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Flooding response earns praise from Blair County commissioners

HOLLIDAYSBURG — Blair County commissioners, who on Thursday praised the county’s emergency management staff and responders addressing recent flooding, also expressed relief about the efforts they made earlier this year to replace members of a planning commission allowing the county’s outdated hazardous mitigation plan to lag. Commissioners Chairman Dave Kessling and Amy Webster said Thursday that county residents with flood damage from July 5 and 6 storms are in a position to rely on state and federal resources because the county’s hazardous mitigation plan has been ...

Salvation Army extends cooling center in Altoona

The Altoona Salvation Army Church, 1813 Sixth Ave., has extended its availability as a cooling center for anyone who needs relief from the heat from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. today, Friday, July 17.

Trump speech focuses on elections

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump used a primetime address to the nation Thursday to once again raise doubts about the results of past elections. Trump began Thursday night with a stark warning about what he described as flaws in the voting system and said he was releasing previously ...

Bedford’s Bette Brown Slayton Business Park breaks ground

Local and state officials gathered in Bedford County Thursday to break ground on the planned Bette Brown Slayton Business Park. State Department of Community and Economic Development Secretary Rick Siger joined state Rep. Jesse Topper, R-Bedford, Bedford County Development Association ...

Partial plea deal made in child pornography case

HOLLIDAYSBURG — A Blair County judge severed one charge to continue being tried Thursday and accepted guilty pleas for nearly 50 other felony counts in the case of a man accused of possessing more than 21,000 files of child pornography. Nasir Debonaire Garner, 27, faces more than 100 felony ...

Blair County briefs: County salt shed approved

HOLLIDAYSBURG — Blair County will pay an additional $45,076 for construction of a salt shed along Loop Road, near its highway garage, increasing the general construction contract to $489,749. Commissioners Dave Kessling and Amy Webster voted Thursday to approve a change order addressing additional work for the project. Paul Shaffer, who supervises the county’s highway department, said that during construction, the contractor found contaminated soil that had to be removed and replaced with concrete. That necessitated the rerouting of pipes and insulation above the concrete, Shaffer ...