Rescuers continue search for sunken car in Loyalhanna Creek, while Yough search canceled

Water rescue crews returned to Loyalhanna Creek in northern Westmoreland County Saturday to look for a car that was reported submerged during heavy rains Friday.

Meanwhile, North Huntingdon police said a second search in the county, for kayakers reported to be distressed in the Youghiogheny River, was called off. A police department spokesperson said that the report was deemed “to be unfounded.”

Crews from two fire companies and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers searched Loyalhanna Creek for about five hours late Friday night after a car was reported to be submerged in the creek Loyalhanna Township. They returned to the area Saturday morning, emergency officials said.

“We got a report of a vehicle in the creek around 7 p.m.,” said Matt Slezak, resource manager for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers at Loyalhanna Dam. “We were told it was about a mile-and-a-half downstream from New Alexandria, but that was from a couple kayakers, and it was their best guess as to where they were.”

Two boats from the Saltsburg Volunteer Fire Department’s water rescue team and another from the Tunnelton-Conemaugh VFD searched until nearly midnight Friday, but didn’t find anything, Slezak said.

“I expect if they don’t find anything soon, they’ll call off the search tonight and then come back in the morning to keep it going,” Slezak said.

At about 11:30 p.m. Friday, a search party was called out to search for two missing kayakers on the Yough.

That search party was being organized at the Coulter boat launch. A Westmoreland 911 dispatcher said Friday night that the search was for two kayakers reported missing.