Madasyn Lee stories, Page 10
2 more Port Authority employees test positive for coronavirus, bringing total to 29
Port Authority of Allegheny County on Wednesday reported that two more employees have tested positive for covid-19. That brings the total number of employee cases to 29, said spokesman Adam Brandolph. Seventeen of those employees have been cleared to return to work. Twelve are recovering at home. The two latest...
Pennsylvania health department looking to hire more contact tracers, nurses
State health officials are looking to hire more contact tracers and nurses to better control the spread of coronavirus and prepare for any potential surges in covid-19 cases. Contact tracing is the process of identifying, notifying and monitoring anyone who came in close contact with an individual who tested positive...
Pitt, Penn State officials support mask wearing efforts, coronavirus mitigation plans
Officials with the University of Pittsburgh, Penn State and Temple University said they are supportive of mask wearing and other mitigation efforts put into place by state officials to help reduce the spread of the coronavirus. All three universities plan to offer in-person classes this fall. “Penn State is finalizing...
Deer Lakes plans in-person classes, online instruction for 2020-21 school year
Deer Lakes School District will offer in-person instruction as well as fully online classes when students return for the 2020-21 school year on Aug. 26, officials said. “Please know that we continue to plan for adaptation and change, not perfection, because of the constantly changing situations surrounding the spread of...
ATV riding will soon be permitted on Gilpin roads
People soon will have the ability to ride all-terrain vehicles on Gilpin roads. Township supervisors have long been considering an ordinance that would designate certain township roads to be “joint-use.” Earlier this month, they voted 4-0 to pass such an ordinance. “This has been brought up multiple times in the...
37-year-old man who died after collapsing at Sandcastle identified
Allegheny County Police are investigating the death of a Brentwood man who collapsed at Sandcastle Waterpark. Police said county 911 dispatchers were notified just after 3:20 p.m. Sunday of an unresponsive man in a pool at the West Homestead water park. Employees attempted lifesaving measures on the man until paramedics...
Big Burrito Restaurant Group closes specialty restaurants because of covid-19 dining restrictions
Big Burrito Restaurant Group temporarily closed all of its specialty restaurants on Saturday due to newly imposed coronavirus-related restrictions, its president said. The specialty restaurants are Alta Via, Casbah, Eleven, Kaya, Soba and Umi. President Bill Fuller said those restaurants “are not viable under current business conditions.” Mad Mex locations...
Man collapses at Sandcastle pool, section of park closed
A man was taken to a hospital after suffering a medical emergency while leaving a pool at Sandcastle Water Park on Sunday, a spokesman said. Spokesman Nick Paradise said park employees were alerted to the situation at 3:15 p.m., and lifeguards and paramedics responded immediately. The man was treated by...
Pittsburgh activists, influencers to appear on season 5 premiere of CNN documentary
Pittsburgh-area activists and influencers will appear on the CNN original series “United Shades of America with W. Kamau Bell” at 10 p.m. Sunday. The Emmy-winning series, which returns for its fifth season on Sunday, follows comedian and political provocateur W. Kamau Bell as he explores communities across America to understand...
Health officials: Stay home while waiting for covid-19 test results
People who are awaiting covid-19 test results should presume they have the virus and self-isolate until they receive the results in order to mitigate the spread of the virus, health officials said. A question of personal responsibility in regard to the coronavirus pandemic was posed to health care professionals after...
How delays in covid-19 test results hamper virus control
Delays in the reporting of coronavirus test results are making it more difficult to control the outbreak, health experts said. “If you’re waiting seven days for a test result, the value of that test becomes much less useful,” said Dr. Amesh Adalja, a Pittsburgh-based fellow with the Infectious Diseases Society...
Allegheny County explains covid-19 backlog, advises priority testing
Allegheny County officials on Wednesday asked residents without covid-19 symptoms not to get tested because of increased demand for testing in the region. Health Director Debra Bogen said those who should get tested include people with covid-19 symptoms; those who have had close contact with a known, positive covid-19 case;...
West Leechburg fundraiser canceled over coronavirus still raises $28K
An annual event that raises money for causes in the Pittsburgh region will not be happening this year because of the coronavirus pandemic. Ian Coyle said the safety of the attendees was paramount in his decision to cancel the fifth annual “Small Town, Loud Voice” fundraiser in West Leechburg, which...
