Westmoreland category, Page 569
Salvation Army’s Red Kettle fundraisers struggle in pandemic year
The Salvation Army’s famous red kettles are a lot lighter than usual this year, and there are fewer of them to be found around Westmoreland County. “As of right now, we’re not even at half our goal, and we have six kettle days left,” said Lt. Donna Hannan, assistant corps...
Westmoreland County reports drop in daily covid cases
Westmoreland County on Friday reported 248 new cases of coronavirus, the lowest daily total since posting a record 657 cases a week ago. The drop brings the county’s seven-day average down to 395 from a high of 469 just two days ago. Of the new cases, 229 are confirmed from...
Murrysville council approves 2021 budget with no tax hike
Murrysville council approved a 2021 budget of $14.2 million that does not include a tax increase. Council voted 5-0 Wednesday to OK the budget, which will keep property taxes at 12.15 mills. Council members Jamie Lee Korns and Tony Spadaro were not present. Municipal officials said, while taxes have remained...
Trafford man accused of attacking 3 people
A Trafford man is accused by police of attacking three people on Third Street in the borough Thursday morning, according to court papers. Alfred H. Tournay III, 53, is charged with aggravated assault, burglary, criminal mischief, terroristic threats, disorderly conduct and harassment. Police were called to Third Street at 7...
Penn-Trafford elementary closed after 2 new virus cases
Sunrise Elementary School in the Penn-Trafford School District is closed after two more people in the building tested positive for the coronavirus. That brings the total active case count to three within 14 days, according Superintendent Matt Harris. The school was notified Friday morning of the new cases, Harris said...
Leechburg native Msgr. Larry Kulick named new bishop of Diocese of GreensburgVideo
Catholics in the Greensburg Diocese are celebrating an early Christmas gift from Rome: the appointment of one of their own, Msgr. Larry J. Kulick, as bishop-elect. Pope Francis announced the appointment of Kulick, a Leechburg native, as the sixth bishop of the diocese early Friday. The appointment of the 54-year-old...
Franklin Regional joins other districts in second post-holiday shift to online learning
If Franklin Regional officials had not made the move to remote instruction the week following Thanksgiving, nearly 60 people with either a positive covid-19 test or a potential exposure would have come back into the senior high school, according to the superintendent. “During those days, from Nov. 26 through Dec....
No injuries as SUV goes over hillside near Murrysville-Plum borderVideo
Roads continued to prove slippery in the wake of heavy snowfall across the region, but no one was injured when an SUV went over an embankment near the Murrysville-Plum border on Thursday evening. Murrysville police said the SUV’s driver went off the roadway near the intersection of Saltsburg Road (Route...
Excela Health receives covid vaccine, set to start administering to workers on Friday
A record-breaking storm that left parts of the region under 9 inches of snow did not stop Pfizer’s covid-19 vaccine from making it into Excela Health’s hands. Officials received it Thursday, as expected. They anticipate administering it to the first employees on Friday. Chief Medical Officer Dr. Carol Fox said...
Covid-relief grants available to Westmoreland emergency medical services
Twenty-one nonprofit emergency medical service departments are in line to receive $15,000 covid-relief grants as part of a new round of awards unveiled Thursday by Westmoreland County commissioners. Officials said nearly $400,000 remaining from grants earmarked for nonprofit agencies will be used to fund the program. “We are under a...
Westmoreland department heads earn raises for pandemic-related work
A handful of Westmoreland County government department heads were handed substantial raises Thursday, a move commissioners said was related to their work during ongoing coronavirus pandemic. The biggest pay hike was given to Solicitor Melissa Guiddy, who has seen her salary increase by about 70% since she was hired in...
Mt. Oliver man wanted in connection with North Huntingdon woman’s fatal shooting
Police are seeking a Mt. Oliver man wanted in connection with the Dec. 5 shooting death of a North Huntingdon woman. An arrest warrant has been obtained for Jerrel Marquis Ingram, 32, of Mt. Oliver. Allegheny County detectives said 22-year-old Madison Gilroy of North Huntingdon died of injuries sustained during...
