ELYRIA — The Elyria City Health District will have the H1N1 vaccine available for people it considers at risk at its already-scheduled flu shot clinic this weekend.
After receiving a shipment of the vaccine earlier than expected, Health District officials said, “OK, I think we should do this,” Health Commissioner Kathryn Boylan said this morning about offering the vaccine early.
This weekend’s clinic is 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at St. Jude Church in Elyria.
Initially, the H1N1 vaccine will be available for pregnant women, anyone who lives with or cares for infants under 6 months old, health care workers and emergency services personnel, children 6 months through 24 years old and anyone ages 25 to 64 with chronic health disorders or compromised immune systems.
As the supply of vaccine increases, the priority groups will include more individuals, Boylan said. Since they will be limiting who can get the vaccine Saturday, Boylan said she doesn’t expect to run out.
The clinic will also have the seasonal flu vaccine available. Both vaccines will be available as a nasal spray and as an injection.
People can get both injections on the same day or can get one live spray and the other as an injection on the same day but cannot get two live sprays at once, Boylan said.
Cost is $15 for the seasonal flu vaccine. The H1N1 vaccine will be available for free initially.
Other clinics are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Nov. 5 at Midway Mall and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Nov. 8 at Elyria City Hall.
ELYRIA — The two founders of Stand Up Elyria, the group hoping to unseat Mayor Bill Grace with a recall election, took the first step toward achieving their goal Tuesday by hand-delivering dozens of petitions to the Clerk of Council’s office.
The petitions contained the signatures of 2,630 people gathered in the last year and were hand delivered by co-founders Craig Bevan and Kim Ach.
Grace
Clerk of Council Assistant Nell Fife accepted the petitions and went through the task of time-stamping and copying each sheet.
From there, Fife took the petitions to deputy auditor John Farrell, who hand-counted each name to verify the total number of signatures. Bevan and Ach originally told city officials they collected 2,640 signatures. Farrell later counted 2,630.
The group, made up of vocal residents who are not afraid to share their displeasure with the mayor’s performance, needed 2,267 signatures, which represents 25 percent of the electorate that voted in the last general election.
The city will forward the petitions to the Lorain County Board of Elections, which will certify each to ensure all the names are of registered voters. If the petitions are deemed valid, they will be returned to City Council, which will by law tell Grace he has five days to resign or a special election will be held to determine whether he should be recalled.
City Auditor Ted Pileski said the city will have to pay the $50,000 bill for a special election if it is needed. The money will come from the city’s 2010 property tax distribution received from the county. Any money owed to the Board of Elections will be withheld from the roughly $1 million the city receives each year.
Bevan said the group went for more signatures than needed to show Grace they were serious.
“This is about Elyria,” he said. “We love Elyria and care about it. That’s why we are doing this.”
Grace walked into City Hall on Tuesday moments after Bevan and Ach arrived. He said he was surprised to learn his critics were in the building.
When asked if he would resign, Grace said he has no plans to do so. He characterized the efforts of Bevan and Ach as more personal than political.
“It comes down to personality between us, and they don’t care for me,” he said. “So they have found this piece of law that calls for a recall. But you are going to have 40 to 45 percent of people that don’t agree with their elected leaders even in good times.”
Bevan and Ach, however, said their efforts to oust Grace aren’t personal. Instead, they say the mayor has mismanaged the Fire and Police departments and spent excessively in a time of financial uncertainty.
Grace is not the only Ohio mayor to face the threat of recall.
The Richland County Board of Elections just stopped the recall efforts of a Mansfield woman who gathered signatures in an effort to oust Mansfield Mayor Don Culliver in November. Backed by a local Mansfield lawyer, the recall issue was pulled from the ballot after it was determined the petitions were not valid under state law.
Also, a legal snafu with petitions in Toledo stopped the recall election of Toledo Mayor Carty Finkbeiner.
Akron residents were successful in their bid for a recall election of longtime Akron Mayor Don Plusquellic.
However, Plusquellic survived the vote in June with an overwhelming majority in his favor.
Grace said he believes he, too, would emerge victorious if the recall effort reaches an election.
“Mayor Plusquellic and the citizens of Akron show it’s one thing to place such a measure on a ballot, but it’s another thing to overturn an election that has happened two years ago,” he said. “I think if asked, I will be able to prove in the 10 years I’ve been mayor, I have put the city’s interest above mine every time.”
The beauty-is-in-the-eye-of-the-beholder victory snapped a 10-game losing streak for the Browns (1-4). Fans finally had a reason to celebrate. Players could take a breath. And Eric Mangini could turn that frown upside down after notching his first win as Cleveland’s coach.
