Westmoreland category, Page 683
Philips Respironics ramping up ventilator production, soon to include a lower-cost unit
A Dutch manufacturer says it hopes to triple the production of hospital ventilators being assembled in Murrysville and Carlsbad, Calif., between now and the end of September. “In March, our production capacity was 1,000 ventilators per week. In two months, we hope to double that … and by the end...
Coronavirus crisis postpones Latrobe’s Rabbit Race, closes playgrounds
Latrobe’s 20th annual Rabbit Race 5K won’t happen Saturday morning. With Pennsylvanians under a state order to stay at home except for essential needs until at least April 30, the fundraising race at Latrobe’s Memorial Stadium is tentatively rescheduled for May 16. The new deadline to register online for the...
Westmoreland County adds 12 new coronavirus cases as total hits 84
Westmoreland County reported 12 new coronavirus cases on Thursday as the statewide total jumped by more than 1,200 cases, Pennsylvania health officials said. There are now 84 patients with covid-19 in Westmoreland County. The case count in Pennsylvania now stands at 7,016. The 1,211 new cases amount to a 21%...
Full Pint brewery closing, citing debt and market changes
Full Pint Brewery Co., one of the region’s first craft beer makers, said it is shutting down its operations. Full Pint filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in November, seeking protection from creditors while hoping to reorganize the brewery’s debt and possibly attract new investors, according to Barrett Goddard of Ligonier,...
FirstEnergy’s $500,000 donation benefits food banks in Westmoreland, Cranberry, elsewhere
Those picking up food from organizations served by the Westmoreland County Food Bank will have their food placed in prepackaged boxes, thanks in part to a $30,000 donation from The FirstEnergy Foundation, linked to West Penn Power Co.’s parent corporation. The donation allowed the Delmont-based food bank to buy more...
State waivers not necessary to restart Franklin Regional school construction
The Franklin Regional School Board is trying to determine if it needs state permission to restart the Sloan “elementary campus” project if the board decides to move forward despite the covid-19 pandemic. According to Department of Education guidelines regarding the pandemic, the district needs no waiver and can make that...
Murrysville Medic One gets massive anonymous donation of medical equipment
Murrysville Medic One received some good news this week: An anonymous benefactor was donating protective medical equipment. A lot of it. “We had the police department come down and block off part of the road because we had three wheelchair vans full of stuff,” said Matt Stromberg, a Medic One...
Unity supervisors extend curtailed operations, mull meeting format amid covid-19 pandemicVideo
The Unity Township supervisors have extended through the end of June a disaster declaration upholding their decision to curtail operations and access at the township building. The declaration was extended for 90 days on Wednesday to encourage social distancing and help protect against the local spread of coronavirus infections. Just...
Priest at Holy Family Parish in Latrobe tests positive for coronavirus
A Catholic priest in Latrobe tested positive for covid19 and is in quarantine, the Diocese of Greensburg announced. The Very Rev. Daniel Mahoney, pastor of Holy Family Parish at 1200 Ligonier St., tested positive for coronavirus, the diocese said it learned just after 1 p.m. Wednesday. Mahoney “is in quarantine...
Kennywood, Idlewild, Sandcastle delay 2020 season openings
Kennywood Park, Sandcastle and Idlewild Park all announced Wednesday the start of their 2020 seasons will be delayed. In a statement posted Wednesday on the West Mifflin park’s website, Kennywood’s management said while they look forward to welcoming guests this year, “there is a great deal of uncertainty for us...
Steelers’ Cameron Heyward helps set table for Latrobe police officers
Steelers defensive lineman Cameron Heyward is among supporters who have stepped up to make sure Latrobe police officers are well-fed as they continue law enforcement efforts during the coronavirus crisis. On Friday , the Pittsburgh native and recent Pro Bowl participant had 12 meals of fish, pierogies and haluski delivered...
Disinfectant wipes, speeding lead to heroin bust in Penn Borough
Suspected drug dealers apparently are concerned with practicing good hygiene during the coronavirus pandemic, according to a Penn Borough Police report. Police Sgt. Eric Colamarino said Von Shane Carlson, 53, of Scottdale, a passenger in a pickup truck pulled over Tuesday for driving more than twice the posted 25 mph...
