Potsdam, NY, Jul 18, 2012 — Things seem to be calming down after a huge rain storm passed through Potsdam Tuesday afternoon, bringing down trees and power lines and damaging several buildings.

Potsdam police lifted a state of emergency at around 4:00 Wednesday morning, with at least most people expected to have power back by Wednesday evening . As of early Wednesday afternoon, about 200 people were still without power, and National Grid was on the scene working to fix dangerous power line situations. Police say there still could be travel delays in certain areas, because some streets remain impassable.  Go to full article

Potsdam, NY, Jul 18, 2012 — National Grid says hundreds of people are still without power in St. Lawrence County, following a storm yesterday (Tuesday) afternoon that knocked down trees and tore roofs off some buildings. Much of the damage was centered in Potsdam. Village police lifted a State of Emergency at around 4 o'clock this morning. There are no reports of injuries.

Potsdam administrator Dave Fenton says the storm began shortly after 3 p.m., and caused substantial damage. Village officials declared a state of emergency and police say some streets are still blocked.

Fenton described a funnel shaped cloud, which moved quickly through the village. Last evening, Fenton said three buildings had already been condemned, and three downtown buildings had substantial roof damage. National Grid continues to work to restore power. SUNY Potsdam reports the college's power is back on, and has resumed classes today.

Most of the emergency calls in the Saranac Lake area involved downed trees on roads or power lines. A section of Route 30 between Lake Clear and Paul Smiths was closed briefly and about 6,000 Tri-Lakes residents were without power. Time Warner Cable and internet service were also down for several hours.

According to the Plattsburgh Press-Republican, a section of Rt. 3 in the town of Saranac was also closed briefly because of downed trees. Trees were also down, with intermittent power outages, across much of the Champlain Valley and western Vermont.  Go to full article

Westport, NY, Jul 18, 2012 — The last couple of decades, northern New York has been besieged by invasive plants and animals. The impact on the region's ecosystems has been profound. An invasive fungus called White Nose Syndrome has devastated once-thriving populations of bats. Zebra mussels and other non-native organisms are literally changing the chemistry of Lake Ontario and the St. Lawrence River.

For the most part, however, the foreign invaders haven't posed a threat to human health. But now, scientists, environmentalists and farmers are battling a nasty invasive plant from Eurasia called giant hogweed. As Brian Mann reports, the massive plant can cause serious injury and even blindness.  Go to full article

Albany, NY, Jul 18, 2012 — Most New Yorkers agree with the recent Supreme Court decision upholding President Obama's health care reform, but most think the new law, when fully implemented, will cause...  Go to full article

Windsor, NY, Jul 18, 2012 — The debate over hydraulic fracturing in New York State is growing heated in Southern Tier towns. And it's getting more complicated as localities wait for the state to issue...  Go to full article

North Hero, VT, Jul 18, 2012 — The Champlain Islands will celebrate their brand of small town life next weekend. Vermont's annual Festival of the Islands will be held from July 27-29 in the five towns of...  Go to full article

Mexico, NY, Jul 17, 2012 — It's isn't officially a drought, but it's certainly been a dry summer so far. WRVO's Ellen Abbott reports farmers aren't pushing the panic button yet, but they are watching...  Go to full article