YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio (WYTV) – Nursing is a career that is not going away, and neither is the demand for qualified nurses.

WYTV 33 News looked into the nursing shortage taking place around the country and here in the Mahoning Valley. One local facility that is feeling the crunch is Shepherd of the Valley, which has nearly one dozen openings that it needs to fill.

Shepherd of the Valley has four openings for registered nurses and two openings for licensed practical nurses. It is holding a job fair on Wednesday, September 30 at its corporate office in Austintown in the hopes of filling some of these vacancies.

Celina Williams, human resources director, said there is a lot of interest in nursing, but finding qualified applicants is becoming a challenge.

Trish Ahlswede, residential care coordinator at Shepherd of the Valley, is a veteran nurse with 30 years under her belt. She has seen a lot of changes in her field, but she said there has always been a demand for nurses. The field, she said, is not an easy one.

“Nursing is a constant learning and evolving profession,” she said.

Williams said baby boomers who have worked as nurses are starting to retire, so their jobs are open, and some of those same baby boomers are now living in facilities like Shepherd of Valley.

“We need more staff to care for them, so that’s creating more positions, but then the number of people going to school and graduating and successfully completing the program is not equal to what is required,” she said.

Williams said there are also many businesses looking at the same pool of nurses to fill openings.

Ahlswede said there are many possibilities in the nursing field outside of working in a hospital, such as long-term care facilities.

“That is where is health care is trending right now,” she said. “That’s where reimbursements are trending right now.”

Youngstown State University’s School of Nursing said its nursing classes are small; it only graduates 100 registered nurses each year. The classes are intentionally kept small, however, because of all of the intense medical education that is required to become a nurse.

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio (WYTV) – The Mahoning Valley’s growing substance abuse problem has one local hospital system concerned.

Mercy Health, which operates St. Elizabeth Health Center in Youngstown and Boardman as well as St. Joseph Warren Hospital, plans to teach each of its students how to recognize patients at risk, as well as how to recommend treatment.

The dental clinic at St. Elizabeth Health Center sees hundreds of patients each week. It is where Mercy Health first started its effort to help those who may be at risk of drug or alcohol addiction.

Patients are asked to fill out a 20-question form, which includes questions like: have you used drugs other than those required medical reasons?

“Not every patient will be receptive at that moment to getting into treatment, but many will,” said Crystal Jones, grant director of Mercy Health’s Foundation.

The Foundation recently received an $864,000 federal grant to help teach all students as part of their clinical training. The program is funded for three years and goes into effect Wednesday, September 30.

“We’re going to have 1,700 more people — medical professionals in our community that are doing this and addressing the substance abuse problem,” Jones said.

Medical and dental residents, nursing students and others pursuing health careers will learn how to recognize at-risk patients and how to get them help. Mercy Health is already working on the third phase of the project, which is to make sure treatment providers are ready for their referrals.

“So that when we get to the refer to treatment stage, and we have patients who are receptive and ready to go to that step, that we have the resources available,” Jones said.

HUBBARD, Ohio (WYTV) – Starting Wednesday, drivers who speed in Hubbard Township may get a fine in the mail, as local police are using cameras to track drivers’ speeds.

During a two week trial period over the summer, an officer using the license plate camera while patrolling a construction zone on Interstate 80 in Hubbard recorded 393 violations in three hours. Wednesday is the first day that the tickets come with a penalty, ranging from $99-159, and the fine is doubled if you’re caught speeding in a construction zone.

Officers are targeting state routes that run through Hubbard Twp. and Interstate 80.

“Those are obviously more heavily-traveled by vehicles and a higher risk for crash accidents because of the higher speed limits,” Hubbard Twp. Police Chief Todd Coonce said.

You can go 10 miles an hour over the speed limit, but expect to receive a ticket for speeds 11 m.p.h. and higher over the speed limit.

“We just want to get the word out to make sure people are aware we’re gonna be watching.  And with that i think it will stick in their mind that when they come thru a certain section., slow down,” said Coonce.

