The University of Findlay is inviting children and their families to take part in a Letters to Santa Drive-Thru.

The event will be on Sunday from 4:30 to 5:30 in front of Old Main.

Santa will be waving from a safe distance as his elves, also at a safe distance, accept letters in a special drive-thru.

The university says it’s been a tough year, and they wanted to make it possible for children to visit Santa and make a new treasured memory.

People joining in on the fun should pull through the half circle drive, entering near the College First Church of God, and then place their letters in Santa’s bag from their vehicle.

The first 200 vehicles will receive a free University of Findlay Christmas goodie bag.

Get more details on the event by clicking here. 

While people in Findlay had to deal with some snow on Wednesday, it wasn’t as much as the area received earlier in the month.

Findlay picked up about 1 to 1 1/2 inches of snow on Monday and a little more was possible at night and on Thursday.

On November 30th into December 1st the city received around 3 inches of snow.

People we spoke with as they were clearing their sidewalks on Wednesday didn’t seem to mind the snowfall and were thankful it wasn’t more significant.

City, county and state plows were doing a good job keeping the roads clear although there are some slick spots out there so drive with caution.

There’s a chance of a little more snow Wednesday night and also on Thursday with the high Thursday around 34.

Light snowfall is expected to continue throughout the evening, so dayshift crews are staying out. Currently, we have 72 trucks out treating and monitoring the roadways. These pictures from our plows are from U.S. 30, SR 114, and SR 613. pic.twitter.com/7G0IvB4GV1

— ODOT NW Ohio (@ODOT_NWOhio) December 16, 2020

The number of COVID-19 deaths in Hancock County held steady in the latest data released on Wednesday, although active cases went up slightly.

Hancock Public Health on Wednesday reported 66 deaths, the same as in their Monday report.

There were 321 active cases of the virus in the county on Wednesday, an increase of six from Monday.

That slight increase follows two straight reports of declining active cases.

Active cases are patients who are currently under quarantine or in isolation.

30 people were hospitalized with the virus on Wednesday, one less than on Monday.

Statewide, there have been more than 584,000 cases and 7,700 deaths since the pandemic began.

The Ohio State Highway Patrol is investigating a fatal crash on the Ohio Turnpike.

The Swanton Post of the Highway Patrol says a Ford Ranger was westbound on Interstate 80 on Wednesday morning when it slid on the slick roadway.

The truck hit a guardrail and then entered the median where it overturned.

The Highway Patrol says a passenger in the truck, James S. Botton, 58, of Tiffin, was ejected from the truck and died.

The driver, Rouyn M. Alda, 58, of California, was taken by ambulance to Fulton County Health Center with injuries described as not life-threatening.

The Highway Patrol says safety belts were not in proper use.

Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost is warning residents about potential scams as the first Ohioans start receiving the COVID-19 vaccine.

He says con artists may begin contacting people, claiming to be on the vaccination distribution team and asking for personal information in order to push victims “to the front of the line.”

Yost also says cards may be distributed to consumers that have been provided the first dose of a two-dose vaccine.

The cards will likely be used to simply remind people to get their second dose, not as official “passports” to gain entry into bars, restaurants or other public areas, or to bypass public health orders.

Therefore, any attempts to buy these cards will be fruitless.

Hancock County health officials anticipate the county receiving its initial doses of the COVID-19 vaccine on or around Tuesday, December 22nd.

Healthcare workers and emergency medical staff will be the first to be inoculated.

Health Commissioner Karim Baroudi tells WFIN he believes the vaccine will be available to the general public in early March.

Baroudi says the vaccine went through all the steps that are required to ensure that it’s safe and effective.

He says the county would need 60 to 70 percent of the population to get the vaccine to reach herd immunity to where things could start going back to normal.

Karim was on with WFIN’s Chris Oaks.

Listen to that full interview by clicking here.

pic.twitter.com/TqllgdhDgn

— HancockPublicHealth (@HancockHealth) December 9, 2020

The Ohio State Highway Patrol has created a Work Zone Safety Dashboard to reduce work zone crashes and to illustrate the work troopers do every day to keep drivers safe.

The new Work Zone Dashboard can be accessed by clicking here.

Full details on the new initiative are in the following news release from the Highway Patrol.

In an effort to curb work zone crashes and further empower the public, the Ohio State Highway Patrol has released a new dashboard devoted to work zone safety. The Work Zone Dashboard is a detailed view of work zones across Ohio, and the important work that troopers around the state are doing to make them safer.

The brand new Work Zone Dashboard is a part of the Ohio Statistics and Analytics for Traffic Safety (OSTATS), a series of internal and public-facing dashboards dedicated to exploration, analysis, and visualization of crash data across Ohio. Users of the newest public-facing Work Zone Dashboard have the ability to filter data and find the exact statistics they’re looking for, while also getting a front seat view of what our troopers do every day in Ohio’s work zones. Users of the dashboard have the ability to look at their own counties and routes, providing flexibility for them to get the exact data they want. An interactive map on the dashboard plots high-priority work zones throughout the state, as well as videos of troopers enforcing work zone violations.

