North Locust Drive Closed Indefinitely Following Hillside Slide
United, PA · September 25, 2026
Crisp morning air has settled over the ridges, kicking off a packed autumn weekend. Before heading out to evening gatherings or Friday games, keep an eye out for a few detour routes taking shape nearby.
The Lead
Following an unusually waterlogged summer, Hempfield officials confirmed that a 350-foot stretch of North Locust Drive will remain shuttered indefinitely after heavy runoff washed out the hillside and dumped roadway debris into the creek bed below. The slide, triggered by a torrential early-September deluge that brought nearly four inches of rain in six hours, peeled away structural asphalt along the loop connecting Oakford Park Road and Route 130.
Township engineer Dan Schmitt warned supervisors that a partial reopening is unsafe because unsecured soil continues to creep downhill toward the water. Repair estimates hover around $270,000, prompting township manager Aaron Siko to prepare funding requests for the 2027 capital budget. For commuters who rely on the corridor as a neighborhood cut-through, detour signs directing traffic through Route 130 will stay planted through the winter while geotechnical crews finish stabilization plans.
Local Pulse
Route 136 Closes Tonight for Homecoming Parade Roads PennDOT closes a nearly one-mile stretch near the high school between 5:30 PM and 6:30 PM this evening.
Commissioners Approve Property Tax Rebate for Volunteers City Hall Active volunteer firefighters and emergency responders earn annual $250 property tax rebates under an ordinance enacted this week.
Today's Outlook
- High 66°F · Low 41°F — Clear
- Grab a jacket for the crisp 41-degree morning before clear skies take over today.
What's On Around Town
Today
Mount Pleasant Glass & Ethnic Festival Veterans Park (1 S Diamond St), Mount Pleasant, 4:00–10:00 PM · Free Watch molten glass demonstrations, browse craft booths, and hear live evening music.
Art on Tap: Creative Couture The Westmoreland Museum of American Art (221 N Main St), Greensburg, 6:00–9:00 PM Mingle after hours with gallery exhibits, refreshments, and wearable art discussions.
"Newsies" Opening Night Science Hall Theatre at Westmoreland County Community College (145 Pavilion Ln), Youngwood, 7:00 PM · Paid Catch local student performers singing and dancing in the high-energy musical.
Tomorrow
- Mount Pleasant Glass & Ethnic Festival Veterans Park (1 S Diamond St), Mount Pleasant, 11:00 AM–10:00 PM · Free
- Night at Compass Inn Museum Compass Inn Museum (1386 Route 30), Laughlintown, 6:00 PM–Midnight · Paid
- "Come From Away" Musical Greensburg Garden & Civic Center (951 Old Salem Rd), Greensburg, 8:00 PM · Paid
Sunday
- "Newsies" Matinee Science Hall Theatre at Westmoreland County Community College (145 Pavilion Ln), Youngwood, 2:00 PM · Paid
- "Come From Away" Matinee Greensburg Garden & Civic Center (951 Old Salem Rd), Greensburg, 2:00 PM · Paid
- LeAnn Rimes in Concert The Palace Theatre (21 W Otterman St), Greensburg, 7:00 PM · $73–138
Spotlight & Story
- Standard Shaft
- Just southwest of town, the quiet settlement of Standard Shaft once anchored the world’s largest beehive coke works with exactly 905 fiery ovens. Between 1883 and 1931, hundreds of immigrant stonemasons and coke pullers fueled Pittsburgh’s blast furnaces from these hills.
United Daily Digest — compiled from local sources as of 6 AM. For breaking updates, follow your local newsrooms.
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