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Evaristo Hernandez booking photo

EXCLUSIVE STORY | Former Carey Councilman Gets 20 Years to Life on 11 Counts of Rape

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Former Carey councilman Evaristo Hernandez was sentenced Thursday to 10 years on every count of 11 rape convictions, and the sentence was stated in court as 20 years to life, according to an eyewitness in the courtroom. He was ordered to register as a sex offender for life.

Fostoria History Series

Fostoria News: Early 1900s photo of the three-story brick Cadwallader Building in Fostoria, Ohio, with 1906 and CADWALLADER on the cornice, arched windows, striped awnings and mannequins in the store windows

FOSTORIA | “Cadwallader, 1906”: The Building on North Main and the Family That Helped Build Fostoria

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A 1906 date stone and the name CADWALLADER crowned a three-story brick block on North Main Street. Here is the story of that building and of Ira Cadwallader's family, whose land, bricks, banks, mills and motor cars helped build Fostoria.
Fostoria News: 1945 newspaper photo of T/5 James G. Kinsley of Fostoria in his U.S. Army garrison cap and uniform, captioned War Casualty

FOSTORIA | For Veterans Day: T/5 James G. Kinsley, Captured in the Bulge, Lost After Liberation

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For Veterans Day: T/5 James G. Kinsley of Fostoria, 9th Armored Division, was wounded and captured in the Battle of the Bulge, liberated in April 1945 and died in an Army hospital weeks later. He rests at Cambridge American Cemetery in England.
Fostoria News: 1910s postcard of the Baltimore and Ohio railroad station in Fostoria, Ohio, with a brick platform, arched lamps and a steam passenger train approaching

FOSTORIA | The B&O Station on South Main: Brick Platforms, Arched Lamps and a Century of Passenger Trains

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A 1910s postcard shows the Baltimore and Ohio station on South Main Street, with its brick platform and arched lamps. The station opened in 1907, outlived B&O passenger trains, served Amtrak until 2005 and still stands today.
Fostoria News: 1950s advertisement for Radio Station WFOB, Seneca Radio Corporation, showing three transmitter towers and the station building, AM 1430 and FM 96.7

FOSTORIA | WFOB 1430: How Fostoria Got Its Own Radio Station

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WFOB 1430 AM signed on Dec. 9, 1952, from Kill Deer Hill south of Fostoria, built on an FM station a local banker bought in 1949. A look at how Fostoria got its own radio station, and what the town was listening to before it.
Fostoria News: Old halftone print of a small frame church with a square entrance tower and a sign reading First Baptist

FOSTORIA | First Baptist: The Little Frame Church and Fostoria’s Baptists Since the Days of Risdon

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An old halftone shows a small frame church with a square tower and a sign reading First Baptist. Here is what the record says about Fostoria's Baptists, from a society in the village of Risdon around 1852 to the First Baptist Church on Lynn Street.
Fostoria News: Row of men on bicycles and early motorcycles in front of The Bike Shop of F.A. Copley, Fostoria, Ohio, early 1900s

FOSTORIA | The Bike Shop: Frank Copley, Fostoria’s Bicycle Clubs and the First Motorcycles

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Before Fostoria built cars, it rode bicycles. A look at the Fostoria Bicycle Club, the high-wheel Harrison and Morton club, and Frank Copley's Bike Shop on East Center Street, where riders on early motorcycles once lined up at the curb.
Fostoria News: 1913 view of the Andes Block and Quinn Block at Main and Center streets in Fostoria, Ohio, with striped awnings over the storefronts

FOSTORIA | Awnings, Gas Lamps and 25-Cent Dinners: Fostoria’s Main Street Merchants, 1880s-1910s

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Grocers, butchers, cafes and a 25-cent dinner: a look at the storefronts that lined Main Street in Fostoria between the 1880s and the 1910s, from the 1878 Andes Block and its opera house to Rogers Restaurant.
Fostoria News: Early 1900s photo of Fostoria firefighters on two horse-drawn fire wagons, one pulled by a white team, in front of a brick firehouse on North Street

FOSTORIA | Steamers, Hose Carts and Fire Horses: The Fostoria Fire Department in the Horse Era

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An early-1900s photo of Fostoria firefighters and their horse teams outside the North Street firehouse opens a look at the department's horse-drawn years, from the 1872 Pioneer hand-engine company to steam pumpers and the building that became the Fostoria Museum.
Fostoria News: The American House, a two-story frame hotel on East Tiffin Street in Fostoria, Ohio, with its hanging sign, a Hotel $1 window sign and beer signs, early 1900s

