Scout Resting Comfortably On The 22nd Floor

Last time. I promise. After today I will never mention the Mayor's dog again. The story's over. Today the Ohio Building Authority basically said that because the City of Toledo has leased the 22nd floor, the dog can stay. Why? Because, the Mayor is the head of the city and he can do what he wants.

Look, I know this isn't a hard investigation. It was never meant to be. I think the silly music in the original story gave that away. What the first story was meant to do was look into what could be considered an abuse of power. Should the Mayor bring his pet and companion to work? Should other people be walking the dog for him? The follow up story posed the question (though it was never answered),"Is it appropriate for city employees to be fighting Scout's legal battle with the OBA for the mayor? I think all are valid questions and that's why we did the stories.

Now that a decision has been reached, the story's over. I'll leave it with this...

Throughout my time working on this story with Ronnie, we were told repeatedly by Brian Schwartz and later the Mayor (when he finally addressed the issue himself) that we were making ourselves look foolish by doing this story and the people of Toledo were overwhelmingly on his side (as you can hear in the story below). I Googled scout+mayor+carty and found some other people's blogs on the issue. Here are a few.

try this one

or this one

maybe click here

Those who are overwhelmingly on the side of Scout and the Mayor must be a silent majority.

Here's today's story with the Mayor's full response replacing the one that aired in today's 6pm package.



Thanks for watching!
-Billau

Glenn Beck and First Impressions

Glenn Beck broadcasted his national radio show from WSPD's studio earlier this week. During his show he had some unflattering remarks about Toledo and the politicians who run the city. When asked to respond Mr. Beck's remarks, Mayor Finkbeiner said in essence that he doesn't respond to people who talk badly about him or his city. Carty also said that he's not concerned with Mr. Beck's remarks because Beck hasn't spent much time in our city.

I don't think there's anybody who cares more about our city than our Mayor. I'm happy we placed in the Livcom Awards. However, the Mayor is missing the bigger picture here. No, this guy does not live in Toledo like we do. He doesn't know that there are lots of great things to do and see in this city. He may not know about the various awards the city has won in recent years. He does get, though, what we no longer get from this city, a first impression. Glenn Beck's first impression was, "Gee, look at all the empty buildings in downtown Toledo. I've studied poverty in cities and that's one of the telltale signs."

Glenn Beck isn't the only person who got a first impression from Toledo this week. It's happening every day. Are other people getting the same impression?

Flowers are nice. I'm glad we spent money to have flowers around town. Showing and placing in the Livcom awards is nice. How often do we get an international spotlight? Being voted a business friendly city of the future is nice. I'm sure that will get some attention from the businesses around the world when they read that. But, if a business is interested in relocating to or starting up in our city, they will come to see it before they do so. And, what will they get? A first impression.

Here's the interview we did with Glenn Beck outside WSPD's studio.



Thanks for watching!
-Billau

Scout and his Mayor (the saga continues)

On November 20, Mayor Finkbeiner received a letter from Michael L. Sullivan of the Ohio Building Authority. The letter reads in part:

"The recent Channel 13 story revealed that "Scout" is not being used as a therapy dog, but is merely your "pet and companion" as described by Brian Schwartz of your staff. He also stated that "The mayor has no medical condition that requires a medical assistance dog." Pets are strictly prohibited in OBA facilities.

As I'm sure you will understand, we can no longer permit you to bring your pet to work in the Government Center."

At a press conference yesterday, a Toledo Blade reporter asked what the status of the Scout situation was. The mayor's chief of staff, Bob Reinbolt, told the media he was working on it and he had no comment. Executive assistant to the mayor, Brian Schwartz added it was none of our business. When I asked the mayor if he thought it was appropriate to be using city resources to fight his fight for him, he answered with...well, you can see the story below.



Thanks for watching!
-Billau

Scout and his Mayor

Here's the first story I worked on with Ronnie about the mayor and his dog.



Thanks for watching!
-Billau

Billau's Restaurant Reviews (good food I've had on the road)

I’ve been with 13 ABC for over six years now and my job has allowed me to travel quite a bit. One of my favorite things about traveling out of Toledo, aside from working a story from a new location, is being able to try cuisine from new establishments. I’ve wanted to write a blog like this for a while. I’ve been able to eat this great food and I want to let Toledoans know about these places, so that if they ever travel to these areas, they might have an idea of what is out there besides the same old chain restaurants. Please note these recommendations in no way represent the beliefs 13 ABC, rather a hungry photographer’s favorite places to grab a bite to eat.

