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Saturday February 4 2012

By NewsTalk 570 WKBN 

The effect of widespread Air Force cuts at the Youngstown Air Reserve station are minimal. The Vienna base will lose 6 C-130 H2 aircraft, gaining 4 of the next-generation H2.5 instead. Pittsburgh's 911th Airlift Wing is gone in the cutbacks. Overall, 10,000 jobs will be lost.

The getaway driver in the botched Galaxy Seafood robbery got 28 years to life for his role in the killing of an accomplice. Nathaniel Dumas was sentenced yesterday.

It's been a busy week for HazMat crews in Trumbull County, taking down three meth labs in Cortland, Fowler Township and Braceville Township. 36-year-old Carlos Cowger was arrrested on Braceville-Robinson Road yesterday.

The annual spaghetti dinner to benefit the Lena-Mason-Christian-Fund is today. It's from 11 til 5 at the Eagles Hall in Girard. Organizer Cindy Michael says the fund gave out 400 filled bookbags to school kids last fall. Lena Cross and her two children were killed in their Girard home back in 2005.

The Volunteer Tax Assistance season gets underway today with Super "Saturday". You can get help doing your taxes from 10AM til 2PM at MYCAP on East Federal Street and at YSU's Williamson Hall. 15 other area locations will be available for tax help after today. Call 211 for more info.

African-American History Month at YSU kicks off with the annual "African Marketplace". It's a free event: from noon til 6 today in the Chestnut Room of Kilcawley Center. Since 1972, the marketplace has featured African art, clothing and other hard to find objects.

It's Super Bowl weekend: The state patrol and other police agencies say if you're having a party tomorrow, make it safe. And don't let any of your partygoers drive home drunk. One recommendation: urge a drunken guest to stay overnight at your home.

Ohio ranks 7th in the nation for collisions involving trains. Operation Lifesaver wants you to write a 30-second radio message aimed at preventing rail tragedies. Here's a link to the contest; there are prizes. The Youngstown region ranks 6th in the state for train incidents.

Shocking stats from a new drug prevention survey. It shows over 21% of Ohio high school seniors admit using a prescription drug for the purpose of getting high. Every year since 2007, more Ohioans die from drug overdoses than from car crashes. Call 855-DRUGFREE, 800-788-7254 or go to www.drugfree.org

If you haven't applied for a 2012 Mahoning County dog license, it's time to do it now. As of February 1st, there's a $15 penalty tacked onto the $15 annual fee. Dog warden Matt Ditchey says if your dog gets lost, the tag helps get the animal back. You can also be cited and taken to court for not licensing your dog. Here's a link to the application for a dog license.

Natural gas represents an energy-independence opportunity for the US and an economic opportunity for this area. That from America's Natural Gas Alliance which represents 40% of onshore US producers. The Alliance says their companies disclose the chemicals used in the process; here's a link to that registry.

The new annual real estate tax amounts for Mahoning County can now be viewed at the auditor's website. The amounts are changing in part due to the recent reappraisal of properties. Appraisors are available at Oakhill beginning Monday February 6th 8am to 4:30pm to explain all that: Here's the schedule of days: Feb 10, 13, 15, 17, 22, 24, 27, 29, March 2, 5, 7, 9, 12, 14, 16, 19, 21, 23, 26, 28, 30th. Tax bills will be mailed next week.

Accidental drug overdoses have passed car crashes and suicide as the leading cause of injury-death in Ohio. Most of the time the drugs are opiates. Local agencies like the Trumbull Mental Health and Recovery Board are taking part in the statewide "Don't Get Me Started" campaign. Director April Caraway says Trumbull County is 8th in the state for deaths due to opiate abuse.

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