Breaking News

Editorials

Ohio boasts impressive pro-business credentials

Ohioans have always had an entrepreneurial and adventurous spirit. But according to a new report by CNBC, our state now has the pro-business credentials to match. The news outlet ranked the top states in the country for business in 2025 — using 135 metrics in 10 categories — and the Ohio landed at fifth. The top ten: North Carolina, Texas, Florida, Virginia, Ohio, Michigan, Georgia, Tennessee, Indiana and Minnesota. The two bordering states of our readership area, Pennsylvania and West Virginia, are ranked 17th and 40th, respectively. The only category in which Ohio received a ...

Recognizing the impact of volunteer fire depts.

Volunteer fire departments across our area and the entire state are experiencing reduced staffing levels at the same time they are receiving an increased number of calls. Of course, most of those who are working in those departments also have full-time jobs; and for many, those jobs are also jobs of service. That’s why the State Fire Marshal Division and Ohio Department of Transportation took a moment last Tuesday to recognize the more than 70 ODOT employees who also serve as volunteer firefighters or emergency medical technicians. The event focused on employees in ODOT Districts 5, ...

Don’t take the summer off from donating blood

Disasters near and far have deepened the desire in many to help — to somehow do something amid all this suffering and struggle. In many of the hardest hit places, the American Red Cross is helping — and if we can’t be involved in those direct efforts, we can certainly do something to help that organization fulfill its mission. Part of that mission is, of course, keeping hospital shelves stocked with blood and blood products. The need for that never ceases. At the moment, the organization is asking especially for those with type O to donate blood, though all types are ...

Non-use of seat belts can be a grave error

Seat belts. For the vast majority of us, putting on a seat belt when entering the car is second nature. But for some, apparently, the act remains optional — and that’s leading to fatal results. In Ohio over the Fourth of July weekend, 10 people died in car crashes, according to the Ohio State Highway Patrol. Of those 10 fatalities, six were not wearing seat belts.  The issue goes deeper. According to the Columbus Dispatch, during the Fourth of July weekend troopers issued 2,286 seat belt and child safety seat violations. How is that possible in 2025? The problem is not isolated ...

Outbreaks of measles continues over summer

Though an outbreak in Ohio appears to have subsided since the spring, outbreaks of measles are still popping up all over the country. The summer break does not seem to have slowed the spread of this dangerous disease. Canada and Mexico are experiencing thousands of cases (and some deaths), too. Most recently, Kentucky has announced its first measles outbreak of the year, with four cases in Fayette and Woodford counties. That brings the total in Kentucky to seven. In the U.S., the total number of confirmed cases this year sits at 1,267 — just shy of the 30-year high. Arizona, Colorado, ...

Wildlife species making returns back to Ohio

Since the mid 19th Century, Ohio has been a relatively bear-free state. Humans drove out the black bears 150 or so years ago, and they’ve been considered rare and an endangered species here ever since. That might be changing, however, as researchers are beginning to see black bears naturally expand their range back into our state. Recently, a female black bear was captured and fitted with a GPS collar in Ashtabula County. It will be the first time such study is possible for a female, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources. “Researchers using the location information ...