Julia Maruca stories, Page 18
Derry Township woman accused of harassing country music duo Megan & Liz online
A Derry Township woman is accused of sending threatening messages to a pair of country musicians on Instagram and TikTok, the Westmoreland County District Attorney’s office said. Ashley Rose Felix, 26, is charged with harassment and stalking after, authorities said, she created more than 50 social media accounts to harass...
Until we meet again: Ceremony marks start of new chapter at Tree of Life synagogue
In the garden outside the Tree of Life synagogue, surrounded by budding plants and green bushes, congregation members and neighbors gathered to say “until we see each other again” to the Squirrel Hill building that once served as a center of worship for many in the Jewish community. The synagogue...
New Hempfield book challenge, acquisition rules up for vote
After more than a year of debate, Hempfield Area School Board is set to vote on new book selection and challenge regulations for the district’s libraries. The draft regulations, which were discussed by board members in January, would set guidelines for preventing sexually explicit content from entering or staying in...
Spokesperson: Teenagers facing criminal charges, ban after sneaking into Kennywood
Four teenagers who attempted to sneak into Kennywood by climbing over a fence on Saturday will face criminal charges, according to a spokesperson for the park. Communications manager Tasha Pokrzywa said the teenagers were spotted by the park’s new camera system “with AI technology” around 2 p.m. yesterday. Police and...
No ‘au revoir’ just yet: Penn-Trafford to keep French program, for now
French language courses at Penn-Trafford School District won’t be going away anytime soon. After previously announcing the program would be phased out because of a lack of enrollment and the retirement of the district’s longtime high school French teacher, the Penn-Trafford School Board decided last week to continue the program,...
Hempfield seventh graders celebrate ‘Day of Service’
Students at Hempfield Area School District’s Wendover Middle School got to take a break from classwork to spend time helping those in need through a “Day of Service” event organized by seventh grade teachers. During their school day, 120 students across five homerooms replaced their usual classes with three service...
Hempfield community members, students gather for Earth Day volunteering
Rainy weather and cool temperatures didn’t stop Hempfield residents on Earth Day from helping to keep their environment clean and refreshed. According to Marissa Haynes, Hempfield’s interim director of parks and recreation, residents arrived as early as 7:30 a.m. to drop off tires at the township’s Hands On Hempfield event...
Home destroyed by fire, 3 injured in Hempfield
A house in Hempfield burned down and three people living there were burned early Saturday morning, according to a Westmoreland County 911 dispatcher. Three residents of the single-family home were taken to UPMC Mercy hospital in Pittsburgh with burns suffered in the fire, which started at 12:45 a.m., the dispatcher...
Penn Hills man killed in motorcycle accident
A Penn Hills man was killed in a motorcycle accident Friday afternoon in the 100 block of Castle Drive. Leslie Bennett, 76, was pronounced dead at the scene at around 4:49 p.m. by Penn Hills police. Bennett was the only person involved in the accident, according to Allegheny County 911...
Pittsburgh man charged with rape stemming from October incident
A Pittsburgh man who is facing rape and sexual assault charges was arrested early Saturday morning, according to the Allegheny County Sheriff’s Office. Kierran Young, 30, was charged Thursday with rape and sexual assault involving an incident last October involving a woman at a home on Penn Avenue in Pittsburgh....
Hempfield proposes more changes to middle school assignments
Hempfield Area School District directors are expected to revise a plan for next year’s middle school assignments based on responses from a parent survey. Students from neighborhoods of Youngwood, Edgewood Manor and Timber Ridge Court who were previously expected to move to Wendover Middle School will remain at West Hempfield...
‘A million moving parts’: New Bushy Run manager focusing on this year’s battle reenactment
Bushy Run Battlefield opens its 2023 season with a history buff who will step back in time as its new manager. Matt Adams, originally of Altoona, takes on the newly defined role of manager as the Penn Township site enters its visitor season after a rocky series of engagements with...
3 Pittsburgh public schools will hold classes remotely Thursday due to air conditioning outage
Students at Pittsburgh Brashear, Pittsburgh Brashear Early Head Start, and Pittsburgh South Hills 6-8 will attend classes remotely on Thursday because of an air conditioning outage, according to an announcement from Pittsburgh Public Schools Wednesday night. Because the school on Crane Avenue is designed for air conditioning, it doesn’t have...
