Megan Tomasic stories, Page 45
Westmoreland restaurants report confusion in reporting positive coronavirus tests
Hempfield restaurant owner Greg Cammerata was shocked when he learned he had to close his business for two weeks after an employee tested positive for the coronavirus. “People were coming out; everything was great,” the IronRock Tap House owner said, noting the restaurant was open for dine-in services for only...
Hempfield dissolves relationship with Crabtree Sewage Authority
Hempfield officials have dissolved their relationship with the Crabtree Sewage Authority. Supervisors Monday voted unanimously to leave the 15-year-old authority that was originally founded by Salem, Unity and Hempfield to provide sewage to about 900 homes in the area. A lack of funding, however, stopped any plans from coming to...
Official: Multiple employees at Hempfield Buffalo Wild Wings test positive for coronavirus
Buffalo Wild Wings in Hempfield is temporarily closed after multiple employees tested positive for the coronavirus, company spokesman Jack D’Amato said. According to D’Amato, officials learned Sunday of the positive cases at the Hempfield Plaza location along Route 30 and “out of an abundance of caution, we have temporarily closed...
Angelo’s Cucina & Catering in Grapeville to hand out 200 free spaghetti dinners
About a month after the owner of Angelo’s Cucina & Catering in Hempfield’s Grapeville neighborhood handed out more than 100 free spaghetti dinners, she plans on doubling that. On June 29, owner Debbie Huey will give away 200 free dinners thanks to two anonymous donations, one from Grapeville and another...
Saturday marks the summer solstice, the longest day of the year
Fifteen hours, 3 minutes and 49 seconds. That’s how much daylight the Pittsburgh region will see today during the summer solstice — the official start of summer and longest day of the year, when the sun takes the northernmost path through the sky. The result is short nights, early dawns...
Steelers, Pitt sports radio broadcaster Bill Hillgrove charged with DUI in Murrysville
Murrysville police this week charged Steelers Radio Network personality and University of Pittsburgh sports radio announcer Bill Hillgrove with drunken driving, according to a criminal complaint. Hillgrove, 80, received a DUI charge at his Murrysville home after he crashed into Ferri’s ShurSave supermarket located along Old William Penn Highway, breaking...
Pennsylvania reports 526 new covid-19 cases, 38 new deaths
The Pennsylvania Department of Health on Friday reported 526 new coronavirus cases and 38 new covid-19 deaths, bringing the total case count to 80,762 and 6,399 deaths. The state considers 630 patients as probable cases but not confirmed. More than half of coronavirus cases in the state are in patients...
Westmoreland County has 8 new coronavirus cases, no new deaths
The Pennsylvania Department of Health on Friday reported eight new covid-19 cases and no additional deaths in Westmoreland County. The countywide case total is now 510, with 38 deaths, according to the department. There have been no reported coronavirus deaths in the county since May 18. More than 13,750 county...
Greensburg concert series ‘breath of fresh air’ following pandemic regulationsVideo
Adam Seifert knew if one more concert series across Westmoreland County was canceled, the community would start to feel the loss. So on Thursday, the Westmoreland Cultural Trust hosted their annual Thank Goodness It’s Summer concert series at the Greensburg Garden & Civic Center. It drew 250 people to one...
Hempfield Area details in-person graduation, releases virtual ceremonyVideo
Hempfield Area graduates will be able to walk across the stagenext month, but the commencement ceremony will be far from normal. Scheduled for July 18, the event will take place in Spartan Stadium, a decision made after a survey gave students three options: hold graduation at the Westmoreland Fairgrounds, have...
Dispatch: 1 airlifted to hospital after falling from Buttermilk Falls
One person was flown to the hospital by medical helicopter after they fell 35 feet at a Beaver County park, according to a 911 dispatcher. The call came in around 8 p.m. from Buttermilk Falls Park in Homewood Borough. The person’s condition was not immediately known. WPXI-TV reported the victim...
Hempfield restaurant donates 100 meals to state police thanks to grant program
Despite being reopened for a little over a month, Susan Domasky, co-owner of Ferrante’s Lakeview Banquet Facility in Hempfield, knew she couldn’t pass up an opportunity to help first responders in the community working long hours due to the coronavirus pandemic. Domasky, with the help of co-owner Cindy Henderson and...
