Top Local and National News Stories category, Page 1357
The story behind Pittsburgh’s mysterious monolith in the Strip DistrictVideo
Chris Beers is no stranger to going viral. It’s exactly what he expected would happen after a mysterious monolith showed up in front of his Strip District candy shop last week. The shiny, silver monolith first appeared at Grandpa Joe’s Candy Shop early Thursday morning. Beers took a 32-minute Facebook...
Double Dragons: SpaceX launches space station supplies
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — SpaceX launched a newer, bigger version of its Dragon supply ship to the International Space Station on Sunday, marking the first time the company has two capsules in orbit at the same time. The Dragon — packed with Christmas treats and presents — should reach the...
Seven Springs prepping for ‘mid-December’ opening amid new covid restrictions
Despite 10 inches of natural snow falling on the slopes last week, Seven Springs Mountain Resort is not quite ready to open for skiing. “It’s too bad, but we feel we don’t have enough snow to open yet. With social distancing, we’re not comfortable opening with just two lifts and...
Despite promise, few in U.S. adopting covid-19 exposure apps
RALEIGH, N.C. — Six months ago, Apple and Google introduced a new smartphone tool designed to notify people who might have been exposed to the coronavirus, without disclosing any personal information. But for the most part, Americans haven’t been all that interested. Fewer than half of U.S. states and territories...
Will U.S. ever have a national covid-19 testing strategy?
NEW YORK — As the coronavirus epidemic worsens, U.S. health experts hope Joe Biden’s administration will put in place something Donald Trump’s has not — a comprehensive national testing strategy. Such a strategy, they say, could systematically check more people for infections and spot surges before they take off. The...
David L. Lander, Squiggy of ‘Laverne & Shirley,’ dies at 73
LOS ANGELES — Actor David L. Lander — the unforgettable Squiggy on ABC’s “Laverne & Shirley” — has died, his family confirmed to the Los Angeles Times. Lander passed away Friday evening at Los Angeles’ Cedars-Sinai Medical Center after having battled multiple sclerosis for 37 years. His wife, Kathy Fields...
Prantl’s has new owner, plans new location in North Huntingdon
The last five years have been quite a ride for those baking Prantl’s famous Burnt Almond Torte — also known as “the greatest cake America has ever made.” The Huffington Post made that declaration in 2014, a year before a string of new developments at the business, which now has...
A Daughter’s Promise: An unbreakable bond that withstood the test of a lifetimeVideo
Officials from the Jewish Association on Aging announced last month the Charles Morris Nursing & Rehabilitation Center will close Jan. 12, leaving its remaining 50 residents two months to relocate. Among those residents is Rosie Wyner, who plays a prominent role in this story. The association cited rising costs and...
Gene-editing treatment shows promise for sickle cell disease
Scientists are seeing promising early results from the first studies testing gene editing for painful, inherited blood disorders that plague millions worldwide, especially Black people. Doctors hope the one-time treatment, which involves permanently altering DNA in blood cells with a tool called CRISPR, may treat and possibly cure sickle cell...
Nashville nurse, a Butler County native, shot and killed along Tennessee highway
A Butler County native was shot and killed in Nashville on Thursday as she drove to her shift as an intensive care nurse, authorities and family members said. Caitlyn Marie Kaufman, 26, was found dead in her SUV along the shoulder of I-440 west shortly before 9 p.m., according to...
GOP leaders ask Congress to reject Pa.’s electors for Joe Biden
Spotlight PA is an independent, non-partisan newsroom powered by The Philadelphia Inquirer in partnership with PennLive/The Patriot-News, TribLIVE/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, and WITF Public Media. This article is made possible through Votebeat, a nonpartisan reporting project covering local election integrity and voting access. HARRISBURG — More than 60 Republicans, including the top...
Ramada auction draws crowd as longtime Hempfield hotel is set for demolition
Jeff Pollick got to the Ramada by Wyndham Greensburg Hotel and Conference Center just in time Saturday. The owner of Wooden Door Winery walked into the Hempfield hotel moments before the draft system he was hoping to get went up for auction. After a short bidding war, he won it...
