chief, Chris Heywood, who spoke about the "new view of Lake Street."

In other news, the "credit crunch" spawned by the subprime housing crisis may be having an effect on Main Street atfer all. Fischer reports that at Genesee Community College, students may have a harder time procuring private loans. Apparently, "fewer and fewer banks are offering the loans." Most students, however, fund their tuition—and I speak out of experience here—via federal loans and grants. Now, as far as I know, those federal loans have not become harder to come across. Financial aid director at the college, Joe Bailey, told Fischer that the private loans are not as popular as the federal loans, but it's the only "means of paying tuition" for some students. How many? What percentage? "Some" never gets us anywhere when we're talking statistics, and we always seem to be talking statistics.

No matter how dire the "credit crunch," the state always seems to have money to give away. This time it's $3 million going to United Memorial Medical Center to help fund its $20 million "surgical expansion project" and add two more operating rooms at the hospital.

City police installed and inspected several child safety seats yesterday, according to WBTA's Dan Fischer. Det. John Zola told Fischer that anyone can schedule an appointment to bring their safety seat into the department to have it installed properly. There are even a few new child safety seats that the department is willing to give parents who do not have one of their own. For parents who choose to install their own, Det. Zola has this advice: "check for recalls, fit the child to the seat and fit the seat to the vehicle."

City police were alerted to a break in at the Harvester Center yesterday by one of the shop owners there, according to WBTA's Dan Fischer. Police located 27-year-old Brian Jurewicz, of North Spruce Street, Batavia, nearby. Jurewicz was charged with a felony count of burglary and may face additional charges. Police allege that Jurewicz entered several businesses at the center and caused damage inside. He was sent to Genesee County Jail on $10,000 bail. There is no mention in the report of the degree of the burglary charge, nor of what Jurewicz took from the businesses, if anything.

In other news, city police are looking for the owner of a dog that bit a child on the leg Sunday night. No charges are pending, but the police want to verify the vaccination records for the dog. The owner is described as a black male, between 35 and 40 years old. He was walking the dog on Jackson Street nearby the Salvation Army when the dog nipped the child on the leg.

WBTA's Dan Fischer tells us that eligible Genesee County homeowners should expect to soon see a check from the state. The Middle Class STAR rebate checks start going out this week, and the county is at the top of the list. Rebate amounts should average about $445 for those whose household income is less than $90,000. Follow the link to find out more, to see if you should be expecting a check and find out when it's coming.

In other news, a 30-year-old man and a 38-year-old woman driving separately on Route 290 in Tonawanda were killed when their cars collided early Sunday morning. No cause of the crash has yet been determined. Tonawanda News reports that no names have been released by the police, but autopsies are scheduled for today and the police investigation into the crash continues.

Some 150 residents and officials of the town of Alabama got together last night to talk about a proposal that would allow a 1,300-acre manufacturing site to move into town at the intersection of Route 77 and Judge Road, according to WBTA's Chad Zambito. It seems no specific manufacturer has yet been named, though a feasibility study shows that a solar panel or flat display manufacturer might be the best fit. Nothing will get done, however, without state funding and the sanction of the town. Word is that any such large-scale manufacturer could bring "thousands" of jobs to the area.

That brings up a serious question: What would thousands of jobs, which I interpret to mean thousands of new people, mean for a town that hasn't even cracked the 2,000 mark in population? Doesn't that mean a new town? Also, how does that work? Recruiting for thousands of jobs? Are there stipulations that jobs must first come from the region? How is that possible? What other benefit would such a manufacturer have for a rural community? Would this mean the transition to more suburban living in Alabama?

Lots of questions here. Don't know if the Alabamans are already asking or not. Anyone know?

In other news, we reported yesterday on an article from the Daily News about the shady goings-on at a pair of area Pizza Hut restaurants. Today, the official word is out: Pizza Hut restaurants in Albion, Amherst, Medina, Alden, East Aurora, Grand Island and Aurora have all been closed. Zambito reports that the owners cite poor performance as the reason for closing the shops—why else would they, right—and say that they will open new locations "under the Wing Street Chicken Theme," whatever the heck that means.

WBTA's Chad Zambito tells us about a new Web site for state residents that allows anyone with the inclination to search out how much their municipality is spending, in real dollars. The site is called Open Book New York, and it was launched and will be maintained by the state Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli. Really, folks, it's this easy:

Zambito did us the favor searching the city of Batavia. Spending for the city was $24 million in 2006, while $5.5 million of that went to public safety. You can look at figures as far back as 1996, but no later than 2006, at least for the time being.

