Substation

Police captured a man early Monday near the Potomac Edison substation along Williamsport Pike within minutes after responding to a burglary alarm at the property, according to Berkeley County Magistrate Court records. Gary Allen Cooper, 39, of 98 Brandewine Circle, Martinsburg, was arraigned by Magistrate Betty Jo Hersh on single counts of breaking and entering, conspiracy to commit a felony and fleeing on foot, according to court documents. West Virginia State Police Trooper M.C. Morgan said in a criminal complaint that Cooper admitted to breaking into the property at 3380 Williamsport Pike, but also implicated a second, unnamed suspect.

By BRENDAN KIRBY Staff Writer ROHRERSVILLE - When fire strikes in the southern part of Washington County, there is no close fire station to douse the flames. Volunteer fire companies in Boonsboro, Dargan and Sharpsburg are all 12 or more miles away from the Rohrersville area along Md. 67. What was once largely empty farmland, however, is one of the fastest growing parts of the county. That has led the First Hose Company of Boonsboro to seek permission to build a substation.

SMITHSBURG - Fire crews were at Bikle Road Saturday night after a report of an explosion at a substation, a Washington County emergency dispatcher said. About a dozen calls came shortly after 9 p.m., the dispatcher said. Firefighters arrived to find some transformers on fire, he said. Allegheny Power spokesman Allen Staggers said a circuit breaker at the substation failed and caught fire. No customers lost service, Staggers said.

CHAMBERSBURG, PA. -- The only records available at the former Record City will be the criminal kind when the Chambersburg Police Department opens up a substation at the vacant Southgate Mall storefront in a few weeks. The Borough Council on Monday approved a four-year lease on the retail space with Paran Management, the Ohio-based company that owns the mall. The borough has actually maintained a substation in another part of the mall since 1997, Borough Secretary Tanya Mickey said.

Stolen generator causes phone service outage CHAMBERSBURG, Pa. - Someone stole a telephone substation generator Tuesday, causing an outage to Embarq customers in the Chambersburg area, according to a Pennsylvania State Police press release. The gas-powered generator supplied power to a substation at Baker and Loop roads, police said. The theft of the generator at about 4 a.m. caused between 370 and 400 Embarq customers to lose their phone service, police said. The thief cut a chain or padlock to get the generator, which was so heavy two people would be needed to carry it, police said.

A tree falling on an Allegheny Power line shortly after 9 this morning took out the substation serving Hagerstown's North End and Maugansville, according to Janice Lantz, Allegheny spokeswoman. The power outage also affected Citicorp at 14700 Citicorp Drive, Lantz said. Citicorp employs more than 2,500 people. "The good news is that it has been quick work getting power restored," Lantz said shortly before 10 a.m. Once the tree was removed, crews began re-energizing the substation and all 2,500 customers were back in service by 9:34 a.m.

McCONNELLSBURG, Pa. - A squirrel that entered an Allegheny Energy Inc. substation Tuesday afternoon caused a power outage that affected 3,612 customers. Power was out in areas of Franklin and Fulton counties from about 4:30 p.m. to 7:28 p.m., spokeswoman Hollie Plevyak said. The squirrel that entered the McConnellsburg substation was killed. It was unclear what the squirrel did to cause the outage, but Plevyak said it must have triggered something with the power lines. "We don't know exactly what caused it, but the whole thing was caused by a squirrel," she said.

Police warn against seasonal crimes By KIMBERLY YAKOWSKI / Staff Writer Like children, criminals wait all year long for the holiday season- but for a different reason. Busy malls and shopping centers mean a steady source of packages, purses and wallets to an opportunistic thief. To help reduce holiday crime, local authorities are increasing patrols throughout retail centers in Washington County, according to Maryland State Police Lt. Randy Resh, commander of the Hagerstown barrack.

Four people were pulled out of the Potomac River near U.S. 340 and Keep Tryst Road on Saturday night, according to Washington County Emergency Services. All four, one adult male and three female teenagers, refused transport to the hospital, Potomac Valley Fire Chief Eric Gray said. The foursome was tubing on the river around 11 p.m., Gray said. Also responding were emergency services officials from the Boonsboro fire department's Rohrersville substation and Brunswick fire department in Frederick County, Md., according to a 911 supervisor.

The Washington County Planning Commission approved the following site plan proposals Monday: o A 199-foot monopole cell tower on Boyd Mountain. The tower will be south of Interstate 70 between Big Pool and Gehr roads. It will include six antennae with room for six more, Planner Lisa Kelly said. The first six antennae have been leased to Verizon, a representative for the tower's developer said at the meeting. The Washington County Historic District Commission objected to the tower because of its proximity to Fort Frederick, but the Board of Zoning Appeals approved a special exception to allow the tower to be built.

