CHASE ENDS WITH CAR ON FIRE
Sheffield Village – What started as a routine traffic stop attempt turned out to be a chase where a State Trooper was almost struck and the suspect’s car caught on fire.
Sergeant Ryan Lloyd of the Sheffield Village Police Department said one of his Officers attempted a traffic stop in the Village early Sunday morning. “It’s still early and I am not sure what the initial stop was for but the driver took off on the Officer leading him on this chase.”
Sgt. Lloyd said the pursuit went through South Lorain, south on 57 into Elyria and west on 113 into Elyria Township. It was at the intersection of Route 113 and West Ridge Road that Trooper AJ Torres of the State Patrol was able to throw out a set of Stop Sticks and successfully puncture a rear tire on the suspect vehicle. There was some radio traffic, according to Lloyd, that the suspect vehicle almost struck Trooper Torres in the intersection.
With a flat tire the suspect continued to roll on three wheels up West Ridge Road with the Police, now including help from the Lorain County Sheriff’s Department and the Highway Patrol, following close behind.
The suspect got onto Route 2 from Middle Ridge Road with pieces of tire crumbling off the rim and sparks flying out from the under the car. Once on the highway and with no rubber left on the tire the sparks turned to flames. As the car went from 60MPH to 5MPH the flames started to consume the vehicle.
Police Officers, through their car PA system, were yelling to the suspect to stop and get out of the burning car. Seeing that the suspect was not stopping and with the smoke and flames growing, a State Trooper raced in front of the suspect vehicle to stop him.
Once the car was stopped the man jumped from the car and attempted to run across the median. The man was apprehended in the median by Sheffield Village Police Officers and the State Trooper.
The westbound lanes of Route 2 were closed for about 40 minutes while Firefighters extinguished the blaze and Steve’s Towing removed the car and debris from the roadway.
The suspect was not being very forthcoming with Officers about who he was. Sgt. Lloyd said that the incident is under investigation and once they confirm his identity they will release it and the list of charges that he will face.
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CONGRATULATIONS
Photo special to TMC NEWS
Congratulations to the St. Mary's 4th girls grade basketball team. The girls finished in first place in the St. Joseph Avon Lake Bob Roesky Tournament.The players are first row Molly Blair, Sara Hricovec, Grace Jenny, Kelsey Gannon and Hanna Begany.Top row Kelsie McNally, Abby Abfall, Michaela O'Hara, Alyssa Santora and Abby Nagel. The girls were coached by Ed Gannon, Sean O'Hara and Dan Santora.
THREE CAR CRASH ON ROUTE 10
Eaton Township – As the latest snowstorm blew through our area Friday Police and Troopers found themselves running from crash to crash to slide off to even more crashes.
One of the crashes involved three cars on Route 10 in the westbound lane, just west of Route 83.
Incident Commander Assistant Chief Bob Resar of the Eaton Township Fire Department said only one of the drivers required treatment and transport to Elyria Memorial Hospital. “His driver’s side was struck hard enough where we had to use extrication tools to cut him out of the car. He only had minor injuries but was taken to the hospital for further evaluation and treatment.”
AWWW, CRAP!
Elyria Township – Snow Plows were busy clearing roadways after the latest snowstorm smacked us with about a half foot of snow Friday. One plow ended up out of service after it ended up on its side in a ditch on Schadden Road in Elyria Township Friday afternoon.
The driver was not injured in the incident.
FIRE STRIKES LORAIN HOME
Lorain – An early morning fire on West 23rd Street in Lorain sent one 6 year old girl to the hospital and has left two men as heroes.
Lorain Fire officials say the fire started in the garage at 1148 West 23rd Street and then spread into the home. As two men were driving by the home they spotted the garage fully involved and fire coming from the house. The men stopped to see if they could help and were told the 6 year old girl was still inside the home.
Without hesitation, Robert Clark, 24, of Lorain, and Jesse Bonds, 24, Lakewood, ran into the house and rescued the girl from the 2nd floor. While trying to leave the home the smoke was becoming too much and the men could not find the front door so they had to break out a window to exit the home.
LifeCare Paramedics treated Bond for minor cuts to his hands and knees but he refused transport to the hospital. The 6 year old was transported to Mercy Regional Medical Center for further evaluation and treatment.
The Lorain Fire Department Fire Prevention Bureau is investigating the cause of the blaze.
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WINTER STORM WARNING
The National Weather Service in Cleveland has upgraded the Winter Storm Watch to a WINTER STORM WARNING for our area beginning at 9 p.m. tonight through 4 a.m. Friday morning.
Snowfall amounts by Friday afternoon may be in the 4 to 8 inch range across the area. These totals will be impacted by the amount of ice that will accumulate. If greater ice totals occur the snowfall could be lower.
DOWNTOWN ELYRIA BANK ROBBED
Elyria – Elyria Police began receiving multiple hold up alarms from the downtown branch of 5/3 Bank just before 3 p.m. Tuesday.
Within minutes Police began surrounding the bank at Broad and East Ave. Dispatchers advised they received a call from a drive thru customer saying the teller told them they could not help them right now and would not elaborate.
Police then received confirmation from the alarm company that a holdup had occurred and that the suspect had fled north on East Ave. Police had the bank manager exit the building through the front doors to confirm that no bad guys were left in the building. They then went inside and cleared the building and received additional information.
A suspect description was given out to Officers of a white male with a red jacket and camo pants with acne on his face.
While Officers were investigating inside of the bank, speaking with witnesses and reviewing camera footage, others were searching the area for the suspect.