WARREN, Ohio (WYTV) – The body of a missing woman has been found inside a home at the corner of Scott Street and Waverly Avenue in Warren.

Investigators said the woman’s family had been looking for her when they made the discovery. The body was discovered around 3 p.m. in the vacant home.

Police have not yet released the identity of the woman or the cause of her death. An autopsy will be completed in Summit County, and investigators said that they are unsure if the death could be contributed to foul play but said it looks like the body had been there for quite some time.

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio (WYTV) – The latest test results are in for an investigation of e-coli contamination in the Mill Creek Watershed.

Workers have been collecting samples from nine different locations during the last several weeks, ever since raw sewage was discovered leaking into the lakes of Mill Creek Park.

The latest results from tests completed on Monday show most areas within acceptable limits, with the exception of Anderson Run and Old Calla Road.

Ryan Tekac, environmental health director with the Mahoning County District Board of Health, said the Board of Health is looking for trends where higher readings are found.

“Then we’ll start looking in that area and kind of try to find out what the factors are,” he said. “They are playing a part to elevate the levels, so it could be faulty septic systems in the area.”

More tests were also taken Wednesday morning. Those results should be available later this week.

The Board plans to continue taking samples through the end of October.

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio (WYTV) – This year’s bird flu outbreak has created a shortage of turkey meat across the country.

You may have noticed that turkey prices are going up at your local grocer.

However, turkey availability is hit-or-miss depending on where you shop and what their suppliers have available.

The National Turkey Federation estimates only 3 percent of the nation’s supply was lost as a result of avian influenza.

The bird flu ended in June, and suppliers are now waiting for a new crop of turkeys.

The good news is that the bird flu isn’t expect to impact your Thanksgiving meal, as experts say frozen turkeys are plentiful.

GREENFORD, Ohio (WYTV) – It was a year ago on Wednesday that WKBN learned former Valley Congressman Jim Traficant had been badly injured in an accident on his family farm. Days later, he passed away from those injuries.

Traficant had been working on his farm in Greenford when a tractor he was riding rolled over, crushing him underneath.

Among those who knew him, Mahoning County Commissioner Anthony Traficanti, who had worked for the Congressman at one time, said his former boss’s legacy still lives on.

“I believe that the majority of the people here will remember Jim for his outspoken-ness, for his caring for his fellow man, helping the underdog and bringing all of those projects that he did to his district in a relatively short amount of time,” Traficanti said.

Traficant is widely credited for obtaining federal funding to build what is now the Covelli Centre in Youngstown, as well as a pair of federal courthouses.

Traficanti thinks the greatest irony is that his friend ultimately lost his life while spending time on the farm he loved so much.

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio (WYTV) – Fall is just beginning, and already, local health care officials are getting ready for flu season.

The Mahoning County District Board of Health will begin holding flu shot clinics on October 1.

Experts said that it’s still too early to know how severe the season will be, but local physicians have already been seeing patients with the virus showing up for treatment. Now, the National Centers for Disease Control is working to cover what experts said may be the most prevalent strains of the bug, according to Director of Nursing Chris Cunningham.

“There is the H3N2 strain, which was not included in the vaccine last year. That actually is this year. So, the CDC (Centers for Disease Control) is hoping that they have fine-tuned it and will address that specifically,” Cunningham said.

Anyone over the age of six months can get a flu shot, but those who are ages 65 and older or who are pregnant or have other health conditions that would put them at risk should get the shot as well.

MERCER, Pa. (WYTV) – More than 1,000 kids in Mercer County got a look at how the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) does its job on Wednesday.

PennDOT’s 20th annual Open House was held at its garage in Mercer and was kicked off by showing elementary school students some of the equipment, as well as what rescue workers do at a crash site.

PennDOT is also hosting a traveling memorial to remember workers who have been killed on the job.

Darrell Chapman, PennDOT acting Mercer County manager, said the department is taking strides to keep the roadways safe, especially Interstate 80 near the Ohio border.

