State Police are reporting that a fatal crash in Westmoreland County killed a trooper from the Greensburg Baracks.
State Police Commissioner Colonel Tyree C. Blocker confirmed that 26-year-old Trooper Michael Stewart died from injuries in a crash at 2:30 this morning on State Route 711 near Route 271, which is near Idlewild Park. State Police say the accident happened as a Garbage Truck from McInchock Sanitation of Ligonier pulled out of a parking lot on Route 711 and turned left to go north when it collided with the State Police SUV that Trooper Stewart was driving. Accident reconstruction teams were investigating the intersection of Route 711 and 271 to determine the cause, but as of now, the road has reopened. The crash is still under investigation, and police say it’s too early to determine how the crash happened or who was to blame. Stewart’s midnight partner, whose name was not released, was taken to a hospital for non-life threatening injuries. Trooper Stephen Limani said that Stewart’s Partner may have suffered a concussion. The driver of the garbage truck was not injured.
(Image provided by Pennsylvania State Police)
At a news conference today, Limani called Stewart “A big man with a big heart”, and was a trooper who returned to his home area after serving a year with Troop H in Chambersburg. Stewart enlisted in the State Police in January of 2014, and was assigned with Troop A in Greensburg since August 29th of 2015. He is the 98th member of the State Police to be killed in the line of duty. Governor Tom Wolf has ordered all commonwealth flags to fly at half-staff in Stewart’s memory.