Just so you know where I stand, I’ll start with my favorite Toledo eateries.

THE BERUIT (Toledo, Ohio)
My all-time favorite restaurant. It’s one of those places where I don’t need to look at the menu. I really should look at the menu to try something different. I tell myself I’m going to order something different each time I go in. I don’t. Kabob and Such with an order of Baked Artichoke Hearts for an appetizer. Just in case you didn’t know, this is also Jamie Farr’s favorite restaurant.

MANCY’S (Toledo, Ohio)
Yes they’ve appeared on our Restaurant Report Card, but that won’t keep me from going there. Simply, I haven’t had steak better than the one I can get at Mancy’s.

TONY PACKO’S (Toledo, Ohio)
A Toledo tradition. I probably eat at Packo’s a couple times a month. Packo’s is great for a quick work lunch (the Front Street location is still my favorite), or dinner with my wife. I’ve had just about everything on their menu and I’ve never been unhappy with any of it. I used to smuggle their original pickles down to school in Savannah for my roommates. They still get them through mail order today.

RUDY’S HOT DOG (Toledo, Ohio)
Great chili cheese dogs. Good homemade soup. This is was non-franchise fast food is all about.

JOHN WEBER’S GOOD FOOD (Wauseon, Ohio)
John Weber’s Good Food of Wauseon, OH, is probably the restaurant that broke me out of the fast food/chain restaurant for on the road dining. I first stopped there with Kristian Brown about four years ago. We were working a story about a smoking ban in Wauseon and we needed some dinner. It was a Wednesday night and Weber’s was serving a fried chicken buffet with homemade mashed potatoes and gravy. I can’t tell you how good it was. I can’t tell you how surprised I was. This tiny little restaurant in Wauseon had some of the best comfort food I’ve ever had. The people of Wauseon already know about this place, it’s time the rest of Northwest Ohio do as well.

THE JOLLY ROGER SEAFOOD HOUSE (Port Clinton, Ohio)
Port Clinton’s Jolly Roger is where to go in P.C. for fresh fish. Every time I'm in the Port, I try to find a way to get there. You can’t go wrong with a perch or walleye platter.

MRS. WILKES’ (Savannah, Georgia)
I spent four years in Savannah. I can’t write this without adding some of my favorite eateries from college. Mrs. Wilkes’ is a family style restaurant specializing in southern home-style cuisine. If you’re ever in Savannah, this restaurant is a must. It’s tucked away on a little side street, but all you have to do is look for the line of people on the sidewalk waiting to get in. Seating is limited and so are the hours. Check out their website for hours of operation and how to find it.

VINNIE VAN GO GO’S (Savannah, Georgia)
Pizza by the slice. Ice cold pitchers of beer. Outdoor dining in Savannah. Many college nights were spent in Savannah’s City Market sitting at Vinnie’s. Great atmosphere and service. Oh yeah, the pizza’s not bad either.

THE CRAB SHACK (Tybee Island, Georgia)
Where the elite eat with their bare feet. This place isn’t like that other shack chain. The Crab shack is the real deal. The low country boil here is the real deal. Just outside of Savannah, Georgia, the crab shack is the one place my friends and I had to take our friends and family when they came to visit us in Savannah.

MR. SPOT’S (Bowling Green, Ohio)
BGSU students know about Mr. Spot’s (probably because they actually deliver beer – what a concept!). You should know about Mr. Spot’s because of their steak sandwiches and their hoagie fries.

MYLES’ PIZZA AND PUB (Bowling Green, Ohio)
Myles’ has earned a spot in my top five pizzas of all-time. Serious toppings.

NEW SANDUSKY FISH CO. (Sandusky, Ohio)
This place rocks! Best fish sandwich. Period. For more info please refer to my earlier post for additional information.

DARROW’S FAMILY RESTAURANT (Mackinaw City, Michigan)
My family has a cottage in Mackinaw and this is one of our favorite places up there. If you only go there once, you have to try the whitefish and have some homemade pie for dessert. If you’re lucky enough to go again, they have excellent open face turkey and roast beef sandwiches.

CUNNINGHAM’S RESTAURANT (Mackinaw City, Michigan)
This is my favorite Up-North restaurant. They have the best pasties in all the land. What is a pastie, you ask? A pastie is kind of like a pot pie without the pot. All of the ingredients are inside a flakey crust and the gravy is served on the side. The chicken one is good, but the beef is the real deal.

