Westmoreland category, Page 13
East Huntingdon supervisors win reelection
Republican incumbents Jeff Keefer and Justin Morrow won landslide victories Tuesday for seats on the three-member East Huntingdon board of supervisors. Keefer, 55, defeated Democratic challenger Wayne Godfrey, 65, a retired truck driver, to win his first four-year term in office. Keefer was appointed to the board in June 2024...
Rossi, Carney join incumbents Musick, Repko in claiming Greater Latrobe School Board seats
Two incumbents and two newcomers appeared to win a tight race for four seats on Greater Latrobe School Board, according to unofficial results of Tuesday’s voting. With all 20 precincts reporting, Merle D. Musick led the polling, with about 13.7% of the vote, followed by Yelayna Rossi with 13.3%, Andrew...
2 injured after vehicle crashes into woods off Route 30
Two people were hospitalized after their vehicle crashed down a steep embankment in a wooded area off Route 30 in Southwest Greensburg. Westmoreland County Public Safety officials said state police responded to the wreck on the eastbound side of Route 30 near the Route 119 exit around 10:10 p.m. Tuesday....
Weimer, Durbin top field in Hempfield supervisor race
Longtime Hempfield Supervisor Doug Weimer appeared to have won his fifth term on the board in a tight race, according to unofficial election returns. He and Becky Durbin appeared to be headed to victory to fill two open six-year terms. Weimer and Durbin ran as a team for the general...
Westmoreland judges win retention
Westmoreland County voters on Tuesday overwhelmingly returned three local judges to the Common Pleas Court bench. With all 306 precincts reporting, incumbent judges Tim Krieger, Scott Mears and Harry Smail Jr. won new 10-year terms. Krieger’s retention was supported by 65% of voters, Mears’ by 66% and Smail’s by 66%....
Ex-detective from Murrysville accused of giving athlete son Adderall, testosterone held for trial
A former Allegheny County detective accused of injecting his teenage son with a steroid in 2019 to boost his football performance intimidated the youth into lying to prosecutors about the case, the son testified Tuesday. Raymond W. Bonacci, 59, of Murrysville, was held for trial in Westmoreland County Court on...
Greensburg’s Kristallnacht speaker to reflect on growing antisemitism, hope through kindness
When Shawn Brokos speaks Monday at Seton Hill University’s Kristallnacht Remembrance Interfaith Service, she plans to discuss antisemitic incidents in the region. “We have seen a consistent increase in antisemitic activity since 2020,” she said. In 2024, nearly 300 antisemitic incidents were reported in Pittsburgh, Brokos said. In 2018, it...
Irwin officials balk at paying more for office project
As Irwin Borough faces almost $170,000 in additional costs from contractors and a designer to convert its century-old building into a modern first-floor government office, council members Monday balked at some of those estimated bills. The project started this year at $1.1 million. The proposed bills for new change orders...
Westmoreland finalizes state loan, threatens more job cuts as budget impasse continues
Westmoreland commissioners voted Monday to accept an $11.6 million state loan, a move they say is necessary to fund essential social service programs through the end of the year. Even in doing so, more furloughs of county staff and partial closures of the county courthouse could follow as early as...
Attorney General’s Office sues Hempfield contractor
The state’s Attorney General’s Office has filed a civil lawsuit seeking to bar a Hempfield home improvement contractor from doing business in Pennsylvania. A three-count lawsuit filed in Westmoreland County accuses A&S Contracting and Roofing, LLC and its owner, Stephen Spallone, of violating Pennsylvania’s Consumer Protection Law and Home Improvement...
$1.2 million winning lottery ticket sold in South Huntingdon
A Westmoreland County convenience store sold a Pennsylvania Lottery Match 6 ticket worth more than $1 million on Saturday. The $1.2 million winning ticket matched all six numbers drawn, 17-20-21-30-37-38, and was sold at the Smithton Truck and Auto Plaza in South Huntingdon. The store will earn a $10,000 bonus...
Hempfield settles on name for road through new municipal complex
The road going through Hempfield’s new municipal complex has a name: Hempfield Crossing. Township supervisors approved the name last week for the new street that runs from Mt. Pleasant Road to Summit Drive. Township Manager Aaron Siko said two homes and a business will have to change their addresses from...
