Hit-and-run accident

Hit-and-run accident
YOUNGSTOWN -- Police say Daniel Sincel, 49, of Cortland Avenue, Campbell, was involved in a hit-and-run accident on Stiles Avenue at 8:55 p.m. Wednesday, then continued into Hubbard.
In Youngstown, he faces a charge of hit and run after a 51-year-old Youngstown woman was struck.
Hubbard city police have charged him with driving under the influence after finding him sitting in his vehicle on Westview Avenue there.
He is due in Girard Municipal Court Wednesday on that charge.
Silo fire evacuation over
HARTFORD -- State Route 7 reopened Wednesday morning and residents who had been evacuated from their homes were allowed to return after a silo fire.
The fire, in a silo on a Route 7 farm, was caused by spontaneous combustion, said assistant fire chief Mark Mennor.
"The silo is going to continue to burn, and it will be monitored by the fire department," Mennor said.
He said the chances of an explosion are low.
MVSD contract extension
MINERAL RIDGE -- A contract between employees and the Mahoning Valley Sanitary District has been extended 30 days.
MVSD directors agreed Wednesday to continue the contract with 35 members of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 1649 to finalize a new pact.
The sides have agreed on a pact but are waiting for it to be typed and signed.
Directors also assigned the duties of retiring chief engineer David Tabak to two other employees.
Edward McCormick, chief of operations, will serve as designated operator in charge, while John Zackasee, supervisor of purification, will serve as administrator.
Neither will receive additional pay for the extra duties.
Tabak will retire from the plant at the end of this week.
Electrical box stolen
NILES -- Police are investigating the theft of a black box used to monitor electrical problems from an apartment complex on the city's South Side.
The box, valued at $6,200 and owned by Progressive Electric on Warren Avenue, was being used in a utility room at Bel Air Apartments on Indiana Avenue. It was taken early Sunday morning.
A woman in a neighboring apartment saw the box outside her door and went to call police. The box was gone by the time an officer arrived.
Help Hotline training
YOUNGSTOWN -- Help Hotline Crisis Center is offering free training classes for people interested in volunteering for the 24-hour service.
The classes meet from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. for six consecutive Saturdays, beginning Oct. 4.
Volunteers are asked to make a six-month commitment. Call (330) 747-2696.
Neshannock Road closed
HERMITAGE, Pa. -- Neshannock Road was closed this morning from U.S. Route 62 to Virginia Road as a Pennsylvania Department of Transportation crew replaced a pipe.
The road was to reopen about 2 p.m.
Microburst confirmed
NEW CASTLE, Pa. -- The National Weather Service has confirmed that a microburst with winds estimated at 70 mph came through Lawrence County on Tuesday.
The microburst was about 3/4 of a mile wide and extended for about six miles from the Ohio border north of Hillsville through Mahoning and Union townships.
Microbursts are strong winds near the ground that produce a swath of damage less than 2.5 miles wide.
The hardest hit area Tuesday was Mahoning Township with a large number of uprooted, toppled trees.
Several trees fell on houses, and one roof was partly destroyed, according to the National Weather Service.
Telephone and power lines were down.
About 800 homes were without power until about 8 p.m. Wednesday, according to Penn Power officials.
Charter change proposals
YOUNGSTOWN -- City council has approved placing six proposed charter changes before voters in November.
The proposed changes are: requiring the mayor to be a resident and an elector for the past five years; lowering the minimum age of council members from 25 to 21; switching the pay for the mayor, law director and finance director from once a month to biweekly; allowing council or its committees to meet in executive session as allowed by state law; adding gender references in the charter for women instead of only references for men; and removing language about property at Lake Milton the city no longer owns.
Council also authorized the board of control Wednesday to negotiate a loan of up to $3 million for Anthony's on the River for a proposed expansion of the dining and entertainment areas.