Megan Tomasic stories, Page 20

The district attorney for Somerset County was arrested Wednesday for his alleged involvement in a sexual assault incident that occurred last week, state police said. Jeffrey Lynn Thomas is facing several charges including rape, indecent assault, strangulation, simple assault and criminal trespass that stem from an alleged incident Saturday, Sept....

Emergency crews responded to a gas leak on Wednesday night near a Dairy Queen in Hempfield, according to a Westmoreland 911 dispatcher. Officials responded to the 7500 block of Route 30 shortly after 7:40 p.m. There were eight people in the building, and four patients, a dispatcher said Thursday morning....

Pennsylvania casinos generated more than $408 million in August, a significant increase compared to the same month last year, state regulators said. Casinos generated 31% more money last month compared to August 2020, when the facilities saw $310.7 million in revenues, according to the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board. However, dollars...

A Pittsburgh-based company will help Greensburg city leaders update their 14-year-old comprehensive plan. Environmental Planning and Design, which is working with the city to renovate Spring Avenue Park in the 5th Ward, was unanimously hired as a consultant by city council last week at a cost not to exceed $149,910....

Members of the Hempfield Area School Board are considering whether to join a lawsuit or file their own against a mask mandate issued by the state earlier this month. In a 7-1 vote Monday night, board members directed Solicitor Michael Korns to gather information regarding already filed suits that are...

A mix of duplexes and single-family homes could be coming to Hempfield, if a second phase of development is approved for the Grandview Estates neighborhood. Proposed plans show 53 total units would be built off Zoe Lane, which connects to Fosterville Road. Of those, 26 would be duplexes and the...

It was a bet that was out of this world. On Thursday, billionaire Jared Isaacman placed the first sports bet from space to Las Vegas. In all, he wagered $4,000 on the Washington Football Team and New York Giants game and another $4,000 on if the Philadelphia Eagles would be...

Several events at Hempfield Area’s Spartan Stadium have been changed or postponed this season after the resurfacing of the track was delayed because of bad weather. The $832,500 project, including the resurfacing, was approved by the school board in April and expected to be completed before the fall athletic season....

An Elizabeth man pleaded guilty in federal court to charges of violating federal narcotics and firearms laws, Acting U.S. Attorney Stephen R. Kaufman announced Thursday. Dontae Gilbert, 20, pleaded guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute a quantity of a mixture of heroin and fentanyl and one...

A Penn Hills man was arrested for his alleged involvement in a September shooting in Homewood that left four people injured, Pittsburgh police said. Naythaniel Landry-Webb, 18, was wanted on a warrant for the Sept. 4 shooting, Pittsburgh Public Safety spokeswoman Cara Cruz said. He was arrested Wednesday in the...

A pre-kindergarten classroom is scheduled to open at a Hempfield Area elementary school next week, the first of its kind for the district. The classroom will open Sept. 23 at West Hempfield Elementary School, said Kimberlie Rieffannacht, assistant superintendent of elementary education. School board members during this week’s workshop meeting...

Parents of Hempfield Area students want school board members to help them fight a state-issued mask mandate. More than 60 parents and students attended Monday’s board meeting in the high school auditorium, where they spoke against the mandate, which went into effect last week and requires students and staff to...

For years, North Huntingdon resident Radah Ghasah dreamed of opening a restaurant. On Monday, that dream became a reality when she oversaw the soft opening of her downtown Greensburg restaurant, Sittay’s Mediterranean Kitchen. “Opening my own business, it was a long-life dream,” said Ghasah, who immigrated from Syria in 2000....

A food pantry opened in Greensburg this year with the goal of helping senior citizens in need across the community. Christ’s Cupboard, an initiative by the faith-based nonprofit Helping Hands Across Westmoreland, opened in July. Volunteers at the food pantry, at 213 S. Maple Ave. in Greensburg, compile a bag...

After the covid-19 pandemic upended Hempfield Area’s homecoming dance in 2020, district leaders this year are taking precautions to help the event go on. Initial plans for the dance, scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 9, show the event being held outdoors in a tent. Tables will be set up, however, they...

As Hempfield Area School District leaders vow to return to a mask-optional policy as soon as possible, more than 30 covid-19 cases have been reported in the district. According to a tracker on the district’s website, there are 34 confirmed cases, 31 of which are among students and three that...

As boaters and rafters gear up for a three-day weekend that some consider the unofficial end of summer, officials are urging caution for possible dangerous conditions on the region’s waterways. The conditions were created when remnants of Hurricane Ida pounded Western Pennsylvania this week, bringing several inches of rain and...

Excela Health will receive $4 million in a deal with Hempfield supervisors, who agreed to pay the health care provider $1 million for a 43-acre parcel of land in the township and transfer funds from a $3 million state grant. County records show Excela originally bought the land for $3.75...

Hempfield Area School District, which is expected to comply with the state’s mask mandate for K-12 schools next week, reported several new covid-19 cases during the first full week of classes. There are 20 active cases among students and staff in eight of the district’s nine school buildings, according to...