Longtime Penn-Trafford principal set to retire after 26 years in district
Longtime Penn-Trafford Principal Jim Simpson discovered his love of teaching while tutoring classmates in math at Indiana University of Pennsylvania. Prior to enrolling in the university’s computer science program, the New Kensington native never considered a career in education. “I had my (general education) math courses and I ended up...
Surge in computer data centers sparks concern over water demands
A proposed 4.4-gigawatt natural gas-fired power plant south of Homer City, intended to power a nearby data processing center, is drawing scrutiny over its possible massive water demands on a local stream. The Homer City Redevelopment Co. plant would siphon water from Two Lick Creek to feed the data centers...
Franklin Regional in the running for billionaire’s $1M education award
Franklin Regional School District has a chance to become the first public education system to earn a $1 million prize for educators who exemplify outstanding, transformational innovation in learning. The district is among 23 contenders for the Yass Prize, a national award created by Pennsylvania billionaire Jeff Yass and his...
Pumpkin projectiles: Penn Township brewery holds Pumpkin Pitchin’ charity eventVideo
Kaitee Robertson of Greensburg wasn’t messing around during Sunday’s Pumpkin Pitchin’ contest at Devout Brewing in Penn Township. Robertson and more than 20 other entrants were taking part in pumpkin bowling, target practice (trying to hit the center of a large bull’s-eye target) and “pumpkin pong,” modeled on the college...
Westmoreland happenings: Christmas shop sale, Election Day lunch, meetings, more
Church News • Greensburg Church of the Brethren hosts a night of fun and fellowship for individuals and groups with developmental disabilities 5 to 7 p.m. Mondays at the church, 554 Stanton St., Southwest Greensburg. Dinner is included. Participants must be accompanied by a family member or caregiver. Donations will...
Penny haul of 70 pounds cashed in with Giant Eagle exchange
Penny for your thoughts? How about 12,350 of them? Rolled, bagged and boxed, that’s how many humble cents my husband and I hauled into Hempfield Square Giant Eagle on Saturday at 10:30 a.m., a half hour before their penny exchange promotion was set to begin. The grocery chain announced the...
Derry historical society finishes replacement of Revolutionary War headstonesVideo
The Old Salem Community Church was one of the first congregations established west of the Alleghenies in Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1786. And while the church is still in lovely condition, some of the gravestones of Revolutionary War veterans in its cemetery are not. On a chilly Saturday morning...
Eastbound Route 30 back open following crash in Jeannette
The eastbound lanes of Route 30 have reopened in Jeannette following a multi-car crash Saturday morning. Westmoreland County 911 officials said the crash was reported at 10:55 a.m. along Route 30 near the DeLallo’s Italian market. One female patient was tranported by ambulance to Westmoreland Hospital, according to Mutual Aid...
Ligonier Township looks to repair 1 bridge, replace another closed for over a year
Ligonier Township is proposing to refurbish a bridge on Harvey Road while it seeks a state permit to replace a bridge on Ramsey Road that’s been closed for more than a year. The township supervisors also want to improve the township’s last remaining section of dirt-and-gravel road, a portion of...
Philips Respironics to lay off nearly 200 workers from Westmoreland locations
Dutch health technology giant Philips Respironics has notified state officials it plans to lay off nearly 200 people at three Westmoreland County locations beginning in early 2026. Philips issued a WARN notice to the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry, part of a move the company initially announced in June...
Class-action suit seeks to uphold in-network drug benefits for Ligonier pharmacy customers
A federal court could decide whether customers of Ligonier Pharmacy and several additional locations operated by Martella’s Pharmacies can have in-network insurance coverage through Highmark or UPMC Health Plan when they fill their prescriptions. A Pittsburgh law firm has filed a class-action lawsuit on behalf of customers against those insurers...
Westmoreland judges seek return to bench amid political headwinds
All three Westmoreland County judges who are seeking new 10-year terms on the Common Pleas Court bench know there is political attention this year on judicial retention. They also worry the large sums of cash spent to campaign for and against the retention of three Pennsylvania Supreme Court justices could...
Yough school board: 5 candidates seek 4 seats
Four Yough School Board incumbents and one challenger are running for four seats on the board in the Nov. 4 election. Three of the incumbents — Matthew Gardner of South Huntingdon, Linda Knor and Monica Ustazewski, both of Herminie – won on both the Democratic and Republican tickets in the...