FOSTORIA | The American House and the Taverns and Hotels of Early Fostoria

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From log inns in Rome and Risdon to the Hays House on Main Street, Fostoria has always had a place for travelers. A photo of the American House on East Tiffin Street opens a look at the town's early taverns and hotels.
Fostoria News: Crew of the Cunningham and Co. Spoke and Bending Works posed with bent wagon rims and stacked lumber in Fostoria, Ohio, in 1884

FOSTORIA | Spokes, Bows and Bent Rims: The Fostoria Spoke and Bending Works

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Before glass and cars, Fostoria made the wooden spokes, bent rims and buggy bows that kept America's wagons rolling. An 1884 photo of the Cunningham & Co. Spoke and Bending Works crew opens a look at the town's wagon-wood industry.
Fostoria News: 1903 newspaper clipping headlined HORRIBLE! Fostoria's Most Awful Tragedy, reporting eight bodies recovered after an explosion at a Fostoria cane factory

FOSTORIA | “Fostoria’s Most Awful Tragedy”: The 1903 Cane Factory Explosion

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On Feb. 16, 1903, an explosion and fire destroyed a small South Main Street factory that made the explosive for the Fox Magazine Cane. Eight people died in what the local paper called "Fostoria's most awful tragedy."
Fostoria News: Printed illustration of the John B. Rogers Producing Co. building, a long brick building with the company name across the front, on West Center Street in Fostoria, Ohio

FOSTORIA | John B. Rogers Producing Co.: The Fostoria Firm That Staged Pageants Across America

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From 1903 to 1977, the John B. Rogers Producing Co. sent directors, scripts and costumes from Fostoria to towns across America to stage home-talent shows and huge outdoor historical pageants. Here is the story of the firm and its West Center Street headquarters.
Fostoria News: Early 1900s postcard titled Panorama of Main St., Perry St. and Sandusky St., Fostoria, Ohio, showing brick buildings, an Oil Well Supply Co. sign, a mill and an unpaved street with rail tracks

FOSTORIA | Main, Perry and Sandusky: The City Mills and Downtown Fostoria at the Turn of the Century

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Where Main, Perry and Sandusky streets meet, an old postcard shows a dirt street, rail tracks, an Oil Well Supply Co. sign and a flour mill. Here is the story of Times Square, the Franke brothers' Fostoria City Mills and the Sandusky Street mill around 1900.
Fostoria News: Real-photo postcard of the Independent Tack Co. factory in Fostoria, Ohio, with smokestacks, a water tower and a round pond in the foreground

FOSTORIA | Independent Tack Co. and Seneca Wire: When Fostoria Made Tacks and Roofing Nails

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In 1905 Indiana machinist Emsley O. Grose brought his roofing-nail machine to Fostoria, where a 1908 history credits him with organizing Seneca Wire. His Independent Tack Co. later opened a Fostoria plant in 1915. Here is what the record shows, and what is still unknown.
Fostoria News: 1908 Halloween postcard showing two smiling jack-o-lanterns riding in the basket of a golden airship under a starry sky, with the greeting Wishing you a highly entertaining Halloween

FOSTORIA | Confetti, Not Cabbages: How Fostoria Pioneered the Municipal Halloween in 1915

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In 1915 the Fostoria YMCA staged the city's first municipal Halloween celebration, with a King Corn costume review, membership prizes and confetti handed out in place of cabbages. The Exchange Club took it over in 1922.
Fostoria News: Full-page 1915 advertisement for the Fostoria Light Car from the Automobile Trade Journal, with specifications and the address Alabama Ave., Fostoria, Ohio

FOSTORIA | The Fostoria Light Car: The “Surprise Car of 1916”

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In 1915 four Fostoria businessmen launched the Fostoria Light Car, a $675 touring car billed as "The Surprise Car of 1916." Bad engines sank it within about a year, but the company came back as the Seneca Motor Car Co. and shipped cars around the world until 1924.
Fostoria News: Period photo of a 1916 Allen Model 37 automobile

FOSTORIA | From Peabody Buggies to Allen Motor Cars: When Fostoria Built Automobiles

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The Allen brothers ran Fostoria's biggest buggy maker, the Peabody Buggy Co., then switched to automobiles in 1913. For six years Allen cars were built in four plants and tested on Wood Street. Here is the story, and what stands on those sites today.
Fostoria News: Illustration, with headline: A Brief History of Fostoria City Schools

A Brief History of Fostoria City Schools and Fostoria High School

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Log schoolhouses in Rome and Risdon, a four-room brick school after the 1854 merger, the 18-room Central School on High Street and the new junior-senior high that opened in 2020: here is how Fostoria's schools grew.
Fostoria News Fostoria historic churches and cemetery scene during autumn.

