Funeral for firefighter

Funeral for firefighter
WEST MIDDLESEX, Pa. -- Services were today for volunteer firefighter Mark Pollock, 46, who died in a fire Friday in the Old Bedford Road home he shared with his parents, John and Shirley Pollock, both 74. Mark, who was firefighter of the year in West Middlesex in 1992 and later joined the Shenango Township Volunteer Fire Department, was honored with a "Last Call" ceremony at the Shenango Township station before the funeral at Lebanon Presbyterian Church. His parents remain hospitalized. John had improved from critical to serious condition today in the burn unit of Akron Children's Hospital; Shirley remained critical in the burn unit of Mercy Hospital in Pittsburgh.
3 Ohio women robbed
GROVE CITY, Pa. -- Pennsylvania State Police said three Ohio women were robbed at gunpoint as they left the Elephant & amp; Castle Pub and Restaurant adjacent to the Grove City Factory Shops on Pa. Route 208 in Springfield Township. The women, a 59-year-old and a 65-year-old from Parma and a 43-year-old from Seven Hills, told police they were getting into their car around 8:30 p.m. Friday when a man with a gun approached them and demanded their purses. He fled the immediate scene on foot, but witnesses reported seeing a vehicle fleeing the scene, police said. No description was given.
Man injured at home
NEW CASTLE, Pa. -- Police say a helpful neighbor found a 52-year-old man who had fallen and injured his head. Loy Rehmann of Maryland Avenue was found semiconscious and unable to communicate on his porch at 2:51 a.m. Saturday. There was massive bleeding in the back his head, police said.
Officers suspect that he attempted to pull open a locked screen door and hit his head on a porch pillar. He was taken to Jameson Hospital, then by medical helicopter to a Pittsburgh hospital. Jameson officials would not say where he was taken. A neighbor going to his car saw Rehmann on the porch and called for help, police said.
Leaf collection to start
NEW WILMINGTON, Pa. -- Borough Council President Larry Wagner reported that the borough leaf collection will start Monday.
Visitation days at school
COLUMBIANA -- Parents, grandparents and other community members are invited to come to Crestview Middle School next Tuesday for visitation days for fifth- and seventh-grade pupils and Oct. 16 for sixth- and eighth-grade pupils. Visitors will become active learners in the classroom with the pupils they are visiting. Lunch will be served both days. Cost is $2.50. Call the school at (330) 482-4648 to make a reservation.
Hermitage zoning action
HERMITAGE, Pa. -- The Hermitage Zoning Hearing Board granted two zoning variances that will allow businessman Michael Magnotto to build a gas station adjacent to his Shop N' Save grocery store on North Buhl Farm Drive. Because the area is limited in space, the variances will allow Magnotto to put his station canopy within 18 feet of the rear property line instead of meeting the required 50-foot setback. A second variance will allow him to build a solid masonry wall with some greenery plantings in a 4-foot-wide strip along the north side of the property instead of having a 20-foot buffer zone as required by zoning regulations. The variances for the station, which will have four gas islands, were granted Monday. No opposition was presented at the hearing.
Special prosecutor
YOUNGSTOWN -- Atty. Steven Michiak has been appointed special prosecutor in a drunken-driving case against Judge Robert Lisotto of Mahoning County Common Pleas Court. Michiak is an assistant prosecutor in Portage County. He's serving at no cost to Mahoning County, said Prosecutor Paul Gains. Judge Lisotto, 57, of Canfield, is charged with two counts of driving under the influence of alcohol and one count of failure to signal before a turn. The case is pending in Mahoning County's area court in Canfield. All the charges are misdemeanors.
Counterfeit bill
AUSTINTOWN -- Police confiscated a counterfeit $20 bill at Wal-Mart, 6001 Mahoning Ave., on Saturday, after a customer received it with change. According to a police report, a woman paid for her purchases using a debit card and asked the cashier for $20 in cash. When she tried to use the money at another store, a cashier there refused to accept it, stating that it was counterfeit.