“The way it turned out, I thought it was beautiful,” said Mangini, who got a hug on his way off the field from quarterback Derek Anderson, who completed just two passes.
“Coach got a game ball,” left tackle Joe Thomas said. “I think it was really special for everybody, and I know it was special for him.”
The first win since November — again against the Lake Erie neighbor — wouldn’t have been possible without Roscoe Parrish muffing a punt with 2:59 remaining in a 3-3 game. The last of Dave Zastudil’s nine punts landed between up man Fred Jackson (on the field because the wind was so tricky) and deep man Roscoe Parrish. After it rolled for a few yards, Parrish tried to pick it up and booted it. Blake “Psycho” Costanzo recovered on the 16-yard line.
“I just wanted that ball,” said Costanzo, who has three special teams fumble recoveries this year. “I went after it with all I got.”
Six Jamal Lewis runs and an 18-yard Billy Cundiff field goal through uprights shaking in the wind won the game with 23 seconds left.
The Bills fell to 1-4, and coach Dick Jauron might want to start making plans for some unanticipated free time. The hot seat turned scorching after Buffalo was penalized 13 times, including nine false starts they blamed on trying to go with quick snap counts.
“If they would’ve been doing laps during training camp, that wouldn’t have happened,” Browns guard Eric Steinbach said, referencing Mangini’s punishment policy for committing a penalty in practice.
“I can’t stand to see it get any worse,” Bills receiver Lee Evans said.
The Browns were saying the same thing two weeks ago, but they made progress in an overtime loss to Cincinnati (4-1), then gritted out the win Sunday.
“The best team won today,” receiver Joshua Cribbs said. “We were due.”
The “best team’s” quarterback went 2-for-17 for 23 yards, an interception and a 15.1 rating. The yards and completions were the second lowest in team history (15 and one vs. Detroit on Dec. 19, 1954), and the one passing first down equaled the third fewest in team history. Anderson’s rating was the second lowest of his career (12.3 vs. Tampa Bay on Dec. 24, 2006).
“I love my teammates for helping me out because I didn’t do a lot today to get us this,” Anderson said. “Our defense and special teams won us the game.”
Anderson didn’t get much help from his receiving corps. Mohamed Massaquoi (two), Jerome Harrison (two), Robert Royal (two), newcomer Chansi Stuckey and Cribbs all dropped passes.
“I really think Derek played a real good game,” Massaquoi said. “He put it where it needed to be. The wind picked it up sometimes, but we have to go out there and make plays.”
Royal’s second drop was the worst, as he couldn’t handle a perfect deep ball on the 23-yard line that may have gone for a touchdown.
“I don’t care if it moves left or right, up or down,” he said. “I still got to have it. I’m a lot better than that.”
The two completions — a comeback to Massaquoi and a hook to Steve Heiden — in a win are the fewest since Cincinnati beat Denver 31-21 on Oct. 22, 2000. Corey Dillon rushed for a then-league-record 278 yards and the Bengals totaled 407 rushing yards. Akili Smith was 2-for-9 passing for 34 yards, and Scott Mitchell was 0-for-5.
The Browns’ game plan all week was to run the ball, and that only intensified when they showed up at the stadium to find the wind howling. Brian Daboll called 41 running plays that picked up 171 yards. Jamal Lewis, who’d missed the last two weeks with a sore hamstring, totaled 117 on 31 carries.
“They put eight guys in the box and we got tough yards,” Anderson said. “I’ve got to credit the O-line, Jamal and (Harrison) for getting the yards. It was tough sledding in there.”
The teams combined for 16 punts and 22 first downs. The Browns led 3-0 at halftime, and Buffalo tied it early in the third quarter.
“It’s good Midwestern football right there,” Thomas said.
Special teams played a huge role. Zastudil netted 42.1 yards on nine punts, including balls that were downed at the 1-, 1- and 4-yard line. Costanzo recovered the critical fumble and Cundiff improved to 5-for-5 in three games with the Browns.
“Eighteen yards is as easy as you get,” he said of the winner. “It’s shorter than an extra point. I just got to kick the ball straight.”
Cundiff almost turned goat after booting the final kickoff out of bounds. It gave the Bills a chance, and the ball at the 40-yard line with 23 seconds left.
“I know I gave the special teams coach a heart attack,” he said. “I just got too aggressive. It’s just like in golf. I tried to hit it too hard.”
Mangini yelled at Cundiff when he walked by on the sideline.
“Are you kidding me? Are you kidding me?” Mangini said of his thoughts. “That ball should not be out of bounds — wind, rain, sleet, act of God, it stays inbounds.”