Fostoria’s Historic Churches and Cemeteries

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From a log Methodist church on Portage Creek in 1833 to St. Wendelin's first Mass in a log cabin and the fountains and Doughboy of Fountain Cemetery, here is how Fostoria's oldest congregations and burial grounds took shape.
Fostoria News: Illustration, with headline: Old Fostoria Businesses Remembered

Old Fostoria Businesses Remembered

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Buggy makers, a carmaker, glass factories and the Main Street shops of the 1900s: here is a look back at some of the businesses that built Fostoria, from the Fostoria Area Historical Society's history columns.
Fostoria News: Early 1900s postcard of the Alcott Block, a three-story brick building with a corner turret at Main and Center streets in Fostoria, Ohio

FOSTORIA | The Alcott Block: Main and Center’s 1893 Landmark and the Fire of 1962

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Capt. Roger Alcott, a militia captain and former telegrapher, built the turreted Alcott Block at Main and Center in 1893. It survived an 1897 explosion but not the 1962 fire that also took the Hays Hotel. Here is the building's story and what is on the corner now.
Fostoria News: Illustration, with headline: Historic Downtown Fostoria: The Old Buildings

Historic Downtown Fostoria: The Stories Behind the Old Buildings

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The Alcott Block, the Hays Hotel, the Andes building and the shops in between: here are stories of downtown Fostoria's old buildings from the Fostoria Area Historical Society's columns, including the 1962 fire that changed Main Street.
Fostoria News: Illustration, with headline: The Interurbans That Connected Fostoria

The Interurban Lines That Once Connected Fostoria and Northwest Ohio

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From 1898 to 1932, electric interurban cars ran from Fostoria to Tiffin, Findlay, Toledo and Fremont. Here is the story of the three lines that served the city and why they disappeared.
Fostoria News Nighttime oil and gas infrastructure in Fostoria with dramatic flame and smokestacks.

Fostoria and the Northwest Ohio Natural Gas Boom

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In the 1880s, natural gas strikes in Findlay and near Fostoria set off a boom that filled the area with glass factories and new residents. Here is what happened, why it ended and what it left behind.
Fostoria News Railroad scene with old train station and freight trains at sunset.

How Railroads Shaped Fostoria, Ohio

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Fostoria's first railroad arrived in the 1850s, and line after line followed until the city became one of the busiest rail crossings in Ohio. Here is how the railroads came, what became of them and where to see the history today.
Fostoria News Local history feature on Fostoria Glass Company with vintage glassware.

Fostoria’s Glass Industry: The Story of the Fostoria Glass Company

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Natural gas brought more than a dozen glass companies to Fostoria between 1887 and 1920. The most famous, the Fostoria Glass Company, started here in 1887, moved to West Virginia in 1891 and kept the Fostoria name for nearly a century.
Fostoria News How Fostoria Got Its Name - Local history feature for The Fostoria Free Press.

How Fostoria Got Its Name: The Foster Family and the Town’s Founding

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Fostoria was born in 1854 when the rival villages of Risdon and Rome joined and took the name of Charles W. Foster. Here is what the historical record says about the founding and the Foster family, including a governor and Treasury secretary.
Fostoria News Historic street in Fostoria with steam locomotive and era buildings.

A Short History of Fostoria, Ohio

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From two rival villages platted in 1832 to a railroad crossroads, a natural gas boomtown and a manufacturing city, here is a short, sourced history of Fostoria, Ohio.
Fostoria News: 1890s photo of the A. Weaver Dry Goods store on North Main Street in Fostoria, Ohio, with the Weaver family and employees on the front steps

FOSTORIA | A. Weaver & Sons to Ahlenius Co.: A Century of Dry Goods on North Main Street