“We have been reviewing all the areas, and we are meeting with Ohio early next month to go over conditions and reporting conditions of what we’re going to do as far as level of service,” he said.

Chapman added that drivers should pay attention when crossing the state border on the Interstate, because road conditions can be different between the two states.

BOARDMAN, Ohio (WYTV) – Protecting the region’s water supply was the topic of discussion Wednesday night in Boardman.

The Alliance for Watershed Action and Resource Education (AWARE) hosted the event at the Boardman Township Government Center for Mahoning County residents to learn about water quality stewardship. The group watches over the Mill Creek, Yellow Creek and the Meander watersheds.

In recent months, there have been discussions about the reported poor quality and health of the watersheds. AWARE hopes to educate the public on how they can help improve water quality, according to Stephanie Dyer, Eastgate Regional Council of Governments environmental program specialist.

“We are here to present information based on watersheds, and the land uses and how land owners contribute to the water quality impairments, yet also how we can help improve the water quality in our region,” she said.

The event featured presentations from representatives from Eastgate, the Mahoning County Engineers Office, Mahoning Soil and Water Conservation District, Mahoning County Farm Bureau and the Mahoning County Board of Health on their local involvement in protecting the region’s water.

Dyer said what people do on their land directly impacts the drinking water, because the surface waters lead into the drinking water supply.

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio (WYTV) – A steady flow of food is scanned at the Boardman Sparkle Market on South Avenue, much of which is paid with an Ohio Direction Card — what used to be called food stamps.

“At least half our sales are based on the food assistance program. If it was to shut down, it would be catastrophic, yeah,” said Samantha Nichols, who lives a few blocks away on Youngstown’s South Side.

On Tuesday, with looming threats of a government shutdown, the Agriculture Department said it will stop providing benefits at the beginning of October if Congress does not pass legislation to keep government agencies open. A shutdown could immediately suspend or delay food stamp payments to some of the 46 million Americans who receive the food aid.

Nichols is one of the many Americans who may be affected by the government shutdown. She works and makes a salary of about $300 a month. If food assistance is not funded, she said she would struggle to make ends meet for her family.

“That means my three kids don’t get dinner every night, or lunch for school or breakfast,” she said.

As many as 45,650 people are on food assistance in Mahoning County and 20,000 and 17,300 people receive assistance in Trumbull and Columbiana counties, respectively. That is almost 83,000 people — or 15 percent of the state’s total population — that receive food assistance.

Bob Bush, department head of the Mahoning County Department of Job and Family Services, where food assistance is funded through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), said the majority of those on food assistance have a genuine need.

Bush said he understands the need and its effects.

“Five million dollars a month for 12 months, that’s $60 million into the economy” he said. “Most of these dollars for food assistance are spent locally.”

The Department of Agriculture did ask the state to delay until further notice the process of distributing benefits until the first of the month, but Bush said he will likely continue taking applications. He said he does not see that ending.

Should the funding for food assistance be withheld, it would put extra pressure on places like the Second Harvest Food Bank and the Rescue Mission — places that either distribute food or provide meals.

“What would you do if they quit funding the program? Just like I’d do before I couldn’t get on it. I would have to go to charity services and churches, things along those lines, and probably have to get a second job,” Nichols said.

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio (WYTV) – A driver in Youngstown narrowly missed serious injury after a large piece of concrete fell off a truck and slammed into his car.

According to police, the man was traveling on Oak Street around midnight Wednesday when part of a concrete barrier fell off a truck in front of him, smashing the front of his car.

The driver was not injured, but Youngstown police and fire crews blocked the road for about a half hour so the car could be towed and the concrete removed.

WARREN, Ohio (WYTV) – The family of a woman who was found dead inside a house in Warren and believe her death was caused by a drug overdose, is calling for a cleanup of the drug activity in a north east neighborhood.

Judi McClellan, the woman’s grandmother, was searching for her granddaughter Wednesday when she found her unresponsive inside a vacant house on Scott Street. The woman was missing since Tuesday, Sept. 15 and her disappearance was reported to police on Saturday, Sept. 19.

