Have Your Say on County Hazard Plan

The Hazard Mitigation Plan is a living document that communities—including Nazareth, Upper Nazareth Township and Lower Nazareth Township—use to reduce their vulnerability to hazards.

If you think there is room for improvement in the way Northampton County and individual municipalities handle hazards—like Hurricane Sandy—you have until April 8 to voice your opinion on the Bi-County Multi-Jurisdictional Hazard Mitigation Plan. The Hazard Mitigation Plan is a living document that communities use to reduce their vulnerability to hazards, like extreme temperatures, hailstorms, windstorms, building collapses, terrorism, nuclear incidents and more. Northampton County Emergency Management Services and the Lehigh County Emergency Management Agency are asking for public input as it finalizes an update to the plan. At least one Nazareth resident felt there was a lack of pre-Hurricane Sandy information tailored to borough …

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Colonial Regional Salutes its 2012 Citizens' Police Academy

Fifteen area residents participated in 11 weeks of Citizens' Police Academy with the Colonial Regional Police Department.

Fifteen area residents on Wednesday completed Citizens' Police Academy with the Colonial Regional Police Department. Chief Roy D. Seiple congratulated participants during celebratory cake and coffee. On the last night of the 11-week course, Seiple was confident each participant was leaving the academy with a better understanding of his department and, most importantly, with connections to local officers and fellow residents. The academy included tours of Northampton County Prison and Northampton County Emergency Management Services; a gun range trip, and classes that covered a crime scene investigation, DUI and accident reconstruction, drug identification and mock court hearings, just to name a few. Special instructors included District …

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Nazareth Area Communities Prepare for Hurricane Sandy

Township and borough officials in the Nazareth area are being proactive ahead of Hurricane Sandy.

Last year, Bob Mateff, the director of Northampton County's Emergency Management Services, had to contend with a hurricane, a blizzard and a flood. "This one appears to be all three rolled into one," he said, referring to Hurricane Sandy, which could very well bring heavy winds, flooding and even some snow into the region next week. The trouble, he said, is that no one knows what the storm will be like at this point, making it hard to predict trouble spots for next week. "We could be looking at flash-flooding. We could be looking at small stream flooding. We could be looking at river flooding," Mateff said. He said the county is advising all its municipalities to be prepared for the storm by taking steps such as cleaning out drains and …

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UPDATE: Almost 4,000 Met-Ed Customers Lose Power in Nazareth Area

The cause of a power outage Wednesday afternoon in the Nazareth area -- leaving four schools on back-up power and almost 4,000 customers in the dark -- is still unknown.

UPDATE, 3:18 p.m.: Nazareth area residents reported having their lights turned back on around 2:15 p.m. According to Met-Ed's outage map, only a handful of customers remain in the dark -- less than 5 customers in each of the following municipalities: ORIGINAL STORY: About 3,660 Met-Ed customers in the Nazareth area lost power around 1:15 p.m. Wednesday. The cause is still unknown, according to scanner reports. Volunteers with Upper Nazareth Fire Department and Vigilance Hose Co. No. 1, however, checked out reports of a wire fire at N. Liberty and E. Chestnut streets. Nothing was found. At 1:44 p.m., a pole on Friedenstahl Avenue was called into Northampton County's 911 center. Located across the street from Nazareth Area Middle School, the…

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Ben Miller

2:17 pm on Wednesday, October 3, 2012

And...... we're back! Power's back on at full-strength.   more ›

Trooper Accidentally Shot at Belfast Barracks

A trooper at the Belfast barracks allegedly discharged his gun accidentally and shot himself in the leg Thursday afternoon.

Pennsylvania State Police have confirmed that a trooper was accidentally shot in the leg on Thursday afternoon around 3 p.m. in the parking lot of the Belfast barracks on Bangor Road (Route 191) in Plainfield Township. State Police Press Secretary Maria Finn said by phone the officer's wound is not life-threatening, and he is in stable condition after being taken by ambulance to St. Luke's University Hospital, Fountain Hill. While she would not directly confirm the trooper accidentally shot himself, Finn did say there were no other people involved in the discharge of the weapon. She added police are not considering it a criminal incident. She additionally stated that there is no danger to the public, and an internal investigation is …

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County-Wide Burn Ban to go into Effect Sunday

Due to extremely dry weather conditions, a Northampton County-wide burn ban will go into effect at midnight on Sunday, April 23.

A Northampton County-wide ban on all outside burning will go into effect at midnight on Sunday, April 23. Northampton County Council adopted the Burn Ban Resolution at its meeting Thursday night. The burn ban includes, but is not limited to, the burning of: The burn ban may be enforced by any sworn police officer. Anyone caught violating the ban is subject to a fine.  “It is extremely important for all residents and visitors to respect this ban on burning in Northampton County," said County Executive John Stoffa in a press release. "The extremely dry conditions warrant this ban." Robert Mateff, director of Northampton County Emergency Management Services, said his staff will continue to monitor the dry weather conditions. “The existing dry…

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Motorcycle Crash, Chemical Odor Led to Haz-Mat Response

After crashing his motorcycle, a Bushkill Township man smelled of an unidentified 'chemical type' odor; three people were decontaminated by a Haz-Mat team after being exposed.

It was not a crashed mobile drug lab that brought out teams from Lehigh County Haz-Mat and the Department of Environmental Protection's Emergency Response Program, as earlier reports indicated. According to Bushkill Township Police, the day's events began around 3:13 p.m. when Dean A. Tomsic, 51, crashed his Harley-Davidson motorcycle near the intersection of Old Allentown and Male roads. When police arrived, according to a press release, the motorcycle was on the side of the road, and Tomsic had been taken back to his home on Old Allentown Road. When police and Bushkill Township EMS found Tomsic, they discovered that he was injured in the crash. As Tomsic was placed in the ambulance, the emergency medical technicians (EMTs) detected a …

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Citizens' Police Academy

Citizens' Police Academy: Week Four

The editor of Nazareth Patch learns that she'd never make it as a 911 dispatcher.

No, I didn’t drop out of Citizens’ Police Academy. I vowed not to, remember!? Due to a “stay-cation” and circumstances beyond my control, I was unable to write about my week-four experience right away. That said, I’m back and ready to share. Last week’s class was a field trip to the Northampton County 911 Center in Upper Nazareth Township. Our first stop was the PennSTAR helipad, or the helicopter landing pad, located behind the building that sits off Gracedale Avenue. According to www.pennmedicine.org, PennSTAR “provides critical care air medical transportation within a 100-mile radius of the University of Pennsylvania Health System.” A few interesting facts: The gentleman in our class -- of course -- had to ask if the pilot could turn on…

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