Hempfield school board to hold special meeting to discuss budget, athletics
The Hempfield Area School Board is expected to revisit the 2020-21 budget during a special meeting June 22 after it was tabled during a public meeting this week. Board members voted unanimously Monday to table the $97.3 million budget after a motion to eliminate a full-time central receiving position failed...
Penn State plans reopening to in-person classes during fall semesterVideo
Penn State joined a growing list of colleges and universities across the state planning to reopen in-person classes this fall. In-person classes will begin Aug. 24 as originally planned, according to information posted this week on the school’s website. When classes resume Nov. 30 following the Thanksgiving break, however, they...
Hotels in Westmoreland County, impacted by coronavirus, could see growth in coming years
Hotels in Westmoreland County are expected to stray from national numbers depicting a ravaged travel industry following the coronavirus pandemic, making way for close to a full recovery and leaving room for future growth, local leaders said. Nationally, occupancy rates could plummet by 28% this year, a drop that is...
Baby hawks rescued in Sewickley Township after tree falls
When Jason Magill went to cut up a neighbor’s tree that had fallen during storms last month, he didn’t expect to be rescuing three baby red-shouldered hawks. But when Magill, of Sewickley Township, went to work on May 29 with the help of his son Jake, that’s exactly what he...
State officials: Westmoreland adds 9 new covid cases, no new deaths
Westmoreland County on Friday had nine new covid-19 cases, bringing the total number of coronavirus cases to 483, according to Pennsylvania health officials. No new deaths from the virus were reported in Westmoreland. State officials continued to report 38 deaths, while county coroner Kenneth Bacha reports 32 deaths as of...
Pennsylvania reports 686 more covid-19 cases, 49 more deaths
Pennsylvania officials on Friday reported 49 more covid-19 deaths and 686 additional cases, bringing the state’s total number of cases to 77,999, according to health officials. A total of 6,162 people have died from the virus. Approximately 5,931 of the total cases are in health care workers. There are 629...
Diaper wrap event planned in Greensburg
The Western Pennsylvania Diaper Bank is looking for volunteers to help repackage donated diapers . The event, scheduled for June 19 at 5 p.m., will take place at Lynch Field in Greensburg. Volunteers will wrap 25 diapers in plastic wrap while another group will distribute them to 26 social service...
Hempfield school officials consider waiving driving fees, allowing carpooling
Hempfield school officials want to limit the number of students utilizing school buses during the coming year to help curb the spread of the coronavirus. During Monday’s public meeting, Superintendent Tammy Wolicki presented a preliminary plan that could give high school students more leeway when driving to school, making room...
Hempfield’s Movies in the Park to return in July with regulations in placeVideo
Hempfield’s Movies in the Park will be delayed this year as township officials work to comply with regulations put in place to help curb the spread of the coronavirus. Originally slated to start Friday, the series now will begin July 24 at the Hempfield Park amphitheater, said Aaron Siko, director...
Westmoreland towns may delay road work over covid-19 impact on liquid fuels tax
Municipalities across the state could be forced to delay road projects in the coming year after PennDOT’s liquid fuels tax took a hit during the coronavirus pandemic. The amount raised from the 57-cent-per-gallon tax for this year, about $486 million, is expected to drop in 2021 after fuel prices plunged...
Nonprofits put lucrative ‘bashes’ on hold during pandemicVideo
Four lottery ball machines whirred simultaneously at the Southwest Greensburg Gun Bash in February, a crowd of people eager to see the winning numbers for the next handgun, rifle or up to $200 in cash. The annual event drew about 600 people, who filled the fire station’s truck bay and...
In wake of Westmoreland Fair cancellation, youth left with no place to show livestock
By the time Gage Hegedus turned 1, he had spent much of his life on a farm and helped show cows at the Westmoreland Fair, said his mom, Jessica Takitch. “He’s going on 3 years old and he enjoys the life,” said Takitch, 27, of Scottdale. “He gets to play...
Man arrested for alleged involvement in destroying Pittsburgh police vehicle during protest
Allegheny County Sheriff’s deputies arrested a Stowe man Monday evening, accusing him of participating in the destruction of a Pittsburgh police vehicle during a protest outside PPG Paints Arena. Dajon Lengyel, 22, is charged with criminal mischief, institutional vandalism and riot for the May 30 incident that started as a...
