We’re keeping an eye on this Sunday.

There’s a 90 percent chance of snow, but just how much snow remains to be seen.  Some forecast models say it could be several inches.

A head-on crash in Seneca County has claimed a Willard man.

28-year-old Ted Patrick was killed at approximately 2:20 this morning on U.S. Route 224 in Bloom Township.  According to the Highway Patrol, Patrick’s pickup truck crossed the center line and drove into the path of a bucket truck owned by American Power Company.  The crash remains under investigation.

A Valley View man was charged with failure to control, after crashing a car at U.S. Route 6 and Perkins Avenue yesterday afternoon.

According to the highway patrol, 24-year-old Jason Carney was traveling at a high rate of speed on Perkins Avenue, when the car went off the road, went airborne, and hit a utility pole, snapping the pole in two. Prior to the crash, Carney had passed numerous cars. He was taken to Firelands Regional Medical Center, for treatment of minor injuries. The crash shut down the intersection of Route 6 and Perkins Avenue, and Norfolk and Southern Railroad stopped all train traffic, due to low-hanging wires. The car, a 2015 Chevy Impala, owned by his employer, Enterprise Rent-A-Car, sustained heavy damage.

A longtime Huron County employee is facing a drug charge.

Lynn Chapin of Norwalk is charged with permitting drug abuse. She’s due in court next month. The charge is a first-degree misdemeanor, punishable by up to six months in jail, and a $1,000 fine. The charge goes back to last fall, when deputies discovered a suspected marijuana-growing operation inside the home Chapin shares with her live-in boyfriend, Gregory Dauch. Marijuana seized at the scene was sent to a state lab for testing. Earlier this month, Dauch was charged with cultivating marijuana. Chapin was charged earlier this week. Chapin works at the Huron County Auditor’s Office. She’s been a county employee since 1989.

With an eye on hiring a new superintendent, the Perkins Board of Education has scheduled three special sessions for February.

The first one will be held at 6pm Monday.  After that, the school board will meet in special session at 6pm February 9th and 5pm February 11th.  The board will interview applicants during the second and third meetings.  All three meetings will be held at the Administrative Service Center.

A recent traffic stop on the Ohio Turnpike turned into a big drug bust.

Two Nevada residents were jailed after they were pulled over January 21st near the Baumhart Road exit in Lorain County.  Troopers became suspicious during the stop leading to a search of the car.  That search turned up more than 200 pounds of marijuana worth $1.2 million.

A Sandusky County woman accused of hitting and seriously injuring a Bellevue resident was arraigned this week, in Huron County Common Pleas Court.

63-year-old Marilyn Perry of Lindsey, entered a ‘not guilty’ plea to a charge of aggravated vehicular assault. Perry is accused of hitting Pamela Beckham, as Beckham was getting out of her car in front of the Bellevue Public Library. She was flown to a Toledo hospital, for treatment of broken bones and other injuries. Perry is free on bond, pending future court proceedings. She’s scheduled to stand trial in April.

They’ll be ‘Freezin’ for a Reason’ this Saturday, in Sandusky.

The 10^th annual Polar Plunge will be held at the Thirsty Pony. It’s a fundraiser for the Special Olympics. For more information, go to sooh.org.

No big winners last night, so Saturday’s Powerball jackpot has grown to $289 million.

A central Ohio pastor has been charged with sexual battery, for engaging in sexual conduct with a teenage parishioner.

The alleged acts involving 44-year-old Scott Murphy and the 15-year-old occurred multiple times this month, at the Newark Heights Church of God. He’s expected to resign as pastor.

Nine area schools will split $27,000, thanks to Fisher Titus Medical Center’s Health Education grants.

Edison, Monroeville, New London, Norwalk public and parochial, South Central, Wellington, Western Reserve and Willard are each getting $3,000 to help make math, science and health education fun for students. Since 1996, 175 grants have been awarded through the program.

