Valley News Dispatch category, Page 670
Apollo readies for moon landing celebration Saturday
The 50th anniversary of the Apollo moon landing will be celebrated Saturday in the borough of Apollo with a flurry of activities from a traditional ice cream eating contest to a virtual jet engine display from the Air Force. Most events will be held at Owens Grove along Apollo’s North...
Residents of New Kensington’s Parnassus Manor complain of roach infestation
Roaches crawling up and down the walls. Roaches on the ceiling light fixtures. Dead roaches in the hallway. These are just a few of the problems residents of Westmoreland Public Housing Authority’s Parnassus Manor in New Kensington have encountered over the past few months as roaches have infested their apartments....
O’Hara bridge scheduled to reopen with new name after 5-month reconstruction
The Brownshill Road Bridge in O’Hara is scheduled to reopen next week with a new look and a new name. The span, closed for five months during reconstruction, will be called the Judith B. Spray Bridge in honor of a late township employee. A dedication ceremony will be hosted at...
AHN names new head nurses at hospitals in Harrison, Monroeville
Allegheny Health Network has appointed two new chief nursing officers at its hospitals in Harrison and Monroeville. Marcia Cook will serve as chief nursing officer at Allegheny Valley Hospital in Harrison, while Lynn C. Kosar will assume the same role at Forbes Hospital in Monroeville. “We are thrilled to welcome...
Cub Scout egg drop in Gilpin-Leechburg Park highlight of 4-day summer camp
They came festooned in tiny parachutes and swaddled in bubble wrap. So protected were the 90-some raw eggs that most were expected to remain unbroken and pristine after a 60-foot drop from a fire ladder truck. The egg drop has been a tradition for at least 25 years for the...
Highlands sets due date for Fawn property bids
Bids to buy Highlands School District’s former elementary school in Fawn are due by noon July 29, according to an announcement from the district. The district is selling the Highlands Support Center, which the school board voted in May to permanently close. It had previously been a primary center and...
Sister of man slain in New Kensington ‘trying to be patient’ with case unsolved
It’s been almost two months since newspaper delivery driver Gregory Lee Smith was shot and killed while on the job. His family and New Kensington police are still looking for answers regarding Smith’s slaying May 23. “They haven’t gotten anybody yet,” Mary Spekis of Lower Burrell, Smith’s sister, told the...
Police: Men forced woman to perform sex acts outside Leechburg bar
Two men face sex charges after police said they made unwanted advances to a woman at a Leechburg bar and then forced their way into her car and refused to leave until she performed sex acts on them. Leechburg police said the two men — identified in a criminal complaint...
3 rescues in 1 day on Kiski River sets record for Leechburg fire company
Still in his wet clothes, Gary Lyon left his home Saturday afternoon after rescuing three people and a dog on the Kiski River for another rescue involving three more people, this time on an inflatable tube shaped like a unicorn. Three adults boarded the 12-foot unicorn in Vandergrift, planning to...
Kiski Area East Primary School lands $26,700 fresh fruits and vegetables grant
The U.S. Department of Agriculture awarded Kiski Area East Primary School in the Kiski Area School District a $26,700 grant to provide students with fresh fruits and vegetables for the 2019-20 school year. The program provides students with a fresh fruit or vegetable snack during the school day to increase...
Bill Seles of Tarentum remembered as ‘polka ambassador’
Bill Seles had a love for his community and pride in his heritage that radiated in all he did. Seles, who grew up in Pittsburgh and most recently lived in Tarentum, spent his life promoting polka, the traditional music of his Slovenian ancestors, and fundraising for various causes to help...
Police: Lower Burrell man had cocaine, crack, marijuana in apartment
A Lower Burrell man was charged with drug offenses after police said they found cocaine, crack and marijuana in his apartment. Police said they arrested Terrell Leonard, 27, of Craigdell Road on Sunday night following an investigation into complaints of suspected drug trafficking by Leonard. Police executed a search warrant...
