Police chase ends with car crash at Route 441 bypass; possible shooting

PRELIMINARY: At about 6:15 p.m., medics and QRS units were dispatched to the Route 441 bypass near Bridge Street for a medical emergency.

Upon arrival, Columbia Spy observed police vehicles and officers from Hellam Township, Lower Windsor Township, West Hempfield Township, and Columbia Borough. One officer was carrying rifles.

A silver-colored car was off the road on a grassy area just below the Colonial Metals storage units.

A white male was placed on a stretcher and was bleeding profusely from the head. He was transported from the scene by ambulance.

Bystanders claim to have heard "officer involved shooting" on scanner, but this was not confirmed. Another bystander said the chase started in Hellam Township.

A witness said he saw the car go off the road on the Route 441 bypass, with police in pursuit. He said officers approached the car with guns drawn.

The scene was completely cleared by 8 p.m.

LNP reports the following:

"A police pursuit that started in York County culminated with a the driver shooting himself Wednesday evening in Columbia, an official said."

$25 fine for trash that's not in a container

Columbia School Board to consider 2.9% tax hike

The draft agenda for this Thursday's Columbia Borough School Board Committee of the Whole meeting includes the following item for consideration:

"The final budget includes a proposed tax increase in the total amount of .8508 mills or 2.90%, which is within Columbia Borough School District's approved index of 3.7%, and use of $800,000 ($250,000 is in Budgetary Reserve) of Fund Balance. The real estate tax rate for 2017-18 will be 30.1908 mills."

With the increase, the annual tax liability for an assessment of $100,000 will be $3,019.08. (The increase of .8508 mills translates to $85.08 a year for a $100,000 assessment.) At the current 29.34 mills, Columbia already has the highest school tax of any district  in the county. The proposed increase will further cement that position.

With the increase, the TOTAL millage for Columbia Borough (county millage + municipal millage + school millage) will be 41.9258.  The total annual tax liability for an assessment of $100,000 will be $4,192.58.

Current millage rates for Lancaster County are shown below.

Paint removed from vandalized Buddhist statues

The recently vandalized statues at the Chua Phap Hoa Buddhist Temple at South Second and Cherry have been cleaned of the black spray paint. Unfortunately, faint residue remains in some areas.

Serving on a local school board is difficult and thankless, but still necessary

Some school boards turn down citizens who want to serve.

http://lancasteronline.com/opinion/editorials/serving-on-a-local-school-board-is-difficult-and-thankless/article_d832ae52-424b-11e7-8029-73e311a87b50.html

Where there's smoke, there's fire - Open burning incident

Columbia Spy noticed a large cloud of gray smoke billowing from the tree line near Laurel Hill Memorial Gardens at about 4 p.m. today. On closer investigation, it was noted that two piles of limbs and brush were burning on a property next to the cemetery. (See map below.) Although a person was present in the general vicinity of the fires, Columbia Borough has an ordinance against open burning. A member of the fire company tells the Spy that open burning is not permitted without special permission from the fire chief. For now, we'll assume permission was given in this case.

The blue rectangle shows the approximate location of the burning.

Columbia fisherman pulls 3-foot eel from the Susquehanna

River eel caught Saturday at Columbia River Park

(Submitted photo)

On Saturday, Angel Rodriguez of Columbia was fishing at River Park when he noticed several short jerks on his line. As he reeled it in, he saw something different at the end - not a carp or a catfish or a bass - but a river eel, also known as an American eel.

Rodriguez estimates the eel to be about three feet long. An avid fisherman, he said he has pulled eels from the river before, so this was not a complete surprise. According to Rodriguez, eels can be cooked in butter and eaten, but he plans to use this one as cut bait to catch other fish - and possibly another eel.

Angel Rodriguez of Columbia with the river eel he caught on Saturday.

(Submitted photo)