Local category, Page 2030
Fire engulfs 2 vacant houses in Arnold
State police are investigating the cause of a fire Thursday night that destroyed two neighboring vacant houses in Arnold. Assistant Fire Chief Brian Gouza said flames engulfed a two-story house at 1410 Third Ave. and spread to an adjacent, wood-frame house at 1412 Third Ave. The fire broke out shortly...
Arnold police said man exceeded 90 mph with 2 infants, drugs in his car
Arnold police said a city man was seen driving at speeds of more than 90 mph with two children under 10 months old unrestrained in the back of his car, where police said they found marijuana and drug paraphernalia. Police charged Christian Barr Hawkins, 26, with several felony counts of...
Police: Attempted fake drug test leads to new charges against New Stanton man
A New Stanton man was charged Thursday after police said he used a homemade device to simulate urination as part of a botched attempt to falsify a drug test at the Westmoreland County Courthouse. Dennis Shank, 43, was charged by Park Police with a misdemeanor count of furnishing drug-free urine...
Jeannette woman’s turnaround not enough to avoid jail time in overdose death
A former Hempfield woman told a judge on Thursday she never really knew the man who died from the drugs she sold him in 2019, but, in the two years since his overdose, she got sober, got married, gave birth to a daughter and has turned her life around. Hollie...
Harrison World War II Marine veteran honored on anniversary of Okinawa invasionVideo
Frank M. Bavetz said being left-handed saved his life. “When I was in boot camp, I told them I was a southpaw (left-handed) and they said I had to learn to shoot right-handed,” the Harrison resident said Thursday as he sat in David’s Diner, commonly known as Dave’s, in Springdale...
For Easter, it’s solid bunnies only at Harvest Moon in TarentumVideo
At Harvest Moon Coffee & Chocolates in Tarentum, all the chocolate Easter bunnies are solid. Hollow bunnies are “a waste,” owner Desiree Singleton said. “It’s deceiving. You’re not getting a solid piece of chocolate,” she said. “It was always so sad when you get something you think is whole and...
Allegheny County’s new vaccine registration system opens
The Allegheny County Health Department’s new vaccine registration system, designed to make registering for an appointment easier, is officially open to the public. The department announced the new system was on the way last week and began a “soft launch” earlier this week. Individuals seeking a vaccine appointment through the...
Last chance for skiers as Seven Springs plans to open for final run of season
Area skiers whose appetite for one last ski run were whetted by Thursday’s snowfall will get their chance this weekend at Seven Springs Mountain Resort, the area’s only area slope still open for the season. The Somerset County resort, which is closed weekdays, plans to reopen Saturday. Briefly. “Saturday is...
Charges filed in Murrysville area, April 1, 2021
Charges filed with Murrysville District Judge Charles Conway in Export. All individuals have the right to a preliminary hearing and are innocent until proven guilty before a judge in the Westmoreland County Court of Common Pleas. • Cynthia Kiebler, 61, of Washington Township with driving under the influence following a...
Briefs and events in the Murrysville area for the week of April 1, 2021
Delmont Recreation Committee to host chili cook-off The Delmont Recreation Committee will host a chili cook-off at 12:30 p.m. April 11 at Newhouse Park. Yellow Bridge Brewing will be on hand selling beverages. There is a $10 requested donation for those who attend and vote on their favorite. To enter...
‘Hang on and do what works’: Excela’s top doctor talks vaccines, safety as covid restrictions are set to easeVideo
New coronavirus cases are on the rise once again in Westmoreland County, and with more reopenings statewide coming Sunday, Excela Health Chief Medical Officer Dr. Carol Fox is on edge. Some alcohol-related restrictions will be lifted by state officials this weekend and restaurants and other businesses can increase their capacity...
Security agents catch 10th gun this year at Pittsburgh airport
Security officers at Pittsburgh International Airport on Thursday stopped the 10th person this year trying to bring a gun through the airport’s checkpoint, officials said. A Transportation Security Administration officer spotted the gun in a man’s carry-on bag as it passed through the X-ray scanner, said TSA spokeswoman Lisa Farbstein....
