Plum Advance Leader category
Fatal Plum house explosion spurs lawsuits from Rustic Ridge homeowners
Three dozen homeowners in Plum filed lawsuits Thursday stemming from the fatal 2023 house explosion in the Rustic Ridge development. The two complaints, filed in Allegheny County Common Pleas Court, name as defendants Penneco Oil Co.; Peoples Natural Gas; A.O. Smith Corp., which sold the water heater believed by the...
Plum native named Arlington National Cemetery superintendent
John G. Knapp has a long history of serving his country. His next act of service will be as superintendent of Arlington National Cemetery, a final resting place for many of America’s fallen heroes and prominent figures, symbolizing the nation’s history and honoring those who served. “Arlington National Cemetery serves...
Plum, Oakmont see rash of overnight vehicle thefts, break-ins
Several Plum and Oakmont residents awakened Wednesday morning to find items missing from their cars — or their cars missing entirely. Plum resident Christina Williams said she left her Rustic Ridge home at 6:45 a.m. to head to work, but her Lexus was not in her driveway. Soon after, she...
Plum man pleads guilty to sexual assault of 14-year-old girl
About a year after the incident, John Dale Vorous, 62, has pleaded guilty to statutory sexual assault and corruption of minors for having sex with a 14-year-old girl he picked up outside a bar in Plum in June 2024. Vorous initially was charged with a bevy of sex crimes, but...
Oakmont Lions band engages in acts of service through performances
For members of the Oakmont Lions Club Good Time Band, rehearsals and performances are filled with laughter and music. Worries are left behind for a couple of hours. For its listeners, the band offers an escape from the mundane. Laura Amos, 61, of Oakmont, the band’s director and vocalist, equated...
In brief: Plum, Oakmont area news, events for the week of July 28, 2025
Community center plans golf fundraiser The Riverview Action Community Center is planning an 18-hole, four-person golf scramble fundraiser on Aug. 22 at Hill Crest Country Club in Lower Burrell. Registration is now open, and eight packages are available. The price is $550 per foursome or $150 for an individual. Check-in...
Eastern Pittsburgh suburban real estate transactions for the week of July 27, 2025
ALLEGHENY COUNTY Chalfant Scott Kramer sold property at 328 Highland Ave. to Melissa Gallagher for $32,000. Benjamin Peticca Jr. sold property at 105 West St. to Chelcon LLC for $80,000. Azizeh Haji Djafari sold property at 242-244 West St. to David Jihun Choi and Lina Li for $299,000. Churchill Elizabeth...
Summer workouts help Plum soccer teams reload for upcoming season
Chase Eber is a rising junior goalkeeper hoping to raise his game for the Plum boys soccer team. He split varsity duties in net for most of last year with Brady McLaughlin and helped the Mustangs go undefeated in Section 1-4A play, win 18 games overall, reach the WPIAL title...
Plum School Board promotes 2 principals, hires teachers ahead of school year
The Plum School Board promoted two new principals as the 2025-26 school year nears its start. Stephan Sereda, who previously served as an assistant principal at Plum High School, will now head up operations there as principal. At Holiday Park Intermediate School, Ashley DeVito is set to serve as principal...
Plum mayor, neighbors hope Rustic Ridge lawsuits will bring answers
After families of six people killed in a 2023 house explosion in Plum sued multiple companies for alleged negligence and wrongful death Tuesday, the borough’s mayor and neighbors in the Rustic Ridge housing plan say they hope the suits will offer some answers nearly two years later. Filed in Allegheny...
‘It’s hard not to break’: Daughter of Plum house explosion victims continues to grieve without closure
Wherever Taylor Oravitz goes, her childhood home goes with her. The Plum native had her Rustic Ridge Drive home’s GPS coordinates tattooed on her forearm, though not for nostalgia’s sake. Rather, it’s a kind of memorial in ink and flesh. On Aug. 12, 2023, a massive explosion at her family’s...
‘Series of failures’: Lawsuit blames fatal Plum house explosion on pipeline leak, water heater
Families of the six people killed in a 2023 house explosion in Plum’s Rustic Ridge subdivision have sued multiple companies for negligence and wrongful death, blaming them for the catastrophe and pinpointing the cause as a pipeline leak that filled the basement of Heather and Paul Oravitz’s home with flammable...