Leechburg Area to resume in-person classes in August, offer online instruction to those who want it
Leechburg Area School District plans to reopen Aug. 26, and will offer online-only classes for students who aren’t comfortable going back to an in-person school setting. Because the school buildings are in Armstrong County, the district will be following that county’s guidelines. The district is made up of students from...
Allegheny County reports 71 new covid-19 cases, 6 new hospitalizations
Allegheny County on Monday saw a decrease in newly reported covid-19 cases, but health officials said they aren’t “reading anything into a single low number.” The county reported 71 new cases, six new hospitalizations and no new deaths, which come from 741 test results. The low number comes a little...
5 residents at Concordia at Villa St. Joseph in Baden test positive for covid-19
Five residents of a Beaver County nursing home have tested positive for covid-19, officials at the facility confirmed over the weekend. The infected residents at Concordia at Villa St. Joseph in Baden have been quarantined and staffers have investigated where those residents have been in the facility to determine who...
Pennsylvania reports 725 new cases of coronavirus
Pennsylvania health officials on Sunday reported 725 additional covid-19 cases, bringing the statewide total to 95,414. The data section of the state Department of Health’s website was down for maintenance Sunday and because of that only new cases were reported, according to a news release emailed Sunday evening. Earlier in...
19 new coronavirus cases reported in Westmoreland County, no new deaths
Westmoreland County reported 19 new covid-19 cases and no new deaths on Sunday, according to state health department officials. That brings the total number of covid-19 cases in Westmoreland County to 994. Of those, 968 are confirmed and 26 are probable cases. The department reported 23 new covid-19 cases Saturday,...
Market Street Pizza in Leechburg opens successfully amid coronavirus pandemic
The coronavirus pandemic has had a devastating effect on businesses across the country, including local restaurants like the Twisted Thistle in Leechburg. But instead of looking outside the box, owners Joe Hesketh and Linda Alworth looked inside the box — literally. On June 22, the pair opened Market Street Pizza...
Deer Lakes cancels in-person commencement amid latest coronavirus-related restrictions
Deer Lakes School District has canceled its Class of 2020 in-person commencement. The event was scheduled for July 16, but had to be canceled due to coronavirus-related restrictions recently imposed by the Allegheny County Health Department, which limited gatherings of more than 50 people for two weeks to help mitigate...
Allegheny County reports 158 new coronavirus cases, 12 hospitalizations
Allegheny County Health Department Officials reported 158 new covid-19 cases, 12 new hospitalizations and no new deaths on Thursday. This is the second time this week that new covid-19 case numbers have dipped below 200. New covid-19 case numbers have been fluctuating since the county experienced a record-setting 233 cases...
Allegheny County reports 230 new covid-19 cases, 2 new deaths
Allegheny County health officials reported 230 new covid-19 cases, two additional deaths and eight more hospitalizations on Wednesday. This brings the total number of coronavirus cases in Allegheny County to 4,209. Of those, 4,028 are confirmed and 181 are probable. Wednesday’s numbers are the product of 1,997 test results, health...
Allegheny County to halt on-premises alcohol consumption, enforce mask wearing in businesses, restaurants
Allegheny County officials Sunday ordered all bars and restaurants in Allegheny County to halt on-premises alcohol consumption in response to the recent surge in covid-19 cases. Allegheny County Health Department Director Dr. Debra Bogen issued the order through her authority under the Pennsylvania Disease Prevention and Control Law. It goes...
Avalon Eat’n Park employee tests positive for covid-19
An employee of the Eat’n Park in Avalon has tested positive for covid-19, but the restaurant remains open, a spokeswoman confirmed Sunday. The employee last worked in the restaurant on June 22, spokeswoman Becky McArdle said. She said no other employees have tested positive for the virus. McArdle said the...
Plum, Oakmont, Verona churches re-open after parishioner tests negative for covid-19
In-person Mass at Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh parishes in Plum, Oakmont and Verona resumed Sunday after a parishioner tested negative for the coronavirus. Diocesan officials last week warned parishioners who attended Mass on June 22 at St. Januarius in Plum that they might have been exposed to covid-19. According to...

