The news that the Pittsburgh Steelers-Tennessee Titans game was being postponed came with the qualifier that it was likely to be played next Monday or Tuesday. That changed on Thursday. The NFL has moved the game to later this season, the league said in a release.   The Titans had eight positive COVID-19 tests that were reported on Monday, three from players and five on the staff. Another player tested positive on Wednesday. The league said there were two more positive tests on Thursday, one from a player and one from a personnel member.

Research shows that nearly 6 billion text messages are sent every day in the United States, more than 2.2. trillion per year. SMS or text messaging has become a way of primary communication for many people to communicate. With this change, emergency communications centers across the country needed to adapt to the changes and upgrade their system to support this new wave of communication.    “Text-to-9-1-1 gives a citizen the ability to send a message to the local 9-1-1 center during an emergency,” Allegany County Department of Emergency Services Joint Communications Chief Bryan Miller said. “Small amounts of caller data…

On Wednesday, September 30th, 2020 the Cumberland Police Department responded to a N. Centre Street residence for the report of a breaking and entering.  When officers arrived, contact was made with the property owner who advised that they had located 2 individuals inside of their building that had not been given permission to be there.  Officers identified the two individuals as Kenneth Lloyd Bowser, and Brittany Lynn Lantz.  Both were arrested and upon a search, suspected CDS paraphernalia was located.  Bowser and Lantz were both charged with 4th degree burglary and possession of CDS paraphernalia.  They were taken before the…

On Wednesday, September 30th, 2020 the Cumberland Police Department responded to a W. Second Street residence for the report of an assault.  When officers arrived, they contacted a female victim who stated that Matthew Scott Lewis had stolen money from her purse earlier today.  According to the victim, Lewis had returned and asked for more money and when she refused to give him any, he slapped her in the head with an open hand.  Officers did see an injury to the victim consistent to a slap mark.  Lewis, who was also on scene when officers arrived, was arrested and charged…

An organization consisting of West Virginia teachers wants state officials to list all coronavirus cases across school systems, arguing there are more coronavirus cases in institutions than what is being reported. The West Virginia United Caucus on Tuesday discussed its COVID-19 tracking project, in which the group said there have been 149 cases among schools since the school year began on Sept. 8. The number differs from the state Department of Education’s data; the department reported 40 cases related to outbreaks Tuesday evening. The department defines a school outbreak as two or more confirmed coronavirus cases among students and staff from separate…

It has become a waiting game of sorts for the Western Maryland Scenic Railroad- with officials hoping to avoid a total fiscal collapse as the COVID-19 pandemic moves into the fall.  In July, railroad superintendent John Garner reported losses in excess of $650,000 as a result of the Coronavirus shutting down the tourist train.  Although the there was hope that excursions could resume in the fall, the operational schedule remains effectively crippled at this time as a result of Gov. Larry Hogan's COVID guidelines. Those restrictions, although loosened in recent months, still don’t allow enough passengers to make any excursions profitable. When,…

Senator Ben Cardin says he hasn’t given up hope that enough Republicans will come forward to delay the nomination of Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the US Supreme Court seat that opened with the passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg. Cardin, a Maryland Democrat, accused Republicans of hypocrisy and said they are going against the will of the people. Cardin is urging his Republican colleagues to put aside partisan politics and to “do the right thing”…

With the fall tourism season beginning to boom, the possibility of reopening the Cumberland Visitor Center was the subject of some discussion during this week's meeting of the Canal Place Preservation and Development Authority.  Board member Stu Czapski suggested that now is the time to reopen the center in an effort to provide the opportunity for travelers utilizing the towpath and Great Allegheny Passage to spend more time in downtown Cumberland. Czapski, executive director of the Allegany County Chamber of Commerce, said he has received questions as to why the visitors center- located in the Western Maryland Railway Station- remains closed…

The Allegany County Health Department reports four new cases of COVID-19 in Allegany County.  The latest cases include a male in his 20s, a female in her 50s, a male in his 60s and a male in his 70s.  None of the new cases have required hospitalization.  The cumulative case count for Allegany County now stands at 483.

On Monday, October 5  Allegany County Public Schools will begin the implementation of the in-person/hybrid learning model for Pre-Kindergarten and Kindergarten students.  Students will attend school in-person Monday through Thursday, with Friday being a virtual day.             Elementary School principals are coordinating orientation meetings for parents on October 1st and 2nd. At that time, parents will be provided with transportation information since specific start and end times vary for students due to the transportation schedules. Parents will also be provided with their child’s in-person learning schedule for their specific grade level as well as with a parent letter, a COVID-19 symptom…