Westmoreland category, Page 631
Westmoreland County reports 31 new cases of covid-19
Westmoreland County saw 31 new cases of covid-19 added to its total Sunday, the Pennsylvania Department of Health reported, with no new deaths. The county’s death toll remains at 43. There was one new death reported on Saturday. The new cases make a total of 1,302 cases in the county...
VP Mike Pence set to make Greensburg campaign stop
Vice President Mike Pence is set to make a campaign stop Thursday in Greensburg. As part of a Cops for Trump event, Pence will make an appearance at the city’s police station at noon. Doors will open at 10 a.m. and close at 11:30 a.m. Cops for Trump describes itself...
Monroeville man killed in crash at Keystone Raceway in Derry Township
A Monroeville man was killed Friday after crashing at Keystone Raceway in Derry Township, according to the Westmoreland County coroner. James R. Baker, 69, was driving a 1936 Ford Roadster on the raceway’s drag track at 2:50 p.m. when the car made a quick right turn. The car hit a...
Hempfield looking to create fire relief association
Hempfield supervisors are looking to create a nonprofit organization that would assist with funding for the township’s fire department. Supervisors are expected to take the first steps in creating the Hempfield Township Fire Relief Association, which will be a charitable wing to support the volunteer fire service. “A nonprofit corporation...
Westmoreland County reports 19 new coronavirus cases, 1 new death
Westmoreland County saw 19 new cases of covid-19 added to its total Saturday, the Pennsylvania Department of Health reported, with one additional death. It’s the first time since May 5-6 that Westmoreland County has had back-to-back days of new deaths from the novel coronavirus. The county’s death toll now stands...
Blairsville man killed in Derry Township crash
A Blairsville man died Friday after a motorcycle crash in Derry Township, according to state police. Christian F. Shugars, 22, was speeding on a Yamaha R6 on Pizza Barn Road at 10 a.m. when he lost control around a curve in the road. Troopers said the motorcycle hit gravel and...
Nuclear power bailout stalled in Harrisburg as feds allege bribes fueled Ohio aid package
An effort to help Pennsylvania’s nuclear power industry snag an estimated $500 million a year ratepayer bailout should not be hurt by an alleged bribery scandal involving FirstEnergy Corp. in Ohio, a state representative said. Federal prosecutors say the Akron-based company pumped $15 million into a $60 million pot of...
Idlewild & SoakZone curtails summer schedule to 3 days per week
Idlewild & SoakZone announced it will be open only three days per week for the remainder of the 2020 season. Beginning the final week of July, the Ligonier Township amusement park will be open only Fridays through Sundays. It also will be open on Labor Day, Sept. 7. After a...
Westmoreland DA files suit against opioid companies for costs of overdoses
The Westmoreland County District Attorney’s Office this week filed a lawsuit against nearly two dozen opioid distributors and manufacturers as part of a legal action that seeks financial restitution for addiction and overdoses attributed to the drugs. The lawsuit mirrors litigation filed in 2017 by county commissioners and is now...
PNC to close 52 branches, including 9 in Western Pa.
PNC Financial Services plans to permanently close 52 branch offices. In a filing with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the financial powerhouse said it intends to close nine branch offices in Western Pennsylvania, including offices in downtown Greensburg, Indiana, North Versailles, Elizabeth, Mt. Lebanon, West Mifflin, Bridgeville...
Judge who overturned Unity couple’s convictions in teen rape case to oversee retrial
A Westmoreland County judge refused to remove himself from the pending retrial of a Unity couple convicted two years ago in the rape of a teen girl. Common Pleas Court Judge Tim Krieger said prosecutors failed “to assert any rational, objective basis” for his recusal in the cases of Bruce...
Hempfield looking to implement solar farm feeVideo
Hempfield officials are looking to implement a solar farm fee. The fee would make the township more attractive to solar farm projects by putting permit costs in line with other municipalities, said Patrick Karnash, director of planning and zoning. As it stands now, those wanting to build a solar farm...
Grants tapped to improve Seward boat access to Conemaugh River
The Conemaugh Valley Conservancy is planning to make a river access site it owns in Seward more user-friendly. The nonprofit has tapped grant funding for improvements at the property off Fifth Street. It intends to enhance a pathway to the Conemaugh River, establish parking areas and install signage to illustrate...
