Westmoreland category, Page 539
Survivors of 14th Quartermaster missile attack keep promise to remember fallenVideo
Thursday’s memorial service for Hempfield’s 14th Quartermaster Detachment was both somber and joyful, a time for mourning those lost while catching up with old friends. “It’s nice to see everyone,” said Sgt. Mary Rhoads of California, Pa. “We made a promise that we would never forget them.” The ceremony at...
Scottdale man not guilty of Hempfield armed robbery
A Scottdale man who confessed to an armed robbery of a woman in a Hempfield parking lot more than four years ago was found not guilty by a jury on Thursday. After about 90 minutes of deliberations, jurors acquitted Norman Jack, 30, of robbery, theft and three other related offenses...
Excela Health Westmoreland Hospital makes Newsweek list of top maternity centers
The Family Additions Maternity Center at Excela Health Westmoreland Hospital made Newsweek’s list of Best Maternity Hospitals 2021. Excela Health is one of 217 hospitals across 36 states on the annual list compiled by the news magazine in partnership with The Leapfrog Group, a national nonprofit organization that reports on...
Westmoreland County adds fewer than 100 daily covid cases for 3 weeks
Westmoreland County on Thursday reported fewer than 100 new covid-19 cases for the 22nd straight day. The county reported 53 additional cases to bring its case total to 26,550 since the pandemic began nearly a year ago, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Health. Of the new cases, 39 are...
Latrobe police: 9-year-old believed to have made prank call reporting school shooting
Latrobe police say they identified a 9-year-old who is accused of making a prank 911 call Wednesday, causing a lockdown at Latrobe Elementary School and prompting a response by multiple emergency and police units. “We were able to positively identify the juvenile who made the call, but, unfortunately at this...
Mini-grants boost Lincoln Highway-linked arts programming
Art and music along the Lincoln Highway are getting a boost, thanks to mini-grants funded by the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources’ Bureau of Recreation and Conservation and administered by the Lincoln Highway Heritage Corridor. Westmoreland Cultural Trust received $675 toward creating an interactive video tour of its...
Sun Dawg Cafe owners plan new Greensburg nanobrewery
The owners of Sun Dawg Cafe in Greensburg are planning to enter the nanobrewery business. Ray and Rachel Flowers have purchased a building at 503 New Alexandria Road in Greensburg that formerly housed the Underground Grappling sports training facility. The new El Diablo Brewing Co. & Wood-Fired Kitchen is planned...
Bonds, scars remain 30 years after missile struck Hempfield’s 14th Quartermaster unit in Gulf WarVideo
A sudden blast jolted Neal Gouker awake. The explosion from an Iraqi Scud missile slammed him against a wall in his barracks in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia. “The place was on fire, and bullets were going off,” recalled Gouker, 50, formerly of Glassport. “For 5 miles around, there were broken windows....
Franklin Regional students prepare for ‘Into the Woods’ with a scaled-down audienceVideo
Franklin Regional Senior High School students might be performing Stephen Sondheim’s “Into the Woods,” but when it comes to health and safety, they certainly aren’t out of the woods yet. That means this year’s spring musical attendance will be restricted to the families of cast and crew members. But for...
Part owner of Donora convenience store fatally shot
A Donora man was fatally shot Wednesday while working at the Donora convenience store where he was part owner, the Washington County Coroner’s Office said. The victim, Nicholas Tarpley, 28, was shot at Lee’s Convenience Store, at 501 Allen Ave., where he was pronounced dead, Deputy Coroner Matthew Yarosek stated...
Hempfield robbery suspect details alibi, denounces confession in 3rd day of trial
A Scottdale man and his wife told a Westmoreland County jury they were at home and were visited by police at the same time a Blairsville woman claimed he robbed her at gunpoint at a Hempfield shopping center in late 2016. Norman Jack, 30, testified Wednesday in the third day...
Irwin restaurant donates lunch for Westmoreland food bank volunteersVideo
Sam Murray believes in giving back. As the covid-19 pandemic got underway, he and his wife began making masks to sell, eventually raising $3,000 for the Westmoreland County Food Bank. Over the past couple months, the owner of Sam’s Salsa in Irwin also has been delivering free lunches to local...
