Nearby: Smithtown to Act on Abandoned Homes

Some of the news you may have missed from around the Island this week.

Smithtown officials agreed Tuesday that its necessary for them to take action on abandoned properties in the area.

Town officials have been working since last year . 

Supervisor Patrick Vecchio said residents' phone calls alerted him to the need to take more immediate action in dealing with these blighted properties.

The Hempstead Town Board unanimously adopted legislation this week that will stem the planting, growing or maintaining of bamboo plants on local properties in the township.

Town officials are responding to the complaints of residents who have had to deal with invasive bamboo encroaching on their properties from adjoining parcels.

Three fire departments rescued a woman Friday afternoon after her family reported that she was trapped in her Merrick home.

According to Russ Robinson, ex-captain of the Merrick Fire Department, a paramedic and the coordinator of the rescue, the woman, who is 65, fell and sustained a leg injury. She had been lying on the floor of a second-story room for three to four days, when her family found her and called emergency services.

Rescuers cut open the window to remove the woman, who Robinson estimated to be about 400 pounds. They then wrapped her, put her in a Stokes basket and removed her from the home. She was taken to South Nassau Hospital.

With the Federal Aviation Administration looking to consolidate its air traffic control facilities in the region, officials from across Suffolk gathered at Long Island MacArthur Airport (LIMA) on Thursday to encourage the FAA to house its new center at the airport in Ronkonkoma.

The FAA is looking to bring its air traffic control operations, currently located in Ronkonoma and Westbury, under one roof.

In addition to Long Island, published reports have indicated the FAA is also looking at locations in Poughkeepsie and Albany.

DoSomething.org and Staples have teamed up with teen actress and recording artist Bella Thorne, for the 5th annual Staples for Students national school supply drive, to help kids in need.

The drive encourages local young people to collect school supplies and drop them off at their nearest store now through Sept. 15.

All school supplies and donations will be given locally to the Hicksville Youth Council's Boys & Girls Club to ensure they get into the hands of disadvantaged youth just in time for the new school year.

Another Mosquito With West Nile Found in Northport

 A West Nile infected mosquito was found during collections on July 2 and 3, according to the Suffolk Department of Health. This is the second positive sample found in Northport this summer, the first being found on June 27.