Hempfield hosting special meeting, town hall session before vote on reopening plans
The Hempfield Area School Board is hosting a number of meetings to discuss reopening plans prior to an August vote. A vote on the plans, originally scheduled for this month, was delayed when new guidance was released by the state Department of Education. Officials are taking time to tweak plans...
Penn-Trafford Drama Guild will stream showcase of spring musical tunesVideo
In early March, just a couple of weeks before the curtain was set to rise on the Penn-Trafford Drama Guild’s production of “Footloose,” musical sponsor Jen Haberberger wasn’t thinking about the coronavirus. She certainly wasn’t thinking about using pool noodles to properly social-distance students at rehearsals. “We would’ve started technical...
Westmoreland County covid-19 new case counts trending downward
For the fourth time in the past week, Westmoreland County’s count of new covid-19 cases was under 20. The Pennsylvania Department of Health’s latest report adds 18 new cases to the county’s total, with one additional death being reported. Of those new positive cases, all have been confirmed. The total...
Greensburg church, donors ensuring nobody goes hungry during pandemicVideo
Otterbein United Methodist Church was trying to create a program to feed hungry kids, then the coronavirus pandemic came along and changed everything. “We had been planning on doing this program but, because of covid, we were worried it was going to be canceled,” said the Rev. Dawn Check. Instead,...
Norwin student named to environmental ambassador program
A rising Norwin High School sophomore with a passion for science and the environment was selected as one of 31 students in the nation for a program to protect and preserve local water resources through monitoring, restoration and educational outreach. Abrielle Brown, 14, will participate in the EarthEcho Water Challenge...
Drug court graduates celebrate accomplishment despite covid-19 restrictions
John Panucci was in the home stretch of his path through Westmoreland County’s Drug Court when the coronavirus erupted in March. Drug court — a two-year program that mixes court supervision, counseling and treatment in exchange for reduced or alternative jail sentences — was not exempt from the pandemic, which...
Police: Derry Township woman slain in revenge shooting into wrong houseVideo
A Derry Township woman was killed Monday by a bullet shot into the wrong house in apparent retaliation over a drug deal gone wrong, state police said. Police on Thursday charged Nathan Joseph Quidetto, 20, last known to reside in the Hostetter area of Unity Township, in the shooting death...
Pandemic increases need for foster families for animal rescues in Western Pa.
A few weeks before the pandemic hit hard in March, Allie Christoforetti and her husband lost their dog. The Greensburg couple decided they weren’t ready to adopt a new dog but were ready to foster through Helping Heart and Healing Tails Animal Rescue, based in the Ligonier area. Christoforetti was...
Butterflies are free for Greensburg Garden Center release
Butterflies are now free for Greensburg Garden Center’s annual release. Thanks to funding from Dominion Energy, remaining monarch butterflies can be reserved at no charge, says garden center president Carla Rusnica. The Aug. 8 event will include two separate release sessions, to accommodate social distancing concerns. Release times will be...
Westmoreland County adds 20 new coronavirus cases, no new deaths
Westmoreland County on Thursday saw 20 new coronavirus cases, bringing the county’s running total to 1,234, according to data released by the Pennsylvania Department of Health. With no reports of any new deaths related to covid-19 in Westmoreland County, the count remains at 41. Westmoreland County coronavirus by dayInfogram Of...
Apple Hill Playhouse is closing, leaving theater group seeking new home
The Apple Hill Playhouse in Delmont is going dark. “The time has come” to permanently close the historic stage, executive artistic director Pat Beyer said. “I’m just too old to be in this game anymore. This is my 38th year,” said Beyer, 79. However, it’s just the barn that’s closing,...
Hempfield restaurant closed after mistaken covid-19 case, looks to reopen Friday
Rodney Yemc is at his wits’ end. His 25-year-old Hempfield business, Rodney’s Restaurant, has been closed for a week as he awaits coronavirus test results from as many as 25 employees who erroneously believed they were exposed to covid-19 by another worker. “This really puts you in a situation,” Yemc...