The anger was temporary, as the Bills’ desperation lateral play ended in a fumble.
One final mistake in a game that won’t be shown on ESPN Classic, but will forever be remembered by Mangini.
A bad day for D.A.
The Browns got their first win of the year Sunday despite some anemic numbers from QB Derek Anderson …
2: Total completions, the fewest by a winning team since the Bengals beat the Broncos in 2000 and second fewest in Browns history.
23: Total passing yards, the second fewest in team history.
15.1: Quarterback passer rating.
8: Dropped passes, which added to Anderson’s ugly day.
ELYRIA — The body of 13-year-old Logan Spradlin was recovered Sunday in a 30-foot-deep pool under the East Falls of the Black River, where Logan fell after climbing over a guardrail of an observation deck, according to the Elyria Fire Department.
Logan’s body was recovered by a diver 30 to 50 feet from the area near an old mill where he fell over the falls, said Elyria Fire Chief Richard Benton.
Logan, who lived just around the corner from the Riverwalk on Furnace Street, only had permission to go to a friend’s house and was not supposed to be at the park, according to his stepmother, Sheri Spradlin.
He was remembered Sunday as a happy-go-lucky teen who brought happiness to everyone around him.
“Do you know a kid who smiles and everyone’s heart melts? That was Logan,” Spradlin said.
Students at Northwood Middle School and Elyria High School will be wearing green — Logan’s favorite color — according to text messages circulated by students. Other text messages said, “We all miss and love Logan.”
Benton said the drowning — the first in three years at Cascade Park — is a reminder of how dangerous it is to play by the river.
Logan was with 10-year-old Brennon Miller when Logan reportedly climbed over the guard railing of an observation deck, jumped onto the steps of an old mill, slipped and fell onto rocks before going over the waterfall, the chief said.
Brennon ran to the Elyria police station for help at 2:08 p.m. and it only took about two minutes for rescuers to get to the scene because crews were assembled for a fire station open house, Benton said.
Rescuers started at the point where Logan fell into the river and fanned back and forth, while searching for the boy in the deep, rock-lined area under the falls, he said.
Logan’s friend “gave us a good starting point” but by 7 p.m. Saturday the rescue/recovery effort was called off because of darkness, Benton said.
“It’s a tragic accident and the guys hated to give up Saturday night,” he said.
Benton said he hoped parents — and youngsters — could learn from what was the first drowning in the Black River in three years.
“He was definitely in a place where he shouldn’t have been — the old foundation of the mill,” Benton said.
Divers assembled again Sunday morning and were in the water by 8:20 a.m., Benton said, adding that each diver could only spend 20 to 30 minutes under the surface because of the cold water temperature. Divers from around the county assisted both days and a Lorain diver eventually found the boy, he said.
Bubbles from the turbulent falls likely made it difficult to find the body with a side-scanning sonar device recently purchased by the county fire chiefs, Benton said.
The water is especially deep under the falls because “over the years the waterfall keeps eroding the earth, and it’s down to the rock,” he said.
The cause of death was ruled accidental drowning, said Lorain County Coroner Paul Matus. The teen also had a laceration on his scalp, which could have occurred during the fall or after he was in the river, which is lined with rocks, the coroner said.
Logan knew how to swim, but he could have been injured in the fall and weighted down by tennis shoes, clothing and a jacket, Matus said.
“Generally there are pretty strong currents around the waterfalls,” he said.
Logan’s aunt, Carrie Charlton, said she was glad that Brennon ran for help and did not try to climb down the perilous steps to go after Logan after he fell.
“If he had tried to save Logan, we would have had two victims,” Charlton said.
“I don’t blame anyone; this was a tragic accident,” she said. “Boys like to explore, and how many of us have been down in the same area? We played there and never thought anything would happen.
“Kids are kids and are incapable of making decisions grown-ups do. Part of the wonderment of being a child is not thinking like an adult.”
Logan’s birth mother, Rose Mesecher, of College Station, Texas, said she does not blame anyone in the accident.
“When I got there I knew exactly where it was because I recall playing there,” Mesecher said.
She urged parents to “cherish their children always because you can’t plan for things like this.”
Sheri Spradlin, Logan’s stepmother, said he was an avid eighth-grade wrestler, football player and loved to skateboard and play “World of Warcraft,” an online role-playing game.
Besides his stepmother and father, Jason Spradlin, Logan’s family includes his brother Mykka, 11, sisters Amanda, 16, and Stephanie, 14, and Sheri Spradlin’s son Connor, 15.
