Top Stories from NCPR

The North Country has a new detox center to help people safely go through withdrawal from alcohol, heroin, and other drugs.

The 18-bed Recovery Campus in Schuyler Falls, near Plattsburgh, helps fill a huge gap in services. At a ribbon cutting ceremony late last month, officials called the new facility "a beacon of hope."

In the fall of 1968 Leroy Peet returned home from the army. He spent some time as a forklift operator for Adirondack Plywood but he wasn’t happy with the job. The following spring Leroy was tipped off about open interviews at the Newton Falls Paper Mill.

Senate Republicans suffered a seismic change election day. It was only the third time in the last century that Democrats took the majority in the chamber. Members of the diminished caucus met Friday in Albany to regroup.

They promised they won’t give up the fight against Democratic priorities.

They re-elected Sen. John Flanagan of Long Island as their leader, but not without a fight of his own. Nine senators voted for a challenge - Senator Cathy Young of Olean, in western New York.

The mid-term election this month brought a massive shift in political power in Albany, with Democrats gaining a solid 40-seat majority in the state Senate. Republicans are left with just 23 seats.

That change could spell trouble for the North Country and much of Upstate New York, regions heavily dependent on taxpayer dollars for investments and infrastructure and overwhelmingly represented by Republican lawmakers, who lost a huge amount of power and influence.

Prepare for winter conditions, ice and snow-depths from 8 to 18 inches by the end of the weekend, with the deepest snows at higher elevations. Snowshoes and ice crampons and traction devices are recommended if you are headed to the High Peaks this weekend. Temperatures will reach into the teens on summits, with wind chills mostly in the single digits below zero on summits this weekend. Some stream crossings may be difficult. Some ice has been forming, but no ice should be considered safe.

The North Country gets a lot of national stage time in Ben Stiller’s new seven-part prison drama, “Escape at Dannemora.” The series premieres this Sunday on the Showtime TV network. It’s the real-life story of Richard Matt and David Sweat, who broke out of Clinton Correctional Facility in 2015. Matt was killed in a shootout and Sweat was captured after a three-week manhunt. Last night, Stiller hosted a local premiere in Plattsburgh. Zach Hirsch was there.

The Hyde Collection in Glens Falls is displaying two copies of late 15th century German books and a rare page from the Gutenberg Bible.

Snowy owls are normally a rare sight in North Country. Their usual range is in the Arctic north. But a few years ago, a large number were seen all across the region. Martha Foley asked Dr. Curt Stager why that has happened.

Sunday night is the debut of Showtime’s “Escape at Dannemora.”