Scuffle with policeman in Export judge’s office results in arrest of Delmont woman
A Delmont woman who showed up at a district judge’s office several hours late for a hearing on harassment and simple assault charges was arrested in the judge’s office for scuffling with a policeman, according to court records. Export District Judge Charles R. Conway remanded Laurelann Kovac, 46, to the...
Police say woman cut man with knife during argument in Murrysville
A 42-year-old woman was arrested late Tuesday by Murrysville police, charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon after, police say, she cut a man with a knife during an argument, according to court records. Samantha Dawn Nichols of Mt. Pleasant was arrested after the 11 p.m. incident at the...
Possible ‘prank’ prompted lockdown at Latrobe Elementary School, officials say
What police believe may have been a prank 911 call on Wednesday shut down Latrobe Elementary School as authorities investigated a reported threat, according to Greater Latrobe district officials. The situation was cleared just before 2 p.m. and no one was hurt. Anxious parents who gathered outside the police perimeter...
200 spaghetti dinners donated to police, nurses by Grapeville businessVideo
The smell of spaghetti and meatballs filled the small work space. The volunteers were quiet Wednesday morning, concentrating on packaging about 200 donated meals and getting the count just right. Debbie DiTommaso Huey, owner of Angelo’s Cucina in Grapeville, pretty much has the assembly line work down to a science...
Westmoreland County sees slowing of additional covid cases
Westmoreland County has seen a decline in covid cases since the start of the year. While January had 24 days with over 100 cases reported, February has only seen two days with reported covid cases above 100 (on Feb. 2 and Feb. 3). The county on Wednesday continued that trend...
Latrobe considers hardship payment plan for stormwater fee
Latrobe property owners who are experiencing a financial hardship could have more time to pay the city’s new stormwater management fee. At its March meeting, city council is expected to consider authorizing city manager Michael Gray to approve modified payment dates in hardship cases. As it stands, payment of the...
Heritage Corridor mini-grants include funding for Latrobe ‘welcome’ sign
Visitors heading north on Route 981 to downtown Latrobe could soon be welcomed by a new community sign. Latrobe’s proposed “Welcome to the neighborhood” sign is one of seven projects that have received mini-grants this year from the nonprofit Lincoln Highway Heritage Corridor, headquartered in neighboring Unity. The grants of...
Hempfield Area gauging interest in cyber program for next school year
Hempfield Area School District officials are trying to gauge how many students will choose the district’s full-time cyber program next school year. District leaders on Tuesday posted a survey that will determine how many parents would like to have their students attend the Hempfield Area Cyber Academy during the 2021-22...
Westmoreland news includes soup fundraiser and meetings
Fundraiser • The Ligonier Valley Chamber of Commerce will host its 11th annual Soup’s On Walk from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. March 20 in downtown Ligonier. Soups will be available for tasting around the Diamond Park area. Ticket are $20 and will go on sale Feb. 25. No tickets...
Westmoreland Conservation District video of Unity farm receives state award
The Westmoreland Conservation District’s recent video recognizing its 2020 Conservation Farmer of the Year award winner has, in turn, won an award. The local conservation district created the video, saluting the Ralph Frye family of Pleasant Lane Farms in Unity, because covid-19 pandemic precautions prevented it from holding its annual...
Grab a gown: Bridal shop donates dresses to St. Vincent De Paul in Monessen for a sale
Brides, here’s an opportunity to find the wedding dress of your dreams at a price you won’t believe. The St. Vincent De Paul Society Thrift Store in Monessen, located at 1701 Grand Blvd., is having a Say “Yes” to the Dress Sale from 1 to 6 p.m. Saturday and Sunday....
Jeannette man to serve 20-year prison sentence for rape of a child
A Jeannette man will serve up to 20 years in prison for raping a child. Ronald Lee Rice, 61, pleaded guilty Tuesday to felony charges of rape and involuntary deviate sexual intercourse in connection with claims made by a teenage girl who told police she was repeatedly sexually assaulted for...
Wendel Post Office closes; residents told to get mail 5 miles away in Manor
The U.S. Post Office in the Hempfield village of Wendel closed 10 days ago, forcing 100 customers who got their mail at that site to travel 5 miles to the post office in Manor. The Postal Service closed the office on Feb. 13 because it lost its lease on the...