GoFundMe underway for National Guardsman with Mt. Pleasant unit battling cancer
A fundraiser is underway to help a member of the Pennsylvania Army National Guard based in Mt. Pleasant who is in a Seattle area hospital battling cancer that was diagnosed a year ago. “I’m really thankful for the support I have received,” Johnstown native Andrew Wilcox, 28, said after undergoing...
Westmoreland County reports 11 new coronavirus cases as Pa. total jumps
Coronavirus cases in Westmoreland County increased by 11 on Tuesday, part of the larger statewide increase of nearly 1,000, state officials said. Cases in the county now total 74, state data shows. Statewide, 962 new cases brought Pennsylvania’s case count to 5,805. Eleven more people have died, bringing the death...
Landslide closure of Route 906 near Monessen will continue until Friday
A section of Route 906 between Interstate 70 in Rostraver and Monessen that was closed for landslide repairs will remain closed until Friday. The highway stretch is expected to reopen at approximately 3 p.m. Friday, according to PennDOT District 12 community relations coordinator Valerie Petersen. The road was closed 2...
‘Priceless’: 97-year-old Latrobe woman’s Facebook baking sessions go viral
It started with a live Facebook baking session as a way to connect with some socially distanced friends. Like a yeast dough left untended, it grew and grew and grew. Suddenly, Lucy Pollock, a 97-year-old home baker from Latrobe, became a social media sensation. A couple of weeks ago, Mary...
Hempfield bicyclist with history of petty crimes charged with throwing traffic cone into creek
A Hempfield man who spent nearly two years in jail awaiting trial for obstructing traffic on his bicycle has been arrested again, this time for allegedly throwing a traffic cone into a flooded creek in Greensburg. City police said security footage showed David Smith, 60, riding his bike at Lynch...
Adapting: The ‘second first day of school’
Editor’s note: Adapting is a regular series spotlighting the ways the global coronavirus pandemic is changing the everyday lives of people in Western Pennsylvania. On Monday, students in many areas across Pennsylvania had their “second first day of school,” in the form of school districts’ online learning plan going into...
6 residents, 1 staff at Ligonier Gardens nursing home test positive for coronavirus
Six residents and a staff member of Ligonier Gardens Personal Care Home have tested positive for coronavirus, according to Bethlen Communities, the nonprofit organization that operates the home. Two other Bethlen employees who don’t work at Ligonier Gardens also have tested positive. One works in transportation, the other in home...
Sen. Kim Ward seeks state law change to provide covid-19 info to first responders
A Westmoreland County lawmaker wants to amend state law to require the Pennsylvania Department of Health to release the general location of covid-19 cases to first responders. State Sen. Kim Ward, R-Hempfield, is seeking co-sponsors for an amendment to require state health officials to release information about coronavirus cases by...
Westmoreland DA opposes county-paid expert for Penn Township murder appeal
Westmoreland taxpayers should not have to foot the bill for an expert to testify on behalf of Greensburg woman appealing her 2006 murder conviction, according to the county’s top prosecutor. In court documents filed Wednesday, District Attorney John Peck said expert testimony is irrelevant in the pending appeal of Jennifer...
Cost savings of postponed primary in Westmoreland could be eaten up by mail-in ballots
The five-week postponement of Pennsylvania’s primary could save Westmoreland County taxpayers up to $84,000. Commissioners said they will rescind the deal to rent ballot scanners that are no longer needed for the primary but that additional costs still could be accrued to pay for an unanticipated increase in mail-in ballots...
Adapting: Greensburg nursing home staffer helps residents adjust
Editor’s note: Adapting is a regular series spotlighting the ways a global pandemic is changing the everyday lives of people in Western Pennsylvania. Excitement fills the halls of Greensburg Care Center on Tuesdays and Thursdays as bingo numbers are called over the loudspeakers, residents checking their cards while sitting in...
6 new cases in Westmoreland County, 14 more deaths statewide
Westmoreland County reported six new cases of coronavirus on Tuesday as the statewide death total jumped by 14 and new cases by more than 750, state officials said. The county total now stands at 61. The first cases were diagnosed March 19. The 756 new cases diagnosed across the state...
Mt. Pleasant man killed in East Huntingdon hit-and-runVideo
State police in Greensburg are trying to identify a motorist who struck and killed a pedestrian early Tuesday in East Huntingdon and then fled. The Westmoreland County Coroner’s office and state police remained at the scene along Mt. Pleasant Connellsville Road. Trooper Stephen Limani said Robert “Bobby” Sheele, 64, of...
