The Ohio Department of Transportation is reminding drivers give their snow plows plenty of room to operate during snow events.

ODOT says 17 of their snow plows have been struck this winter, with number 17 happening on Monday.

ODOT says 46 of its snow plows were hit in the winter of 2020-21.

“Your safety is our priority, so please make our crews safety a priority too,” ODOT said.

ODOT is hoping drivers remember the saying “don’t crowd the plow” as they come across any snow plows clearing snow.

ODOT points out that when a plow is struck, that takes it off the road as it’s repaired, hindering their ability to clear the roads efficiently.

There have been several crashes the last few days due to people driving too fast for the snowy conditions and losing control.

The Ohio State Highway Patrol is reminding drivers to slow down in snowy weather and to give themselves plenty of stopping distance.

(ONN) – The Ohio Redistricting Commission has failed for a second time to reach the bipartisan consensus needed to pass 10-year maps of state legislative districts based on 2020 census totals.

Despite being scolded by the state’s high court, the seven-member panel approved new maps along party lines in the face of a court-imposed Saturday deadline.

That means the plan would be good for just four years.

But the Ohio Supreme Court has reserved the right to review the panel’s proposed change.

Voting rights and Democratic groups successfully challenged an earlier round of maps as an extreme partisan gerrymander.

Republicans defended the new district lines as constitutional.

The Ohio Supreme Court will review the maps and there is a 3-day window in which objections may be filed.

Five people were injured in a two-vehicle crash on snowy roads in southwest Hancock County.

The crash happened around 3 p.m. Sunday at State Route 103 and County Road 12, west of Jenera.

The Hancock County Sheriff’s Office says Hunter Stauffer, 18, of Rawson, was driving a pickup truck southbound on County Road 12 when he failed to stop at the stop sign due to snow and ice on the road.

His pickup struck a van that was eastbound on State Route 103 and being driven by Kelsey Bradley, 32, of Jenera.

Bradley and four kids in her van were taken to Blanchard Valley Hospital with suspected minor injuries.

Stauffer was not injured in the crash.

Assisting at the scene was Southwest Joint Fire District, Hanco EMS and Fender Benders Towing.

Many area schools, including Findlay City Schools, closed for the day Monday due to snowy conditions and the chance for even more snow.

Initially, Findlay City Schools was going to be on a 2-hour delay for Monday, but Monday morning they decided to close for the day.

Findlay picked up 3 to 5 inches of snow on Sunday and another few inches are possible on Monday.

Click here for the latest list of closings and cancellations.

Authorities in Seneca County say a man was arrested after illegally discharging a firearm and will be facing additional charges.

The Seneca County Sheriff’s Office received a 911 call on Sunday at 1:16 a.m. about a man acting erratically and firing off rounds at Poplar Village Mobile Home Park on West Axline Street in Fostoria.

Deputies made contact with the man and identified him as Marcus Hartfield, 42, of Perrysburg.

While speaking with Hartfield deputies say they could see evidence of the crime in plain sight and called for assistance from the Seneca County Drug Task Force.

A search warrant was executed at the residence which belongs to 29-year-old Latashia Shank.

The task force says a search of the residence unveiled items including two spent .45 caliber casings, a loaded Glock .45 caliber semi-automatic pistol with a 30 round magazine, several additional loaded magazines, ammunition, suspected cocaine, suspected marijuana, criminal tools, and U.S. currency.

Hartfield was arrested for discharging a firearm on or near a prohibited premise and having weapons under disability.

Hartfield has additional charges for endangering children, trafficking in drugs, possession of drugs, and possession of criminal tools stemming from this operation at the
conclusion of the entire investigation.

Authorities remind the public to continue to report suspicious activity to their local agencies or the Seneca County Drug Task Force – METRICH Enforcement Unit Crime Hotline at 419-443-0463 ext: 1140.

The Findlay Police Department says a driver was arrested after leading an officer on a short, low-speed pursuit.

Police say an officer attempted to pull over Steven Hildebrand, 31, at North Main Street and Howard Street for a minor traffic violation at 11:42 Sunday morning.

Police say Hildebrand proceeded westbound on Howard Street and then southbound on North Cory Street, running stop signs.

Police say Hildebrand turned westbound into an alley just south of Washington Street and stopped in the back of an address on West Front Street.

Police say that’s where Hildebrand was removed from the car and taken into custody.

The pursuit traveled less than one mile and speeds never reached more than 25 miles per hour.

Police say Hildebrand was found to have an active warrant out of Richland County.

Police say he was arrested for failure to comply with a police officer and also issued a citation for driving under a child support suspension.

Findlay and Hancock County received its first accumulating snow of the winter on Sunday.

By noon around 3 inches of snow had fallen at the WFIN Studios at Lake Cascades in Findlay.

The Hancock County Sheriff’s Office placed the county under a Level 1 Road Alert around 10 a.m., meaning roads are hazardous and to drive with caution.

A Winter Weather Advisory was scheduled to go until 4 p.m. Sunday.

Some more snow is expected to fall on Monday.

Traffic fatalities increased significantly in Ohio in 2021.

Last year 1,361 people died from traffic crashes in Ohio, which is a 10 percent increase from 2020’s total of 1,229.

In 2019 there were 1,155 traffic fatalities in Ohio.

Lt. Matt Crow, Findlay Post Commander for the Ohio State Highway Patrol, wants to remind drivers to watch their speed, pay attention to their surroundings and to not be distracted by their phone or anything in their vehicle.

“We want you to make it to where you need to go safely, so take care and always buckle up.”

And the Ohio Department of Transportation says, while it’s investing in projects to improve safety, safety is in your hands too.

“Buckle up, slow down, drive sober, and drop the distractions. Together, we can make this number 0,” ODOT tweeted.

As of Friday afternoon, the highway patrol was reporting 50 traffic fatalities so far this year, which is 27 fewer than at the same time last year.

The Humane Society and SPCA of Hancock County says people have been generously donating in memory of Betty White all week long.

On Monday, on what would have been Betty’s 100th birthday, people donated more than $2,000 during the Betty White challenge, which encourages people to donate to animal shelters and charities or to even adopt a pet.

On Friday, The Humane Society and SPCA of Hancock County said donations in Betty’s name had grown to $7,300.

“The community is helping out the homeless animals in Hancock County, and I truly hope they recognize the impact they are making,” said the humane society’s Natalie Reffitt.

“Without the community, the humane society could not exist to help care for the pets in need.”

Natalie says they’ve also received blankets, dog and cat toys, peanut butter, bleach, paper towels, and snacks for the pets.

“Betty White continues to leave the world a better place for animals,” Natalie added.

Click here to see what animals the shelter currently has up for adoption. That’s Bentley pictured above and Kosmic below.

A former assistant football coach at Findlay and Van Buren high schools has been sentenced for soliciting sex from an undercover police officer who was posing as a teenage boy.

Devon Hohman, 29, pleaded guilty to a charge of importuning, a 5th-degree felony, in Wood County Common Pleas Court in October.

Charges of attempted unlawful sexual contact with a minor and disseminating matter harmful to juveniles were dismissed.

Wood County court records show Hohman was recently sentenced to four years of community control subject to the general supervision of Adult Probation and that he serve 60 days in the Wood County Jail and have no unsupervised contact with minors.

He must also register as a Tier 1 Sex Offender.