If you were still up around 8:30 last night you certainly heard Mountain Thunder coming to life. Western Maryland Scenic railroad Engine 1309 is returning to service following her 7 year overhaul. The inauguration of the steam locomotive will take place today at the Western Maryland Railroad station around 11:00AM. Engine 1309 begins her service today to Frostburg and a musical performance on the platform at Western Maryland station around 6:00PM. The Allegany Museum Crossroads of America exhibit grand opening will take place today beginning at 9:30AM. It displays the first artificial intelligence age regression technology that has been used…

On Thursday, May 5, 2022 at approximately 8:44 AM, an officer of the Cumberland Police Department was patrolling the area of Bedford Street at Centre Street when he observed a suspicious vehicle stopped at the intersection for an extended period of time.  The vehicle then proceeded into a controlled access parking lot with a clearly posted “No Trespassing” sign and parked.  The officer contacted the occupants who exited the vehicle and began to walk around the parking lot.  The officer conducted a probable cause search of the vehicle.  The officer located controlled CDS paraphernalia, CDS paraphernalia, a package of a…

On Thursday, May 5, 2022 at approximately 12:43 PM, an officer of the Cumberland Police Department was patrolling the area of George Street when he observed a drug transaction between two males.  Police contacted the subjects and identified one of them as Perry Nelson Hamilton Jr.    Hamilton was found to be in possession of a two types of suspected CDS.  It was determined that the amount of CDS located on Hamilton indicated an intent to distribute.  Hamilton was arrested and later seen by a District Court Commissioner for his initial hearing.  He was remanded to the Allegany County Detention Center…

Maryland Governor Larry Hogan won’t grant a request by the state’s comptroller  to immediately make $3.5 million available to pay for training to prepare medical professionals other than physicians to perform abortions when a new law takes effect this summer. Michael Ricci, the spokesman, said in a statement that the Republican governor “firmly believes, as stated in his veto of this partisan measure, that non-licensed physicians should not be performing these medical procedures.”  Comptroller Peter Franchot, the state’s tax collector who is seeking the Democratic nomination for governor, cited a leaked draft this week of a U.S. Supreme Court opinion…

The May speaker series of The Greater Cumberland Committee featured an overview of the much anticipated I-68 Regional Alliance Housing Study. Presented by Peter Lombardi of CZB,  a Virginia-based urban planning and community development firm, who shared key takeaways from the report's analysis and an overview of the regional toolkit and implementation framework.  When it was suggested that seeing people move to this area to buy a home could prove a daunting if not impossible task- there was some pushback. Jeff Barclay,is Allegany County’s director of Economic Development… John Short, vice president of university advancement at Frostburg State University, said…

Maryland Governor Larry Hogan has publicly shown support and empathy for the plight of the Ukrainians since Russia invaded the country and began bombing it on February  24- and since then, he has taken many steps to break ties with Russia. Only a few days after the war began, Hogan quickly severed Maryland’s formal and financial ties to Russia in order to apply economic pressure on Moscow. While Hogan says he has generally supported President Biden’s handling of the situation- he would have liked to have seen some of the response on a faster track…

The Cumberland Times News reports the fatal shooting of a Cumberland man took place in front of his mother and at the hands of another city man with whom he had resided for the past several months at the Jane Frazier Village housing complex, according to court documents. Travon Lee Morris, 20, died Wednesday afternoon of gunshot wounds to the chest and head after being rushed to UPMC Western Maryland and after first aid was administered by bystanders. Minutes later, police arrested the victim’s roommate — 20-year-old Gavin Wayne Huckabay — when he was located in the first block of Wempe Drive…

As motorists travel this Mother’s Day weekend, the Maryland Department of Transportation (MDOT), state and local law enforcement officials and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) ask one simple question: Would you move over or slow down if it was your mother on the side of the road? For law enforcement officers, roadside workers, utility crews and tow truck drivers, one of the most dangerous parts of their job is being on the side of the road for a traffic stop, to assist a motorist, to fix a portion of the road or to investigate a crash. To help…

WBAL reports two out of six Maryland casinos reported a decline in revenue in April, but all are up overall, according to the latest figures from the state. Horseshoe Casino saw its revenue go down 3.8% in April, compared to April of last year when the casino was at 50% capacity due to COVID-19 restrictions. This follows a 4.6% drop in March 2022. Horseshoe is one of two of the state's casinos that saw a revenue drop in April. Hollywood Casino in Cecil County also saw its revenue drop — 0.007% year to year. Statewide revenues at the six casinos, including Rocky…

The Cumberland City Police Dept. would like to inform motorists that the 900 block of Maryland Ave is currently closed due to a motor vehicle crash involving a utility pole. The pole is being replaced at this time. The roadway is expected to be closed for an extended period of time which may affect the early morning commute. Motorists are encouraged to find an alternate route.