Irwin-North Huntingdon-Trafford-Murrysville team wins softball championship
A group of men from the Irwin-North Huntingdon-Trafford-Murrysville areas who qualify for senior citizen status still play softball well enough to capture a world championship in a winter tournament in Florida. The HC Global Men’s 60 AA softball team took the International Senior Softball Association’s World Championship held in late...
Norwin-area happenings, April 1, 2021
Norwin School Board moves meeting site The Norwin School Board will hold an in-person meeting for the first time in a year. The board is set to hold its April 12 workshop meeting at 6:30 p.m. in the Hahntown Elementary School cafeteria/gym, where the voting meeting will be held at...
Quaker Valley’s cafeteria staff ensures no student goes hungry during pandemic
In the midst of the covid-19 pandemic, the cafeteria staff at Quaker Valley School District began preparing free meals to be taken home by students who received free or reduced-cost lunches during initial school closures in the spring of 2020. This comprised about 20 percent of the Quaker Valley student...
Arnold’s Smithfield Foods donates 7,000 pounds of sausage to those in need
Families who went to a food distribution Thursday in Harmar were the first to benefit from a donation of more than 7,000 pounds of sausage from Arnold’s Smithfield Foods. Smithfield donated the first 3,200 pounds of breakfast links to the Compassion Network. A truck from 412 Food Rescue took 80...
Penn Township girl spreading joy in memory of her uncleVideo
A Penn Township teenager honored the memory of her late uncle, who died of covid last year, by spreading joy to the health care workers at UPMC East hospital in Monroeville and a kidney dialysis center in Hempfield. Jessica Landi, 15, of Harrison City was joined by her mother, Sharon...
Latrobe woman arrested on new drug counts after city detective serves warrant
A Latrobe woman wanted on charges of selling a small amount of methamphetamine to a police informant last month was apprehended walking downtown this week as she carried more than a brick of heroin and suspected cocaine, methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia, according to court documents. Megan M. Ashbaugh, 26, was...
Murrysville tennis nonprofit gets boost from national health care companyVideo
A Murrysville nonprofit that focuses on teaching tennis, with a focus on being inclusive of all ability levels, has gotten a boost to its profile — and its bank account — through a promotion by national health care company Craneware. Anup Nadesan, 18, of Murrysville, started My Ground Strokes alongside...
Rep. Mercuri launches initiatives to address covid’s impact on business, mental wellnessVideo
Freshman North Hills state Rep. Rob Mercuri has launched a pair of initiatives to address long-standing concerns that have been magnified by the coronavirus pandemic. The Pine Township Republican has invited representatives from more than a dozen North Hills companies to serve a two-year term with an advisory group dubbed...
Backyard chicken trend feeds live chick shortage
Rick Cairns knew, if he wanted to get baby chickens in on time this year, he would have to place his order early. In January, the Greensburg Agway owner put in his first order with Hoover’s Hatchery in Iowa — something typically done a few weeks ahead of when customers...
Murrysville native accepted into International Opera Academy in Italy
Saint Vincent College junior Justin Massetto of Murrysville was accepted to the prestigious International Opera Academy in Bologna, Italy, becoming the second member of his family to gain entry. Massetto is a music performance major, with minors in sacred music, mathematics and computer science, and a graduate of Franklin Regional...
Defense in Tree of Life case asks whether government knew about Bowers’ online rhetoric prior to shootingVideo
Defense attorneys for the man charged with the Tree of Life killings are asking federal prosecutors to produce any evidence that the government monitored their client’s anti-Semitic online activity in the months leading up to the 2018 mass shooting. In a motion filed Tuesday, lawyers for Robert Bowers wrote that...
Chase Bank plans construction at former Willi’s shop in Monroeville
Monroeville’s banking options are expected to grow by one as Chase Bank plans to erect a new building along William Penn Highway. The JP Morgan bank plans on demolishing Willi’s Ski & Snowboard Shop, which has sat vacant since November. Erin Gogolin, an assistant project manager for Bohler Engineering, presented...
Neighbor Spotlight: Shaler woman, retired director of Mercy Hospital School of Nursing, thrives from lifting others
Editor’s note: Neighbor Spotlight is a monthly feature that aims to let our readers learn more about the people in their communities who are working to make them a better place, who have interesting stories to tell or who the community feels deserve “15 minutes of fame.” If you would...
