‘It was a beautiful house’: Madison Twp. home lost in fire as residents escape without injury
A Madison Twp. house was destroyed by fire Saturday afternoon, but residents escaped without injury.
At about 2:20 p.m. the Madison Twp. Fire Department was dispatched to the 7400 block of Browns Run Road, according to officials. They found a two-story house in a wooded area with heavy fire coming from the second floor.
The house was several hundred yards from the roadway back in the woods, which created access and water supply issues for firefighters. Multiple fire departments, including Trenton, Wayne Twp., Franklin Twp., Middletown, Germantown, St. Clair Twp. and Seven Mile, were called to assist with manpower as well as tanker trucks to shuttle water.
Butler County moves into next phase of coronavirus vaccine: First responders, those with disabilities
Credit: Nick Graham
Credit: Nick Graham
Butler County has expanded the groups receiving coronavirus vaccines after thousands have received the first of two doses and some are being injected with the second dose.
And at the end of 2020, firefighters and EMS first responders across Butler County began the inoculation process with hundreds receiving that first shot.
In some of the larger departments around the county, 75 West Chester Twp. firefighters received the vaccine, as did 46 in Hamilton (including three administration staffers), 32 in Liberty Twp., 29 in Fairfield, and 20 in Fairfield Twp. Middletown is in the process of inoculating firefighters and EMS first responders, according to the city.
2 new judges take the bench in Butler County, including juvenile court legacy
Credit: Nick Graham
Credit: Nick Graham
Two Hamilton natives and former law partners who aspired to judgeships realized that goal this month when they were sworn in as new Butler County judges.
Erik Niehaus, son of the late longtime county Juvenile Court Judge David Niehaus, was sworn in Jan. 2 as the juvenile judge. Niehaus was elected in November to Judge Ronald Craft’s seat on the bench because Craft could not run for re-election due to age limits.
Dan Haughey, former Butler County Area III Judge in West Chester Twp., was sworn in on Jan. 3 as Butler County Common Pleas Judge. He replaces Judge Charles Pater, who also could not seek re-election to due to age limits.
Judge: Madison Schools must stop arming staffers
A Butler County judge has invalidated the Madison Schools armed staff program, ruling the school board violated open meetings laws when it held private meetings to authorize individuals to carry guns.
Last week Judge Greg Stephens agreed the school board acted improperly when it deployed its armed staff program because there was no notice of the meetings held with staff who wanted to arm themselves, the meetings were private and no minutes were taken.
The judge banned arming staff who were approved to carry guns under the current program and has prevented the school board from reinstating the program unless open meetings laws are properly followed.
Fairfield City Council to discuss city manager search in executive session
Acting City Manager Don Bennett is taking his role leading the city’s administration to start 2021 one day at a time.
Bennett, who for now exchanged his fire chief title for he city manager’s office, was appointed to the post after Mark Wendling unexpectedly resigned on Dec. 11. He said there’s been a learning curve switching focus from one of the city’s departments to all of them, and his goal is to make sure the city keeps running.
“I have one goal and that is to maintain continuity of operations,” said Bennett, “and to make sure there is a solid foundation for whoever is hired as city manager that they can build upon.”
AND, for an extra sixth story of the day ...
Former Middie selected in first round of NBA’s G League draft
A former Middletown High School standout was selected today in the first round of the NBA’s G League Draft, according to the league.
Vince Edwards, who played at Middletown and Purdue University, was selected 13th by Oklahoma City.
Edwards, 24, scored 1,628 points in high school, second only to the 2,460 scored by Jerry Lucas.