Lancaster · Juniper Street · Missing Child

An Overnight Search for a Girl Named Catherine Ends the Way You Hope It Does

Lancaster officers spread across the playgrounds and side streets for a girl on a white bike, while a separate report of a sedan full of people yelling for help turned out to be nothing.

Overnight, just after 1:18 AM, Lancaster police spread across the village searching for a girl named Catherine, reported on her bike — a white bike — somewhere among the neighborhood playgrounds. Dispatch relayed her family's best guess: “possibly any playground because she likes to be on swings”. Officers worked it methodically, clearing West Roller Park and pushing toward Court Street.

Threaded into the same window was a more alarming call — a dark-colored sedan near Juniper and Seneca with four people inside, one of them reportedly yelling for help, the vehicle possibly heading toward Walden at a high rate of speed. An officer caught up with it as it turned from Juniper onto Seneca. The explanation was ordinary: “These juveniles were just looking for something that fell out of the vehicle. They found it. They're going to be on their way home”. Catherine was found safe, and the edition's quietest-feeling scare resolved before dawn.

Chautauqua County · New York State Thruway · Diesel Spill

A Tractor-Trailer Leaves the Thruway, Plows the Median and Bleeds Diesel From Both Tanks

A rig that ran off the road into the woods leaked fuel from its left tank — and probably its right — bringing a hazmat team and the DEC to the highway.

Yesterday at about 6:36 PM, a tower company working an incident on the New York State Thruway in Chautauqua County reported a tractor-trailer that had “left the road, down through the median, and into the woods”.

The crew found fuel coming off the wreck fast: “It appears that we have diesel fuel leaking from the left side tank. I also believe there may be diesel fuel leaking from the right tank” They asked dispatch to tone a hazmat team and to notify the DEC. Ambulances staged in nearby Cherry Creek as the response built out. The scanner traffic established the rig leaving the road, the diesel leaking from the tanks and the hazmat and DEC requests; it did not establish any serious injuries from the crash itself before the thread closed.

Salamanca · Center Street · Weapons Report

A Camera Operator Reports a Man With an AR and a Suppressor — It Was a Pipe

A Salamanca surveillance advisor watched a man walk toward a Center Street address with what looked like a rifle; by the time officers moved in, it was something else entirely.

Yesterday at about 8:10 PM, Salamanca police got the kind of report that straightens every back in a dispatch room. An advisor watching the city's cameras described “this male with an AR-type rifle, forward grip, modified suppressor, walking to 307 Center”.

Officers converged, meeting up in the area before closing in. On a closer look, the rifle wasn't a rifle at all — it was later determined to be a pipe, and the subject was taken into custody. The scanner traffic established the camera report, the officers' response and the clarification that the object was a pipe rather than a firearm.

Cheektowaga · Walden Avenue · Hit-and-Run Pursuit

A Hit-and-Run Driver Threads Walden Avenue With Cheektowaga Police on His Tail — Until Target Plaza

Officers tracked a single hooded driver light-to-light down Walden after a crash near Randolph, calling radio silence as they moved in at the plaza.

Yesterday at about 5:00 PM, Cheektowaga police picked up a hit-and-run that had just happened on Walden Avenue at Randolph, eastbound near Michigan Ridge. Officers worked to spot the fleeing car as it moved through traffic, with a dispatcher noting it had gone to the mall the day before and might head that way again.

Units shadowed the vehicle light-to-light down Walden — "a single occupant, just the driver with a hood up" — as it crept from lane to lane and sat stuck at the signals. When it pulled into the Target Plaza off Walden, dispatch cut everyone off: “All cars radio silence”. Minutes later the stop was done and radio silence was lifted. The scanner traffic established the hit-and-run, the tracking down Walden and the stop at the plaza; it did not establish an arrest before the thread closed.

Amherst · North French Road · Reported Brawl

A Call for 64 People Fighting on North French Road Dwindles to a Handful

Amherst dispatch worked a report of a large fight that kept shrinking by the transmission.

Yesterday at about 9:53 PM, Amherst police were working a call on North French Road that arrived sounding enormous — a report that some 64 people were fighting — and immediately started deflating, with the count noted as no longer the eleven that had been there.

An officer on scene described trying to sort it out — going around looking for anyone who could be identified as a victim, only to be shut down by the group. By the time the dust cleared, the reported mass brawl amounted to something far smaller. The scanner traffic established the large-fight report, the rapidly dropping head counts and the officers' difficulty finding a victim; it did not establish any arrests before the thread closed.

Depew · Broadway · Reported Large Fight

Depew Races to '50 to 60' Fighting at the Old Taylor Rental — It Was a Gender Reveal

A single caller's report of a parking-lot melee sent cars running to Broadway, where officers found a party, not a brawl.

Yesterday at about 5:39 PM, Depew dispatch put out a report of a large fight — 50 to 60 people — in the parking lot of the old Taylor Rental building on Broadway, settling the address as 4978 Broadway off a single caller.

