PITTSBURGH,None — Police said a crash that killed a Westmoreland County chef could be related to the snowstorm that blanketed the area with about a half-foot of snow.
Police said David Kadagishvili, 50, died Wednesday night following a crash along Route 217 earlier in the day in Derry Township. Kadagishvili was the owner of Chef Dato's Table in Latrobe.
Investigators said the road where Kadagishvili crashed into another vehicle was snow-covered.
Police said Kadagishvili lost control of his car and drifted into some snow. When he tried to steer the vehicle back onto the road it veered into the opposite lane, where investigators said he was hit by another car.
Chef Dato's family and friends said he grew up under the communist regime in the former Soviet Union.
After coming to the United States, his family said he loved everything about the country. His employees said he also loved You Tube, where he posted instructional cooking videos and talked about the international fare he served at the restaurant.
"When we opened this restaurant a lot of people from Derry would come and they would say,'Oh my gosh! This is the best thing that ever happened to Derry," said waitress Kathey Haines.
The restaurant's general manager said he saw Chef Dato just before the accident.
"I'm interviewing a girl at the bar and I hear a fire truck go down and I say, 'Oh, a fire truck that's odd. And then my waitress came in and said there was an accident down on 217 about five minutes to three, and about 20 after three his wife called me and said chef was in an accident," said Ken Jones.
His friends said he leaves behind his wife and three young children.
Kadagishvili started the Latrobe food bank and cooked there twice a week. His family has requested that donations in his honor be made to the organization.
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