Serving Manhasset, Munsey Park, North Hills, Plandome Heights, Plandome Manor, Plandome and Flower Hill
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Friday, September 20, 2019
Vol. 7, No. 38
MINEOLA STREET HBO BUYS FILM ON NO TAX INCREASE IN CURRAN’S FAIR GUIDE ROSLYN SCANDAL TENTATIVE COUNTY BUDGET PAGES 35-54
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Roslyn man attests to vape dangers
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NORTHERN LIGHTS
Resident nearly died after vaping THC BY R O S E W E L D ON A resident of Roslyn Heights who nearly died due to vaping THC for several months spoke out last Thursday, the same day that Gov. Andrew Cuomo issued an emergency executive order that bans the sale of flavored electronic cigarettes in the state. Jonathan Doneson, 52, of Roslyn Heights, used a vape pen to calm his nerves following the stress of starting a new business with his wife, he said at a news conference at North Shore University Hospital in Manhasset. He began vaping tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, a chemical in marijuana known for its effect on dopamine receptors in the brain. Shortly after a trip abroad over the summer, Doneson said, he began to suffer from “night sweats” and felt “feverish and in pain.” When treatments for bronchitis failed to yield results, Doneson was forced to go to the emergency
room at North Shore on Aug. 22. Doctors grew concerned when he didn’t respond to a usual course of antibiotics. He only began to progress after Dr.Mina Makaryus, a pulmonologist at North Shore, found out about Doneson’s habit. “No one could figure out why the antibiotics weren’t working,” Doneson said. “When Dr. Makaryus asked me about my smoking or drinking habits, I told him that I had started using a THC vaping pen about a month earlier.” Once Makaryus made the connection, Doneson bounced back quickly, he said, and returned home three weeks after being admitted. Dr. Annamaria Iakovou, a pulmonary, critical care and sleep medicine physician at North Shore, said that Doneson’s case was not the first vaping-related illness seen in the Northwell Health system. “Over the past three months, Continued on Page 87
PHOTO BY ROSE WELDON
“Aurorae,” left, and “Kumo (cloud),” right, by Miya Ando, are part of the exhibit “Energy: The Power of Art” at the Nassau County Museum of Art.
12 Manhasset students picked for Merit semis BY R OB E RT PELAEZ
gram. They were among roughly 16,000 chosen nationwide Fifty-nine students from based on scores on the prelimithe North Shore have been nary SAT, according to the pronamed semifinalists in the Na- gram’s website. In the Great Neck school tional Merit Scholarship Pro-
district, 16 students were selected as semifinalists. Those from Great Neck South High School were Yian Dong, Julia D. Duval, Ali I. Fazal, Austin Z. George, Elizabeth Grosul, Continued on Page 85
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