Photo of the Day

The endless storms gave me an opportunity to try and capture some lightning shots...this is facing southeast from Emporium

TEMPORARY SIGNALS SET FOR EMPORIUM BRIDGE WORK

4/26/2011

Cameron County

Temporary Signals Set for Emporium Bridge Work

Clearfield – Temporary signals are now in place for repair work on a bridge
along Route 3001(Broad Street) in Emporium. The signals have been placed in
advance of the repair work. The signals will remain covered until crews are
mobilized for the repair work.

PennDOT expects that work to happen later this spring. The bridge spans the Driftwood Branch of the Sinnemahoning, just south of Emporium.

During the repair work, the signals will regulate traffic, allowing for an
alternating, traffic pattern across the bridge. Bridgework will include
rocker bearing repair and some painting.

This work is part of a $4.4 million bridge preservation contract for 21 bridges in three counties (9 in Potter County,1 in Cameron County and 11 in Clearfield County).

Glenn O. Hawbaker Inc. of State College is the contractor for this work.

Police Handcuff Man Videotaping Investigation From His Own Home

For those of you that know me, you know that I have been an advocate for photographer's rights. I have long thought that the "since 9/11" excuse is being used to trample the rights of the average citizen. I will be posting a series of articles and incidents that seem to show my point




In a blatant disregard for a man's First and Fourth Amendment rights, Vallejo (California) police walked on a man's property as he was videotaping a police investigation from his garage and attempted to confiscate his cell phone camera "as evidence."

Lonnel Duchine instead handed the phone to a friend who walked inside the house with it.

Vallejo police officer Scott Yales handcuffed Duchine and charged him with interfering with a police officer in the performance of his duties.

Duchine ended up posting the video on Youtube (raw video here) and a local TV news station did a segment on the arrest as well.

Now police are backtracking from the arrest, saying they will most llkely not proceed with charges against Duchine.

On the surface of things, we do have some concerns about what we saw," Vallejo police spokesman Jeff Bassett told ABC7. "We are currently conducting an internal inquiry into the incident. We're prepared to take appropriate or collective action if necessary."

Duchine was videotaping police detaining a group of juvenile burglary suspects at gunpoint. The juveniles were released when it was determined they did not commit the crime.

Pennsyvlania State Trooper Forces Man To Delete Photos

A Pennsylvania man was forced to delete his images after he took pictures of a nuclear power plant from a public road.
Chris Best had stopped his SUV on the side of the road to take the pictures of a PPL plant in Salem Township last month. He walked a few feet from his car before a security guard pulled up in a car on the other side of the fence and yelled at him to stop taking photos.
The security guard then ordered him to stay put while he called police.
A Pennsylvania state trooper pulled up to the scene and began questioning Best, his wife, two kids and mother-in-law, writing down their names and dates of births.
The cop allowed him to drive off, but soon pulled him over and ordered him to delete the photos, stating that PPL insisted upon this.....MORE

FracTracker: PA Marcellus Shale Violations by Operator and Coun...

FracTracker: PA Marcellus Shale Violations by Operator and Coun...: "Puddles in the driveway of a hydraulic fracturing chemical storage facility. According to photographer J. Trallo, the red fluid has a stron..."

Photo of the Day

First day of trout season in Hicks Run....lost interest in fishing that day but found this scene intriguing

Photo of the Day

This cardinal has taken to my tree in search of love and home.

US Pizza Team wins "Best in the World"

World's No. 1 Pizza Team Announced in Salsomaggiore, Italy04/14/2011 Salsomaggiore, Italy (April 13, 2011) – The U.S. Pizza Team walked away victorious from the 20th World Championship of Pizza and 2nd Olimpizza in Salsomaggiore, Italy, today as they were presented with the coveted trophy for Team Freestyle Acrobatics, making the U.S. Pizza Team the No. 1 Pizza Team in the world. Team members are listed below along with all of the events they entered: Dave Smith, II, Smith’s Pizza Palace Plus, Emporium, PA - Pizza Teglia (pan pizza) - Pizza a Due (pizza for two) - Pizza Celiachia (gluten-free pizza) - Heinz Beck Trophy - Fastest Pizza - Largest Pizza - Team Freestyle Acrobatics Additional team members who participated in the team acrobatics performance included Chris Green, Caroline Felker and Missy Green from Oxford, MS U.S. Pizza Team coach Dave Smith, II; team coordinator Holly Henning; PMQ publisher Steve Green; co-publisher Linda Green and PMQ editor-in-chief Liz Barrett were all in attendance to cheer on the team and motivate them toward a victory. The team’s travel to Italy for competition was made possible with the help of U.S. Pizza Team sponsors: Pizzaware, Gordon Food Service, California Milk Advisory Board, Paradise Tomato Kitchens, Pizza.com, La Nova, Tom Sawyer Gluten Free Products, Pizza Packet, Cheney Brothers, Liguria, Burn Cream MD, Fontanini Italian Meats and Sausages, Univex, Vin DiVino, Bag Solutions, Marsal & Sons, DeIorio’s and Ruxter. For more information, photos and/or video footage of individual team members and/or the entire U.S. Pizza Team, visit USPizzaTeam.com and PizzaTV.com, or contact Holly Henning at holly@uspizzateam.com or (662) 234-5481, ext. 129.