Genesee County legislators last night approved a grant application to study a shared jail facility with Orleans County, according to WBTA's Dan Fischer. Grant funds could total $50,000 for the study, and local taxpayers shouldn't have to pay more than $2,300. Also approved at last night's meeting: the purchase of Finn, a $7,000, 3-year-old, Czechoslovakian German Shepherd who will join the Sheriff's Department as their newest K-9 recruit. Finn's presence means that the current K-9, 10-year-old Jay, can finally start to phase into retirement.

Fischer reports some not-so-good news about the county's ambulance service. It's said that the city of Batavia is charging fees to the surrounding municipalities for providing coverage all over the county. Some towns—Darien and Pembroke are named—have complained that "there have been instances where the city has failed to show up for an emergency call," according to Fischer.

WBTA's Dan Fischer reports this morning that "faulty Halloween decorations" may have caused the fire that ripped through a South Byron home yesterday morning. Fire officials said yesterday that the home may be a total loss, estimating the damage at more than $50,000 already. No one was home at the time of the blaze at the property owned by Anthony Frongetta. A pet dog died in the fire.

WBTA's Dan Fischer spoke with the daughter of Robert Kirkup this morning following Kirkup's sentencing of 5 to 15 years in prison for killing his wife in Genesee County during a camping trip 16 years ago. Lawler asked the court to give her father the maximum sentence. You can hear why daughter Susan Lawler suspected all along that her father was responsible for the death of her mother, Janet Kirkup. Listen to the audio clip here.

Kirkup told the court that he regretted choking his wife to death and then burying her in a shallow grave in the town of Darien, which has not yet been found.

Kirkup was transferred to Genesee County in June following the resurrection of the investigation by a cold case team from California, where Kirkup was then located. In court on August 12, Kirkup said that he killed his wife in self defense.

Dan Fischer reports:

Susan Lawler said she will now turn her attention to finding her mother’s remains. Kirkup had three daughters. Susan was the only one to speak at this morning’s sentencing. His oldest daughter submitted a letter to the court supporting her father.

In other news, a house fire in South Byron required the efforts of six fire crews to battle the blaze that was still burning at noon today. No injuries were yet reported, according to Dan Fischer. Byron, South Byron, Bergen, Elba, Stafford and Le Roy departments responded to the fire at East Main Road at the corner of Mechanic Street.

Motorists dropping off students at Batavia High School are urged not to use the central bus loop, which is for buses only, according to WBTA's Dan Fischer. There are safety concerns in allowing buses and passenger vehicles in the same area. If you are picking up or dropping off students, please use the "pick-up circle" near the band room.

City Council will meet tonight at 7:00pm in the Council chambers at City Hall.

Two children died in a house fire Sunday in the village of Fredonia. More details can be found in an article from the Jamestown Post-Journal.

In Medina, a school teacher was arrested and charged with official misconduct. Scott Ballard, 33, is accused of initiating relationships with two of his former students. More details can be found in an article from the Lockport Union-Sun & Journal.

It's that time of year, folks. Time to switch on the heat in the car for the morning commute. Time to dust off the coats and scarves. As chilly as it may have been in Genesee and Monroe counties this morning, it was much more so down in Wyoming, Cattaraugus and Allegany. Those three counties were under a freeze warning issued by the National Weather Service out of Buffalo this morning, according to WBTA's Wayne Fuller. That could be dire news for some vegetable growers. We'll have to wait and see.

In contrast to the cautious words of calm issued by an Oxford-educated economist who stopped by Batavia earlier this week to tell folks that it just "doesn't feel like an honest-to-goodness recession," unemployment numbers were reported as ever on the rise statewide. Genesee County is up more than a percentage point over this time last year: from 3.7 percent last August to 4.7 percent this year. Orleans County climbed from 5.1 to 7.1 percent. So, when does it start to feel like a recession? Is it when Orleans County can say that one in ten of its residents doesn't have a job?

In addition to the increase in unemployment, Fuller reports that job growth is either stagnant or shrinking. ...Maybe recession just isn't the right word, then. Can anyone else think up some words to describe what this feels like? Anyone?

Also (reported again on WBTA), the state looks to fare far worse than was initially suspected following the recent bankruptcies and bailouts on Wall Street. Gov. David Paterson envisaged a worst-case scenario of 30,000 jobs lost and a loss of $1 billion in revenue for the state. State officials now expect to lose 40,000 jobs and $3 billion in revenue over the next two years.

Oh. Almost forgot to mention... the price for a bus or train ride on the Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority is going up a quarter.