Sullivan County Public Health Director Nancy McGraw and Sullivan County Manager Joshua Potosek jointly issued the following statement today: “Sullivan County currently has multiple cases of COVID-19 (2019 Novel Coronavirus) and is responding as aggressively and proactively as its limited resources allow. While you may be seeking refuge from the larger amount of cases downstate, you must be aware that this is a global pandemic. You and your family have a critical role to fulfill in halting the rapid spread of this potentially deadly virus, which can be dangerous and even fatal to the elderly and people with underlying health conditions. Coronavirus has killed thousands of people worldwide in just the past month, and cases continue to grow.

A woman tried to board a plane in New York with a loaded handgun in her carry-on luggage, the Transportation Security Administration said. TSA officers spotted the .380-caliber gun as the woman went through security at Stewart International Airport in Newburgh on Friday, the agency said in a news release. The gun was loaded with seven bullets including one in the chamber, the TSA said. The woman, a resident of Lagrangeville, New York, told officials she had forgotten that she had her gun with her. New York State Police confiscated the weapon and detained the woman for questioning. The TSA says a typical penalty for carrying a handgun into a checkpoint is a $4,100 fine. (AP)

A Rebbe in a Kiryas Joel Yeshiva was arrested on Friday. The crime? Hitting a child. Sources tell YWN that the 13-year-old child was hit by his Rebbe, and the child immediately called the police to file a complaint. The NY State Police arrived at the Yeshiva, and after an investigation, took the rebbe into custody. A photo of the NY State Police outside the Yeshiva quickly went viral. It appears the rebbe has since been released. Recently, YWN reported about another incident where a Rebbe struck a child, and published a Halachic analysis by Rabbi Yair Hoffman if this is permitted. The following is the analysis: UNITED STATES LAW Shockingly enough – there is no Federal law in the United States that prohibits corporal punishment in the United States.

While many find videos like this disturbing, it should be used as a learning lesson. This frightening incident occurred on “Beirach Moshe Street” in Kiryas Joel on Tuesday. Watch how a young child runs across the street directly in front of a car. The driver is heard shrieking in fear on his dash-cam as he slams on the breaks. Bichasdei Hashem the child makes it across in a hair-splitting second. LESSONS TO BE LEARNED: The driver was driving at a safe speed and was alert of his surroundings and had sufficient time to stop in time. Children should be taught how to properly cross a street, and parents should be aware where their children are at all times. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

Emergency personnel were on the scene of an overturned bus in Sullivan County, Friday afternoon. Catskills Hatzolah along with multiple ambulances from MobilMedics were on the scene just of Route 17 at Exit 114 by Bloomingburg Road and Mamakating Road. As many as 20 victims were injured. The extent of the injuries was still unknown. Ambulances were responding from Kiryas Joel as well. DEVELOPING STORY – REFRESH FOR UPDATES (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

Firefighters are fighting a massive fire at the Yeshiva of South Fallsburg Campus on Laurel Park Road, in Sullivan County, NY. The fire is located at 84 Laurel Park Road, which is the location of the brand new girls school being built. The building was not yet completed, and was still under construction. Smoke and the smell of fire is reported miles away, and it is now a third alarm fire. Sources tell YWN that the entire building appears to have been destroyed. Additional details to follow. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

On Thursday, I went to a briefing about NYS Homeland Security grants that are being made available to New York non-profit residential children’s camps. With all that is going on these days, the hall was packed with representatives from camps. We learned that the proposals are due at the end of February, and heard about all the complex forms and information that needs to be presented in order to qualify to be considered for a grant. With close to $50M being offered, you are probably relieved to hear that camps will be much more secure this summer. Well, you would be wrong. We were told that there is virtually no chance that these grants will be decided in enough time before the summer.

On Sunday December 15, 2019 at approximately 8:45 PM, the Sullivan County Sheriff’s Office responded to the report of a burglary in progress at the Forest Park Estates complex on Anawana Lake Road in the Town of Thompson.
Read more on Yeshiva World News

Attorney General Letitia James today took action to fight discriminatory housing practices that the Town of Chester and Orange County have utilized to prevent members of the Jewish community from moving to Chester, New York.
Read more on Yeshiva World News

In what observers are calling a surprise and unexpected victory, year round Orthodox Jewish resident of Woodridge, NY, Moshe Chaim Weinberg, has won election to its board of Trustees.
According to askonim involved in local Sullivan County politics, Weinberg won a seat on the Village board with a last minute coordinated write in campaign.