A woman who was stabbed in a North Belle Vernon bar early Thursday suffered life-threatening injuries, according to police.
The woman and two men were taken to area hospitals after an apparent fight at 1:30 a.m. inside Just A Tavern on Broad Street.
“We determined there was an altercation that occurred inside the bar,” police Chief Eugene Lipari said.
The woman and one man were taken by medical helicopter to Allegheny General Hospital in Pittsburgh. The second man was taken by ambulance to AHN Forbes Hospital in Monroeville. Lipari did not have an update on their conditions Thursday.
Westmoreland County detectives are assisting borough police in the investigation. Police were interviewing the victims and reviewing surveillance video.
“We don’t have a motive yet; we don’t have a suspect yet,” Lipari said. Investigators were at the scene on the borough’s main drag for several hours collecting evidence. The bar was closed at noon Thursday.
It was frightening for neighbor Tameika West, who has lived next door for a few years.
“That doesn’t happen around here, even though there’s bars on every street,” she told reporters at the scene. “People just party and they go home afterward.”
She and Lipari said there have not been any previous problems at Just A Tavern, and violence is not typical in the borough.
“It’s very concerning because this isn’t an area where something like that’s ever happened,” West said. “… Maybe on a Friday night you might hear a little commotion outside, but that’s it. On a Wednesday night, no, I would never expect that.”
