Three patients remained in critical condition Saturday, with two of those stable, according to officials at two Bridgeport hospitals.

The nursing supervisor at St. Vincent Medical Center said Saturday that 44 people from the crash had been treated there, and that five of those were admitted.

One of the five remained in critical but stable condition, the supervisor said.

Bridgeport Hospital spokesman John Cappiello said two patients were admitted in critical condition, and one of those was now stable.

The hospital treated 24 other patients from the crash, and many had been released already, with the rest expected to be released by late Saturday morning, Cappiello said.

When asked when he thought train service would return to normal, Malloy said,  “We really cannot give you good information on that. We will set up a system to move people from Bridgeport to the next possible station that can handle that traffic. Folks east of Bridgeport, you should begin making plans for alternate travel.”

Metro North officials said any repairs will have to wait until after a full investigation into the crash has been completed.

Westbound traffic has been detoured onto Commerce Drive, also known as State Street Extension. Eastbound vehicles are being diverted onto Railroad Avenue.

The park is located at 307 Indian Ledge Park Drive.

A Connecticut driver’s license is required. Items to bring include oil-based paints, varnishes, pesticides, insecticides and pool chemicals.

Please do not bring latex paint (can be dried with kitty litter and thrown in the garbage), alkaline batteries, motor oil, antifreeze and asbestos products.

For a complete list refer to the Trumbull website at www.trumbull-ct.gov. The next collection will be in the fall of 2013.

BRIDGEPORT – The City has put illegal dumpers on notice: If you choose to dump your debris in our neighborhoods, it might hit you where it hurts.

The city recently contracted with a private investigation firm to stake out illegal dumping hotspots. Within an hour this weekend, the effort paid off.  The suspects fled. The City seized the car.

“We don’t want to seize people’s vehicles but we have an obligation to our residents. If you use our neighborhoods as a dumping ground, you may pay a steep price,” said Mayor Bill Finch. “We work very hard every day to make Bridgeport the cleanest and greenest city it can be and sometimes, like in the case of illegal dumpers, we have to take strong action.”

The City has contracted with Infidelity Investigations of Bridgeport to conduct the stake outs. The private investigators will go out several times a week and stake out  some of the dozen or so known illegal dumping problem areas. When they spot someone in the act, they have a direct line to police who respond immediately.

Catching illegal dumpers might not be the company’s primary source of business but the investigators have experience in stake outs.

On the first night of the operations, a private investigator was stationed at Wood Avenue and Grove Street, a known trouble stop. Within an hour, a 1993 Toyota Camry pulled up and started dumping garbage bags, household goods, furniture and other items on the sidewalk next to 224 Grove St.

The private investigator called police and as he approached the suspects they ran off in opposite directions leaving the car behind.

Fighting illegal dumping has been an ongoing challenge for the City. According to Christopher Rosario, the director of Anti-Blight & Illegal Dumping in the City’s Office of Neighborhood Revitalization, the offenders can vary. Some are people who choose not to drive to the City’s Transfer Station to throw out garbage as they clean out a rental apartment or finish spring cleaning. Others might be contractors who dump construction debris to save on the tipping fee.

“We spend tens of thousands of dollars to clean this up. It’s not fair to taxpayers and it’s not fair to residents who wake up to a pile of garbage bags near their house,” he said.

The City has employed different strategies to address the problem. A challenge is the dumping often happens in the early morning hours or in remote locations.

“We needed to try something different. Even before, people who got caught might receive an infraction and a court date,” Rosario said. “We need to send a message to people, a message with real consequence, that this won’t be tolerated in Bridgeport.”

BRIDGEPORT – A local woman accused of ripping off an elderly Michigan woman with a so-called “Nigerian” scam, claimed she was going into labor when detectives took her into custody.
“She is eight months pregnant and she told us she was having contractions,” Police Detective Frank Podpolucha said. “We took her to the hospital but she was later released.”
Tomeeka Cooper, 26, of Freemont Street, was charged with second-degree larceny.
Podpolucha said Cooper had been contacting a number of elderly people around the country claiming they had won a lottery but needed to send her money in order to pay off the taxes on the win before they could be awarded their prizes.
He said Cooper informed the 79-year-old Michigan woman she had won a Mercedes and a BMW and convinced the victim to send her $2,500. U.S. However, after sending the money the woman had second thoughts and contacted the post office.
Podpolucha said postal inspectors here intercepted the victim’s payment and called the police. He said they then set up surveillance at the post office here and arrested Cooper on Friday when she picked up the letter from the victim containing the cash.

dtepfer@ctpost.com; 203-330-6308; http:// twitter.com/dantepfer

In this reader submitted photo, two vehicles were involved in a crash around 9 a.m. Saturday at Governor's Avenue near the Duck Pond in Milford. The reader said they saw one person taken away in an ambulance. Police did not immediately provide any details.

