Amherst · Armed Robbery

Gunpoint Robbery Near the Animal Hospital Triggers a Multi-Agency, Drone-Assisted Manhunt

Two masked men in matching black Nike tracksuits pointed a Glock, then ran eastbound and hopped a fence, drawing Amherst and Tonawanda police and a perimeter.

Late yesterday, at about 11:14 PM, an Amherst officer came on the air out with Tonawanda police and a robbery victim, with a description of two suspects ready to relay. Dispatch put out one white male and one black male, both wearing all-black Nike tracksuits with black masks, who reportedly pointed what appeared to be a Glock handgun at the victim.

The suspects ran eastbound behind the animal hospital and, according to the traffic, hopped the fence at the back of the lot. A perimeter was established and, per the digest, a drone was deployed as Amherst and Tonawanda units coordinated the search across the seam of streets near the town line.

Lancaster · Thruway · Injury Crash

A Thruway Crash Near Lancaster Leaves a Patient in Cardiac Arrest Amid a Debris Field

A car and a tractor-trailer collided early this morning, scattering debris across the roadway as crews worked two victims in the car and evaluated the truck driver.

Just after 3:04 AM, Lancaster Fire took command of a crash on the Thruway involving a car and a tractor-trailer. Early in the response, command reported one patient down in the weeds beyond the guardrail with no shock advised — a patient in cardiac arrest — while a second victim was treated at the back of a rescue truck. "There's a lot of debris up here," command told a chief, calling for a lane to be taken as soon as possible.

Multiple companies staged along the roadway, with the incident commander directing the first unit behind his vehicle and the next units past the scene, and a second ambulance called for from eight minutes out. By about 3:18 AM, command updated that crews had one vehicle, one tractor-trailer and two victims in the car being treated, with the truck driver being evaluated and no extrication needed.

Hamburg · Big Tree Road · Sexual Assault

A Forced Sexual Assault Allegation Against a Daughter's Boyfriend Splits a Hamburg Family

Police were called to a Big Tree Road home yesterday evening after parents reported a boyfriend threw a woman around the house and forced her to have sex.

At about 6:36 PM yesterday, Hamburg police were dispatched to a home in the 3300 block of Big Tree Road, between Lakeshore and Grover, on a report relayed by the subject's parents. According to dispatch, the daughter's boyfriend had come to the house, thrown the woman around and then forced her to have sex with him; the parents went over, confronted the couple, and all parties were separated by the time officers arrived.

The mother was relocated to a nearby Holiday Lane address as the call was worked, and units reported the involved parties conscious and alert. The traffic reflected an active, sensitive domestic investigation rather than a resolved one.

Tonawanda · Missing Amherst Man

An SUV Tied to a Missing Elderly Amherst Man Is Found Crashed Through a Road Barricade

A black Chevy Suburban that drove through a road-closure barricade came back linked to a missing-person case, with the elderly driver nowhere in the vehicle.

Late yesterday, around 11:18 PM, units checking a single-vehicle accident in Tonawanda found no one in the SUV — a 2026 black Chevy Suburban that appeared to have driven through a barricade set for a road closure amid the flooding. A registration check produced a hit: the plate came back linked to a missing person out of Amherst, an elderly male driver identified on the radio as Corwin Marchinello, with the vehicle registered to a Phyllis Coleman.

With the driver missing, one responder stayed with the vehicle while another checked a Sunoco on the corner to see whether the man had gone inside. The traffic reflected an active effort to locate the driver rather than any resolution on scene.

Amherst · UB Stadium · Lightning Delay

Lightning Halts the UB Football Game — Evacuation Order Announced, Then Reversed

Command moved to clear the stands into the concourses, then decided minutes later to delay the game instead and leave the crowd in place.

At about 9:04 PM yesterday, the command for the UB Stadium detail announced it would make an evacuation into the concourses again as lightning moved through, with the tick-off set for 9:45 PM. A few minutes later, at around 9:08 PM, the command post relayed a change of plan: the game would be delayed until 9:43 PM, but the stands would not be evacuated after all.

The reversal capped a stormy evening on campus that also produced a stuck elevator with six people aboard, standing water in a lecture-hall lobby and a light-headed worker at the Champions Club. The game delay resolved without incident in the traffic.

Thruway · Who Flashed What

A Weapons Call, and the Eternal Question: Who Flashed the Gun at Whom?

Two Thruway dispatchers spent a tense minute untangling the geometry of a menacing report.

Yesterday around 5:54 PM, a menacing call on I-461 eastbound had a blue Nissan Sentra tailing a blue cab with a white trailer — or was it the other way around? "You said the Nissan flashed a gun?" one dispatcher asked. "Did it flash a gun to the trailer," came the reply, "or did the trailer flash a gun to the Nissan?" The record, finally, settled it: the Nissan flashed a gun at the tractor-trailer — a reading everyone agreed was "kind of confusing."