CHOWDERS ‘N MOOR (Waterville, Ohio)
The name says it all. The White Chicken Chili and the New England Clam Chowder are excellent. Soup and Sandwich are the way to go. They have so many great sandwiches on the menu; I had to keep the menu after my order so I could decide on what to order on my next visit.

SHUCKERS SEAFOOD & PASTA (Swanton, Ohio)
This one’s easy. I’ve always said you can judge a restaurant on how good their soups are. If a restaurant puts time in to make a good homemade soup, the rest of the menu will follow. Well, the clam chowder here is among the best I’ve ever had. Make sure you stop by on prime rib night.

GOODE COMPANY (Houston, Texas)
It was hard to narrow this one down, so I included all of the Goode Co. restaurants. I spent nearly three weeks in Houston covering hurricanes Katrina and Rita in the fall of 2005. When I actually had time to set down to eat, I usually chose a restaurant owned by Goode Co. The Goode Company Texas BBQ was my favorite. The smell of smoked meats is like no other for me. I’m actually trying to start a movement to get that smell in a woman’s perfume, men would find it irresistible. Anyodd, the seafood and taqueria restaurants are great too.

LEO’S LOBSTER (Lake George, New York)
The name says it all. This isn’t one of those fancy seafood houses. This is plastic table cloths, draft beer and good eats. They have an excellent seafood chowder. The biggest draw is the price of the lobster. Being closer to the east coast, you’re not going to have to pay $45 for a lobster. My dinner was less than $30 and the lobster wasn’t one of those puny ones you get around here.

HAMBURG INN No. 2 (Iowa City, Iowa)
I stopped at this place while traveling to Omaha to do a story about Matthew Drake. I’ve heard they serve breakfast all day long and their omlettes are really good. I couldn’t tell you for sure, but ask any Hawkeye and they’ll set you straight. For me when eating at a place called the Hamburg Inn I should probably order a hamburger. Mine was a double cheeseburger with bacon and all the fixings. Fantastic. Much more than I needed to eat, however I couldn’t pass up the dessert they were known for – the pie shake, or in my case a cake shake. It’s exactly what it sounds like. One piece of red velvet cake thrown in a blender with ice cream and milk. It’s more than enough to share.

JOSEPH’S STEAKHOUSE (Iowa City, Iowa)
We stopped twice in Iowa City while traveling to Omaha and the first time we ate here. It’s no Mancy’s, but the filet was still excellent and the seafood bisque was pretty good too. My co-worker got the pork chop. It was huge, and she told me it was really good.

Well that’s all I’ve got for now. I’m sure there’s some that have slipped my mind. I also know that my future travels will take me to new places that will land on my list. I’d like to know your favorites. Who know, it might even make the list.

-Billau

Pop cans, who knew?

"It's just ten cents, what's the big deal?" That's what I thought when we first started this story. Dig a little deeper and you'll find that it's a big scam with big money. At the top of this complex scam, the big players are making millions. Correction, "were making millions." Below is the story I did yesterday that has our exclusive video. Special thanks to TPD Sgt. Joe Heffernan and TPD Sgt. James Brown for the behind the scenes access they gave me.




Thanks for watching!
-Billau

Marijuana Eradication Part 2

This video shows the eradication team searching from the sky and then the seizure of the plants by the teams on the ground.


*Both of the eradication videos are kind of long so it may take a minute to load the video.

Thanks for watching!
-Billau

Marijuana Eradication Part 1

This is part one of two of the video I shot of the marijuana eradication in Sececa County. Most of this video is from a house that had a growing operation inside.



Thanks for watching!
-Billau

Seneca County Drug Bust Pictures

A big thanks to all the members of the Seneca County Marijuana Eradication Team that let me tag along on Wednesday. Here are a few pictures I snapped with my cellphone. Package and Raw video to follow.
- Billau

July 20, Festival Friday

Here is some of the b-roll I didn't use in my Festival Friday package yesterday. The first set of clips is from the Ottawa County Fair. The second set is from the Archbold Carp Festival. The Lion's Club of Archbold were prepping some "Fresh Feesh" for the fryer. No it wasn't really carp. I'm told it was "Fresh Frozen North Atlantic Whiting." Would that be an oxymoron? I digress.