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Alpheus Weaver's dry goods business opened on North Main Street in 1875, survived a suspicious 1892 fire, moved three times in one block and gave way to Kiebel and Wilson and finally the Ahlenius Co. Here is a century of dry goods in downtown Fostoria.
Fostoria News: 1880s photo of the G.F. Weaver drug and book store on North Main Street in Fostoria, Ohio, with three men standing out front under striped awnings

FOSTORIA | Soda Fountains and Tinctures: A Look Back at Fostoria’s Old Drugstores

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From the G.F. Weaver Drug and Book Store of the 1880s to the soda fountain at Edison Cut Rate Drugs and Whitney Drugs on Elm Street, here is a look back at the drugstores that served Fostoria for more than a century, and what fills those storefronts today.
Fostoria News: Early 1900s photo of a steam train at the wooden Lake Erie and Western depot on North Street in Fostoria, Ohio

FOSTORIA | The LE&W Depot, the Iron Triangle and the Union Stock Yards: How Railroads Built Fostoria

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A little wooden depot built in 1878 on West North Street, a web of crossing rail lines and a livestock yard on South Poplar Street helped make Fostoria the Iron Triangle. Here is how the railroads built the town, and what stands on those sites today.
Fostoria News: Color postcard from about 1912 of St. Wendelin's Catholic School and Church on Wood Street in Fostoria, Ohio

FOSTORIA | St. Wendelin: 175 Years of Church and School at Wood and North Streets

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From a log cabin Mass in 1844 and a gift of land from Charles W. Foster to the 1909 school, the Countyline high school and the closings of 2017 and 2019, here is the story of St. Wendelin parish and school, and what stands on those sites today.
Fostoria News Historic brick school building in Fostoria with large windows and greenery.

HISTORY | A Post looking back at the memories Fostoria Field School

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Source: Hometown History "Field Elementary School was…
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Developing Stories

Breaking news graphic: small plane crash near Woodville, Sandusky County

WOODVILLE | Small Plane Crashes Near U.S. 20 After Reported Engine Trouble; One Injured

BREAKING: Fatal crash on SR 420, Wood County; illustration of road-closed barricades.

Minnesota driver dies after semi strikes excavator in closed SR 420 work zone

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Fostoria News: a pair of trail running shoes on a wooden deck beside a park lawn, with the headline: Fostoria Eighth Grader Heads to Jr. High State Cross Country Meet Sunday

FOSTORIA | Fostoria Eighth Grader Heads to Jr. High State Cross Country Championship in Columbus Sunday

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A Fostoria eighth grader got a hallway send-off from her school Friday ahead of Sunday's OHSAA 7th and 8th Grade Cross Country State Championship at Fortress Obetz near Columbus. Fostoria runs in Division B, where the girls open race is set for 1:30 p.m.
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Archival 1924 photo of the Kaubisch Memorial Public Library building in Fostoria, Ohio, with headline: Free Help Sessions at Kaubisch Library Oct. 28 and Oct. 30

FOSTORIA | Free Empowerment Hub Sessions at Kaubisch Library Connect Residents With Help; Legal Aid to Cover Tenant Rights Oct. 30

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The Fostoria Empowerment Hub is hosting free sessions in the lower level of Kaubisch Memorial Public Library. United Way of Fostoria and First Call for Help will talk about local resources Wednesday, Oct. 28, from 1 to 3 p.m., and a Legal Aid attorney will cover tenant rights and free legal help Friday, Oct. 30, at 12:45 p.m.
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University Hall, a red brick building with a tall tower on the Heidelberg University campus in Tiffin, with headline: Heidelberg Counseling Program Wins Regional Innovation Award

TIFFIN | Heidelberg University’s Master of Arts in Counseling Program Wins Regional Innovation Award

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Heidelberg University's Master of Arts in Counseling program received the 2026 Innovative Counselor Education Program Award from the North Central Association for Counselor Education and Supervision, a 13-state region. The program was recognized for its twice-a-week schedule, a bridge program that now includes Tiffin University students, federal internship stipends and a 96% licensure pass rate.
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Illustration of a railroad crossing with lowered gates, freight cars and a fire engine, with the headline: Train Derails on Toledo's East Manhattan Boulevard; No Injuries

TOLEDO | DEVELOPING: CSX Locomotive, Two Rail Cars Derail on East Manhattan Boulevard; No Injuries, No Spill Reported