Gov. Wolf grants 5th extension to renew firearms carry permits
Gov. Tom Wolf’s decision to grant a fifth consecutive extension to renew firearms carry permits through March 31 couldn’t have been more timely, according to Westmoreland County Sheriff James Albert. The previous extension was set to expire Dec. 31 and Albert said his two deputies assigned the “appointment only” permit...
Westmoreland commissioners approve budget with no tax hike
The coronavirus has been good for Westmoreland County’s bottom line. Commissioners on Thursday unanimously approved a $339.7 million budget for 2021 that does not raise property taxes in part because federal covid relief money held back to pay for personnel and other expenses related to the ongoing pandemic. Property taxes...
West Newton woman accused of coughing on liquor store workers, bottles
A 69-year-old West Newton woman is facing multiple criminal charges after police said she removed her mask inside a Rostraver liquor store and deliberately coughed on employees and liquor bottles, claiming she had covid-19. Township police charged Leona V. Warman with four counts each of reckless endangerment and simple assault...
Westmoreland County adds 397 new covid cases, 9 deaths
Westmoreland County added 397 additional covid cases and 9 new deaths Thursday, the Pennsylvania Department of Health reported. The additional deaths bring the county’s death toll to 326. There have been 122 deaths attributed to the disease this month in the county. The county ranks as the 12th-highest death toll...
The Palace Theatre staff adapts to pandemic-induced world of livestreamingVideo
“Pivot” is a word that’s been used a lot during the pandemic, as businesses, organizations and individuals adapt to ever-changing conditions. Westmoreland Cultural Trust CEO April Kopas used it to describe what’s been going on at The Palace Theatre in Greensburg, where a new livestream video system has allowed the...
East Huntingdon couple crafts Christmas village, spreads cheerVideo
An East Huntingdon couple put this spring’s stay-at-home orders to good use — greatly expanding their wooden Christmas yard display. Robert and Marilyn Greenawalt used the extra time to design, cut and paint a gingerbread house village that now sits in their yard and an adjacent property on Route 31...
Pandemic drives Pittsburgh region’s food insecurity to new heights, reshapes assistance efforts
Food insecurity is an ongoing problem in the Pittsburgh region, made much worse by the covid-19 pandemic. Area food banks have responded by redoubling their efforts while facing new challenges. With pandemic restrictions putting many American breadwinners out of work or reducing their hours, food banks this year have been...
County considers pulling $30K grant from North Huntingdon for defying state public health mandates
North Huntingdon could lose its $30,000 grant for covid-related expenses because township officials are thumbing their noses at state public health mandates designed to mitigate the spread of coronavirus. County Commissioner Doug Chew said Wednesday during an online forum that the county is bound by contract to distribute federal CARES...
Covid curtails blood donations, Western Pa. collection groups sayVideo
It was day of firsts on Thursday for Shari Vislosky of Penn Township and her two oldest teenagers, who joined about 50 donors at the American Red Cross’ blood drive at Hempfield Park. It was the first time that Vislosky has donated since the covid-19 pandemic hit Western Pennsylvania in...
North Huntingdon holds line on property taxes for 2021
North Huntingdon property owners will not have to pay more in real estate taxes in 2021. The commissioners on Wednesday approved setting the tax rate at 11.55 mills for the $14.7 million general fund budget. Commissioner Jason Atwood was the lone opposition to setting the tax rate at 11.55 mills;...
Greensburg man pleads guilty to September attack of girlfriend
A Greensburg man will be paroled from the county jail next month after he pleaded guilty to the strangulation and assault of his live-in girlfriend. Kevin M. Reese, 29, was charged in September in connection with the attack at his Eastmont Estates apartment in which police said he injured his...
As covid-19 surges, Pennsylvania colleges urged to delay students’ return
Citing “an alarming increase in covid-19 cases” and yet another surge expected to peak in January, Pennsylvania acting Secretary of Education Noe Ortega on Wednesday urged colleges and universities to delay the start of their spring semester. Ortega also suggested colleges and universities use virtual instruction as much as possible....
Westmoreland County to settle lawsuit against Recorder of Deeds
Westmoreland County commissioners are expected to settle a federal lawsuit filed earlier this year by a former employee claiming she was fired by new Republican Recorder of Deeds Frank Schiefer after he took office in January. The $27,500 settlement includes no admission of wrongdoing, officials said Wednesday. The lawsuit was...