An employee of Bill Bakers, located just north of the bank on East Ave, told Police that a man matching the suspect description had just been in their shop. They said the man, who was holding a fist of fifties, offered them $10.00 if someone would give him a ride home to his apartment on Washington Ave. One of the employees gave him that ride home and remembered dropping him off at C building at 300 Washington.
Police, along with a State Trooper, entered the building and found the suspect and money.
A Police Detective armed with a bank surveillance photo arrived and ID’d the suspect.
The Elyria Police and the FBI are investigating the robbery.
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CAR DRIVES THROUGH HOUSE
Elyria – Theron Lynch got a 4 a.m. wake up call Sunday morning that he certainly wasn’t expecting or wanting.
Lynch said he was awakened from his sleep by a loud boom just before 4 a.m. Sunday. “It shook me out of my bed. When I got up my house was filled with smoke and debris flying around.” Lynch said he entered his living room area to discover that a full size SUV had driving through his front door and exited through wall on the north side of his house.
Through the smoke and debris Lynch saw a young man get out of the truck. “He looked very scared and shaken up, he just kept saying how sorry he was and then he took off running.”
Another man got out of the front of the SUV and had a different reaction when he saw Lynch. “This guy comes swinging at me trying to hit me. He runs through my house and then he tried to beat me up?”
Lynch said he struggled with that man for a few minutes before he too, along with one other man, fled on foot towards Bell Ave.
Police were on scene within minutes of the call but were unable to locate the runners. They did find three men matching the descriptions on Bell near West River but they were cleared.
When the owner of the SUV was contacted she claimed not to know who had the truck and then asked if she could report it stolen.
Police are investigating evidence they found inside of the SUV that may lead to the driver.
The damage extended to Lynch’s neighbor’s house as the truck struck it after going through the wall. On the other side of the wall was Lynch’s neighbor’s daughter’s room. She was uninjured in the crash.
Lynch said that although he was angry at the men who did this he is grateful nobody was injured. “Sometimes I will fall asleep on the couch in the front room. I’m just glad tonight I was in my bedroom, had I been sleeping on that couch I would be gone for sure. I just would like to know what they were thinking. Go through someone’s house like that and then try to beat them up, I just don’t understand.”
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MAN STABBED IN ELYRIA BAR
Elyria – Police in Elyria are investigating a stabbing that occurred in downtown Elyria early Sunday morning.
Police say 20 year old Isaiah Gonzalez of Lorain flagged down an Officer on Kerstetter Way just before 2:30 a.m. Sunday morning. Gonzalez, who was holding his stomach, told the Officer that he had been stabbed while inside Mardi Gras.
LifeCare Paramedics responded and treated Gonzalez for a single stab wound to his stomach. Gonzalez was transported to Elyria Memorial Hospital and then flown to MetroHealth Medical Center in Cleveland.
A team of Officers entered Mardi Gras to search for evidence or witnesses. They discovered that nobody had seen anything related to the stabbing.
Gonzalez told Police he was standing in the club when someone stabbed him in the stomach. He said he did not know who the person was that stabbed him or why.
SUV ENDS UP ON ROOF AFTER CRASH
Story & Photos by: BRIAN WOODS
Elyria – The driver of an Olds Bravada walked away with no injuries Saturday morning after a crash that sent him rolling over and ending up on his roof.
Police say the driver of the Bravada was traveling west on Cleveland Street when he attempted to make a left turn onto Marseilles. The driver said he saw a box truck coming east but thought he could make the turn in time. The driver did not see the minivan in the curb lane. The front passenger side of the minivan collided with the rear passenger side of the Bravada, spinning it around and rolling over.
Neither driver required any medical treatment.
The driver of the Bravada was charged with Failure to Yield a Left Turn.
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FIRE STRIKES RIDDELL SPORTS
Story & Photos by: BRIAN WOODS
Elyria – A fire inside of a trash compactor inside of Riddell All American Sports on Sugar Lane in Elyria sent smoke and employees from the building Saturday morning.
Elyria Firefighters arrived and found white smoke pouring from the building. They were told by plant personnel that the fire was contained to a compactor inside. Once Firefighters made their way inside they were quickly able to extinguish the blaze.
Employees, with borrowed chains from a local car dealer, attached the compactor to a pickup truck and pulled it away from the building. Firefighters then worked to ventilate the building of the smoke.
There were no injuries reported.
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ONE CHILD INJURED IN RT 57 CRASH
Elyria Township – One child was injured Friday night in a two car collision on Route 57 near the entrance to the eastbound ramp to I-90. 
Troopers from the Ohio State Highway Patrol said Gabe Castro was turning left from southbound 57 to enter the eastbound ramp to I-90 when he collided with a red Dodge pickup truck. Troopers say they have independent witnesses telling them that Castro ran a red light causing the crash.
The collision smashed the passenger side of Castro’s Honda Civic in, pushing the child that was riding with him into his lap. Although Castro seemed concerned with arguing his innocence with the witness Troopers separated them and instructed the man to instead focus on the child – to hold him very still until the Paramedics arrived on scene.
Elyria Township Firefighters treated the child at the scene and then transported him to Elyria Memorial Hospital. Castro also complained of pains in his leg and the driver of the Dodge pickup refused any treatment at the scene.
Castro will be charged with Failure to Yield a Left Turn.
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Sheffield Village – What started as a routine traffic stop attempt turned out to be a chase where a State Trooper was almost struck and the suspect’s car caught on fire.
Police Officers, through their car PA system, were yelling to the suspect to stop and get out of the burning car. Seeing that the suspect was not stopping and with the smoke and flames growing, a State Trooper raced in front of the suspect vehicle to stop him.