Cars were told to slow down almost as fast as they'd sped up. The first unit on scene set the record straight in four words: “No fighting. It's a baby shower. And a gender reveal” The crowd was a baby shower and a gender reveal. The scanner traffic established the large-fight report and the on-scene correction; no fight was found.

Buffalo · District Patrol · Deer Detail

'This Deer Is Stuck on a Metal Six-Foot Fence. I Am Not Pulling It Off.'

A Buffalo officer draws a very clear professional boundary.

Yesterday just before 6:00 PM, with animal control reporting the "scavenger" unavailable and the situation possibly having to wait until tomorrow, a Buffalo officer keyed up to settle the matter of who, exactly, would be freeing the animal impaled on a six-foot fence: “Yeah radio, this deer is stuck on a metal six foot fence, I am not pulling it off” It is the sound of a man who knows his job description, and this is not in it.

Amherst · Getzville · Alarm Troubleshooting

Getzville Firefighters Weigh the Nuclear Option: Popping a Ceiling Tile

When the detector heads 'get a little weird' in the rain, there is only one thing to do.

Yesterday at about 7:49 PM, Getzville firefighters talked themselves calmly through a weather-cranky alarm, landing on a theory and a modest plan of action: “Usually when it starts to rain, sometimes those heads get a little weird. We could pop a tile and see if there's any water leaking if we really want to” Rain makes the heads weird; a popped tile confirms the leak. Then, with the forensic matter settled, Getzville 101 announced the real priority — the truck still needed fuel.

Buffalo · Car-to-Car · Gate Science

Two Buffalo Officers Conduct a Live Experiment on Whether a Gate Opens by Itself

The method: drive at it and find out.

Yesterday at about 5:34 PM, car-to-car traffic captured a small triumph of applied field research. “The gate's closed. Come pull my car around this way to see if there's an automatic open” Copy, said the other car — and so the hypothesis was tested the only way that matters.

WNY · Airport Ramp · Parking Dispute

'Where You At, John?' 'I'm on D3.' 'HEH HEH HEH.'

An airline ramp crew's late-night radio comedy, no setup required.

Just before midnight, the airport ramp channel delivered a perfect three-beat exchange between crew members working the gates. One asked where his colleague had gotten to; the answer came back — “I'm on D3” — and whatever that meant to the two of them, it was apparently hilarious. The reply was recorded, in full, for posterity.

Tonawanda · Channing Place · Domestic Dispute

Woman Trying to Leave Channing Place Home Says Husband Won't Let Her

At 9:32 PM yesterday, Tonawanda Police dispatched units to 11 Channing Place for domestic trouble after a woman reported a disagreement with her husband and said she was trying to leave the house but he was not letting her. Dispatch logged a possible injury as units were sent, and a car confirmed arrival on scene minutes later.

Clarence · Clarence Center · Investigate Fire

Clarence Center Crews Investigate Reported Fire Inside Spalding Green Home

At 5:47 PM yesterday, Amherst Fire Dispatch sent Clarence Center companies to investigate a reported fire at 5511 Spalding Green Parkway, between the parkway and the dead end, after an alarm company relayed that the resident said something was on fire inside. Clarence responded with a pumper and a rescue, and a ladder company also appears to have been dispatched. Clarence 392 arrived on location a few minutes later and reported nothing showing, continuing to investigate.

Buffalo · William Street · Vehicle Into Structure

Car Strikes Buffalo Church, Collapse Team Called Then Stood Down

Yesterday at 8:38 PM, Buffalo Fire Dispatch issued a special assignment near William Street and Jefferson Avenue after reports that a car had gone into a church, sending Engine 21, Engine 3, Ladder 6, Ladder 5, Rescue 1 and the department's collapse team with entrapment and victim status unknown. Battalion 43 radioed in moments later confirming a vehicle had reportedly struck the building, and a crew was on location investigating within two minutes. By 8:41 PM a chief's aide reported back “no entrapment, no structural damage”, and the assignment was dropped down to a routine box, designated 101.

Buffalo · Seneca Street · Domestic Threat

Son's Threat to Shoot Father Defused by Locked Shotgun, Buffalo Police Say

Yesterday just after 11:12 PM, Buffalo police radio sent Adam 440 and Adam 441 to a domestic call at 1706 Seneca Street, where a woman identified on the air as Michelle told officers her 18-year-old son, identified as Nathan, had said “he's going to shoot his father when he arrives home”. Michelle told dispatch the family's shotgun is locked in a lockbox upstairs and that Nathan does not have access to it.

Buffalo · Welker Avenue · Stabbing

Stabbing Victim on Welker Avenue Refuses Hospital Transport

In the early morning hours, at 1:59 AM, a grandson called in for his grandmother on Welker Avenue to report that her boyfriend had stabbed her, but the woman did not want to go to the hospital. Dispatch confirmed she was alive and described the injury as a small laceration to her thigh, and officers requested AMR while the primary unit responded; a supervisor later confirmed the ambulance crew was en route to the scene.