Dog owners in Huron and Erie counties…Saturday is the deadline to buy dog licenses for 2015.

Starting Sunday, the price will double.

An area superintendent charged with obstructing official business made his initial court appearance yesterday.

Clyde-Green Springs superintendent David Stubblebine entered a ‘not guilty’ plea, in Sandusky County Court. His next court appearance is scheduled for February 12^th. Stubblebine was charged earlier this month, in connection with a December incident at McPherson Middle School. He’s accused of not cooperating with Clyde police, after officers were called in to investigate marijuana found at the school. The obstruction charge is a second-degree misdemeanor, punishable by up to 90 days in jail, and a $750 fine. Last week, the Clyde-Green Springs Board of Education agreed to reimburse Stubblebine up to $2,000, for legal expenses.

Huron County saw slightly fewer traffic fatalities in 2014.

According to the highway patrol, six people died in fatal crashes in Huron County, compared eight in 2013.

New figures from the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services show Ottawa, Huron and Lorain counties had three of the state’s highest unemployment rates.

December unemployment in Ottawa County was second-highest in Ohio, 8.4 percent. Huron County’s jobless rate was 7.9 percent, or fourth-highest, while Lorain County’s December unemployment rate was 6.8 percent, eighth highest in Ohio. Jobless rates in Ohio ranged from a high of 10 percent in Morgan County, to just 2.6 percent in Mercer County.

Police in the village of Wakeman are asking for the public’s help, in finding a U-Haul truck used during an early January break-in.

It’s believed the box truck was used to swipe a snowmobile, an ATV and more from storage units on Hyde Street. Anyone with information should contact the Wakeman Police Department.

Tonight’s multi-state Powerball jackpot is worth $261 million, with a cash option of $179 million.

Oregon governor John Kitzhaber has made good on his wager, with Ohio governor John Kasich.

Kitzhaber and Kasich bet on college football’s national championship game. Ohio State won the game, leading Kitzhaber to send cheese, honey and jam. The package arrived Monday, at Kasich’s office. Kasich is still waiting on a six-pack of Oregon-brewed beer. Had Oregon won, Kasich would’ve had to send Columbus-brewed beer, a tray of lasagna and buckeye candies.

When Super Bowl 49 kicks off Sunday, Ohio-made footballs will again be on the field.

The Wilson Football Factory in Ada, Ohio has stitched, inflated, inspected and shipped 120 balls to Arizona for the game.  The factory in the small northwest Ohio city has made every football used in the Super Bowl and every ball used by the NFL since 1941.

The Norwalk Board of Education has scheduled a special session for Thursday, February 5^th.

The closed-door meeting will begin at 7pm, at Norwalk High School. The topic: personnel.

Ohio Department of Taxation officials have released information about changes, during this tax filing season.

The state has increased the personal exemption for those earning less than $40,000. It’s gone from $1,700, to $2,200.

The other big change: new security measures that could delay refunds by up to a month.

The safeguards are aimed at preventing fraud. Some taxpayers may have to take a short quiz, to get their refund.

Slick road conditions led to Level 1 snow emergencies in Huron and Erie Counties.

A Norwalk man caught with child pornography on his computer is facing prison time after pleading guilty.

66-year-old Thomas Smith appeared in Huron County Common Pleas Court yesterday.  He’ll be sentenced in March.  In addition to possible prison time, he’ll be labeled as a Tier II sex offender, which means he’ll have to register his address with authorities every six months.

A top executive with Frisch’s Big Boy is accused of stealing more than $3 million from the company and gambling it all away.

The nation’s largest Big Boy franchisee claims former assistant treasurer Michael Hudson embezzled the money over a seven-year period.  The Cincinnati-based company has filed a civil suit against Hudson and the U.S. Attorney’s Office is considering criminal charges.

The Norwalk Economic Development Corporation has a new executive director.

Heather Horowitz is replacing Ellen Heinz, who resigned last fall. Horowitz is coming from EHOVE Career Center, where she had been employed since 2010.

