BACKYARD BROADCASTING LOCAL NEWS NOVEMBER 22, 2023

FIRE DISPLACES PENN TOWNSHIP FAMILY

A fire in Lairdsville displaced a Penn Township family early Tuesday morning.  According to the Sun Gazette, the unnamed couple and their 11 year old granddaughter escaped the fire along Lakeside Drive after they awoke to the smell of smoke at about 2:20am.  Firefighters said they arrived to the home with an outer wall to the chimney on fire, and had to stretch the fire hose about 800 feet to reach the blaze which took about an hour to control.  The mobile home was a total loss, and the Red Cross is assisting the family. Lairdsville, Hughesville, Muncy Valley, Muncy Area, Picture Rocks, Pennsdale and Montoursville responded to the scene during the call.

WILLIAMSPORT MAN CHARGED WITH ALLEGED THREATS

A man from Williamsport who threatened another local man and claiming he put a bounty on his head in November is facing charges.  According to the Sun Gazette,  46 year old Raymond Antoni Richards allegedly told the victim on the phone that he should have killed him and that same victim and his girlfriend received other threats from Richards at a home in Loyalsock Township November 7th.  Police said Richards also damaged the victim’s car that same day.  He waived his preliminary hearing and is free on 10 thousand dollars bail.

ELEMENTARTY SCHOOL BUILDING SOLD

The Warrior Run School board approved the sale of the former Watsontown Elementary School building to the Central Susquehanna Intermediate Unit.  According to the Standard Journal, the agreement between the two parties was for the 610 thousand dollar price covered by the CSIU’s capital reserve budget.  The new Watsontown elementary school opened to about 780 students this fall.

HOT STOVE BANQUET COMING IN 2024

The Williamsport Crosscutters’ Hot Stove Banquet is coming back January 17th at the Genetti Ballroom in Downtown Williamsport.  According to the team, three special guests have been invited to the popular charity event including Kent Tekulve, former Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher; Tim Kurkjian, ESPN baseball analyst; and Chris Carlin, ESPN radio host. Portions of the proceeds of the typically sold out event will benefit the Lycoming County United Way. The evening will include inductions of the latest members to the Bowman Field Hall of Fame and the Lycoming County Sports Walk.  Get details about tickets to the Hot Stove banquet at crosscutters.com.

TWO TEENS ESCAPE CASE WORKER’S CUSTODY

Two teenage boys in the custody of Bradford County Children and Youth case workers escaped as they were being transported to Pittsburgh, running into the woods near Roaring Branch on Monday.  According to North Central PA dot com, State Police at Towanda say 17-year-old Romeo Brown and 15-year-old Cedric Brown were last seen fleeing on foot along State Route 14 near McCracken.  If you have information about the boys please call state police at 570-265-2186. Troopers say anyone who is knowingly transporting the two teens or assisting them could face criminal charges.

COAL TOWNSHIP MAN SENTENCED FOR MURDER OF HIS MOTHER

A man from Coal Township has been sentenced to years in prison for killing his mother.  According to court records, 40-year-old Christopher Depka was facing third-degree murder charges in September for beating his mother with a baseball bat on Holly Street in 2021, but plead guilty in Northumberland County Court.  According to the Daily Item, Monday Depka was given 20 to 40  years for the death of 61 year old Sarah Jones. 

DISABLED MOTORIST RESCUED FROM EMBANKMENT

A man who ran out of gas became trapped on a highway embankment in Williamsport Monday afternoon.  According to North Central PA dot com, an unnamed motorist left his disabled vehicle along Rt 15 in Old Lycoming Township and proceeded to climb to the bottom of the hill to walk for help.  According to police, a fence at the bottom of the embankment trapped the man since he could no climb back up the steep hill.  The man who was uninjured, got help from Lycoming Regional Police, Old Lycoming Township Volunteer Fire Company, and Williamsport Bureau of Fire who cut the fence to free him. 

MEALS SERVED TO VETERANS AT GEISINGER

Almost 3 thousand meals were served to veterans during Geisinger’s drive-through veteran appreciation dinners to celebrate our appreciation during the Veterans Day week.  According to a press release from the hospital, dinners were provided November 9th at  11 locations across the Geisinger Service area.  The dinners for U.S. military veterans and guests were provided at no cost to participants in Bloomsburg, Danville, Jersey Shore, Lewistown, Mifflintown, Muncy, Pittston, Scranton, Shamokin, State College and Wilkes-Barre. Members of Geisinger’s executive leadership team, regional leaders and volunteers attended the event to hand out meals and some handmade cards to veterans.

SPORTS

HS Football Friday
State Quarterfinals
Double A – Bald Eagle Area @ Southern Columbia
Triple A –  Danville vs Wyomissing  @ Albright College – Reading, PA
Quad A – Juniata @ Selinsgrove
HS Football Saturday
Class A – Cambria Heights vs South Williamsport @ STA Stadium, Williamsport

NCAA Men’s College Basketball
Marquette  73     Kansas 59
Purdue 71           Tennessee 67
Duke 95              LaSalle 66
Gonzaga 76         Syracuse 57
Florida State 77 Colorado 71

NCAA Football Friday

Memphis @ Temple 12pm ESPN
Penn State @ Michigan State 7:30pm
NCAA FOOTBALL SATURDAY
Wake Forest @ Syracuse 2pm
Notre Dame @ Stanford 7pm
NBA
Magic 126           Raptors 107
Pacers 157          Hawks 152
Cavaliers 122     76’ers 119
Suns  120            Trail Blazers 107
Lakers 131          Jazz 99
NBA Tonight
Milwaukee @ Boston 7:30pm ESPN
Brooklyn @ Atlanta 7:30pm
76’ers @ Minnesota 8pm
Golden State @ Phoenix 10pm ESPN
NFL Thanksgiving Day Football

Green Bay @ Detroit 12:30pm FOX
Washington @ Dallas 4:30pm CBS
San Francisco @ Seattle 8:20pm NBC
Friday
Miami vs Jets 3pm Prime Video
NFL Sunday
Steelers vs Bengals 1pm CBS
Patriots vs NY Giants 1pm FOX
Cleveland @ Denver 4:05pm FOX
Buffalo @ Philadelphia 4:25pm CBS
Ravens vs LA Chargers 8:20pm NBC

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