Top Local and National News Stories category, Page 1407
Steelers Nation, some Eagles fans turn out for 1st in-person game at Heinz FieldVideo
Max Haughn was ecstatic when his mother surprised him with tickets to Sunday’s Steelers game. They weren’t just tickets to Max’s very first Steelers game. They were tickets to the very first in-person game of the season at Heinz Field. “I’m really happy about it,” said Max, 11, of Akron,...
Be my guest: Charming Leechburg bed-and-breakfast (and former church next door) can be yours
The only B&B in Leechburg is for sale. John Truett, a former Disney World executive, owns both the Old Parsonage Bed and Breakfast and the Enchanted Abbey (formerly Holy Innocents Episcopal Church) at 156 Siberian Ave. The two buildings are listed at $185,000 and are on the same lot. Truett,...
Franklin Regional adds some flexibility to attendance policy for covid-cautious absences
Franklin Regional officials have updated the district’s attendance procedures to give students more academic flexibility, if parents choose to keep them home over potential covid-19 symptoms. The district has come in for criticism from some parents since the start of school, for encouraging students to stay home if they think...
Trump supporters gather in Alle-Kiski Valley for caravan, rally
Hundreds of people made their way to the Heights Plaza in Harrison on Sunday for a caravan and rally in support of President Trump’s re-election campaign. Supporters waved American flags and carried signs that read messages such as “Make America Great Again” and “Keep America Great.” The caravan left shortly...
GOP governors in spiking states strain for silver linings
Hospitalizations from covid-19 have hit their highest points recently throughout the Midwest, where the growth in new cases has been the worst in the nation. But that’s not the message coming from a number of Republican governors in the region, who are working to find silver linings in the ominous...
Trump insists he’s free of virus, ready for campaign trail
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Sunday declared he was ready to return to the campaign trail despite unanswered questions about his health on the eve of a Florida rally meant to kick off the stretch run before Election Day. His impending return comes after the White House doctor said...
Protesters arrested after climbing onto Roberto Clemente Bridge
Two people were arrested on Sunday after they climbed into the main cable system of the Roberto Clemente Bridge to hang a protest banner. Pittsburgh police responding to a report of people climbing onto the bridge at about 8:30 a.m. on Sunday said a group of 15 protesters used bicycles...
Pittsburgh-area man found safe after search in Keystone State Park
A Pittsburgh-area man who was reported missing Saturday evening in Keystone State Park in Derry Township was found Sunday night, a state police spokesman said. Search dog teams, dive crews and state police spent Sunday searching for Donald A. Metzger, 39, of Ross. He was found Sunday, Trooper Steve Limani...
Supreme Court pick Barrett draws on faith, family for Senate
WASHINGTON — Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett vows to be a justice “fearless of criticism” as the split Senate charges ahead with confirmation hearings on President Donald Trump’s pick to cement a conservative court majority before Election Day. Barrett, a federal appeals court judge, draws on faith and family...
After missing for more than 100 years, 8 species of freshwater mussels found in the KiskiVideo
— A recent scuba survey of the Kiski River, the first in more than 110 years in what was once a dead river, turned up eight species of freshwater mussels, surprising researchers. For more than a century, the river was sullied by large amounts of noxious drainage from coal mining...
‘Hold your nose’ voters could tip 2020 election as Biden struggles with enthusiasmVideo
Sam DeMarco rejects the notion that Joe Biden has a lock on Pennsylvania’s electorate. DeMarco, who chairs the Republican Committee of Allegheny County, says based on his observations and conversations with politicos and constituents in recent weeks, excitement for President Trump in Western Pennsylvania seems to be outpacing the level...
Pittsburgh artist curates art project with safety messages that go round and roundVideo
Looking for circles has become a daily search. We spot round shapes on the ground that help us remain 6 feet apart for social distancing during the pandemic. Artist Janel Young is making those marks easier to see. The Beltzhoover resident collaborated with fellow artists to bring vibrant color, combined...
Editorial: Election hiccups shouldn’t shake faith
Ideally, the closer we get to Nov. 3, the more election issues should be ironed out. Problems should have been anticipated, solutions planned, outcomes corrected. Preparations, after all, have been underway for years. In Westmoreland County, the $7.1 million elections machines were ordered in 2019. They had verifiable paper trails...