Here's the story I was told about how the Carp Festival got its name. Back in the early 1900's, the city of Archbold had a flood. Legend has it that the water was so high, it flooded the main drag in town. Legend also has it that when the street flooded, carp swam up and down the street. Seizing the opportunity for a laugh, Archbold's neighbor, Wauseon, nicknamed Archbold "Carp Town." Years later, in the 1970's, Archbold decided to have a city festival and the Lion's Club, playing on the now infamous nickname, suggested that festival be know as the "Carp Festival," and the name stuck. That's my story and I'm stickin' to it.




Thanks for watching!
-Billau

Time Check and a Look Back

1:00 P.M. - Time Mayor Finkbeiner's press conference near Southwyck was supposed to start Tuesday afternoon.
1:35 P.M. - Time Mayor Finkbeiner arrived at the press conference location.

Moving on.

Here are some photos from last weeks adventures.

The Killa' Grillaz' at the Delta Chicken Festival. I can't even remember how many thousands of pounds of chicken they were planning on cooking at the festival.



A couple shots of the Polish Fest. Thanks Stanley's Meats. They kept our crew full.


The festival queen herself.


This is how I see the world.




These final photos below are from a former bank in Fostoria. It's now the home of a drug task force. I am told that the little grey marks above the door are bullet holes left by Al Capone himself. Rumor has it that Scarface robbed the bank back in the day (yeah I said, "back in the day"), and before taking a hostage out of the bank, he shot up this part of the bank. If anybody knows about this, I'd love to hear the real story. This could really use a Fact Check.

The Icebreaker Mackinaw

I've had some time off recently and I used it to get out of Toledo and head to my family's cabin in Northern Michigan. One day when I was in town I had the chance to stop by the now-home for the USCG Icebreaker Mackinaw. She's now a piece of history, literally. The ship is now a museum ship docked at a pier in Mackinaw City, Michigan.

Here's some photos I snapped of the Mackinaw while I was up there.







If you're interested, you can find more information on the now retired ship by clicking here.

-Billau

Veterans’ Glass City Skyway

Disclaimer...this photo was edited together from three separate photos.

I'm writing this blog to congratulate all of those involved in the construction of the new Veterans’ Glass City Skyway. I've been with 13ABC for over five and a half years now, so I have covered many of the stories having to do with the construction of the bridge. I felt, as many of you probably did, that the project seemed like it would never finish. But now having seen the finished project, Northwest Ohio has something it can really be proud of.

My wife and I drove over the new bridge, once each way, last night. We could even see the tower's lights as we approached from I-75 and Stickney. It's very impressive at night.

Saturday morning I drove over to the East Side and hopped on a bus that took me up to the deck. Here are some pictures from that trip. (You can left-click on the pictures to see the full size version. After that, if you want to copy them to your computer, just right-click the picture and select save.)





From the bridge you can see Davis Besse (here). You can also see Fermi II in Monroe.

How Festive

Why they let me do it, I don't know. Every once in a while the powers that be have me do something on air. I've been part of several pieces included in the Powers Pack. I did a satellite shot from Houston, Texas shortly after Hurricane Katrina. This time with Theresa Pollick off on a Festival Friday, they asked me to do the story by myself. Here is my report.*


Thanks for watching!
-Billau

*Disclaimer: I'm not ashamed to admit this was put up on this blog for my family members who missed the piece last Friday night...and for your amusement.

The Slowdown, Festival Friday and Awards

It’s been a while since I’ve blogged and maybe that’s because of the season. For some reason, summer is always the slow news time of year. I believe it’s a combination of school being out, the fall elections are too far off to demand significant coverage yet, and most businesses are geared down for the summer because their employees are on vacation. The first half of this year has been very busy from a news perspective, so I’m not going to complain about the slowdown.

Festival Friday is undoubtedly my favorite part of work in the summer. Theresa Pollick and I get to travel from town to town to preview the weekend’s coming festivals. If your town has one coming up, please let us know. We’d love to come to your town.

Right now, I’m putting together a DVD composite of our coverage of the 2005 grain fire down by the river. Our Coverage won a Regional Emmy in 2006 and now it has been nominated for a National Emmy. And speaking of awards, I was lucky enough to win the Ohio Associated Press first place award for Spot News Coverage with Alexis Means. 13 ABC won a bunch of AP Awards last Sunday, more than any other station in the state of Ohio. The awards are very satisfying personally, because I’ve spent the better part of January the last two years putting together the compilation pieces for the awards we enter. 13 ABC also won two Edward R. Murrow awards not to long ago, one being for Bill Hormann’s series “Truth Test,” which I edited. (Bill also won a Walter Cronkite Award for the series.)

