House fire on Strathmore. UPDATE: 1 Fatality

Michael Glenn of the Haverford Police Department has released a statement that said the resident of the house on Strathmore was pronounced dead on arrival at the Emergency Department of Lankenau Hospital. Please: If you know the identity and/or address of this homeowner, please keep it off social media. Next of kin are still being located. Here is the official police statement from Brookline Fire Chief/Haverford Police Chief John Viola: Press Release-Strathmore Rd Fatal Fire   HAVERFORD TOWNSHIP POLICE DEPARTMENT 1010 Darby Road Havertown, Pennsylvania 19083 Official Press Release House Fire (Fatal) On Monday February 15th at approximately 1012 hours, the Haverford Township Police Department received a report of smoke coming from a home in the 500 block of Strathmore Rd. Fire Apparatus from Brookline, Llanerch, Oakmont, Manoa and Bon Air Fire Companies were dispatched to the scene along with units from Penn Medicine Paramedics, and the Haverford Township Police Department. The assistance of Narberth Ambulance was also requested due to the severe weather conditions. Upon arrival on scene police observed heavy smoke and fire visible in the rear of the home. The first officers on scene attempted to enter the home to check for occupants but were driven back by heavy smoke conditions. Fire personnel gained entry into the residence and located an elderly male on the first floor. The male was removed from the home and transported to Lankenau Hospital, where he was pronounced deceased upon arrival. The identity of the victim is being withheld at this time. The home sustained heavy damage and was demolished prior to the fire companies leaving the scene. The cause of the fire has not been determined at this time. The investigation is being conducted by the Haverford Township Police Department with the assistance of both the Delaware County Detectives and the PA State Fire Marshall Office. The Haverford Township Police Department wishes to … [Read more...]

We made the papers. This time for something good.

Haverford Township (remember - there is no official "Havertown" - That is a US Post Office shortening of Haverford Township [better than "fordship" or "Havership" or "fordtown"]) makes the Philly news every once in a while. Usually the news isn't so great. This article, from today's Philadelphia Inquirer, talks about the efforts volunteers have made toward brightening up the place. (If we could only do something about Eagle Road from Darby to WCP!) Proud residents are splashing it all over social media. So here you go:   Haverford Twp. experiencing a civic reboot Mari A. Schaefer, Staff Writer Posted: Saturday, January 2, 2016, 1:07 AM Ten years ago, Haverford Township was known for its political infighting, tired business areas, and status-quo Civic Council. Then an election brought three new township commissioners; fresh blood energized the Civic Council - an umbrella group of local organizations - and grassroots volunteers got to work. The impact is visible: new streetlights, improved sidewalks, better parking. The township boasts a popular music festival, a new recreation center and YMCA, and a diverse restaurant scene that includes Mexican, Thai, modern Irish, Italian, gastropubs, trendy breakfast spots, and earthy coffee houses. "All these things send signals to consumers, businesses, and investors that this place is getting better," said Donald Kelly, vice president for the nonprofit Haverford Partnership for Economic Development. "We are excited about the direction our community is going." It hasn't been easy. Haverford faces a unique challenge - nine separate business districts in a 10-square-mile township. "You can't just put your money in one place," said Commissioner Mario Oliva. "We are spread out all over." About 48,000 people live in the inner-ring Delaware County suburb, flanked by Upper Darby and Radnor Township, sliced by West Chester Pike and bounded by, among other things, City Avenue and Darby Creek. The … [Read more...]

Bathroom scrawl bomb threat in HHS found to be not credible

Dr. Nesbitt, principal of the Haverford High School, sent out a robocall this evening to all HHS parents. The message states that a pencil-scrawled threat of a bomb going off in the high school set to detonate tomorrow at 12 noon was found in a bathroom stall today. Dr. Nesbitt made a note of the misspelling of "school" as "scool," seeming to indicate the lack of seriousness of the threat. Nevertheless, Haverford Township Police thoroughly scanned the building and deemed it to be safe. School will be conducted tomorrow. (A full day for all Haverford public schools - except the middle school that has a 10:50 am dismissal for conferences this week - as opposed to Lower Merion SD which has a half-day.) Listen to the message:   Photo Credit: Oteo on Flickr (This is not from the high school) … [Read more...]

Delco News Round-Up

First let us offer a big apology for not handing out a great April Fool's joke. We missed the boat on that one! (See purplecar.net for a link to some good ol' fashioned Internet gags). If you haven't figured it out already, Havertownies is not the most bleeding-edge breaking news site. We Havertownies used to have a pretty sufficient Patch site, but things over there are a bit dreary with their recent upheavals. There's still News of Delaware County and other local news outlets. Still, we don't make a habit of trolling local news. We do LURVE to troll you all, though... in a good way. We here at HT follow y'all on Twitter, Facebook and G+ to see what you're linking, liking and sharing. That's how we catch a lot of the info we post. Here are some news stories making the rounds that you may have missed: Security guard at Marple Theater fires shots at (we're supposed to say alleged here but they are on tape) robbers in the parking lot UPDATE March 3, 2014: Suspect arrested, former AMC employee Southern Delco teacher faces more molesting charges 2 Paxon Hollow middle schoolers said a driver attempted to get them in a maroon van If you have any more you think need our collective Havertownies attention, please add links in the comments. Stay safe out there, HTies! … [Read more...]