Storms Close Roads, Knock out Power
Northwest PA – As of 5 a.m. this morning, around 5,500 residents of Crawford and Mercer Counties are without electricity after a series of severe thunderstorms struck the region on Tuesday evening. Commuters on their way to and from work this morning should be aware that multiple roadways across Northwest PA were closed due to flooding or downed trees and powerlines and may not have been reopened this morning.  A landslide on Route 285 near Cochranton in Crawford County may lead to several days of closure. 

Litfest 2024
Oil City – Bridge Literary Arts Center still has openings for its 2024 Litfest workshops which take place all day long this Saturday from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. at the Venango Campus of the Former Clarion University in Oil City. This year’s festival features workshops by experienced authors from many genres from Science Fiction and Fantasy to Poetry and Non-Fiction and can even offer overnight accommodations for far travelers. Visit BridgeLiteraryArtsCenter.org for more information.

Man Crushed Under Tractor ID’d
Cambridge Springs – Crawford County authorities have identified the man who was killed when a tractor rolled on top of him on Monday evening. Coroner Eric Costen revealed that the victim was 68-year-old Gregory Thayer who lived just outside of Cambridge Springs on Route 408. He was pronounced dead at the scene when first responders arrived to rescue Mr. Thayer after he was pinned beneath a tractor he was using to tow a brush hog out of a ditch.

Train Strikes Beaver Man
Monaca – A Beaver County man was killed when he was hit by a train early Tuesday morning. At about 12:30 a.m. 35-year-old Jason Dick of Beaver was fatally injured by a CSX train passing through the town of Monaca. The coroner says his injuries were caused by blunt force trauma to the whole body.  He was struck while traversing a railroad bridge that crosses the Ohio River, two other people who were with him escaped without injury. It is unclear what Jason was doing there on the railroad bridge and the incident is under investigation.