Go Tigers!

-Billau

The Indy 500 2007 (and 2006?)

Well, another Indianapolis 500 in the books and it was good one. Good except for the rain delay and the early end to the race, but it was still good. I think if the rain would have held off, the Penske boys and Danica would have all challenged for the lead on the final lap. However, weather is always one of the factors and Franchitti did lead the most important lap of the day. It was a good race.

The Indianapolis 500 isn't so much a race as it is an event. Similar to NASCAR (the Daytona 500), IRL has their "Superbowl" near the beginning of the season. The race itself is the climax of a month-long festival in Indy. Throughout the month of May, the track is hosting Carb Day, Bump Day, practices, parades, one party after another. Race day itself is filled with traditions and events before the race even begins. The Spectacle of Bands, Jim Nabors and "Back Home Again in Indiana" (though he was ill and unable to attend this year), and the fly-over are all Indy traditions. There's live music. This year Daughtry performed (you know, the bald guy who should have won American Idol last year).

Another Indy tradition is the red carpet walk. All the big shots come out to be seen on this walk. Usually it takes place outside the Pagoda. This year with all the rain, most of the goings on happened inside. This brings me to why I'm writing this blog. Sunday night after all was done and Rob and I were leaving the track, we got to talking about last year's red carpet walk and our Gene Simmons interview. Gene is very involved in IRL and when Rob questioned him about a favorite, Gene took the mic right out of Rob's hand. I thought the disk that had the interview was long gone, but Rob told me he watched it the other day and the disk was on his desk.

Yes this is more than a year old, but it's one of my favorite Indy moments. The clip never saw air, so here it is on the web. (Phil Powell this one's for you.)
-Billau

Welcome Home!

Yesterday 16 servicemen from the 180th Fighter Wing returned home from Iraq. Unfortunately due to time constraints we were only able to include a limited number of the reunions in our package. Here is my raw video of the men returning. To the servicemen, thank you for what you do and welcome home.

And then you can have lunch...(Billau's Version)

Ah yes, and then you can have lunch. Chris blogged about the difficulty of finding time for lunch. Some days you’re a man down because someone is sick. Other days people are OOTL to work on special projects. Some days you’re just simply understaffed. Today was one of those rare days where “and then you can have lunch” happened. In fact, lunch was the highlight of my day.

You see, that trip to Cedar Point I felt I was so lucky to get out of the day of the propane fire, well it caught up to me. After doing some interviews with Cedar Point’s media relations guy, we headed to one of my new favorite local food joints.

The New Sandusky Fish Company.

They easily have the best perch sandwich I’ve ever had. Today was my second trip to this place, and it won’t be my last. The place is no frills. They just do what they do and do it well. I can’t tell you exactly how to get there, but just go to old downtown Sandusky and head down to the water. You’ll find it. Try your sandwich with a side of fried okra. I can’t vouch for anything else they have, but if it’s anything like the perch, you’ve got nothing to worry about. No question, the highlight of my day.


The Calm Before the Storm.

Also a big thanks to Becca the Media Relations intern. She got our crew water when we needed it (see a pattern here) and answered the questions we had. Good luck back in Syracuse, Becca!

Reliance Fire

Ah, breaking news. The big one. It can bring out the best in a news operation. Yesterday I was traveling on I-75 with Alexis Means, headed to Cedar Point to do an interview about why media day was being cancelled. Not the most exciting story but as Chris mentions in his blog, the beast must be fed. Around Phillips Ave., we saw the large plume of black smoke north of us. Trying to get out of a trip to Sandusky, I called the station to let them know what I was seeing. Jenny assured me that they were trying to find a photographer to send. No luck. Alexis called shortly after, and by then the powers that be started to realize the magnitude of what was unfolding. I’ve been doing this job for five years, and when I arrived on the scene, I was impressed with this fire. We parked along LaVoy road. As soon as I opened my door, I could hear the propane cylinders exploding.

After 10 minutes of shooting, I hiked down the road to meet Jason, our live truck operator. Before I could even get my video sent back to the station, fire officials came over to tell us that they were extending the perimeter and we would need to move. Down comes the mast (that’s the big metal pole you see sticking up in the air coming up from news vans). We moved about 200 yards down the street and started to set up again.