Portion of Jacoby Road in Harmar to close for 3 months
A portion of Jacoby Road in Harmar will close Wednesday and remain closed for about three months, Allegheny County announced Tuesday. The road will be closed between Rosedale Road and Ecker Lane. The closure is part of a $1.1 million bridge replacement project that also includes improvements to the pavement,...
Planned power outage hits West Tarentum
A power outage affected West Tarentum residents and businesses on Tuesday. The power went out around 8 a.m., according to Councilwoman Lou Ann Homa. The borough expected electrical service to be restored by noon, she said. The borough said on its Facebook page that West Penn Power was doing line...
Tarentum electrical contractor relocates to New Kensington
Editor’s note: Building the Valley tells stories of businesses big and small and the employees who make them special. If you know of any standout employees, bosses or companies with a great story to tell, contact reporter Madasyn Czebiniak at mczebiniak@tribweb.com. A Tarentum business that started in its owner’s home...
Brackenridge robbery suspect surrenders after standoff
A Brackenridge man who is accused of robbing the Allegheny-Ludlum Brackenridge Federal Credit Union of more than $100,000 surrendered to FBI agents Tuesday morning after a nearly four-hour standoff at his home. Thomas George, 64, of Eighth Avenue was charged Tuesday in federal district court in Pittsburgh and held without...
Harrison commissioners meeting rescheduled
The Harrison Commissioners meeting for July has been postponed a week. The board will meet at 7 p.m. July 29. Commissioners meet at the township building on Municipal Drive....
What’s causing Route 28 to flood? PennDOT might have found the reason
PennDOT is investigating the possibility that illegal dumping in Pittsburgh’s Troy Hill neighborhood is behind recent flooding along Route 28 near Pittsburgh’s 40th Street Bridge, an official said Monday. Cheryl Moon-Sirianni, PennDOT’s District 11 executive, said crews were in Troy Hill Monday to see whether a report of illegal dumping...
Dry Bones owners finding their groove after 1st year open in TarentumVideo
Editor’s note: Building the Valley tells stories of businesses big and small and the employees who make them special. If you know of any standout employees, bosses or companies with a great story to tell, contact reporter Madasyn Czebiniak at mczebiniak@tribweb.com. The first year for Dry Bones, a skateboard shop...
Recreational boaters reminded to check river levels before setting out
River experts say Saturday was a perfect example of why kayakers and other paddlers need to check river conditions before setting off on a float. Three kayakers had to be rescued from the Kiski River near Leechburg when their kayaks got hung up on submerged trees in the fast-moving water....
2 charged with selling heroin from Arnold apartment
State drug agents are alleging at least two people were involved in drug sales from a Murray Avenue apartment in Arnold. Devon A. Koch, 27, of New Kensington and Douglas S. Hogan, 27, of Allegheny Township are accused of selling heroin. They were arrested at the apartment on Murray Avenue...
Police: Arnold woman to blame for baby’s opioid overdose
An Arnold woman is facing felony charges in connection with a December incident in which police said a baby boy for whom she was caring suffered an opioid overdose. Police said Johna Sonya Price, 35, had been caring for a relative’s baby at her Arnold home Dec. 5 when Price...
Brad James is totally committed to Tarentum’s Eureka Fire-Rescue-EMSVideo
Editor’s note: This is part of an occasional series that features Alle-Kiski Valley residents and the notable things that they do. Little things matter to emergency medical technician and deputy fire Chief Brad James. “I’ve always paid attention to the little things,” said James, of Tarentum’s Eureka Fire-Rescue-EMS. “In the...
Army Corps to test groundwater at nuclear waste dump in Parks Township
The Army Corps of Engineers will be on site to conduct routine groundwater sampling at the nuclear waste dump along Route 66 in Parks Township from July 22 to 25, and maybe later. The 44-acre dump, officially known as the Shallow Land Disposal Area, was used primarily in the 1960s...
Curbside Coffeehouse in Blawnox combines perk with fresh foods
Curbside Coffeehouse owner Kylee Witchey may be perkier than the coffee she brews at her popular Blawnox eatery. Witchey, 32, originally from Lower Burrell, took over an existing Curbside in 2008, a mere seven days after graduating from Duquesne University. “I had no idea what I was getting into,” Witchey...
