Snyder · 77 Washington Highway

Three Snyder Engines, One Steamy Bathroom

A commercial-fire alarm at Amherst Community Church pulled a multi-engine response that ended at the men’s room.

At 11:12, Amherst Fire toned out a commercial fire-alarm activation at 77 Washington Highway — Amherst Community Church, between Main Street and West Marlin Road — for a nursery-room smoke detector. Snyder 95 was first on scene at 11:19 reporting a three-story building; the dispatcher held later units, then redirected the response to the parking lot off Westmoreland and moved working units to operations channel 2.

By 11:38 the alarm could not be reset; a few minutes later, units reported the cause: “set off by steam in the bathroom, holding all units and quarters”. North Bailey 95 was placed back in service at 12:34 hours after Amherst Fire marked the call avoidable. No injuries.

Amherst · Niagara Falls Boulevard / Target

BOLO at the Boulevard Target: ‘Don’t Tell Him You’re There’

Amherst PD relayed a complainant’s text-911 warning her ex-boyfriend was on the way — in a black Kia Forte — to find her at the store.

Just past 10:36, dispatch read a text-911 incoming over Amherst PD’s main channel: “The party is trying to say that their ex-boyfriend is starting to follow the target again”. A patrol was advised to look for a “black Kia Forte”, with the subject “possibly has black hair and glasses, unknown race”.

Officers staged in the customary spot — “cars always stage behind Buffalo Wild Wings” — and the dispatcher noted the subject was “writing the complainant telling her not to notify Target that he’s on the way”. The call cleared without an on-air arrest; the original complaint was reclassified to a suspicious-occurrence report by 12:47, suggesting officers stood by and made contact with both parties without escalation.

Amherst · Peace Bridge / CBP

Confused Veteran at the Peace Bridge — CBP Calls Amherst PD

Customs and Border Protection asked APD to help notify family of a disoriented man with a warning on his address.

Just before 09:41, Amherst PD’s dispatcher relayed an unusual request: Customs and Border Protection at the bridge was “requesting someone to talk about the address, trying to raise someone”, with “someone that’s very confused and disoriented at the border”. The dispatcher cautioned the responding patrol that “there is a warning on the address I’m sending over to you”.

An officer noted the man told CBP “he is a military vet”, and the unit asked whether the VA might assist with emergency contacts. By 10:09, after canvassing neighbors at the address: “spoke to the neighbors, and nobody has any family contacts for him”. The screen was updated and the unit cleared. A small mercy on a routine Sunday morning.

Williamsville · 4291 Chestnut Ridge Road

Apartment-Stairs Fall Draws Three Ellicott Creek Rigs

A 46-year-old woman fell roughly eight steps with back and leg injuries.

At 14:38, Amherst Fire dispatched Ellicott Creek for “a 46-year-old female who fell down approximately eight stairs with back and leg injuries” at 4291 Chestnut Ridge Road, apartment 7, between Chestnut Ridge Road and Deer Lakes Drive. Ellicott Creek 92, 71, 91, 51, and 9 all responded within seven minutes — a heavy turnout for a fall call, suggesting Ellicott Creek treated this as a higher-acuity job from the start. The Boulevard provided the transport.

Theme of the Day

Steam, Bacon, and a Cleaner With a Spray Bottle: WNY’s Most-Avoidable Alarms

Three suburbs, three false alarms, three culinary culprits.

Six-thirty hours of dispatch traffic produced an unusually tidy thematic cluster of avoidable fire-alarm activations. Buffalo Fire was first up at 08:47 on a residential alarm later closed as “set off by meat on the stove”; Engine 38 took the report.

At 09:06, Amherst Fire ran a hallway smoke-detector activation at 207 Stevenson Boulevard; the dispatcher’s closeout to Eggertsville command became today’s most quotable bit of radio: “that’s their very crispy bacon”. Eggertsville was back in service at 09:12.

Then, the Tale of Two Steamings. At 11:12 it was the Snyder church story above. At 12:27, North Bailey companies poured out for 4258 Maple Road at Taco Bell, between Hillcrest Drive and Sweet Home Road; that alarm cleared as “set off by steam, cleaning the men’s room by employee, marking as avoidable”. North Bailey was back in service at 12:34.

East Aurora · 2137 Transit Road

Tim Hortons Evacuated for an Overheated Espresso Machine

Caller said the ice machine was smoking and filling the building — turned out to be the wrong appliance.

EAFD dispatched a full response at 13:15 to a “possible commercial structure fire, report of the ice machine smoking, filling the building with smoke; caller told to evacuate” at 2137 Transit Road — the Tim Hortons between Seneca and Old Transit. Springbrook, East Seneca, Jamison Road aerial, and a stand-by engine were all rolled; staff began evacuating the dining room. Command requested most of the assignment pick up shortly after arrival.

By 13:35, EAFD wrapped it: “overheated espresso machine, which has been removed from the building; building has been ventilated; command is terminated”. Springbrook and East Seneca cleared, command terminated. Coffee service presumably resumed without further incident, but the morning rush at this Tim Hortons did not.

BNIA · General Aviation pattern

A Helicopter Pilot Asks the Question We’re All Thinking

Five seconds of unguarded audio from the general-aviation channel.

At 09:41:24, a single un-keyed transmission opened on the Heli Pattern frequency: “What the —— are you doing”. No callsign, no addressee, no follow-up. We assume the airspace got sorted itself out shortly thereafter.

Buffalo · BPD Ch.2 Downtown-West

Good Morning, Ryu

Sometimes radio is just two officers greeting each other.

Buffalo Police Channel 2 (Downtown-West) at 10:21: “You’re welcome”, followed immediately by “Good morning, Ryu”. That was the whole transmission. Whoever Ryu is, somebody on the channel was glad they showed up.

Concord · Cayuga Village Apartments

Caller Reports Vomiting Blood, Blames Black Mold

Concord FD ran a Beverly EMS call to a Springville-area apartment complex.

Concord Fire Dispatch sent Beverly EMS to 136 Hutchins Drive, the Cayuga Village Apartments between Lawson and Union, for what the caller described as “difficulty breathing and also vomiting blood, possibly due to black mold in the house”. No additional units were requested and the call cleared on the original assignment.

Niagara County · 572 Ward Road

Juvenile Bicyclist Struck on Ward Road, Awake and Alert

Mutual aid called from St. Joseph's; ALS priority response recommended.

Niagara County FD dispatched at 13:44 for a “bicyclist, juvenile patient, conscious, ALS priority response recommended” at 572 Ward Road, between Ruie Road and St. Joseph’s. MTFT 10-1 reported on scene; the patient was conscious. Drill cleared at 13:45.