A man accused of leading authorities on a high-speed chase from Norwalk to Clyde has been found.

46-year-old Terry Gritzan of Strasburg, Ohio is facing charges in Huron and Sandusky counties.

After receiving complaints of a reckless driver last Thursday night, the highway

patrol tried to stop Gritzan on U.S. Route 250, near 20. But he took off, and sped down 20, before turning around in Clyde. He fled along a county road, and the pursuit was called off, due to road conditions. Troopers were able to track him down, and arrest him on several charges. Gritzan remains in the Sandusky County Jail.

The Clyde Board of Education will meet in special session tonight, to consider the

investigation of charges, or complaints against a public employee.

No other information is available. Tonight’s special meeting will begin at 7:15, at the board office.

Governor John Kasich is on the road this week.

Kasich is visiting six states, to pitch support for a balanced budget amendment to the U.S. Constitution. He’s making stops in Idaho, Montana, North and South Dakota, Utah and

Wyoming. Support from 34 states is required to convene a constitutional convention.

38 states would need to ratify any amendment, before it becomes part of the U.S. Constitution.

A group pushing for a ballot issue to legalize marijuana in Ohio has released more

details about its plan.

According to ResponsibleOhio’s proposal, pot would be grown at 10 different pre-approved sites, and would be sold at more than 1,000 retail marijuana stores throughout the state.

Stores would need local voter approval before applying for a state license to sell

pot. The proposal also calls for a 15 percent marijuana tax at every level of the supply

chain, along with sales tax. ResponsibleOhio hopes to have the issue on the ballot this November.

The highway patrol says alcohol is suspected, in a weekend crash that injured a Bellevue man.

According to the Norwalk patrol post, 53-year-old Jewel Tickles suffered serious injuries Saturday evening, when his car went off Peru-Center Road and hit a utility pole. He was flown from the scene to St. Vincent Mercy Medical Center. He’s in critical condition.

A Monroeville teen injured in last Thursday’s single-car crash in Ridgefield Township remains in critical condition.

14-year-old Alexandra Schaffer is a patient at St. Vincent Mercy Medical Center in Toledo. She was a passenger in a car that slid on ice, and hit a utility pole on Halfway Road.

The highway patrol is looking for the person who led authorities on a high-speed chase from Norwalk, to Clyde.

It happened last Thursday evening. The patrol received a call of a reckless driver on U.S. Route 250, near 20. The driver briefly stopped, then took off, and turned west on 20. The 2009 White Chevy Silverado sped through Monroeville and Bellevue and into Clyde, where troopers tried to use stop sticks. The driver was able to avoid those, then did a U-turn on 20, before turning down a county road. The pursuit was then called off, due to road conditions. Troopers have a license number, and are working to confirm the driver’s identity.

Today is Martin Luther King Jr. Day, a federal holiday.

No mail, but trash pickup will go on as usual.

Figures from the Sandusky Post of the Ohio State Highway Patrol show traffic fatalities were down in Erie County last year.

Five people died in traffic crashes, compared to nine in 2013.

A Sandusky man missing since January 9^th has been found, dead.

29-year-old AJ Fresch died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. His body was found yesterday, in a remote area of his home. Police previously searched the home, but found nothing.

State Representative Terry Boose has been chosen to chair the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.

The Republican from Norwalk represents the 57^th District, which includes all of Huron County, and portions of Lorain County.

Budget cuts, levy options and personnel will be discussed when the Perkins Board of Education meeting in special session this weekend.

The closed-door meeting will begin at 7:30 Saturday morning at the Administrative Service Center on Campbell Street.  No action is expected.

A Monroeville teen is in critical condition, after a Thursday afternoon crash on Halfway Road.
14-year-old Alexandra Schaefer is at St. Vincent Mercy Medical Center in Toledo. She was a passenger in a car that lost control on ice, then hit a utility pole. Schaefer was flown from the scene, to St. V’s. The driver, 16-year-old Paige Leitz of Monroeville suffered lesser injuries, and was taken to Fisher-Titus Medical Center. The highway patrol continues to investigate the crash.

