On May 31, 2024, Officers of the Cumberland Police Department responded to Walnut Street for a Hit and Run. During the investigation it was learned that two vehicles were struck which caused significant Damage. Officers then canvassed the area and located the vehicle. The suspect vehicle was parked on a near by street. Officers inspected the vehicle and confirmed the damage was consistent with the accident. Officers were unable to make contact with the owner. On June 2, 2024, Officers conducted a follow up investigation. Officers then made contact with the suspected driver. The driver was identified as Jillian Renee…

Allegany County’s Chamber of Commerce is accepting applications for its next Leadership Allegany program, beginning in September.  Started in 1998, over 600 alumni have completed the year-long class.  Chamber Director Juli McCoy says those who have already completed the course have a hand in the curriculum for the year… The application deadline is 5pm June 26. McCoy says the demand to get in to Leadership Allegany almost always outnumbers availability…  

The Canal Place Preservation Authority now has a project management team in place to help with the River Park development.  The company, Ecologics, is tasked with working with the Maryland Department of the Environment, and the Army Corps of Engineers to get the area ready for construction.  One of the first things to be addressed is the condition of the Potomac River bottom – Canal Place director DeDe Richie says they are getting ready to contract that work out…

Maryland U.S. Senate Candidate Larry Hogan is not making friends in the Trump campaign with remarks made just before the former President’s guilty verdict on 34 felony counts last week.  Hogan posted on social media channels that the decision and legal process should be respected.  That brought negative reaction from former Trump campaign advisor Chris LaCavita who now oversees the Republican National Committee.  ABC’s Steve Portnoy has more on the response…   

Even though amendments are almost guaranteed to occur, the Allegany County Commissioners adopted their fiscal year 2025 budget this past Thursday.  The $138 million dollar budget is down $24 million from last year and includes across the board cuts while holding the property and income tax rates stable.  Commission President Dave Caporale said the budget includes cuts needed to keep the taxpayer pocketbook unaffected…

Pat O’Rourke, brother of WCBC’s Tom O’Rourke, died in Ohio over the weekend.  O’Rourke was an all-city football player at Bishop Walsh in the 1960s before playing college football at the University of Dayton.  He spent the early years of his professional career in Cumberland before moving to Ohio in the mid-1980s.  O’Rourke coached locally at Bishop Walsh and Frostburg State and continued coaching in recent years in Ohio.  The combination of Tom O’Rourke, Coach Pat O’Rourke, and Statman Ray Athey made WCBC the preeminent voice of high school football in the 1980s, coinciding with the Jim Refosco years at…

On June 1, 2024, Officers of the Cumberland Police Department responded to the Constitution Park Pool for an active fight. Officers conducted an investigation and discovered that three people had been assaulted by the same subject. One victim kicked water on the subject and then was attacked. The suspect was identified as Xianna Kesler. Witnesses stated that Kesler got out of the pool and began to strike a victim in the face with a closed fist. The attack left the victim with a bloody nose. Two additional victims attempted to stop the assault, render aid but were also assaulted. The Officers then…

The National Eucharistic pilgrimage, one of the largest Catholic devotional events of the year, will make a day-long stop at the national shrine of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton in Emmitsburg on Thursday, June 6. The day which, will include a Eucharistic procession through the streets of Emmitsburg, will begin with an 8:30 AM mass celebrated by Archbishop William Lori at the shrine’s Basilica and broadcast on on EWTN.

Allegany County is among five Maryland counties set to receive federal funds to purchase “clean” school buses, the EPA announced on Wednesday. The five counties will share nearly $17 million, with Allegany County set to receive $345,000. The Clean School Bus Program has helped fund approximately 8,500 electric and alternative fuel buses for over 1,000 communities across the United States, according to the administration.  The program started through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law passed by Congress and signed by President Joe Biden, which includes $5 billion over five years to transform the country’s existing school buses with “zero-emission and low-emission models,”…

Gov. Justice signed Senate Bill 1002 giving the West Virginia Division of Highways (WVDOH) $150 million in supplemental highway funding for paving projects throughout the Mountain State. Gov. Justice asked the Legislature to approve the extra funding during the first special legislative session in May. The money is in addition to $190 million received by the WVDOH in federal highway funds. “Signing this bill is a huge win for our roads, our people, and West Virginia,” Gov. Justice said. “With federal funds only stretching so far, this additional $150 million means our hardworking Division of Highways crew can roll up…