In brief: Plum, Oakmont area news, events for the week of July 21, 2025
Community center plans golf fundraiser The Riverview Action Community Center is planning an 18-hole, four-person golf scramble fundraiser on Aug. 22 at Hill Crest Country Club in Lower Burrell. Registration is now open, and eight packages are available. The price is $550 per foursome or $150 for an individual. Check-in...
Eastern Pittsburgh suburban real estate transactions for the week of July 20, 2024
ALLEGHENY COUNTY Chalfant Joseph Williams sold property at 148 North Ave. to Occor Construction LLC for $27,000. Churchill Estate of William Keegan sold property at 36 Garden Terrace to Keyway Homes East 7 LLC for $80,000. Jason Greenwald sold property at 1943 Hampstead Drive to Kyle and Adriana Perdue for...
Plum, Riverview basketball teams benefit from summer league games
When Dave Pucka wrapped up his first year as Plum’s boys basketball coach in February, he looked to the offseason for opportunities for his team to build for the upcoming season and the goal of returning to the WPIAL playoffs after a several-year hiatus. Open gyms in May flowed into...
An inside look at Plum’s controversial fracking wastewater injection well
The wastewater injection site in Plum run by Penneco Environmental Solutions has been the subject of nearly a decade of legal battles and community backlash as the company has sought to expand its operations along Old Leechburg Road. Since 2017, the borough and Penneco have been at odds, as the...
Plum Council denies liquor license at convenience store in split vote
Plum Mayor Harry Schlegel, for the first time, broke a council tie when he voted to deny a liquor license transfer in the borough to the location of Plum Convenience on Saltsburg Road. Members of borough council were split, 3-3, on the resolution that would have permitted the store to...
Plum inks deal with DA for body cam footage requests
All Right-to-Know requests for police audio and video footage in Plum will go through the Allegheny County District Attorney’s Office first after Plum Council approved a memorandum of understanding with the DA’s office. The memorandum requires the borough to forward all requests for audio and video related to “criminal and...
Shop ’n Save in Penn Hills closing doors after 34 years; clearance sale to start July 17
Greg Hartley met his wife at the Shop ’n Save in Penn Hills. That was nothing unusual. His brother did the same. Hartley owns the store at 2820 Universal Road along with other members of his family. His parents started the independently owned and operated business in 1991, with ownership...
In brief: Plum, Oakmont area news, events for the week of July 14, 2025
Oakmont Elks community picnic The Oakmont Elks Club is hosting a community picnic on Saturday, July 19. Starting at 4 p.m., the event will feature free food, games and crafts for children. The event is located at 106 Washington Ave. in Oakmont. Live music will start at 7 p.m. Free...
Plum fracking injection well battle continues as company appeals rejection
The years-long battle over a second injection well in Plum will continue. That’s because oil company Penneco Environmental Solutions filed an appeal in Allegheny County Court on Friday to the Plum Zoning Hearing Board’s rejection of the well last month. The Delmont-based firm has been attempting to convert a natural...
Eastern Pittsburgh suburban real estate transactions for the week of July 13, 2025
ALLEGHENY COUNTY Chalfant Edward Derganz sold property at 136 Brighton St. to Tri Cog Land Bank for $16,745. Churchill Estate of Thomas Leddy Jr. sold property at 2007 Beulah Road to Michael Foley for $155,000. Xiuying Jiang sold property at 2504 Churchill Road to Wesley Family Services for $408,000. Edgewood...
Nighttime traffic restrictions planned for Coxcomb Hill, Logans Ferry roads
Overnight work to repair Coxcomb Hill and Logans Ferry roads through Plum is scheduled to begin Monday night and continue through late November, PennDOT announced. Traffic will be restricted to a single, alternating lane between 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. nightly on Coxcomb Hill Road between Hulton and Logans Ferry...
Plum mayor pushing for borough deer cull; council president skeptical
Plum Mayor Harry Schlegel says the borough needs to kill more deer. Allegheny County’s seventh-largest municipality, he said, is suffering from whitetail “overpopulation” that is causing public safety concerns and proving to be a nuisance to residents. Schlegel said this week he would like to see borough council move forward...
Former Penn Hills police officer charged in alleged road rage incident
A former Penn Hills police officer has been accused of intentionally spinning out another driver and later resisting arrest in Plum. Dennis Pape, 49, faces misdemeanor charges of recklessly endangering another person, obstructing administration of law or other government and resisting arrest in addition to some summary charges. According to...
