Man opens fire on friend in Meyersdale

An Apollo man opened fire with a semiautomatic weapon on a friend who was in a cabin in Larimer Township near Meyersdale Saturday morning following an altercation involving alcohol.

Donald Smodic was drinking at the cabin with Walter Siwula, of Mt. Pleasant, in the moments preceding the shooting. After they got in an altercation, Smodic packed his belongings in his car. They included two semi-automatic long guns and ammunition. Smodic then allegedly took the guns out, loaded them and began shooting at the cabin while Siwula was still inside.

An estimated 121 rounds went inside the cabin before Smodic fled the scene, according to Pennsylvania State Police. State police were dispatched to the scene at about 2:30 a.m.

Siwula was not injured during the incident.

After an extensive search for Smodic, he was located in Salem Township in Westmoreland County, fatally injured from a self-inflicted gun shot wound, police said. The incident remains under investigation.