Hazmat team responds to acid leak on Ave. D

Avenue D was closed for five hours Thursday after a peroxyacetic acid container was punctured with a forklift and began to leak.

The Williston Fire Department and a State Hazardous Materials Response Team responded. There were no injuries, and the first-responders had the site cleaned and back open for business the same day. An employee who noticed Williston Deputy Chief Tim Gerry in the area flagged him down for help.

“We would like to remind all businesses that in the event of a hazardous materials leak, do not hesitate to call 911,” Firefighter Prescott Nadeau said in a new release, adding that, due to the numerous industries that handle hazardous materials in that part of town, the Williston Fire Department trains to handle such spills and leaks. “Early notification to the right people can save lives when dealing with unknown substances.”

Vermont Coverts and Chittenden

County Forester Ethan Tapper are offering a presentation on how forest management can restore old growth characteristics to forests and the many benefits they provide, from climate resilience to diverse wildlife habitat. The event will include a visit to an area at the Catamount Community Forest being managed this summer and a discussion of how this work will help the forest become more diverse, complex and resilient — more like an old growth forest.

The event will take place at Catamount Community Forest, 553 Governor Chittenden Road, Williston on Tuesday, June 27 from 6-8 p.m.

The Champlain Valley Lions will be offering free vision screenings for children at University Mall in South Burlington. Using a portable, high-tech screening camera, specially trained Lions Club volunteers can perform a comprehensive, no-contact vision analysis for any child in about a minute.

Free vision screenings are offered through Lions KidSight USA, a Lions Club program whose goal is to identify eye problems early, so that children with vision impairments or disease can be referred to specialists for appropriate care. Since its inception, KidSight Lions volunteers have helped prevent, treat and cure eye diseases in tens of thousands of Vermont children.

Parents can bring their children, six months and older, to the University Mall from 1-4 p.m. on Saturday, June 24 for a free screening. There will also be refreshments and information on the Champlain Valley Lions Club available for those who want to learn more or volunteer for future KidSight vision screenings. For more information, text or call (802) 989-8250.

A collection of model wooden boats scratch-built by Jerry DeGraff will be exhibited this weekend at Bread & Butter Farm’s event barn. DeGraff crafted over 50 miniature vessels ranging from a small rowboat to a scale model of the Shelburne Museum’s famous Ticonderoga steamboat before he passed away last September.

The exhibit is free and open from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. on June 24-25. The Bread & Butter Farm is located just off Cheesefactory Road at 200 Leduc Farm Drive in Shelburne.

Williston resident Doris Van Mullen has been chosen to lead the Federated Garden Clubs of Vermont (FGCV) and its over 700 members. Van Mullen was installed president of the state organization at its 87th Annual Meeting held recently at Philo Ridge Farm in Charlotte.

Van Mullen grew up on a farm in Virginia. A registered nurse and nursing clinical instructor at Vermont State University, she has lived in Vermont for eight years. She is a member of The Burlington Garden Club.

The FGCV includes 16 garden clubs with projects involving nature, conservation and gardening help to beautify local communities. Visit www.vermontfgcv. com for more information.

The home that was the former Vermont Sandwich Company on Route 2 in Taft Corners was demolished earlier this month. The longtime Williston business had moved to Maple Tree Place in 2020, but is no longer open there either. The property is owned by Vermont Technical College, which has long-range plans for expansion onto the site.

Staff at Casella Waste Systems found a dead man while working on a sorting belt at the Chittenden Solid Waste District recycling center on Avenue C in Williston on Friday, according to Williston Police.

Staff called police about 7 a.m. after discovering the body, police said in a news release. The body was transported to the Medical Examiner’s Office at the University of Vermont Medical Center. Police later identified the man as Sean Kelleher, 50, who had previously lived in Burlington.

The Williston Police Department seeks help from the public to help investigators reach Kelleher’s family members or friends, encouraging anyone who knew him to contact the department at (802) 878-6611.