The warning came after a pair of coyotes was seen cutting through a Monroe’s couple’s backyard.

Earlier this week, a small dog in Shelton had to be euthanized after it was attacked by a coyote. It was the latest in a series of attacks that claimed the lives of cats and small dogs.

The state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection says the coyote population in the state has expanded greatly in the last 20 years. At least 3,000 of the wild beasts roam the woods and backyards of Connecticut.

DEEP says the risk of humans being attacked by a coyote is extremely low, but could increase if people feed  them.

With the number of coyotes steadily increasing in Connecticut, the DEEP offers these tips on preventing conflicts with coyotes:

• DO NOT allow pets to run free! Keep cats indoors, particularly at night, and small dogs on a leash or under close supervision at all times. The installation of a kennel or coyote-proof fencing is a long-term solution for protecting pets. A variety of livestock fencing and small animal pen designs can protect farm animals.
• NEVER feed coyotes! DO NOT place food out for any mammals. Clean up bird seed below feeders, pet foods, and fallen fruit. Secure garbage and compost in animal proof containers.
• Always walk dogs on a leash. If approached by a coyote while walking your dog, keep the dog under control and calmly leave the area. DO NOT run or turn your back. Coyotes are territorial and many reports of bold coyotes visiting yards, howling, or threatening larger dogs can often be attributed to this territorial behavior.
• Attempt to frighten away coyotes by making loud noises (e.g., shouting, air horn) and acting aggressively (e.g., waving your arms, throwing sticks, spraying with a hose).
• Be aware of any coyote behaving abnormally or exhibiting unusually bold behavior (e.g., approaching people for food, attacking leashed pets that are with their owners, stalking children, chasing joggers or bikers, etc.)  and report these incidents to authorities immediately.
• Be aware of and report any coyotes exhibiting behavior indicative of rabies, such as staggering, seizures, and extreme lethargy. Daytime activity is not uncommon and does not necessarily indicate rabies.
• Teach children to recognize coyotes and to go inside the house (do not run) or climb up on a swing or deck and yell if they are approached.
• Close off crawl spaces under porches and sheds that coyotes or other animals may use.
• Educate your neighbors. Ask them to follow these same steps.
• Regulated hunting and trapping may be used to remove problem coyotes in areas where it is safe and legal to do so
• Contact the DEP Wildlife Division at 860-424-3011 for more information on coyotes or other wildlife problems.

The apps have traffic advisories and access to traffic cameras and quick links to Metro-North and Amtrak rail services. They also include scheduling and fare information, bus schedules and route, information about public transportation and more.

The apps can be installed from the DOT’s at www.ct.gov/dot . They are available for both iPhone and Android smartphones and prices range from free to $2.99.

But the state’s lawyers made sure there were plenty of disclaimers attached:

Disclaimer: The Connecticut Department of Transportation provides links to the apps on this page as a public service. The apps are written by third parties and ConnDOT shall not be held responsible for the content of third-party websites or any issue arising from the use of third-party applications. ConnDOT neither endorses any third-party products listed here nor makes any guarantees or representations as to accuracy or reliability.

Since the Department cannot guarantee the accuracy and timeliness of the information, the user of the apps should plan his or her travel accordingly. Those relying on the information provided by the apps do so at their own risk, and neither the Connecticut Department of Transportation nor any of its employees or agents shall be liable for the accuracy of the information on the apps, the functioning of the apps, or any actions taken in reliance thereon.

NEVER USE ANY OF THESE APPS WHILE DRIVING. Stop at a Rest Area or hand your phone to your passenger and ask them to use the information provided by the app. ConnDOT assumes no liability for damage and/or injury caused by the misuse of smartphones or smartphone apps while driving in a moving vehicle. The user assumes all liability for use or misuse of these apps on a smartphone.