Gas prices have climbed past $2.

Yesterday’s increase took pump prices up to $2.09 at most area stations.

The former Pamida store in Bellevue will soon be put to use.

The empty building on State Route 269 has been donated to Goodwill. Goodwill will use it for manufacturing, recycling and sorting and storing donations.

A longtime bus driver in the Vermilion school district has been fired, for allegedly falling asleep at the wheel while driving a bus full of students last month.

Gwendolyn Howell was dismissed earlier this week, after being placed on paid leave in early December. She had been employed by the district for over 20 years, and had no other issues. No students were injured in the incident.

A man charged with vehicular homicide, for causing a fatal crash on Thanksgiving Day, 2013 may never stand trial.

Andrew Gans was going 125 miles per hour on the Ohio Turnpike near Fremont, when he struck and killed two Toledo residents. Gans told state troopers he was on prescription medication and had been drinking, but blood tests showed nothing in his system. He was placed in a state mental hospital, and last March, a judge ruled that Gans was incompetent to stand trial. Ohio law allows a year for a defendant to become compentent. The deadline in this case is February 28^th. If Gans isn’t ruled competent by then, criminal charges would be dismissed, and he could be civilly committed to a psychiatric facility.

The chances of booking a downtown Cleveland hotel room during next year’s Republican National Convention are slim to none.

Hotel managers say they’ve booked all but a few of their five-thousand combined rooms downtown, plus another ten-thousand in the suburbs.  ‘Destination Cleveland’ officials are referring would-be visitors to hotels as far south as Canton.

In sports…

It’s a boys basketball doubleheader night on 95.3 WLKR and wlkrradio.com.  At 7:30, live from the Big House at Sandusky High School, it’s the Blue Streaks and the Norwalk Truckers.  After that game, it’s Roundball Replay with Shelby at Willard.

Two Norwalk residents are in the Huron County Jail this morning, facing child abuse and drug charges.

27-year-old Andrew Scott Missler is accused of badly beating his girlfriend’s seven-year-old daughter. He’s been charged with assault, permitting child abuse and several counts of cocaine and heroin possession.

His girlfriend, 27-year-old Amy Holtz is facing identical charges. Both are due in court next Tuesday.

Missler is accused of using a belt to beat the girl multiple times, leaving the girl bruised all over. According to reports, Holtz knew of the beatings, but did nothing to stop them. Deputies and Children’s Services were alerted by school employees. The girl, along with two younger siblings are now staying with a relative.

We now know exactly when the Republican National Convention will be held in Cleveland.

Officials said yesterday the convention will be held July 18-21 of 2016.

As expected, a division of Caesar’s Entertainment has filed for bankruptcy protection.

Caesar’s Entertainment Operating Company is trying to get out from more than $18 billion in debt. The filing won’t affect casinos in Cleveland or Cincinnati.

An ISIS supporter from Cincinnati was arrested yesterday, after federal authorities said he planned to bomb the U.S. Capitol.

FBI agents arrested 20-yearold Christopher Cornell, at a range and gun shop. He had just bought two semi-automatic guns, and about 600 rounds of ammo. According to the FBI, Cornell planned to build, plant and set off pipe bombs at and near the U.S. Capitol building. He also planned to shoot officials and employees trying to escape.

Between 9 and 3 today is when water service will be shut off along Norwalk’s Rosedale Boulevard.

Crews will replace a water line valve. The project was originally scheduled for Monday.

The search continues, for a Sandusky man missing since last Friday.

29-year-old AJ Fresch was last seen Friday afternoon, after parking his car in the downtown parking garage, then walking toward the Sandusky Library. Police have tried to track him via cell phone, but his phone has been off. Anyone with information should contact the Sandusky Police Department.

