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August 8, 2009
A Denton Publication
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Political tech
Are you there?
Coupon Queen
Murphy hosts first successful Teletownhall meeting.
Communication issues between dispatchers and EMS.
Jill Cataldo takes time to respond to some reader e-mail.
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Garbage can North Country Life Flight focus purchases of woman’s fundraising campaign draw criticism By Jeremiah Papineau jeremiah@denpubs.com
By Chris Morris denpubs@denpubs.com
SARANAC LAKE — The village of Saranac Lake recently purchased garbage cans, and the cost of those items is drawing scrutiny. Mayor Tom Michael confirmed last week that the village used an expiring state-funded grant to purchase the cans. They were purchased at a rate of $400 per can. 40 of the approximately 30-gallon cans were purchased for a total of $16,000. “The time on the grant was expiring and we had to use it,” Michael said. Trustee Jeff Branch said it was his month to do vouchers and approve bill payments. He found the bill for the garbage cans, which were ordered, received and placed without any discussion by the board. Village Manager Marty Murphy approved the purchase. “The mayor and other trustees tried to justify the expenditure and did not seem to have a problem paying over $400 per garbage can,” Branch said. According to Branch, one trustee said the village shopped around and found that the purchasing cost was accurate. “My response was that the cans only cost that much if someone is willing to pay that much,” Branch said. The village did not spend any of its own funds on the purchases, Michael noted.
CChuck Pandolph, chief flight nurse for North Country Life Flight, demonstrates how a patient would be cared for during a medevac flight, in the simulation shown above. A $20,000 fundraising campaign is under way to help North Country Life Flight continue its mission of providing its services at no cost to patients.
See CANS, page 8
Photo submitted by Mary Jane Connors
SARANAC LAKE — Janice D. Washburn considers herself lucky to be alive. It was four years ago when the now 55-year-old Keeseville resident was returning to work from her lunch break and noticed something wasn't quite right. "I started to feel dizzy," Washburn recalled. "I thought I was having a stroke." Though her memory of that day is still fuzzy, Washburn said she remembers being taken by ambulance to CVPH Medical Center, just minutes away from her office. Upon further evaluation, it was found she had a ruptured brain aneurysm and doctors immediately ordered her to be airlifted to Fletcher Allen Healthcare in Burlington, Vt. — a trip that would have taken much longer by ambulance, said Washburn. "I only suffered mild disabilities because of how quickly they got me to Burlington," she said. Though she lost hearing in one ear and occasionally suffers from dizziness, improper balance and short-term
memory loss, Washburn said her condition could have been a lot worse if not for North Country Life Flight, the nonprofit medevac service which flew her to Fletcher Allen. "My head was filling up with blood. If I would have had to ride by ambulance all the way [to Burlington], there would've been even more damage,” Washburn said. “My husband and I would even say Life Flight saved my life." About a year after her incident — a year spent recovering from her aneurysm — Washburn was reviewing her medical bills from that time and realized something was missing. "I started getting ambulance bills but I noticed there was no bill for the helicopter," she said. Upon further research, Washburn learned North Country Life Flight is an organization which provides its services at no cost to its patients. "That was just astounding to me," she said. Washburn, feeling compelled to help North Country Life Flight continue its mission, then began
See LIFE FLIGHT, page 8
Rehab slated for Late blight destroying crops throughout region ‘Crusher’ boat launch By Marcia Bierce
denpubs@denpubs.com
By Jon Alexander denpubs@denpubs.com TUPPER LAKE — The state Department of Environmental Conservation will be rehabbing the “Crusher” boat launch on the Raquette River this fall with an emphasis on safety and low environmental impact. DEC spokesman Dave Winchell says the launch has been deteriorating to a point where it is unsafe for boaters. “The biggest problem is that it was deteriorating to the point where there was some real safety issues with the people that were using it, so that was the main onus,” he said. Since the launch needs to be reworked, DEC is taking the opportunity to decrease the environmental impact of the site. “Instead of vertical walls along the shoreline, there is going to be sloped walls that still will protect the bank from erosion, but it will still create a more natural shoreline,” he said. “It will allow wildlife, such as amphibians and other animals to regress and egress from the water.” Work is scheduled to begin at the site in mid-September and continue throughout the winter. DEC hopes to have the project finished before next spring. The crusher launch is the end-point for the Adirondack Canoe Classic race, and is a favorite site for fisherman, canoeists and hunters alike. DEC is telling hunters of the area that an alternate access site will be identified, as construction will be ongoing throughout big game season.
Most gardening aficionados are well versed in how a plant disease known as late blight can devastate crops — most notably tomato and potato plants. This summer, however, has been near catastrophic for local growers as it was in the 1850’s when the same blight caused the Irish potato famine. Late blight is a plant disease that attacks both potatoes and tomatoes. It is caused by a fungal pathogen that survives from one season to the next in infected tubers and the disease favors wet weather. This summer, however, has been near catastrophic for local growers as it was in the 1850’s when the same blight caused the Irish potato famine. The disease this year was carried north on the east coast and west to Ohio on plants that were shipped to large box stores from a warehouse in the south. William and Sandra Murphy of Willsboro were especially hard hit. They have a hobby-sized green house and they start all of their plants from seed, using soil that they purchase from Griffin’s Greenhouse. The
See BLIGHT, page 9
Late blight, pictured above on tomato plants, is destroying most, if not all of the local tomato and potato crops this growing season. Experts say they haven’t seen an outbreak this bad in decades.