Pandemic, partisan attacks exposed gaps in Pa.’s new mail-in voting law
Spotlight PA is an independent, non-partisan newsroom powered by The Philadelphia Inquirer in partnership with PennLive/The Patriot-News, TribLIVE/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, and WITF Public Media. This article is made possible through Votebeat, a nonpartisan reporting project covering local election integrity and voting access. HARRISBURG — Before any threat of a deadly, fast-spreading...
Westmoreland County posts record covid-19 cases for 3rd-straight day. This time 437.
The Pennsylvania Department of Health on Saturday reported a record 437 new cases of the coronavirus in Westmoreland County. It is the third-straight day the county reported at least 400 cases and the third-consecutive day it broke its own record. On Thursday, 400 cases were posted, followed by 412 on...
Pennsylvania sets daily record of 12,884 new covid-19 cases, cruises past 400,000 total
Pennsylvania on Saturday reported 12,884 new coronavirus cases, hurdling the Keystone State’s total past 400,000 cases. The new data bring the total cases to 411,484; a nearly 60,000-case jump from this time last week (351,667). Officials said 31,219 of total cases are considered probable. Health officials define a probable case...
Allegheny County reports record 1,197 new coronavirus cases; 5 deaths
Allegheny County on Saturday recorded 1,197 new coronavirus cases as the community continues to rack up covid-19 infections during the holiday season. The report is a 169-case jump from Thursday’s previous record of 1,028 and the second day the county has surpassed 1,000 cases. Officials reported 911 cases Friday. Five...
3 escape after blaze spreads to 3 Hazelwood homes
Three Hazelwood residents escaped uninjured early Saturday after a neighboring home caught fire, according to Pittsburgh Public Safety spokesman Maurice Matthews. Firefighters were called to Cust Street about 2:15 a.m., according to authorities. The flames spread to two adjacent homes, forcing the residents out. The house where the flames originated...
Coronavirus safe: Online sales of fishing licenses double, 2021 licenses now available
Buoyed by a 20% increase in fishing license purchases this year over 2019, the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission is offering fishing licenses for 2021, which are also valid for this month. Although fishing licenses are still available through local bait and sporting goods stores, the commission is promoting the...
‘It’s scary,’: Nurses fear covid surge will overwhelm Western Pa. hospitals
As soon as nurses arrive for work at UPMC Altoona, they’re in constant motion. In the hospital’s medical intensive care unit, which became the covid unit in March, the hallways are crowded with machinery, including IV pumps, dialysis machines and other equipment, said Paula Stellabotte, an ICU nurse. Stellabotte said...
Man shot in Stowe Township
A man was hospitalized after being shot in the lower extremity in Stowe Township on Friday night, Allegheny County Police said. Police said they were notified of the shooting in the 400 block of Pleasant Ridge Road at 6:40 p.m. A vehicle being driven in the area also was reportedly...
Officials confirm: Body of missing Jefferson Hills teen found in Mon River
The body of a missing 15-year-old Jefferson Hills boy was found Friday afternoon in the middle of the Monongahela River south of Pittsburgh near the Elizabeth Bridge. Jeno Moretti’s body was recovered at 4:50 p.m. by divers from the Charles County, Md., rescue team, Elizabeth Borough Police Chief Bill Sombo...
As pandemic wears on, more people are food insecure
As the covid-19 crisis continues to worsen, many more people are looking for help putting food on the table. That’s the message Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank president and CEO Lisa Scales gave during a Governing in Crisis virtual discussion this week. Scales told the Trib reservations for drive-up food...
Jail Oversight Board to investigate why high-ranking medical administrators keep quitting
When Janet Bunts was hired in August to be the new health services administrator at the Allegheny County Jail, she came to the position with 26 years in corrections. She only lasted three months before she quit in November. There’s a reason no one stays, Bunts said: “A lack of...
Christmas tree sales going well in Western Pa., but growers see scarcity of trees in futureVideo
John Fazio and family drove all the way from Swissvale to a tree farm east of New Alexandria this week so he and his son, John, could trudge up a hillside, where he got to lie down in 4 inches of snow and wield a bow saw to cut down...
Pa. health officials bring quarantine guidance in line with shortened CDC timeframe
The Pennsylvania Department of Health on Friday updated guidance for residents who might have been exposed to covid-19, retooling the quarantine timeframe to fall in line with new measures from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC earlier this week indicated that those potentially exposed to the virus...