About 1,570 Potomac Edison customers in Washington County lost their power for about an hour Tuesday afternoon when a circuit malfunctioned at a substation in West Virginia, a spokesman for Potomac Edison said. David Kline said the outage was reported at 12:57 p.m. A check of the utility's website showed power was restored to all customers in the affected area, which included some in the Hagerstown, Clear Spring and Williamsport areas.   - Dan Dearth

Police captured a man early Monday near the Potomac Edison substation along Williamsport Pike within minutes after responding to a burglary alarm at the property, according to Berkeley County Magistrate Court records. Gary Allen Cooper, 39, of 98 Brandewine Circle, Martinsburg, was arraigned by Magistrate Betty Jo Hersh on single counts of breaking and entering, conspiracy to commit a felony and fleeing on foot, according to court documents. West Virginia State Police Trooper M.C. Morgan said in a criminal complaint that Cooper admitted to breaking into the property at 3380 Williamsport Pike, but also implicated a second, unnamed suspect.

Four people were pulled out of the Potomac River near U.S. 340 and Keep Tryst Road on Saturday night, according to Washington County Emergency Services. All four, one adult male and three female teenagers, refused transport to the hospital, Potomac Valley Fire Chief Eric Gray said. The foursome was tubing on the river around 11 p.m., Gray said. Also responding were emergency services officials from the Boonsboro fire department's Rohrersville substation and Brunswick fire department in Frederick County, Md., according to a 911 supervisor.

A Washington County Circuit Court judge Tuesday gave a Smithsburg man a three-year suspended sentence and ordered him to pay $1,000 in restitution in connection with the theft of 200 pounds of copper wire from a Potomac Edison substation last year that caused about $8,000 in damages, according to court records. Judge W. Kennedy Boone III also placed Michael Steven Bray, 31, on three-years' probation. Bray was sentenced after he pleaded guilty to fourth-degree burglary Tuesday.

Hagerstown residents in the area of Fairgrounds Park experienced a temporary power outage Thursday morning after two birds caused a short-circuit at the Fairgrounds/Jones Substation, according to a city news release. Around 9:24 a.m., officials with the Hagerstown Light Department were alerted to the outage, according to the release. Approximately 3,000 customers were without power for approximately 24 minutes while crews worked to determine the cause of the outage and restore power, the release said.

ROHRERSVILLE -- A variety of topics, from the effectiveness of a police substation in the Pleasant Valley area to how police use fingerprints in solving crimes, were discussed Wednesday night during a public meeting about crime concerns in southern Washington County. About 45 people at the Rohrersville Ruritan Schoolhouse heard from a panel of speakers that included Washington County Sheriff Douglas W. Mullendore, Washington County Commissioners Kristin B. Aleshire and William J. Wivell, County Administrator Gregory Murray, Lt. David Kloos of the Maryland State Police and Kevin Lewis, director of emergency services for Washington County.

BLUE RIDGE SUMMIT, Pa. -- The Blue Ridge Fire and Rescue Squad has applied for almost $1.3 million in stimulus money to build a substation in Rouzerville, Pa. Now the department is soliciting the community for land that could be used if the Federal Emergency Management Agency grant is awarded. "We really need the township support and community support to make it happen," said James Devlin, a department member who prepared the application and submitted it earlier this month.

TRI-STATE - Changes announced Friday to the route of a planned high-voltage power line make it "quite unlikely" that the line will run through Washington County, Md., or through Berkeley and Morgan counties in West Virginia, spokesmen for Allegheny Power said Friday. However, Allegheny Power Spokesman Allen T. Staggers would not rule out Jefferson County, W.Va. "I suspect Jefferson County will be within the new study area," Staggers said. Allegheny Power and American Electric Power announced Friday that the Potomac-Appalachian Transmission Highline (PATH)

TRI-STATE -- Changes announced Friday to the route of a planned high-voltage power line make it "quite unlikely" that the line will run through Washington County, Md., or through Berkeley and Morgan counties in West Virginia, spokesmen for Allegheny Power said Friday. However, Allegheny Power Spokesman Allen T. Staggers would not rule out Jefferson County, W.Va. "I suspect Jefferson County will be within the new study area," Staggers said. Allegheny Power and American Electric Power announced Friday that the Potomac-Appalachian Transmission Highline (PATH)

CHAMBERSBURG, Pa. -- A man charged with stealing thousands of dollars worth of copper and steel cable from Allegheny Power facilities and cell tower sites over the past several months waived his preliminary hearing Tuesday in Franklin County Central Court. Timothy Lee Taylor Jr., 32, of no fixed address, is charged by Pennsylvania State Police with 15 counts of theft, along with charges of fleeing and eluding police, receiving stolen property, criminal trespass and criminal mischief.