At the request of the family, WKBN 27 First News is not releasing the name of the woman until identity is confirmed by police. An official cause of death has not been determined.

McClellan blames the heroin epidemic in Warren for her granddaughter’s death.

“It is just terrible. This drug situation has just ruined our family and so many others,” McClellan said. “We’ve got to get the drugs out of here. We’ve got to get the drug dealers out of here.”

Lieutenant Daniel Mason said the investigation into the woman’s death is ongoing and they are tracing here whereabouts prior to her death.

“At this point we are not even sure if there is foul play or if it is a criminal act. Once we determine the cause of death then we will determine as to whether or not who possible suspects might be,” Mason said. “This is something that will probably last for days, even weeks, to determine if there was criminal involvement.”

This is the second time in a month that tragedy has met a Warren family involving a missing family member. The remains of Alesha Bell were found at a home in Ashtabula County after she was reported missing late this summer. Her remains were found in a fire pit Aug. 20 when police raided a house on Route 6 in Roaming Shores.

James Brooks, 40, is charged with abuse of a corpse and drug trafficking in connection to Bell’s death. The investigation in that case is ongoing. More charges could be filed.

EAST LIVERPOOL, Ohio Police in East Liverpool are investigating a fatal accident involving a man and his daughter.

According to the Morning Journal, Donald Heacock, 62, died last week at East Liverpool City Hospital after he was struck by a truck driven by his daughter, Nicole Wolf.

Investigators say Heacock walked in front of the truck when the brake lines broke, dragging him down the street and into a ditch.

Patrolman Kelsey Hedrick said this week that the 911 call came in at 4:11 p.m. and the dispatcher on duty relayed it as a vehicle which had fallen onto a person while working on it, with an ambulance dispatched.

Hedrick said the ambulance crew arrived and found that Heacock had actually walked in front of Wolf’s vehicle just as the brake line broke. He said Wolf did not have the vehicle in park but had her foot on the brake when the line broke, and the steep grade, along with gravelly surface, caused the truck to start rolling downhill.

Although his daughter “laid on the horn,” Heacock was unable to move out of the vehicle’s path.

The coroner’s office said results of an autopsy are pending, with no official ruling made as yet, and the incident remains under investigation.

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio (WYTV) – With turning leaves, cooling temperatures, and dropping prices, the fall season may be the best kept secret for travel.

Orbitz.com senior editor Jeanenne Tornatore says that travelers seeking out fall color can get some great deals without venturing far from home.

“Gas prices are great right now, so you can still take a really easy fall drive getaway. The great thing about fall is there are so many regions of the country that have fall celebrations and beautiful fall colors,” Tornatore said.

But if you’re not ready to give up on summer just yet, Tornatore says take to the high seas for a budget-friendly tropical getaway. Cruises can be booked last-minute and saving can be up to 60 percent. Even trips abroad this time of year can save travelers money.

“If you’ve had Europe on your bucket list, this is the year to plan and take that European vacation in the fall. Airfare prices are coming down and the dollar is still very strong against many of the European currencies, including the euro, “Tornatore said.

She also advises booking trips in packages, combining airfare with hotels or car rentals will save you money during the off-season.

And if you’re packing your bags to see the fall foliage, Tornatore says to look for resources online that detail when each region will see peak fall colors to help you maximize your fall travel experience.

Forecasters predict fall foliage in Northeast Ohio to peak a little later this season. Projected peak will be mid-October for Northern Ohio instead of early October, late October for central Ohio and early November for southern Ohio.

AUSTINTOWN, Ohio (WYTV) – Cafaro Company Spokesman Joe Bell confirmed to WKBN Thursday that Eastwood Field has been offered to Barry Dyngles as a potential location for their Queen of Hearts drawing.

Bell did not confirm details of the offer and said that Dyngles’ owners had not replied to his offer.

Austintown Township Trustees will meet Friday to consider the resumption of the game, according to a news release sent Thursday.