Man shot in Homewood, taken to hospital in critical condition
A man was shot just after 5 p.m. Wednesday in Homewood in the 7900 block of Frankstown Avenue, according to Pittsburgh police. Police, fire and EMS received a report of gunshots in the area and found the man with multiple gunshot wounds to his legs. He was taken to the...
Long-term restrictions planned in Jefferson Hills for construction of Mon/Fayette Expressway
A portion of Clairton Road (Route 885) in Jefferson Hills, will be restricted to one lane periodically over the next three years, as needed, for construction of the Mon/Fayette Expressway, according to PennDOT. The traffic impact will begin Tuesday, April 25, and last until construction of this section, 53A1, ends...
Route 8 to Highland Park Bridge ramp to close Thursday night
The northbound Washington Boulevard (Route 8) ramp to the Highland Park Bridge will close Thursday night, April 20, according to PennDOT. The ramp will close to traffic from 8 p.m. Thursday night through 4 a.m. Friday morning, as PennDOT crews patch the deck and repair barriers there. Traffic will be...
Ardmore Boulevard to see single-lane restrictions this week
Single-lane restrictions will be in effect in Forest Hills on Ardmore Boulevard (Route 30) between Braddock Road and Kenmore Avenue, today through Friday, according to PennDOT. The lanes are being closed for paving. The eastbound lane is closed from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., and the westbound is closed from...
Hempfield approaches 50-year anniversary of civics education class
At the start of the school year, during the first few minutes of Hempfield Area teacher Ken Stough’s classes, students are asked to imagine their typical day. Stough and the students write down activities they do on a day-to-day basis in detail, and then return to each item with a...
Excela podiatrist honored with award in Iceland for fish-based wound treatment
An Excela podiatrist was honored at a conference in Iceland for his use of a wound treatment product that comes from an unlikely source: under the sea. Dr. Patrick Roberto of Excela Health’s Advanced Wound Center traveled to Reykjavik at the end of February for the Northern Lights Wound Workshop...
Overnight closure scheduled between Irwin, Pittsburgh interchanges of PA Turnpike
Westbound lanes of the Pennsylvania Turnpike will be closed from midnight until 5 a.m. Sunday between the Irwin and the Pittsburgh interchanges for repairs and maintenance. State police and turnpike personnel will be stationed at the impacted interchanges to assist drivers, and message signs will provide information on closures and...
Morning roundup: Washington Pike bridge to close for construction
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Friday, April 14, 2023: Washington Pike Bridge to temporarily close The Washington Pike bridge over Chartiers Creek in Bridgeville and South Fayette Township will be closed through 5 a.m. Monday morning, according to PennDOT. Crews will be demolishing and...
Morning Roundup: Primanti Bros. is coming to Kennywood
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Thursday, April 13, 2023: Primanti Bros. to open in Kennywood Kennywood visitors will be able to order up a Pittsburgh staple this season — a Primanti Bros. sandwich. The local restaurant and bar chain will open its first theme-park...
Western Pennsylvania under ‘red flag’ fire warning conditions
Most of Western Pennsylvania is under a “red flag warning” for fire conditions, meaning there is a higher risk of wildfire growth and spread, according to the National Weather Service. The warning is in place until 8 p.m. this evening. The fire watch indicates that “critical fire weather conditions are...
Construction worker falls at new FNB Tower in Uptown Pittsburgh
A construction worker fell Tuesday morning from the 26th to the 24th floor while working on the new First National Bank Tower in Uptown Pittsburgh. First responders were called to the construction site along Washington Place at about 8:30 a.m. The worker suffered a right leg fracture, shoulder and elbow...
Lou Pappan, Beaver County restaurant founder, dead at 92
Lou Pappan, the founder of the Pappan’s Family Restaurant chain, died Tuesday morning at his Patterson Heights home in Beaver County at the age of 92. Pappan was well-known for his iconic commercials that ended with his trademark “You gonna like it.” “He is the American dream,” his son, Demetrios,...