Elementary students in Vermilion will have to wait until next year to enjoy classes in the district’s new building.

Construction of the new Vermilion Elementary School has been delayed.  It was scheduled to be complete by early December with students moving in after the winter break.  Now, it appears construction won’t be complete until sometime in March.  Noting possible disruptions in a mid-semester move, school officials agreed to delay switching to the new building until the new school year.

If you’re expecting a tax refund, you may have to wait.

There’s word that federal income tax refunds might be delayed due to budget cuts.  And state income tax refunds may be delayed because of a new ‘fraud filter’ being installed to catch phony tax returns.

The Ohio State Buckeyes are champions of the college football world.

The Buckeyes topped Oregon 42-20 in the first-ever College Football Playoff national championship game. Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer.

Today’s the day Norwalk residents will be able to share their thoughts, as the Board of Education prepares to find a new superintendent.

A consultant with the Ohio School Boards Association will meet with community members at noon and 6 today, in the Fisher-Titus Learning Center at Norwalk High School. She’ll accept input, and discuss three main areas: major issues facing the district, performance expectations for the next superintendent, and personal and professional expectations to be sought in the next superintendent. The consultant will meet with meet with administrators, teachers and support staff during the afternoon hours.

Tom Dunlap will serve as president of the Huron County Commissioners in 2015.He was elected, during yesterday’s re-organizational meeting.

Gary Bauer was elected vice-president. The commissioners will continue to meet every Tuesday, and the first and third Thursdays of each month, at the Huron County Administration Building in Norwalk. If you plan to address the commission, you’ll need to sign in, and you’ll have three minutes to speak, during the public participation portion of each meeting.

Bill Monoghan will again serve as president of the Erie County Commissioners.

He’s been president since 2009. Tom Ferrell was chosen to serve as vice-president.

A water line valve replacement project along Norwalk’s Rosedale Boulevard has been bumped to later this week.

Work was scheduled to be done yesterday, but it was moved to Thursday. That means no water along Rosedale between 9 and 3 this Thursday.

A new contract has been approved between the city of Willard, and the police union.

The three-year deal calls for a three percent raise the first year, 2.5 percent the second year, and a two percent raise in year three.

It’s Game Day.

Ohio State and Oregon will play for college football’s National Championship. Tonight’s game kicks off at 8:30. Pregame coverage starts at 7, on 95.3 WLKR.

Snow shut down schools throughout Huron County today.

A few Erie County schools went on a two-hour delay.  Conditions promoted Level 1 snow emergencies in Huron and Erie Counties.

The Huron County Commissioners will meet this morning, to set up 2015.

The commissioners will elect a president and vice-president, and will set meeting times and more. The special re-organizational meeting will begin at 9am, at the Huron County Administration Building.

If you live along Norwalk’s Rosedale Boulevard, you won’t have water between 9 and 3 today.

Crews will be replacing a water line valve. A boil advisory will be in effect for 24 hours, once water service has been restored along Rosedale Boulevard.

Governor John Kasich has his second inaugural today, the same day as the Ohio State Buckeyes take on the Oregon Ducks.

Kasich has beer, lasagna and chocolate Buckeyes on the line in a bet with Oregon’s governor.

A Sandusky woman is in trouble, accused of stealing money from her employer.

Surveillance video showed Michelle Price taking $500 from a safe at Denny’s Restaurant last Thursday night. She went back for more later that night, but was caught by a manager. Price is facing charges of safecracking, theft and attempted theft.

A new contract has been approved between the city of Willard and the police union.

The three-year deal calls for a three percent raise the first year, 2.5 percent the second year and a two percent raise in year three.  The previous contract expired last month.

A Norwalk man is facing a charge of felony voyeurism for allegedly using a cell phone camera to take pictures of an 11-year-old boy using the restroom at Wal-Mart.

27-year-old Matthew Ball was arrested last week after the boy told a parent.  Ball is due in court this Friday.