Ohio
How heat wave affected central Ohio Juneteenth celebrations
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — This heat wave is not stopping central Ohio communities from celebrating the Juneteenth holiday, but it is prompting organizers to be hyper-aware and take more precautions.
One of the organizers of New Albany’s Juneteenth celebration is also a doctor. Dr. Nwando Olayiwola said it’s important to be aware of your body. “Community connects us, heat will not stop us,” Olayiwola said.
She said they are very prepared for the heat and that she had been thinking about the meaning of this holiday and said it is interesting that the heat wave is hitting now.
“There were no air conditioners back in the original Juneteenth, I think we’re blessed and fortunate to be here, but we are taking all the precautions possible to make sure people can have a fun time and a healthy time,” Olayiwola said.
She said they have water stations all around, a misting tent, and a designated cooling room. She said they have plans in place for emergencies including having medics on site and other doctors and nurses like herself.
“We’ve got people kind of mobilized around the entire amphitheater that will be ready to kind of spring into action. We have a room that we’ve dedicated as an emergency call in and we will remove that person from the heat. We will get them to a place where it’s cool,” Olayiwola said.
The City of Hilliard celebrated the holiday with plans in place on Wednesday morning. Special events coordinator Kristan Turner said they had coolers filled with water by the stage and around the event. They also handed out a cool snack to the kids.
“There was a lot of planning. We made sure that our vendors knew our plan as something would happen, call EMS and where we could go. We have emergency kits on site if needed. And we also had popsicles to give out to all the attendees,” Turner said.
Olayiwola said the heat is just another reason to look out for yourself and others.
“You’ve also got to take care of yourself. And so the combination of staying healthy and having fun is what we’re really all about today,” Olayiwola said. “It’s a really incredible coming together of our community in New Albany. We believe that community connects us. And so we have people from all parts of the city, from all parts of the region, all walks of life, all ages, all races and ethnicities coming together to really celebrate this important moment in our history.”
Olayiwola said that during hot days, it’s best to take breaks from the heat every 15 to 20 minutes.
NEWTON FALLS, Ohio (WKBN) – A woman accused of driving intoxicated while working for the Postal Service in a mail truck entered a plea Tuesday in her case.
Michele Kellar, 47, of Warren, pleaded guilty to OVI, a first-degree misdemeanor, according to court records.
Court records state that she was sentenced to 12 months of probation and her license was suspended for a year, with limited driving privileges. She can also serve three days in a driver’s intervention program.
Trumbull County Sheriff’s deputies arrested Kellar in March after those living on Anderson Anthony Road NW in Braceville reported seeing the driver of a mail truck at the end of their driveway had passed out. They reported that they were able to wake the driver up, but said she drove off.
Deputies found the mail truck down the road, where she had driven off into a yard. According to the police report, the woman appeared very intoxicated with glassy eyes and slurred speech.
At the time of her arrest, a spokesperson for the U.S. Postal Service confirmed that Kellar was an employee but declined to comment further. WKBN reached out Thursday for more information on Kellar’s current employment status, but a spokesperson said the Postal Service does not disclose internal administrative actions.
CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) – Severe thunderstorms rolled through Northeast Ohio on Wednesday night, bringing down trees and knocking out power to thousands.
The heaviest damage seemed to be in Lorain County in the city of Lorain and Amherst. The Amherst Fire Department said there are large trees down on Jackson Street and Cleveland Avenue.
Check FirstEnergy’s, AEP’s, and Cleveland Public Power’s websites for the latest outage numbers.
More storms will work through the area overnight, as another disturbance reaches the area after midnight.
These storms will be ordinary in nature, though they could contain heavy downpours.
These storms should last through the middle of the day tomorrow, before clearing later in the day.
Lightning strike in Brunswick.
West Park neighborhood lightning show in Cleveland.
Submit any photos and videos from storm below.
Check back with the 19 News First Alert Weather team for the latest weather forecast.
Copyright 2026 WOIO. All rights reserved.
Ohio State treated fans to a behind-the-scenes look at the creation of Buckeye Stripes this week.
In a video released Wednesday that lasted more than six minutes, Ohio State pulled back the curtain on what it took to create Buckeye Stripes. The answer is more than 18 months of planning and countless hours of work behind the scenes.
Buckeye Stripes became a reality because of several Ohio State staffers whose contributions often go unnoticed, including assistant director of design Joe Gemma, director of creative and branding Ethan Miller, director of football equipment services Kevin Ries, assistant director of football equipment services Kevin Nerl, associate director of creative Danny Kraft, assistant director of creative Bryan Jay and assistant director of creative Domenick Guerrera.
Those staffers appeared throughout the behind-the-scenes feature alongside quarterback Julian Sayin, wide receiver Jeremiah Smith, defensive end Kenyatta Jackson Jr., linebacker Payton Pierce and cornerback Jermaine Mathews Jr., who modeled the alternate uniform concepts Ohio State could wear during the 2026 season.
The Buckeyes now have five uniform combinations in their arsenal: their core home and away sets plus three alternates — the all-black “Tunnel Visions,” all-white “Sub Zeroes” and all-scarlet “Scarlet Rush.” Ohio State will unveil one of the new looks when it opens the 2026 season against Ball State on Sept. 5 in Ohio Stadium.
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