New York State Burn Ban comes to an end
(WBNG) New York State s spring burn ban will conclude on Friday. The annual ban prohibits open burning in order to decrease the number of wildfires during the spring months before vegetation greens up.
Even with the ban in place, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Forest Rangers responded to eight wildfires across Broome, Tioga, Delaware, and Chenango County this spring. These fires burned more than 80 acres in total. This was up from the spring of 2020 when only one fire was reported across these counties.
Going forward, officials are still cautioning people about burning debris. James McPherson, a Forest Ranger explains that just because the burn ban is coming to a close, it does not negate fire danger. People who are planning on burning debris need to be smart about it and pay attention to the weather.
Army Guard aviators team up with NY forest rangers for helicopter firefighting training Eric Durr and Sgt. Andrew Valenza for the New York National Guard | May 12, 2021
Estimated reading time 8 minutes, 17 seconds.
New York and Connecticut Army National Guard UH-60 aircrews teamed up with New York Department of Environmental Conservation Forest Rangers to hone their helicopter wildfire fighting skills during an exercise in Colonie, New York using the Mohawk River as a water source and target.
New York Army National Guard Staff Sgt. Jake Pratt, assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 142nd Aviation and a New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Forest Ranger exit a UH-60 during helicopter firefighting training over the Mohawk River in Colonie, New York on May 6, 2021. Aircrews based at the Albany International Airport in Latham, New York, teamed up with aviators from the Connecticut Army National Guard and New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Forest
Updated: 5:14 PM EDT May 10, 2021 A northern New York man and his 3-year-old son are dead after a kayak they were using overturned on Lake Champlain, investigators with state police confirmed Monday afternoon. Police said 28-year-old Patrick Wells and his son, Beckett, were boating in Willsboro Bay on Friday when their single-person kayak overturned. Both were found unresponsive in the water at approximately 2:30 p.m., police stated in a news release.The man and his son were brought to the Champlain Valley Physicians Hospital in Plattsburgh for treatment, where Patrick Wells was pronounced dead. Beckett was flown to the University of Vermont Medical Center in Burlington, where he was pronounced dead the following day. An autopsy report released Monday determined the cause of death to be drowning and hypothermia due to cold water exposure. Both deaths have been ruled as accidental. Police said the incident remains under investigation. State police were aided in their resp
Army Guard aviators team up with NY Forest Rangers for helicopter firefighting training Photo By Sgt. Andrew Valenza | New York Army National Guard Staff Sgt. Jake Pratt a UH-60 crew chief assigned to the.. read moreread more Photo By Sgt. Andrew Valenza | New York Army National Guard Staff Sgt. Jake Pratt a UH-60 crew chief assigned to the 2rd Battalion, 142nd Aviation and a New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Forest Ranger prepare to deploy water during helicopter firefighting training over the Mohawk River in Colonie, New York on May 6, 2021. Aircrews based at the Albany International Airport in Latham, New York, teamed up with aviators from the Connecticut Army National Guard and New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Forest Rangers, to conduct the training in preparation for the summer wild fire season. (U.S. Army National Guard Photo by S
Father, 3-year-old son die in cold water of Lake Champlain after kayak overturns
Updated May 10, 2021;
Facebook Share
A 28-year-old father and his 3-year-old were killed after their kayak overturned on Lake Champlain Friday afternoon, according to New York State Police.
Patrick S. Wells and his 3-year-old son, Beckett L. Wells, both of Willsboro, NY in Essex County, were both found unresponsive in the water about 2:20 p.m., troopers said in a news release Monday.
Police said the two drowned due to hypothermia and cold water exposure.
The temperature of the water this weekend was about 45 degrees, according to the National Weather Service. A person can become unconscious in as little as 30 minutes and can die in one to three hours in water that cold.