Buffalo · West Ferry and 19th · Pursuit Crash

Buffalo Pursuit Ends in Crash Into Utility Pole, Fire Hydrant on West Ferry

Yesterday at 7:10 PM, a Buffalo D District patrol car reported a vehicle fleeing north on Plymouth Avenue at a high rate of speed after a stop near West Avenue, and officers asked for a kill switch rather than press a pursuit. A B District supervisor pressed over the air to confirm officers weren't chasing the car, and seconds later it crashed, striking a utility pole and a fire hydrant at West Ferry Street and 19th Street. The driver and a passenger ran from the wreck, described only as wearing all black with their faces covered and one about six feet tall, and officers set up a perimeter near 19th and Shenango while searching for them.

Cheektowaga · Barone Circle · Disturbance

Twenty-Plus Guests Scatter From Barone Circle Airbnb After Gun Threat Reported

Yesterday at 8:55 PM, Cheektowaga police were sent to the area of 56 Barone Circle for a disturbance involving more than 20 people at an Airbnb, with callers describing yelling and screaming both inside and outside the house and one neighbor reporting that somebody had been threatened with a gun — though that neighbor said they never saw a weapon. A third caller phoned in minutes later to report the party had trashed the rental and left in a vehicle before officers arrived; no weapon or suspects were found on scene.

Cheektowaga · Drury Plaza · Assault

Masked Man Punches Woman at Tops, Assault Continues Inside Store

Yesterday at 6:19 PM, Cheektowaga police were called to the Tops at Drury Plaza after a man in a gray hoodie and ski mask punched a woman in the head, continuing the assault once inside the store; the woman refused EMS at the customer service desk. Minutes later, an officer on scene said the suspect's description matched a man identified as Sean Burns, noting he had previously been trespassed from the property, and dispatch confirmed the trespass order while officers continued working the call.

Cheektowaga · Langfield Apartments · Police Pursuit

Cheektowaga Pursuit Called Off, Driver Tracked Down for Warrant

Overnight at 2:45 AM, Cheektowaga police called off a pursuit moments after it began when a vehicle stopped for an inspection violation took off westbound; dispatch said the passenger was “probably lying about his name and has warrants”. The car was last seen near the Langfield Apartments, with Buffalo police asked to help search near Hempfield and Suffolk. Dispatch identified the registered owner, Joshua Knobloch, as the driver, and by 2:50 AM a supervisor confirmed there was enough to file a warrant on him, with the vehicle entered as wanted and Buffalo notified.

Southtowns · New Oregon Road · Working Fire

Working Structure Fire on New Oregon Road Draws Three-Town Mutual Aid

Early this morning, at 5:07 AM, Springville Fire Control dispatched a working structure fire on New Oregon Road, pulling mutual aid from three surrounding towns and activating a FAST (Firefighter Assist and Search Team) in case a firefighter needed rescue. Units remained committed past 5:12 AM as the response built out, though no injury or damage report was broadcast on the recorded portion of the call.

Hamburg · 3rd Street · Mental Health Call

Hamburg Man in Crisis Reports Reptilians, Snipers Outside, Holds Knife

Yesterday at 6:20 PM, Hamburg police were dispatched for a mental-health call at 3673 3rd Street, between La Von and Lake Shore, after a caller reported a man who had stopped taking his medication was seeing reptilians and believed snipers were positioned outside. Dispatch added the man had a pocket knife but said he would come out once patrol arrived. Units staged nearby, and the call was cleared without further incident reported on the air.

Holley · Upper Holley Road · Assault

Law Enforcement Standby Called After Woman Assaulted on Upper Holley Road

Yesterday just after 9:36 PM, Orleans County fire-EMS paging requested a law-enforcement standby at 4541 Holley-Byron Road, near Crosby's, with a second ambulance toned out of Clarendon. About ten minutes later, dispatch redirected crews to 267 Upper Holley Road for a female victim of an assault with facial injuries; her condition was not given further over the air.

Ellicottville · Washington Street · Head Injury

Bar-Area Facial Injury in Ellicottville Escalates to Severe Head Trauma Call

At 11:50 PM yesterday, Cattaraugus County Fire dispatched Ellicottville and Great Valley crews along with a CLS trauma unit to 36 Washington Street in the Village of Ellicottville for a 20-year-old man with facial injuries. Four minutes later the responding crew radioed back asking dispatch to upgrade the response, reporting the man now had “severe head injuries”, and a mutual-aid company farther south acknowledged the call shortly after.

Chautauqua County · Point Road · Domestic Dispute

Dispatcher Flags Third Domestic Call to Same Point Road Address in 18 Hours

At 11:02 PM yesterday, Chautauqua County dispatchers sent a unit to a physical domestic at 25-25 Point Road in the Town of Poland — “third incident in 18 hours”, a dispatcher noted on the air, describing the man involved as intoxicated. The woman told dispatch her arm hurt after he allegedly pulled her out of bed, though she did not ask for EMS, and dispatch separately noted she had admitted lying about a physical incident the night before because she wanted a faster response. A second unit offered to assist, noting the man had been on a bender but had not turned physically hostile.