Two villages in Ramapo have new representatives on their boards supported by the Orthodox Jewish and Hasidic community, according to unofficial results cited by the Journal News. Unofficial tallies in contested races had Pomona Trustee Mendy Lasker and newcomer Mark Greenberg easily defeat former Mayor Brett Yagel and former Trustee Nicholas Wilson. In Airmont, newcomers Shimon Moses and Isaac Weiss topped Andrew Dispensa and Jennifer Groff.
FDNY Firefighter from Pearl River Loses Battle with 9/11-related Illness
A Rockland FDNY firefighter has lost his battle with 9/11-related illness. Captain Frank Portelle of Engine Company 50 died Saturday. The Pearl River resident began his career at Engine 228 in Brooklyn. He’ll be buried in a private ceremony at St. Anthony’s Church in Nanuet on Monday. He was 51 years old.
Area Police Departments Finalizing Draft Reports for State’s Reform Project
Area Police Departments are preparing for some changes after reviewing current policies for the governor’s New York State Police Reform and Reinvention Collaborative. The executive order came down from the governor following the George Floyd killing in Minnesota last year. Rockland County Sheriff Lou Falco says a group of people from various corners of the county helped craft a report several hundreds of pages long outlining recommended changes for police departments…
Other Rockland town and village police departments have been posting their own draft reports on their websites. Stony Point supervisor Jim Monaghan says his police department got input from volunteers from all over town…
Their report will be presented to the town board March 23rd. Over in Ramapo, supervisor Michael Specht says their review group included a man who had had a negative experience with Ramapo’s Police Department…
Final reports are due to the state on April first. Every locality must adopt a plan for reform in order to get state funding.
Rockland Pays Tribute to COVID Victims in Interfaith Ceremony in New City, State Lawmakers Continue Push for County Vaccination Center
Rockland County paid tribute to those lost to the COVID-19 pandemic in an interfaith candlelight vigil yesterday in New City. Pastor Brandon McLauchlin of the St. Charles AME Zion Church in Sparkill…
And that was Rabbi Yisroel Kahan of the Oizrim Jewish Council and Rockland County Human Rights Commission, and Reverend Kathryn Rivera Torea of the Central Presbyterian Church in Haverstraw.
Rockland lawmakers continue their push for a Rockland-based state vaccination center, the last three opened up on Long Island. Stony Point and Orange County assemblyman Colin Schmitt says the addition of the one-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine should make local distribution easier…
COVID-19 by the numbers now, here in Rockland, we lost two more to COVID, the total is 907. We’ve got 36 hospitalized confirmed with coronavirus, and 1,917 active cases. Our total case count is 41,175, that’s 187 more than Tuesday.
Monsey Man Charged with DWI After High-Speed Chase on PIP
A Monsey man faces nine separate charges after reportedly driving while intoxicated on the Palisades Parkway at over a hundred miles an hour. New York State Police say 26 year-old Baruch Ungar was spotted late Sunday night driving a 2020 Honda Civic in Orangetown and was clocked at 101 miles per hour. Police say he got off the Parkway but was stopped near Route 59 and Smith Street in Nanuet. He was taken into custody and determined to have a blood alcohol content of 0.13%. He was released on an appearance ticket and is due in the Town of Orangetown Court next month.