GE Transportation reports increase in production demand

Recently, the company 'exhausted its recall list and hired more than 100 additional production workers.' GE Transportation has announced that due to increasing production demands, it will hire around 100 extra workers at its manufacturing plant in Erie, Pennsylvania. The announcement comes a few months after the company recalled 800 staff who had been affected by the ‘layoffs’ in early 2009. Recently, the company ‘exhausted its recall list and hired more than 100 additional production workers.’ Production workers help GE Transportation address increased demand for locomotives, drive systems for mining trucks, drill motors and other transportation-related products. “We are growing our business in Erie to help our customers succeed in North America and around the world,” said Lorenzo Simonelli, President and CEO of GE Transportation. “Competition is fierce. We need to bring our A-game every day to maintain our position as the freight locomotive builder of choice for railroads worldwide.” GE Transportation recently announced plans to expand its manufacturing footprint in the United States to complement its operations in Erie. Currently, the company is evaluating competitive GE and non-GE U.S. sites to manufacture transportation equipment in the future. By the end of this year, GE Transportation will have invested more than $600 million in its technology leadership and product innovation worldwide since 2010.

Fugitive Caught

Salamanca Jacob M. Kamats, 22, of 152 Kent Blvd., Salamanca, was charged with being a fugitive from justice Friday at 4 p.m. He was wanted on a bench warrant out of Cameron County, Pa. He was processed, arraigned and sent to the Cattaraugus County Jail with no bail and is scheduled to appear in Cattaraugus County Court today. LINK

All too cozy

Remember the Marcellus Shale? It's still out there - or, rather, under there - with "there" being a good portion of the state. And moves continue to make Pennsylvania's government a near-wholly-owned subsidiary of the industry that is working to remove natural gas from that shale at significant profit. We know about the political contributions made by the industry to Gov. Tom Corbett. We know industry insiders are populating the supposed "oversight" boards. We know there is resistance to any form of state-levied gas-extraction tax. All should be already enough to make all Pennsylvanians, and particularly those living in the extraction zone and downsteam, nervous. A rush to profit with tame politicians bought and paid for. Now it gets worse. Leaked email from the state Department of Environmental Protection has directed inspectors policing Marcellus Shale activities now must receive prior approval from high-level superiors (read that political employees beholden to the industry the inspectors need to police) before taking any kind of enforcement action. read MORE

Kent State Baseball's Lyon Named MAC Male Scholar Athlete of the Week

http://www.kentstatesports.com/sports/bsb/2010-11/releases/20110402vq34z4 CLEVELAND -- Kent State junior catcher David Lyon (Emporium, Pa.) has been named the Mid-American Conference Male Scholar Athlete of the Week, as announced by the conference office Friday (April 1). Lyon, a sports administration major carrying a 3.73 grade point average, finished a spectacular three-game stretch in grand fashion in Kent State's Mid-American Conference and home opening series against Toledo last weekend (March 25-27) at Olga A. Mural Field at Schoonover Stadium. The junior catcher went 2-for-3 with four RBIs and a run scored – including a three-run home run over the right field wall in the bottom of the second in Kent State's 8-2 victory over the Rockets last Sunday (March 27). Lyon finished the series batting a whopping .778 with seven hits – including two doubles and a homer – with six RBIs and a run scored. He posted a slugging percentage of 1.333 and an on-base percentage of .818 as the Golden Flashes took two of three games in the set. Lyon is the second Kent State student-athlete to earn MAC Scholar Athlete of the Week for the 2010-11 academic year. Junior track & field student-athlete Diana Dumitrescu (Campulung Arges, Romania) earned the distinction on March 4. The MAC Scholar Athlete of the Week honor is presented to a MAC male and female student-athlete who has a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or better and performs well during the week's competition. The winners are selected by a group of the conference's faculty athletic representatives.

2011 CC Canoe and Kayak Classic a success!

Over 200 boats entered the frigid water to compete in this year's event. Lots of photos at www.camconative.com