I’m now separated from my own Jeep, parked down the road on the other side of the Reliance property. While Jason tries again, I jump out and start shooting more video. More explosions. Closer explosions. “We need you guys to move all the way back to Telegraph.” Recognizing the pattern, Jason and I head to Telegraph and make a right and head down the road to an overpass. Surely we’re now far enough away. Jason starts to put the mast up. Zach Ottenstein and photographer Chris Henderson have now joined us. I put my camera on my tripod and Zach stood in front of the camera ready to go live. I hear in my earpiece Lee Conklin say, “Zach Ottenstein is on the scene with more.” Then, a voice from behind says, “We need to extend the perimeter to a mile and a half.” Yeah, we had to move again.

Now imagine trying to find a spot a mile and a half from where the action is actually happening. Not very easy. Jason saw a farmer’s lane and headed down it into the middle of a field. Believe it or not we actually had a clear shot to the fire. Even better, the gentleman who owned the property I was now standing on had agreed to let us use his property. So at this time I need to send out my first thanks to Mr. Trabbic of E. Sterns Road in Erie (who by the way has corn and pumpkin mazes, pony rides, fall decorations and hay rides available on the weekends in the fall – call (734) 848-4049 this fall for more information).We did live hits for the next three hours.

In my Jeep, I keep supplies like raingear, coats, hats, snacks and water. That’s a mile and a half away from us now. I’m from the area and I’m used to the weather, but anyway you slice it, it was hot yesterday. And again – in the middle of a field, supplies are in my Jeep – no water. This is where my second thank you goes out. Zach’s friends, Dave and Mary Liske of Luna Pier, were lifesavers. Not only did they bring us bottled water, they brought us three cases of bottled water and a cooler filled with ice. Dave and Mary, thank you.

I got home around eight o’clock. It took a little longer than it should have because I had to hike back down LaVoy to get my Jeep. Yesterday was really a remarkable day. Such a huge fire in its explosiveness and its size and amazingly there was no loss of life.

Before I go, I have to send out a final thank you to Jason our truck op. Jason had to set up and tear down four times in a matter of half an hour (almost unheard of), and he did it all keeping his cool and professionalism. Breaking news, it can bring out the best in a news operation.

PUTTING THE BUS ISSUE TO REST

This will be the last post having to do with distracted school bus drivers. We’ve received a lot of feedback, both good and bad, on the issue. We didn’t do this story to sensationalize the issue or get drivers in trouble. We did the story to raise awareness of the issue. It’s true, being a school bus driver is a thankless job. While we were shooting this story, the vast majority of drivers were obeying all the rules, but we did find some drivers doing some things that could be considered distracting. A viewer commented, “I agree with the drivers that there are many distractions involved with driving a bus load of children. That is why I believe that there is no excuse for adding to the distraction by eating, drinking, talking on cell phones, or having ipods attached to your ears.” That, I believe, is the point here. There are many other drivers on the road, and they have their own distractions that can make a bus driver’s job even more difficult. But, if a bus driver can take personal responsibility by limiting his or her own distractions while transporting our children, that would help keep our children a little safer.

One viewer commented saying, “Thank you for getting my children to and from school every day.” I’m guessing most bus drivers have never heard those words. So from me, thank you for what you do and maybe this story could just be a reminder of how important your job really is to all of us in the community.

Below is Ronnie’s last report on the issue.



Thanks for your input and for watching.
-Billau

Distracted School Bus Drivers

In case you missed the I-Team’s investigation into distracted school bus drivers, here is the story that aired in its entirety. Some of the clips that didn’t make air are available at the 13 ABC Photog Blog page.



Let us know what you think. Just click the comment link below. You can even do this anonymously . Thanks for watching. -Billau

Luckey Elementary Tour

Sometimes covering local news stories can be very depressing. There are a lot of negative stories that are reported on. One of the few escapes is when we get a tour here at WTVG. Our Newsreel segment focuses on the positives happening in our community. As you may have seen in today's Newsreel segment, some students from Luckey Elementary came to visit the station this morning. Their tour guides showed them everything from the newsroom to the control room to the studio. My favorite part was when the kids got to see how the blue screen technology worked as there bodies disappeared when they were on camera. Below is my raw video from the tour. Be patient while it loads, it's almost four minutes long. Thanks for watching!
-Billau

The Drug Task Force

Illegal drugs...weapons...and the people bringing them into our communities. These pictures offer a snapshot into the dangerous work officers with the Seneca County Drug Task Force face each night on the job.


Task Force officers surround a suspect's car.


Task Force officers pull a suspect from a car.


Officers take down another suspect.


Evidence seized by the Drug Task Force during a bust.



-Billau