The meeting will be held at 11 a.m. Friday at 82 Ohltown Rd. and is open to the public.

Trustees will be deciding whether or not the game, which has attracted thousands of visitors with six-figure jackpots in its last two editions, can be held at its normal location or needs to be moved elsewhere.

Players choose numbers corresponding to playing cards, with the person drawing the Queen of Hearts getting the full jackpot, which has not happened since October 2014. Eight numbers are left. While the business cannot keep any of the money, the winner must be present to claim the cash.

BAZETTA TOWNSHIP, Ohio (WYTV) – A Cortland girl was reunited with her stolen iPod Touch after her mother and Bazetta police track it to a woman in Mantua.

Detective Joe Sofchek said that a girl was with her mom Wednesday at the Wal-Mart in Bazetta Township when she laid her iPod down in the shoe department. When she went back, the device was gone.

The Apple iCloud tracking device in the phone later sent an alert to the girl’s mother indicating the device was connected to a wi-fi signal at a business in Mantua.

Sofchek said his department contacted Mantua police, and they made contact with the suspect at the business who admitted to taking the device.

The woman will be charged with theft. A court filing is expected Friday, and Sofchek said the suspect’s name will be released at that time.

RAVENNA, Ohio (WYTV) – Police in Ravenna are looking for a suspect who robbed the Huntington Bank on West Cedar Avenue.

According to police, the incident happened about 4 p.m. Wednesday when a man walked in and passed a note to a teller demanding money.

The suspect received an undisclosed amount of cash and left the bank on foot.

No one was injured.

Police describe the suspect as a younger black male with a thin build, dressed in black, wearing a black hat and sunglasses.

Ravenna police are working with the FBI and security officers with Huntington Bank.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Ravenna Police Department at 330-296-6486.

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio (WYTV) – Mahoning County’s budget is available online as of Thursday, allowing citizens to see where the county is spending its money.

Mahoning County Auditor Ralph Meacham announced Thursday that Mahoning County joined the statewide initiative.

Ohio Treasurer Josh Mandel developed Ohiocheckbook.com in 2014, and the site includes spending data for the state of Ohio for the past seven fiscal years, according to a press release.

On the website, you can view the county’s spending for 2011 through 2015. Mahoning County is one of eight Ohio counties to list their budget on the site.

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio (WYTV) – In the same day that attorneys for the Youngstown City School District filed a list of witnesses and exhibits they will utilize during their legal battle with the state of Ohio over who will run district, the state filed a motion to dismiss the case entirely.

In court documents filed Wednesday in Franklin County Court, the Youngstown City School District submitted a list of witnesses and exhibits that will be used in the district’s fight to keep a state appointed CEO from taking over the school district.

The list contains the names of lawmakers, union leaders, parents and school officials and their expected testimony along with emails and documents that support their case that House Bill 70, which allows for the state to appoint a CEO to failing school systems, is unconstitutional and that the Youngstown schools were improving.

The witness list includes State Representative Denise Driehaus, D-Cincinnati, who says she originally authored the initial version of H.B. 70, but said that the passed version of the legislation was so “vitally altered” from its previous provisions that she voted against her own bill.

State Senator Joe Schiavoni, D-Boardman, is expected to testify that he had no notice of amendments to H.B. 70 until 24 hours before its passage.

The list also includes representatives from Governor Kasich’s staff and Tom Humphries, president and CEO of the Youngstown-Warren Regional Chamber of Commerce.

The state of Ohio also filed a motion Wednesday to dismiss the case stating that the complaint “fails to state a claim under which relief can be given,” according to court documents. In the filing, the state contends that H.B.70 was passed and signed into law using legal and constitutional processes, and that the Youngstown City School District’s complaint is “little more than a thinly disguised effort to re-argue the policy merits of H.B. 70, a question for the General Assembly, not this court.”

A decision on the motion to dismiss will likely come before a scheduled Oct. 19 trial assignment proceeding in Franklin County Court.