Boy dies of strep throat

Boy dies of strep throat
PERRYOPOLIS, Pa. (AP) -- A Fayette County first-grader died of strep throat, not meningitis, as state health department officials initially feared.
The boy attended Central Elementary School in the Frazier School District and died Tuesday. Health-department officials didn't identify the boy.
Group A streptococcus, the infection that killed the boy, occurs about 10 million times each year in the United States but rarely causes severe or life-threatening symptoms, according to the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.
Frazier schools Superintendent Frederick Smeigh released a statement explaining that school officials sanitized the building after the initial concerns of meningitis were raised.
Meningitis is a swelling of the brain and spinal cord. Bacterial meningitis, the more severe type, is treated with antibiotics; viral meningitis has no specific treatment.
Parents don't need to take precautions because Group A strep is not a public health threat, state health department officials said.
Mountain lion sightings
MONACA, Pa. (AP) -- After people reported four sightings in five days, a state wildlife official said he thinks a mountain lion is loose in Beaver County.
Conservation officer Douglas Carney said the wild cat has been described as 6- to 7-feet long.
Melting snow made tracking the animal difficult, but Carney said Wednesday that the animal appeared to be heading north from New Brighton, where it was seen Tuesday.
A mountain lion has also been seen in Economy, Center Township and near the border of Freedom and Rochester.
Mountain lions are not native to the area, leading officials to believe the animal is privately owned and was released or escaped.
DUI charge in crash
ELLWOOD CITY, Pa. -- A city man was arrested after a crash that injured three people. Police said Darryl Yanssens, 23, of 12th Street Extension, was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol and reckless driving. Police said Yanssens was traveling east on Line Avenue at 9:37 p.m. Tuesday when he crashed his 2002 Chevrolet Cavalier into a stopped 2003 Chevrolet at 131 Line Avenue driven by Patricia Ferguson. Ferguson, 62, of Bridge Street was letting someone out of her car. She was pushed forward about 90 feet. The crash forced Yanssens' car to spin clockwise into oncoming traffic and crash into a 1996 Ford F150 truck driven by David Allan Hamilton, 31, of California Avenue, police said. All three drivers were treated at Ellwood City Hospital. Police said they released Yanssens pending a summons.
Watershed group to meet
JAMESTOWN, Pa. -- The Penn Ohio Watershed Association is holding their monthly meeting from 9 to 11 a.m. Wednesday at the Ranger Station. Topics will include an upcoming teachers workshop on Pennsylvania songbirds and the annual Pymatuning Lake Clean-up Day.
Meetings are open to all who are interested. For more information, call (330) 637-2056. For directions to the Ranger Station, call (724) 932-3142.
Reservations for pavilions
NEW CASTLE -- Union Township residents may reserve pavilions at Scotland Meadows Park for the summer season beginning at 8 a.m. March 20 at the Municipal Building. Cost is $35. Only township residents may make reservations the first week. After that, reservations will be opened to nonresidents.
Trumbull Co. spelling bee
CHAMPION -- Abbie Rhine, a pupil at St. Patrick School, Hubbard, won first place in the Trumbull County Educational Service Center spelling bee held Wednesday at Champion High School. The annual event is co-sponsored by the ESC and the Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber.
The other pupils in the top 10 were: Bethany Schmucker, Southington Middle School, second; Brittany Yeager, Joseph Badger Middle School, Kinsman, third; David Barnes, Lakeview Middle School, Cortland, fourth; Kerstyn Motter, Reed Middle School, Hubbard, fifth; Michael Benich, Lakeview High School, Cortland, sixth; Bradley Baker, Queen of Peace School, seventh; Hannah Jefferson, Gustavus Elementary, eighth; Joey Profanchik, Jackson Elementary, Niles, ninth; and Manish Mehta, Howland Middle School, 10th.