Overcast 64°

Zak Failla

Assistant Managing Editor

zfailla@dailyvoice.com

FOLLOW ON

Facebook Twitter Linkedin Instagram

Equal parts Lois Lane, J. Jonah Jameson and Vicki Vale, Zak! has traveled from coast-to-coast covering small and big town community news in both in print and online for nearly a decade since his graduation from the award-winning Roy H. Park School of Communications at Ithaca College in 2010.

Before settling into the Hudson Valley, Zak! previously spent time in the New York Daily News newsroom and worked for hyperlocal digital news outlets on Long Island. He wrote sports for The Ithacan and The Ithaca Journal before taking his talents to the Pacific Northwest, where he served as the sports editor at the Shoshone News-Press until heading back east to work with Daily Voice.

Zak Failla's Contributions

News
Twindemic? Hudson Valley Flu Cases On Rise: Here Are Most Affected Counties Twindemic? Hudson Valley Flu Cases On Rise: Here Are Most Affected Counties
Twindemic? Hudson Valley Flu Cases On Rise: Here Are Most Affected Counties A “twindemic” could be on the horizon for Hudson Valley residents as the region begins to grapple with a rise in flu cases as New York contends with the winter surge of new COVID-19 infections as cases linked to the new Omicron variant continue to climb. In the latest update from the Department of Health, New York recorded 2,871 cases of influenza out of more than 64,000 tests that were conducted, marking the “third week that widespread activity has been reported following one week of regional activity.” The Hudson Valley has seen among the most cases in the state, with all but one county i…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
To The Rescue: Police Officers In Westchester Save Unresponsive Child To The Rescue: Police Officers In Westchester Save Unresponsive Child
To The Rescue: Police Officers In Westchester Save Unresponsive Child Quick-thinking police officers in Westchester came to the rescue of a toddler who suffered a seizure and was on the cusp of choking to death. Officers from the Mount Vernon Police Department responded to an East Birch Street apartment complex at approximately 7:20 p.m. on Monday, Dec. 13, where there was a report from a family of an unresponsive 2-year-old child who was having difficulty breathing. A pair of officers sprang into action and identified that the child was suffering from a seizure and had a clogged throat that was obstructing her breathing. According to city officials, the off…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Schools
Connecticut School Board Member Punched, Knocked Down During Public Hearing Connecticut School Board Member Punched, Knocked Down During Public Hearing
Connecticut School Board Member Punched, Knocked Down During Public Hearing A school board member in Connecticut was punched during a contentious meeting meant to be about a high school mascot. In Hartford County, a man punched a board of education member during a special meeting held in Glastonbury to discuss the high school’s mascot, which was changed from the Tomahawks to the Guardians last year, much to the dismay of some. During the meeting, tensions rose, and a fight broke out between someone in attendance and a board of education member during a break in the mascot discussion. It is unclear what caused the fight. Last year, the district moved to change the …

