■A Florence man was unhurt yesterday after his car was demolished by a train at the Elm Street crossing in South Deerfield. Samuel Goldman of 558 Bridge Road was traveling east on Elm Street when his car was hit by a northbound train at 12:36 p.m.
■A plan to utilize the Daily Hampshire Gazette as a teaching aid in high school English classes and for which teachers would be trained at the Gazette’s expense, was approved last evening by the Northampton School Committee. English supervisor Rosanne Soffer told the committee that plans call for the use of the Gazette in five classes including courses on expository writing, writing workshops journalism, and mass media.
■TRIAD, named after its three-sided approach to senior safety and security, has been in operation in Northampton for several months. Yesterday, the Northampton effort sponsored its first event, a talk by NYNEX representative Michael Pequignot on telemarketing fraud.
■The Northampton Police Department is getting almost as good at capturing grants as criminals. The department received its sixth grant in the last two years this month, when it was awarded $15,000 to improve its information retrieval system, said Capt. Joseph Koncas.
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield plans to demolish three buildings near Sacred Heart Church on King Street to add much-needed parking spaces and room for a future parish hall. Voting on the application Monday, the Historical Commission deemed the church’s rectory and nearby Christian Life Center “significant structures,” meaning their fates will be determined at a public hearing in July.
■With his opponent out-fundraising him by a factor of 3-1, Michael Cahillane has resigned his prosecutor’s post to campaign full-time for Northwestern district attorney. He’s running against fellow Democrat David Sullivan, who said he plans to finish his term as register of probate for Hampshire County, an elected position he’s held since 2002.