Cheektowaga · The Candy Beat

An Officer Volunteers for the Toughest Assignment: The Kid Selling Candy

One Cheektowaga unit knew exactly how to handle an unlicensed confectioner.

Yesterday just after 6:02 PM, amid a shift's worth of routine Cheektowaga radio traffic, one officer keyed up to claim a delicate detail. "I will go talk to the child trying to sell candy," the unit offered, then closed out with the confidence of a specialist: "That's what I'm known for."

Tonawanda · Water Wings

On the Flood's Worst Night, a Chief Gets Razzed About His Water Wings

With streets going under across town, someone found the moment for a little gallows humor.

Yesterday around 7:31 PM, as Tonawanda Town Fire worked a night of flooded-out streets and closed roads, a crew member keyed up with the observation the whole department was probably thinking. "I thought you were going to need your water wings there, Chief," the radio offered — before everyone got back to the very real business of the rising water.

Cheektowaga · Stranded at the Jeweler's

Two Stranded Airport Travelers, and Their Dog, Arrange a Pickup at a Jewelry Store

With the airport cut off by floodwater, the nearest a ride could get was Tag Jewelers.

Yesterday around 9:34 PM, with flooding cutting off access to Buffalo Niagara International, a Cheektowaga dispatcher worked out the last leg of an unusual rescue. "We got two people and a dog walking from the airport," the radio relayed, "they're getting picked up at Tag Jewelers over there, that's the closest their ride can get here." Fire was asked to help carry the couple's suitcases if the water proved too deep to walk.

Jamestown · Happy Anniversary

A Dispatcher Breaks From the Traffic to Wish Someone a Happy Anniversary

Between a clear and a plate check, a small kindness slipped onto the Jamestown air.

Yesterday at about 6:55 PM, tucked between a unit clearing a call and the ordinary flow of Jamestown police radio, a dispatcher keyed up with three words that had nothing to do with the job and everything to do with the human on the other end of the mic: "Happy 18th Anniversary!"

Amherst · Eggert Hill

Flooding Closes Roads Near Amherst's Eggert Hill, Draws Boat and Mutual Aid

Yesterday evening, Amherst Fire Dispatch juggled a string of calls out of its Eggert Hill district, sending Eggert Hill 3 to 151 Alberta and Eggert Hill 2 to 296 Capen Boulevard within minutes of each other, while North Amherst's chiefs, Rescue 8 and a boat were also sent to assist at Eggert Hill.

Shortly after, an Eggert Hill unit reported “both ends at six corners and Rosedale have been closed off with emergency tape”, with Amherst Police handling traffic control at the closure. North Amherst crews, unable to find a direct route in because of standing water, were told Sweet Home Road remained passable.

UB North Campus · Knox Hall

Six Trapped in Knox Hall Elevator Draws Amherst, Getzville Fire to UB North Campus

Yesterday around 7:21 PM, University at Buffalo Campus Police radio traffic confirmed “the total is 6, stuck in the elevator” inside an elevator at Knox Hall on the North Campus. Officers set up a traffic detail and notified Amherst Fire for a structural response.

Minutes later, Command Post confirmed “they have been notified, they will be responding”, and campus police also reached out to Getzville Fire, whose apparatus was directed to approach by way of the campus service lot for the best route in.

Grand Island · Grand Island Boulevard

Pickup's Fuel Spill on Grand Island Boulevard Sends Motorcycle Down

Yesterday just after 5:21 PM, Thruway Ch4 dispatchers relayed word from the Erie County Sheriff's Office that a motorcyclist had gone down on Grand Island Boulevard after a pickup truck spilled fuel across the roadway. Dispatchers asked “is this fuel spill going to be a hazard to traffic” as they worked to assess the scene.

The truck's driver estimated he had spilled 15 to 20 gallons, and dispatchers noted the vehicle involved was a personal pickup rather than a commercial tanker.

Wyoming County · Missing Adult

Boat-Trailer Run to Castile Storage Plant Never Arrives, Triggers Cross-County Search

Yesterday at 7:05 PM, Wyoming County Sheriff's dispatch put out a missing-adult alert for Robert Kaczmarek, who left the Springville area around 12:30 PM towing a boat trailer behind a GMC truck, bound for what was described as winter storage at the former Robeson Plant near 5540 Sutton Road in Castile. He never showed up.

The alert reached dispatch not from Kaczmarek but from his son, who called in after his father “never made it”. A dispatcher said she would notify both Cattaraugus County and Erie County as the search widened along his likely route.