C o n t i n u i n g To P r o u d l y S e r v e C a r r o l l C o u n t y S i n c e 1 8 3 1 $1.00
Thursday, June 27, 2019
freepressstandard.com
Water, water everywhere County officials declare emergency By NANCY SCHAAR FPS Correspondent
Carroll County commissioners signed an Emergency Declaration presented by Emergency Management Agency Director Tom Cottis and his assistant Brett Lee. “We’ve looked at the damage from rain since last Tuesday. This declaration gives us the authority to try and get reimbursement for townships and villages and other government organizations that have had damage from the floods,” said Cottis. To receive the funding, Cottis said the county must have 28 total destructions. He knows of one so far where although the house is on a hill above the lake, the house is sliding down the hill. Cottis said they have been carefully watching weather conditions since Tuesday, June 18, when the big storm
hit the county. “You can’t get to the marina. Water is in the bottom of Petersburg Landing. Campers have been brought out of the campgrounds at Atwood and those were campers with permanent locations,” added Cottis. The declaration of an emergency is the first step in getting federal assistance for flood victims. Mailings will be sent to residents who have been affected. The information will also be provided to villages and townships. Leesville Lake crested Tuesday morning at 8 a.m. at 971.5 feet above sea level. Some portions of roads remain closed in the county. Cottis explained that if you have six inches of water standing on a road, it’s bad. He advised residents to stop. Please turn around. Do not attempt to drive through standing water. And if the road says CLOSED, please do not attempt to drive through.
Photo courtesy of Bob Wirkner
Commissioner Bob Wirkner provided a photo taken June 22 of Atwood Point at Atwood Lake Campgrounds. The permanent campers had to be removed from their sites. You can see the remnants of flooded steps, lot locators and docks at the flooded campground.
Storms, rain, flooding and now hopefully sunshine By NANCY SCHAAR FPS Correspondent
Sherrodsville had a large mudslide at the intersection of State Route 212 and Route 39 inside the village on June 18. The wall of mud was about 20 feet high and about 12 feet wide. It blocked State Route 212 and had to be plowed off the roadway.
Carroll County has had more than our share of storms, heavy rain and flooding in the last few weeks. But we are actually predicted to have three, maybe four days of sunshine ahead. Carroll County Emergency Management Agency Director Tom Cottis and his assistant Brett Lee have been carefully monitoring the flooded areas in the county for several weeks. Cottis and Lee came to commissioners on Monday to update them on road closings and residents who are currently isolated due to flooding. Leesville Lake has been watched very closely and it has broken records but that’s not a good thing. Cottis was extremely concerned about the storm and heavy rains that we experienced Monday night. “We’re right on that edge. If we get under an inch of rain, we might be all right. But if we get over an inch, we’re
A flash flood that swept down State Route 39 just to the west of Carrollton left mud and debris that covered four feet high fences along the roadway. The water levels were very high. going to see bigger problems. We will see more problems. We will be in dire straits, “ said Cottis to commissioners. On Monday evening, the county did get the storm and the rain. Lee said Tuesday morning that the record for Leesville is now 971.5 feet. The areas that were flooded, remain flooded.
Some residents are still isolated. Some areas of the county did receive more than an inch of rain and EMA will continue to watch those areas closely to keep residents safe. Cottis is hopeful that the next few days of good weather will help relieve isolation for residents in the county and flooding will subside.
Area man receives successful Carrollton council agrees to vacate portion of alley kidney donation from friend By NANCY SCHAAR FPS Correspondent
By NANCY SCHAAR FPS Correspondent Mark Snode made a good friend at work. Brad Clendenin showed Mark just what a good friend he was when he donated a kidney to his friend. Mark graduated from Kent State University and worked at Vermander-Jaslow, an oil well supply company that delivered water for fracking oil wells. He met Brad Clendenin at work and they became good friends. He and his family reside at Minerva. Mark’s sister, Beth, also worked at the same company and soon the families were all friends. Brad frequently helped out on the Snode farm, which included baling hay or picking the famous Snode melons. A few years ago, Mark was told that his kidneys were failing as a result of diabetes. It didn’t slow him down. He continued to work seven days a week. He had to be at work at 4 a.m. and got up at 2:30 a.m. Mark was not fond of getting up that early but he enjoyed his job and the people he worked with. He was eligible for disability but he chose to continue working until one day his boss sent him home in the middle of a shift.
See KIDNEY, PG. 5 more inside
Carrollton Council chambers were full again Monday night as residents with property adjoining an alley behind their properties disagreed on the action needed for their alley. Most of the comments have been made before, the information provid-
ed has been provided before. Residents have tried to work out the issues with this alley and their properties since 2012. The unnamed alley is short. It has a small piece that is paved, but then it’s all grass for 50 feet until you reach the dead end sign.
See ALLEY, PG. 3
Early deadlines are in effect
Submitted Photo
Brad Clendenin (left) and Mark Snode (right) are back to work having fun doing chores on the farm. It has been three months since Clendenin donated his kidney to Snode.
classified pg.11
obits pg. 4
The Free Press Standard will have early deadlines for Independence Day, July 4. The deadline for display advertising is noon Thursday, June 27. For classified ads, the deadline is noon Friday, June 28. Editorial deadlines are as follows: News, Sports and Accent: 4 p.m. Friday, June 28. Obituaries: 10 a.m. Tuesday, July 2 Letters to the Editor: Noon Friday, June 28. Accent: 4 p.m. Friday, June 28. The office will be closed Wednesday, July 3, and Thursday, July 4, for Independence Day. NOTE: The office will now be closed on Wednesdays.
opinion pg. 4
sports pg. 7