Ann Rejrat

Investigative, Enterprise, and Watchdog Stories

Spotlight PA •

PA allows teens to work at haunted attraction despite past mistreatment claims

The Shapiro administration is allowing children to volunteer for a popular haunted attraction in Lancaster County despite the business facing past allegations involving sexual misconduct, workplace injuries, and violations of rules meant to protect minors.Field of Screams does not have to pay the people who staff the attraction, under federal and state exemptions for seasonal and recreational establishments. These volunteers aren’t protected by most labor laws that empower regulators to inspect...
Spotlight PA •

Teen volunteers harassed by adults at PA Field of Screams in past

When Danica Gabrielson’s 31-year-old manager started texting her, she was surprised.It was 2011, the 16-year-old's first season as a volunteer actor at Field of Screams, a haunted attraction in Lancaster County that has grown from a modest spooky hayride into a destination touted as one of the best in the country.Gabrielson remembers texting her friends to see if they had also heard from him, and when they said no, she was excited. His attention felt special.She said she had heard him make sexua...
LancasterOnline •

Toxic trains: Real-time hazmat info hard to get, even for Lancaster County's first responders

The windows rattled on Frank Frederick’s Union Street home in Columbia when the train passed 40 feet from his side yard.Frederick and his neighbors have been worried about what’s on those trains since the Feb. 3 Norfolk Southern train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, near the Pennsylvania line, which prompted the intentional release and burning of toxic vinyl chloride and the evacuation of more than a thousand residents.“I have been wondering what it is on the trains, but nobody wants to say...
LancasterOnline •

Pa. doesn't protect against utility shutoffs; here's how residents can get help [Lancaster Watchdog]

Like many expectant mothers, Shauntasia Morant spent the weeks before her May 21 due date preparing for her son’s arrival.Among those preparations: applying to utility, food and financial assistance programs. The single mother, who works as a certified nursing assistant at Mennonite Home Community, says she was repeatedly denied for not meeting income requirements. “They keep saying I make too much when I’m like, every dollar or penny I get goes straight into bills,” 32-year-old Morant, of Lanca...
LancasterOnline •

How ID scanning works to make some bars safer, and why some question it [Lancaster Watchdog]

On a rainy Friday night in October, patrons started trickling into Marion Court Room on East Marion Street in downtown Lancaster, ready to unwind for the weekend.Before any of them could make their way to the bar to order a first round of drinks, they had to hand over their IDs to a bouncer standing by a machine that looks a lot like a cash register with a touchscreen tablet and a webcam attached: a Patronscan ID-scanning system.A poster with an ominous warning hung from the front of the scannin...
LancasterOnline •

Patronscan to pull back on length of data retention, bar bans in Pa. [Lancaster Watchdog]

Last week, The Watchdog wrote about an ID scanner popping up at bars around Lancaster that, while backed by bar owners, is raising some eyebrows among customers and data privacy experts. Patronscan, a subscription-based security system, checks the IDs of patrons for fakes, takes a photo of each patron, and lifts personal identifying details off their ID to store temporarily for use if a patron causes a problem and needs to be banned from the establishment.The Patronscan system allows bars to app...
LancasterOnline •

One year after East Palestine train derailment, not much has changed for local emergency responders

About 135 miles of active rail lines weave through Lancaster County carrying rail cars that at any point could be filled with hazardous material such as vinyl chloride, the chemical at the center of a train derailment near the Pennsylvania-Ohio border last year. On Feb. 3, 2023, a Norfolk Southern train derailed in East Palestine, Ohio, less than a quarter-mile from the Pennsylvania border, prompting the intentional release and burning of toxic vinyl chloride and the evacuation of more than a th...
LancasterOnline •

Potential dangers of lead pollution from airplane fuel still prevalent [Lancaster Watchdog]

Editor's Note: A previous version of this story incorrectly stated that Lindsay Hafer and David Buttolph live in Lititz. A correction has been made to reflect that they both live in Manheim Township. Over a 30-minute period one January afternoon, two small airplanes passed over Lindsay Hafer’s home on Kingsbridge Drive in Manheim Township.The mother of two children, ages 5 and 10, said she had never thought about the possible health hazards of living near an airport until she moved in June to he...
LancasterOnline •

York Energy storage aims to build dam on 1000 acres in York County

Editors note: A previous version listed Brookfield Energy Group as owning York Energy Storage, when it does not.York Energy Storage LLC has applied with a federal agency to run a feasibility study for a dam and power turbine on the Susquehanna River in Chanceford Township, York County. The project is not the first time that a dam has been proposed in the area. Similar projects were proposed in both 1990 and 2011 to large local pushback and both proposals were scrapped.The company applied on Feb....
LancasterOnline •

Railroad's training for emergency responders is infrequent and not always convenient [Lancaster Watchdog]

Late last month, Norfolk Southern hosted three days of safety training in Harrisburg for emergency responders from across central Pennsylvania. The training provided by the company, which owns railroads stretching across the state and Lancaster County, is designed to familiarize firefighters and other responders with the types of railroad cars and other equipment that they may encounter in an emergency situation.Firefighters receive 24 hours of hazardous materials training their first year of se...
LancasterOnline •

Waste authority takes first steps to expand Creswell Landfill in Manor Township

Editor’s note: This story has been updated to reflect the cancelation of the March meeting.Five days a week, tractor-trailers loaded down with waste from Lancaster, Berks, Dauphin and York counties snake their way along River Road in Manor Township en route to Frey Farm Landfill.Last year, more than 400,000 tons of waste collected on the property. For perspective, the Empire State Building in New York City weighs about 365,000 tons.Since 1989, Lancaster County Solid Waste Management Authority ha...
LancasterOnline •

Organizations forced to foot the bill to dispose items left outside donation bins [Lancaster Watchdog]

Have you noticed clothing, furniture, electronics and other miscellaneous items collecting next to over-stuff donation bins? Your loyal Watchdog has and finds it especially disconcerting to see those donated items ruined when it rains or snows.One reader wrote to ask about who’s responsible for the damaged items and trash that can pile up outside the donation bins.  To start, the Watchdog wanted to find out what the organizations that sponsor the bins hope they will be used for. Three organizati...
LancasterOnline •

‘Grandfathering’: Why Martin’s Country Market didn’t have sprinklers [Lancaster Watchdog]

The fire that destroyed Martin’s Country Market in Ephrata Township last month spread fast. Firefighters were on the scene within minutes of the initial report, but they still couldn’t stop it.After the fire, The Watchdog, along with and a lot of other folks in the community, was wondering why such a large building — more than 50,000 square feet — is not required to have a sprinkler system. Sprinkler systems, which spray water when they sense heat, can reduce fire damage by as much as 90%, accor...
LancasterOnline •

'Eyesore' school bus parked along New Holland Pike not breaking any laws [Lancaster Watchdog]

Driving along New Holland Pike in East Lampeter Township you can expect to see the usual scenic homesteads, woodlands, the Conestoga River … and a shabby-looking school bus.The retired Blue Bird bus, with chipping paint and a mattress visible through the back windows, has been stationed on a grassy spot a few feet off the side of the road long enough that Google Maps has registered it as a landmark, placing a bus icon on maps of the area.Susan Franz, a resident of Upper Leacock Township, drives...