The West Virginia Peach Festival, will be moving to a new location for this year’s August event. Usually held at the West Virginia School for the Deaf and Blind, the festival is moving to the Mineral County Fairgrounds because of construction on the school campus. Local residents voiced their displeasure, wanting to keep the festival in Romney, but Peach festival organizers determined that the fairgrounds in Fort Ashby would serve as a better site than the Hampshire fairgrounds. Plans are to return the festival to Romney once construction is complete at the school location.

Heavy rains throughout the region caused minor flooding and downed trees in some areas. Route 40 through the Narrows was closed for over 12 hours as Potomac Edison crews took care of downed power lines. The City of Cumberland did have the flood control pumps operating briefly on Wednesday to clear overflow, mostly from the North end of the city. The highwater mark for Wills Creek on Wednesday was 10.5 feet at 2pm but by Noon Thursday was down to around 6 feet. City Engineer Bobby Smith said the system worked well…

The City of Cumberland could be hiring up to 9 new firefighters. At the City Council work session this week, City Administrator Jeff Silka told the council that a federal Safer Grant program is available that would enable the city to expand its staff. The grant would allow the city to add 3 firefighters per work shift and move the fire department closer to the NFPA standard for engine staffing…

The Allegany County Commissioners approved a local abatement plan surrounding the use of Opioid Restitution Funds coming to the area on Thursday.  Over $28 billion dollars in federal money across Maryland has come from settlements with drug manufacturers who misrepresented the addiction danger of their medicines.  Allegany County, Cumberland, and Frostburg have combined their share of settlement money in one program targeting six specific areas.  Tanya Gomer, grants writer, said the areas chosen have not been addressed by other funding…     

Former Maryland Governor and now Republican U.S. Senate Candidate Larry Hogan will be visiting Western Maryland over the next few days with stops scheduled in Oakland, LaVale, and Cumberland. This morning, Hogan will visit Total Biz Fulfillment and Beitzel Corporation before heading to Western Maryland Works in LaVale at Noon and then Wheelzup Adventures in downtown Cumberland at 2:15pm.  Hogan is starting a 10-day “Back to Work Bus Tour” that will visit communities across the state.

Senator Ben Cardin is backing up President Biden’s announcement that the federal government will take on the rebuild of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore. At a press conference yesterday, Cardin told reporters the government is working quickly to come up with a plan to replace the bridge… Cardin says he will be meeting this week with the Office of Management and Budget about the type of bridge needed…

All public schools in the western counties of Maryland will be having an early dismissal on Monday April 8th because of the impending solar eclipse taking place in the afternoon. Callers to WCBC had questioned why the counties were having the early dismissal, but Allegany School Board President Bob Farrell says it make sense to let the students out earlier that day…

Cumberland and Allegany County governments joined together on Thursday afternoon for the signing of an infill development agreement with Teabow Residential of Washington DC. Mayor Ray Morriss said citizens are starting to see change and people are believing in the future of the area. Teabow plans on building market rate housing in six different areas of the city. Dr. Walter Bowman, CEO of Teabow, thanked the city for the opportunity and looks forward to delivering world-class service to the community… 

Local businessman and former owner of the Cumberland Times News, Thomas B. Finan, Jr. passed away on Wednesday, April 3,2024 at his home. Married to Mary Kay Finan, parents of two children: Patrick and Kelly. Tom volunteered with Peace Corps from 1967 – 1969 in Bolivia, South America. From 1969-1987 he was Vice President, Business Manager, and an owner of the Times-News, Cumberland’s daily newspaper until it was sold in 1986. A private investor from 1987-2015 until his retirement in 2015. He served as a Member of the board of Allegany College from 1970 until 1994 and was chairman of the board…

On Thursday, April 4, 2024 at approximately 2:38 PM, officers of the Cumberland Police Department conducted a traffic stop on Memorial Avenue.  A Police K-9 was utilized which resulted in a positive alert for the odor of drugs inside the vehicle.  A search of the vehicle was conducted.  One of the occupants, Stephanie Keller, was found to be in possession of suspected crack cocaine and paraphernalia.  Keller was arrested and transported to police headquarters.  She was issued criminal citations and released pending trial.   ARRESTED:  Stephanie Lynn Keller           AGE:  31               Cumberland, MD CHARGES:  CDS: Possess-Not Cannabis, CDS: Possess Paraphernalia