SHARE

by Zak Failla
News
Northern Westchester Attorney Sentenced For Drunk Driving Crash That Killed 22-Year-Old Northern Westchester Attorney Sentenced For Drunk Driving Crash That Killed 22-Year-Old
Northern Westchester Attorney Sentenced For Drunk Driving Crash That Killed 22-Year-Old A criminal defense attorney will spend time behind bars after admitting to driving drunk in Northern Westchester and crashing head-on into a vehicle, killing a 22-year-old man, authorities announced. Robert Schuster, age 53, of Bedford, has been sentenced to a term of between two and six years in state prison after pleading guilty to aggravated vehicular homicide for his role in the fatal crash that took the life of Mount Kisco resident Diego Trejo in December 2019. The Westchester DA’s Office had requested that the court impose a sentence of 5 to 15 years in state prison Westchester Count…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
Northern Westchester Attorney Sentenced For Drunk Driving Crash That Killed 22-Year-Old Northern Westchester Attorney Sentenced For Drunk Driving Crash That Killed 22-Year-Old
Northern Westchester Attorney Sentenced For Drunk Driving Crash That Killed 22-Year-Old A criminal defense attorney will spend time behind bars after admitting to driving drunk in Northern Westchester and crashing head-on into a vehicle, killing a 22-year-old man, authorities announced. Robert Schuster, age 53, of Bedford, has been sentenced to a term of between two and six years in state prison after pleading guilty to aggravated vehicular homicide for his role in the fatal crash that took the life of Mount Kisco resident Diego Trejo in December 2019. The Westchester DA’s Office had requested that the court impose a sentence of 5 to 15 years in state prison Westchester Count…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Schools
Social Media Threat Under Investigation At High School In Region Social Media Threat Under Investigation At High School In Region
Social Media Threat Under Investigation At High School In Region An investigation has been launched at a Western Massachusetts high school after threats were reportedly made targeting the building on social media. In Hampden County, officials said that there were multiple posts made on social media that could be perceived as threats to Westfield High School, prompting an investigation at the building. Parents have reportedly been notified of the situation, which is under investigation by school and police authorities. The nature of the threats - which were made on Instagram - has not been disclosed. “We are aware of the social media posts regarding We…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Schools
COVID-19: Long Island School Goes Remote Due To High Number Of Cases COVID-19: Long Island School Goes Remote Due To High Number Of Cases
Covid-19: Long Island School Goes Remote Due To High Number Of Cases With the number of COVID-19 cases mounting among students and staff, a Long Island high school is going remote for the rest of the year to help curtail the spread of the virus. The East Rockaway Junior-Senior High School transitioned to its distance learning model as of Wednesday, Dec. 15 after confirming 20 more cases in students and three in staff members. With the newly confirmed cases, there are now approximately 100 students in quarantine, representing nearly 25 percent of the entire school population. According to district officials, through contact tracing, it was determined that mo…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
News
COVID-19: Infection Rate Above 8 Percent In CT; Latest Breakdown Of Cases, Hospitalizations COVID-19: Infection Rate Above 8 Percent In CT; Latest Breakdown Of Cases, Hospitalizations
Covid-19: Infection Rate Above 8 Percent In CT; Latest Breakdown Of Cases, Hospitalizations The positive daily COVID-19 infection rate in Connecticut is back trending in the wrong direction after the state saw a slight reprieve over the weekend. Connecticut saw its daily positive infection rate dip to 2.21 percent this week after spiking near 10 percent last week, though it was back to 8.16 percent, according to the latest update from the Department of Public Health on Tuesday, Dec. 14. There were a total of 36,747 COVID-19 tests administered in the past 24 hours, resulting in 2,999 new laboratory-confirmed infections as the cumulative number of cases since the pandemic began app…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
News
COVID-19: Hospitalizations In New York Up 70 Percent Since Thanksgiving COVID-19: Hospitalizations In New York Up 70 Percent Since Thanksgiving
Covid-19: Hospitalizations In New York Up 70 Percent Since Thanksgiving The post-Thanksgiving surge of new COVID-19 infections in New York has led to a fresh spike of holiday hospitalizations as part of what Gov. Kathy Hochul called “a war against the unvaccinated.” Since Thanksgiving, there has been a 70 percent rise in the number of new hospitalizations, while the seven-day average number of cases per 100,000 New Yorkers has spiked 58 percent during the same timeframe. Eighty-nine new COVID-19 patients were administered to New York hospitals, according to the latest update from the Department of Health on Tuesday, Dec. 14, as the total rose to 3,772 being t…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
News
Power Outage Prompts False Report Of Shooting At Area School Power Outage Prompts False Report Of Shooting At Area School
Power Outage Prompts False Report Of Shooting At Area School Reports of a possible school shooting that rattled some parents in the area were unfounded and caused by a widespread power outage, officials said. On Tuesday, Dec. 14, Poughkeepsie City Schools Superintendent Eric Rosser said that a citywide outage led to an unfounded report of a shooting inside the middle building that quickly spread throughout the community. Officials said that during the outage, a student called a parent saying that he heard a gunshot, prompting a call to police, which investigated the report, determining that students and staff were safe. “Reports of a school shooting…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Prev Page 1260 of 3384 1,258 1,259 1,260 1,261 1,262 Next
12,591 - 12,600 of 33,836 articles