ROADS OPENED AGAIN
Vauxhall Street Extension and Cross Road in Waterford are re-opened to traffic this evening, after today’s windy weather caused downed trees and power lines. Vauxhall Street Extension between Hunts Brook Road and the Montville town line was closed as of 8 AM, while police also shut down a portion of Cross Road about a couple of hours later. Traffic signals on Parkway North and South, as well as Route 85 were out. More than 500 Eversource Energy customers in the town were without power. Nearly all of them are back on-line.
DOG MAULING CO-DEFENDANT TO PAY FINE
The co-defendant in the Plainfield dog mauling case is expected to plead “no contest” in court next month and pay a fine. 31-year old Corey Beakey doesn’t admit guilt under the plea, but also doesn’t dispute the charges. Authorities say Beakey was in charge of the Rottweiler dogs that seriously attacked a home health care aide in December, 2014 in the home of Beakey’s then-girlfriend Jenna Allen. Beakey is due back in court October 3rd, when he’s expected to pay a 115-dollar fine. Allen is serving a 60-day prison sentence for her role in the attack. The dogs were euthanized.
NL MAN PLEADS GUILTY TO PROVIDING HEROIN
A guilty plea Wednesday from a New London man who admits providing fentanyl-laced heroin that led to the overdose deaths of two women in the local area in May of last year. 30-year old Nestor “Beans” Santana will serve between five and 40 years in prison when he’s sentenced in Federal Court in Hartford December 13th. The U-S Attorney’s Office in Connecticut says Santana provided the drug to dealers in the area that caused the death of 17-year old Olivia Roark of Griswold, and an unidentified 34-year old woman in Montville.
GRANTS FOR UCFS
Norwich-based United Community and Family Services has received a three-year federal grant to help fight the opioid crisis in the area. The 175-thousand dollar award is part of more than 200-million dollars being distributed to over 1-thousand health care centers across the U-S by the Department of Health and Human Services to deal with the opioid abuse problem. U-C-F-S says it will combine its grant money with an 85-thousand dollar grant from the C-V-S Health Foundation to hire a licensed clinical social worker and recovery coach to its staff, and to purchase a cell phone app to track prescription drug use.
GNACC SAYS NO TO MGM PLAN
MGM’S plans to build a Bridgeport casino are getting a bad review from the Greater Norwich Area Chamber of Commerce. Chairman of the Board of Directors Chris Jewell says the board thinks the plan would jeopardize the Eastern Connecticut job market, adversely affecting the local economy. Jewell says the project would also lead to the loss of hundreds of millions of dollars in annual slot revenue payments to the state from the Mashantucket-Pequot and Mohegan Tribes. Both tribes are members of the Chamber. MGM officials have announced plans to build a casino complex in the Steelpointe Harbor area of Bridgeport. It would need state legislative approval.
EAST LYME WELL OFF-LINE
A municipal water well in East Lyme has been taken off-line, after it was determined water entering the system from there prior to being disinfected was contaminated with e-coli. Public Works officials says samples taken within the distribution system and from other ground water sources indicate no contamination and the water is safe to drink. The well had supplied water to the Lillie Haynes and Middle Schools, and precautionary measures, including a boil-water order, had been put in place there, until it was determined the water was safe to drink. Officials continue to monitor the situation.
GOV’S NAME TO BE TAKEN OFF RI CONSTRUCTION SIGNS
NEWPORT, R.I. (AP) – Rhode Island transportation officials say new construction accountability signs will not include Gov. Gina Raimondo’s name. The change comes after Portsmouth resident John Vitkevich questioned whether the signs bearing the Democratic governor’s name violated Federal Highway Administration design standards. The signs, which are located along state roads and highways, display when a project will be complete and if the project is over budget. In an email to the Newport Daily News, a Department of Transportation spokesman says the change came after consultation with the highway administration. The administration has not said whether the signs violated policy. The state transportation spokesman says existing signs with the governor’s name will not be changed.