“Ohio’s work zones are a top priority for the Patrol, making sure that everyone has a safe driving and working environment,” said Colonel Richard S. Fambro, Patrol superintendent. “Troopers are committed to making work zones safer through focused enforcement and taking dangerous drivers off the road.”

Troopers on the ground are also assisted by troopers in the air from the Patrol’s Aviation Section. Throughout Ohio’s construction season, the Patrol’s Aviation Section has been utilized by focusing on dangerous speeds and distracted driving in work zones. The Patrol is dedicated to using every available resource to make these zones safer, making sure everyone gets to their destination safely.

Since 2015, there have been over 32,500 crashes in Ohio work zones, with 114 of them killing 126 people. During the same timeframe, troopers have issued over 72,500 citations, with 34% of those being for driving 20 mph or more over the posted speed limit. As holiday travel continues, safety for everyone driving through and working in work zones will be an important focus for the Patrol. Motorists are reminded to follow speed limits, always buckle up, maintain safe following distance, and never drive impaired or distracted.

The Work Zone Dashboard can be viewed at: http://www.WorkZoneDashboard.ohio.gov

This year, work zones in Ohio saw an increased focus from troopers for the safety of both workers and motorists alike. The Patrol is proud to announce its new Work Zone Dashboard, where you can find regularly updated stats and videos for Ohio's work zones: https://t.co/wFTb3Q8wyp pic.twitter.com/Z6zkc8FHFA

— Ohio State Patrol (@OSHP) December 15, 2020

A holiday food distribution is being held in Hancock County to help people in need.

CHOPIN Hall, the West Ohio Food Bank and Hancock County officials are joining together to hold Mobile Food Pantries in multiple locations on Thursday.

Hancock County Fairgrounds December 17, 2020 (Noon-2pm) (4-6pm)
Liberty Township House 7692 County Rd. 140 December 17, 2020 (4-6pm)
McComb Fire Dept 139 W Main St – McComb December 17, 2020 (4-6)
Mt. Blanchard Town Hall 103 East Clay Mt. Blanchard December 17, 2020 (4-6)

It will be a no-touch distribution, as volunteers will place food inside of vehicles, so people should have trunk space available.

People can sign up to schedule a time to pick up food by going to www.chopinhall.org.

For the second update in a row, the number of active COVID-19 cases in Hancock County has dropped.

Hancock Public Health says there were 315 active cases on Monday, a drop of 65 from Friday.

Active cases are patients who are currently under quarantine or in isolation.

31 people were hospitalized with the virus on Monday, a drop of seven from Friday.

66 Hancock County residents had died of the virus as of Monday, an increase of two from Friday.

Statewide, there have been more than 570,000 cases and 7,500 deaths since the pandemic began.

A deer taken by a hunter in Wyandot County has tested positive for Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD).

CWD is a fatal neurological disease that affects white-tailed deer and similar species.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there is no strong evidence that CWD is transmissible to humans.

Details are in the following news release from the ODNR.

The Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Division of Wildlife has identified a positive test for Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) in a wild Ohio white-tailed deer in Wyandot County. The Division of Wildlife is gathering additional details about the adult male deer taken by a hunter on private property. Tissue samples were submitted for testing by a taxidermist and the positive test was identified after results were obtained on Thursday, December 10, 2020.

CWD is a fatal neurological disease that affects white-tailed deer and other similar species, including mule deer, elk, and moose. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there is no strong evidence that CWD is transmissible to humans.

The Division of Wildlife will implement its CWD response plan, which includes enhanced surveillance within a 10-mile radius of the CWD positive deer location in Wyandot County. Mandatory deer disease sample collection will occur on all remaining Killdeer Plains Wildlife Area controlled hunts. Hunters who harvest a deer in Wyandot County during the remaining deer hunting season, which closes on Sunday, February 7, 2021, will be contacted to obtain disease samples by Division of Wildlife staff.

The Division of Wildlife has conducted routine surveillance for CWD since 2002, testing more than 25,000 deer without finding a CWD positive deer in the wild herd. CWD has previously been detected at captive deer breeding facilities in Ohio. Find more information about Ohio’s CWD surveillance at wildohio.gov.

CWD has been detected in 26 states and four Canadian provinces. The disease was first discovered in the 1960s in the western U.S. More information about this disease is available at cwd-info.org.

Hunters should take precautions when handling and processing any harvested deer. Hunters may have a harvested deer tested at the Ohio Department of Agriculture’s Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory for a small fee. Call (614) 728-6220 for more information.