Biden hits Trump on economy in Erie, a critical Pennsylvania county
ERIE — With the backdrop of a union facility in a key battleground county of Pennsylvania, Joe Biden on Saturday blistered President Donald Trump as only pretending to care about the working-class voters who helped flip the Rust Belt to the Republican column four years ago. “Anyone who actually does...
Voting-related lawsuits pepper U.S. before Election Day
Hundreds of lawsuits about voting have been filed before the Nov. 3 election. The cases concern the fundamentals of the American democratic process, including how ballots are cast and counted. A look at some of the top lawsuits in battleground states: ARIZONA: A federal judge ruled in favor of Democrats...
1 more covid-19 death, 2 more cases reported at Westmoreland Manor
Another Westmoreland Manor resident has died and two others have tested positive for covid-19, county officials announced Saturday. Four residents remain hospitalized with covid-19, officials said. In all, 107 residents and 32 staff members have tested positive for coronavirus. Three people have died from the disease. Staff and residents who...
Human skeletal remains found in Boyce Park
A hunter found human skeletal remains Saturday morning in a wooded area at Boyce Park in Plum, officials said. Authorities were alerted to the hunter’s discovery shortly after 9:30 a.m., an Allegheny County 911 shift commander said. Detectives with the Allegheny County Police homicide unit were called to the scene,...
Trump schedules Tuesday campaign stop at Johnstown airport
President Trump will return to Western Pennsylvania on Tuesday, with a campaign rally scheduled in Johnstown following his recovery from a covid-19 infection. The “Make America Great Again” rally is scheduled for 7 p.m. at the John Murtha Johnstown-Cambria County Airport, 469 Airport Road. Attendees must register online in advance...
Doctor says Trump no longer at risk of transmitting virus
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s doctor said Saturday the president is no longer at risk of transmitting the coronavirus. In a memo, Navy Cmdr. Dr. Sean Conley says Trump meets the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention criteria for safely discontinuing isolation and that by “currently recognized standards” he is...
West Deer house fire that killed girl, 14, ruled an accidentVideo
The fire that killed a 14-year-old West Deer girl in March has been ruled accidental, the Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office said Saturday. Dayanna Shaffer, an eighth-grader at Deer Lakes Middle School, called 911 to report the fire at her home on Shepard Road on the morning of March 26....
Westmoreland County posts record-setting 83 new coronavirus cases; 3 new deaths
The Pennsylvania Department of Health on Saturday reported a record-setting 83 new cases of covid-19 in Westmoreland County. Saturday’s total eclipses yesterday’s previous record of 72 new cases. Three additional deaths were reported, lifting the death toll to 62. This has been the deadliest week for the county after reporting...
Judge throws out Trump campaign’s Pennsylvania lawsuit
HARRISBURG, Pa. — A federal judge in Pennsylvania on Saturday threw out a lawsuit filed by President Donald Trump’s campaign, dismissing its challenges to the battleground state’s poll-watching law and its efforts to limit how mail-in ballots can be collected and which of them can be counted. “This is a...
Pennsylvania reports 1,742 new coronavirus cases, 36 new deaths
Pennsylvania on Saturday reported 1,742 new coronavirus cases — a whopping 362-case jump from yesterday’s 1,380. The state Department of Health reported 36 new deaths attributed to the coronavirus after posting nine on Friday. Wednesday’s total of 28 deaths was the highest of the week before today. The total number...
Allegheny County reports 81 coronavirus cases
Allegheny County on Saturday recorded 81 new coronavirus cases. The county now has a total of 13,183 cases of covid-19, according to data from the Allegheny County Health Department. Seventy-seven of the new cases are confirmed, while 4 are listed as probable. No new deaths were reported, leaving the total...
School districts re-examine attendance policies amid new educational model
School districts throughout the region are asking families to act with an abundance of caution when it comes to students exhibiting potential covid-19 symptoms. If a student is showing any of the 13 symptoms closely associated with the virus, districts are asking parents to keep them home. That didn’t work...
