Apr 6, 2016 2 min read

WAYNESBURG – Parts of Waynesburg and surrounding areas lost power Wednesday afternoon when a crew demolishing a building along High Street accidentally severed utility wires, a West Penn Power spokesman said.

The majority of buildings affected by the 1:21 p.m. outage were on the southern side of High Street, including the Greene County Courthouse, and streetlights in the business district were not functioning for about 30 minutes.

Crews with Neiswonger Construction began working Wednesday morning to raze the rear of the historic J.H. Ganiear Building at 146 E. High St. in the borough and were expected to complete the demolition work over the next few days.

A high-extension excavator was demolishing the rear of the former Waynesburg Floral shop when the utility lines at Cumberland Street and Cherry Alley behind the building was severed.

“We’re not sure if it was the excavator or debris falling from the building that severed the lines,” West Penn spokesman Chris Eck said.

Eck said 2,098 customers lost power, but service was restored to the vast majority of them in about 30 minutes.

Work to raze the building continued after West Penn Power crews repaired the lines and restored service.

The front section of the building, which is more than 100 years old, will remain standing as the Greene County Redevelopment Authority begins its effort to preserve and eventually restore the building.

The authority purchased the property for $4,500 at a county judicial sale and is expected to spend about $100,000 on the demolition.

The preservation work is being completed with grant money the authority received from the Pennsylvania Housing Affordability and Rehabilitation Enhancement Act.