NCPR News Staff: Jonathan Brown,
Reporter and All Before Five Host

A boat on the bottom of Lake George was just named to the National Register of Historic Places. The Forward is the first gasoline-powered boat on the list. The new historic landmark is 40 feet below the surface. Joe Zarzynski is an underwater archaeologist with Bateaux Below, a group that's documented a number of historic, sunken ships in Lake George. He says the Forward, with its gas engines, made steamboats obsolete the day it was launched in 1906. And he tells Jonathan Brown that it has a rich and mysterious history of its own as it went from a private pleasure craft to tour boat to shipwreck.

A house in the Adirondacks goes on the auction block next week for an opening bid more in line with a used car than residential property. It's a small, older house in the town of Fine, which sits in the westernmost and least populated part of the Park. Denise Barstow is a realtor in the area. She told Jonathan Brown that she's never seen a house go up for auction for $1,000.

New Yorkers can now see an interactive map of preventable diseases – and how many people in their town are hospitalized because of them. State health officials recently rolled out a web site with detailed maps showing hospitalization rates for diseases like diabetes, asthma and even congestive heart failure. These are preventable in areas with access to good primary care, according to Department of Health vice commissioner Jim Clyne. And he says keeping people with preventable illnesses out of the hospital saves money for everyone – including the state. Clyne says this new web site will do a lot more than cut costs. He tells Jonathan Brown that the online maps give New Yorkers a new perspective on the state of health care in their town, how each town compares with others and how to improve health-care access in the future.

An Amish child at the center of a high-profile state-custody case will have a life-saving heart operation. That was the result of a decision handed down yesterday by a family court judge in St Lawrence County. One-and-a-half-year old Eli Herschberger was born with a heart defect requiring surgery. The boy's parents said they have religious objections to a technical aspect of the procedure: the child's heart could stop and require resuscitation. The Department of Social Services had sought custody of the child if the parents did not consent to their son's operation. Jonathan Brown reports.

The village of Lake George may soon cease to exist. Consolidation with the town is now the talk of the town and it’s expected to go before voters early next year. Village and town members brought in a consultant and created a task force to explore the impact of consolidation on taxes and government services. The group is expected to release its findings early next year – ahead of the referendum going before voters March 18th. The village and town have already combined some services – like the police. Village Mayor Robert Blais says that saved about $425,000 in yearly expenses. And he tells Jonathan Brown that consolidation can save the local government – and residents – a lot more.

Ocean-going ships on the St Lawrence River must start using new treatments that will clear invasive species from their ballast tanks. They have three years – starting today – to buy and install equipment preventing foreign marine life from reaching the St Lawrence and Great Lakes. Invasives – like zebra mussels and round gobies – have no natural enemy here to limit their numbers. They’ve hurt local aquatic ecosystems. And Jennifer Caddick with Save the River tells Jonathan Brown that current regulations aren’t stopping them.

After thousands of New Yorkers lost power on Friday, the Red Cross opened several shelters in Washington, Saratoga and other nearby counties. Only a few people came to the shelters that first night, according to Eileen Reardon. She's executive director of the Adirondack/Saratoga Red Cross. And she tells Jonathan Brown that – since that first night – more people sought help.

All the snow this year across the North Country is straining local budgets. Fuel for the plows, pay (and often overtime) for the drivers, and a big rise in the cost of road salt has drained general funds in many towns. Jonathan Brown talked with officials in Ticonderoga. They say they could save a lot of money by not plowing, and asked residents what they thought. Town supervisor Bob Dedrick says his highway superintendent got an overwhelming response.

The DEC issued its annual warning last week to those headed outside in the North Country. The warning is familiar: wear warm clothes…carry food and water. Essentially, be prepared. We've heard about frostbite and hypothermia, but few people actually know how these conditions can cripple or even kill. Dr. Bill Viscardo is one of them. He's vice president of medical affairs at the Adirondack Medical Center. He says hypothermia is just one point on a continuum of problems caused by exposure to cold. He told Jonathan Brown: first, watch for frostbite.

The price of gas is a common complaint in the North Country. And a big part of this complaint is that gas prices go up as you go north. There are exceptions, of course, but the theory that gas costs more in northern New York is corroborated by a drive through the region – or even surfing the many web sites devoted to finding the cheapest price per gallon. According to Motor Trend.com, gas costs less in Glens Falls than in Plattsburgh. It’s less in Syracuse than Watertown. And some of the highest prices at the pump are in St Lawrence and Franklin Counties. Jonathan Brown tried to find out why.