On the morning of June 9, an explosion occurred at the Oneonta Job Corps Academy, blowing out the windows of the welding shop and breaking light fixtures. Though nine students and a Job Corps employee were in the shop at the time of the explosion, only Jaskarm S. Kang, 18, was injured, suffering third-degree burns on one of his arm.
As emergency forces concluded their investigation, it became clear this was not an act of terrorism but of stupidity.
Kang was in the welding shop that Tuesday morning lighting bags filled with acetylene gas. According to state police zone commander Capt. Rodney Campbell, Kang progressed from small plastic bags to a garbage bag filled with the gas, which is what is believed to have caused the blast.
Kang was charged with fourth-degree criminal mischief and second-degree reckless endangerment. He was sent June 9 to Otsego County jail on $1,000 bail.
Campbell told The Daily Star, "there wasn't any catastrophic damage" to the Job Corps facility. But we are nonetheless disturbed by this incident. Kang could have endangered many lives by his foolishness. And we question how Kang was allowed to light acetylene on several occasions in a supposedly supervised area. We hope that educators will keep such materials under tighter supervision to prevent a recurrence.
License dogs to help program
Recently it was reported that Otsego County was one of 22 New York counties whose funding for spay-and-neuter programs would be exhausted by Oct. 1. The funding allows eligible pet owners to use vouchers to offset the costs of having pets spayed and neutered.
We are disappointed to hear that this worthwhile program may be cut short, and are concerned about the complacency of pet owners who do not license, spay and neuter their pets. Licensing is one way the funding accumulates.
Spaying, neutering and licensing pets are vital practices that help keep down the population of domestic animals. It also helps keep citizens safe from rabid dogs and cats. In New York state, a pet license can be obtained only with a certificate of rabies vaccination.
According to Joan Puritz, an Otsego County veterinarian, an Ag and Markets official said Otsego County does not have enough revenue coming in from pet licenses. We urge citizens to undertake this practice, and urge our local law enforcement officers and other citizens to keep watch on area pets. Reporting unlicensed animals and fining the owners is one way to ensure this program gets funding.
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