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Four rail cars derailed on East Manhattan Boulevard in north Toledo late Friday afternoon, closing the road at the tracks near Detwiler Ditch. Toledo Fire and Rescue says no one was hurt, and police at the scene say no chemicals spilled.
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Illustration of a red ribbon and giant scissors in front of a new multi-story hotel with balloons, with headline: New Findlay Hotel Opens; Counseling Office Ribbon Cutting Tuesday

FINDLAY | New City Express by Marriott Hotel Opens on Interstate Drive; Willow Center Counseling Office Cuts Ribbon Tuesday

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The Findlay-Hancock County Chamber of Commerce celebrated the opening of the City Express by Marriott at 941 Interstate Dr. on Thursday. Next up: a ribbon cutting Tuesday, Oct. 27, from 4 to 4:30 p.m. for The Willow Center's new counseling and psychiatry office at 2113 Tiffin Ave.
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Illustration of a white ambulance with red and blue lights on a city street, with headline: New Leadership for Seneca County EMS

TIFFIN | Seneca County EMS Names Nic Summers Chief as Director Chris Hafley Retires; Lynn Love Promoted to Assistant Chief

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Seneca County commissioners accepted EMS Director Chris Hafley's retirement, effective Jan. 8, 2027, and appointed Assistant Chief Nic Summers as chief of emergency services. The two will serve as co-directors until January. Lynn Love, who started as an EMT, was named assistant chief.
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Fostoria News: Color postcard from about 1912 of St. Wendelin's Catholic School and Church on Wood Street in Fostoria, Ohio

FOSTORIA | St. Wendelin: 175 Years of Church and School at Wood and North Streets

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From a log cabin Mass in 1844 and a gift of land from Charles W. Foster to the 1909 school, the Countyline high school and the closings of 2017 and 2019, here is the story of St. Wendelin parish and school, and what stands on those sites today.
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Illustration of a glowing golden apple on a wooden desk beside a stack of books and a chalkboard, with headline: Golden Apple Nominations Open for Hancock County Teachers

FINDLAY | Rotary Opens Nominations for 37th Golden Apple Teacher Awards; New Fund to Give Scholarships to Female Eagle Scouts

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The Findlay Rotary Club is taking nominations through Nov. 30 for its 37th annual Golden Apple Awards honoring Findlay and Hancock County teachers. Separately, a new endowed fund at The Findlay-Hancock County Community Foundation will award an annual scholarship to a young woman who earns Eagle Scout in Hancock County.
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State Street in the village of Bettsville, Ohio, with headline: Bettsville Vietnam Veteran Named Seneca County Veteran of the Year

BETTSVILLE | Vietnam Veteran Dan Steele Named Seneca County Veteran of the Year; Nov. 11 Dinner at Bettsville Legion

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The Seneca County Veterans Service Commission has named Bettsville native Dan Steele, a U.S. Army veteran who served in Vietnam with a combat engineer unit and later spent 25 years caring for Bettsville Schools, its Veteran of the Year. He will be honored Nov. 11 at American Legion Post 733 in Bettsville.
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Illustration of a fog-covered chemical tank terminal with emergency vehicles and barricades, with headline: Toledo Residents Can Go Home; EPA Monitoring Continues

TOLEDO | Chemical Leak Evacuations Lifted; Residents Can Go Home as EPA Ends Air Monitoring

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All evacuation orders from the north Toledo chemical leak were lifted at noon Friday, letting the last 152 people go home. Officials say glycidyl methacrylate is no longer detected in the air, the tank is empty, and U.S. EPA crews will keep monitoring. Here is the return-home guidance and who to call.
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Findlay Police Department Daily Calls for Service, Oct. 20, 2026

FINDLAY | Findlay Police Daily Calls for Service: Oct. 20, 2026

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Findlay police logged 70 calls for service on Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2026, led by 12 special assignment calls, 6 traffic stop calls and 5 school walkthrough calls. Here is the full breakdown by call type and a look at the notable calls from the department's daily media release.
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Illustration of three new single-family homes numbered 71, 72 and 73 on a grassy lot with a ladder and hammer, with headline: Three New Habitat Homes, and a $50,000 Women Build Challenge

FINDLAY | Habitat Dedicates Three New Homes on Bishop Lane, Launches 2027 Women Build With $50,000 Challenge Gift

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Findlay-Hancock County Habitat for Humanity dedicated Homes 71, 72 and 73 on Bishop Lane and announced a 2027 Women Build. Longtime supporter Sandy Franks is giving $25,000 now and another $25,000 once the community matches it. Construction on Home 74 starts in March 2027.
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