Top Local and National News Stories category, Page 1466
Allegheny County adds 70 new coronavirus cases, 5 new deaths
Allegheny County’s number of new coronavirus cases dropped back into double digits on Wednesday, but there was an uptick in hospitalizations and deaths. The county’s health department reported 70 new cases, nine hospitalizations and five deaths. Since the first cases were reported in March, Allegheny County has seen 8,512 cases,...
Virginia man accused of transporting 100 pounds of marijuana on Pa. Turnpike in Mt. Pleasant Township
Drug charges were held for court Tuesday against a Virginia man state police accuse of transporting 100 pounds of marijuana on the Pennsylvania Turnpike in Westmoreland County earlier this year. Navdeep Singh Chahal, 30, of Lorton, Va., will face formal arraignment in October, according to online court records. A state...
TSA: Loaded handgun found in Connellsville man’s bag at Pittsburgh International Airport
A Connellsville man told federal security officers he forgot he had a loaded .380-caliber handgun in his carry-on bag Tuesday when he was stopped at a Pittsburgh International Airport security checkpoint. Transportation Security Administration officers spotted the gun on the monitor of an X-ray machine. The gun was confiscated, but...
Clorox wipes will be hard to find through the rest of 2020
Clorox wipes are the new toilet paper. You’ll have a hard time finding the brand of cleaning wipes until early next year, company officials said in an earnings call Tuesday. Linda Rendle, CEO-elect for the Clorox Co., said they will continue to ramp up production through the rest of the...
Negligence probed in deadly Beirut blast amid public angerVideo
BEIRUT — Investigators probing the deadly blast that ripped across Beirut focused Wednesday on possible negligence in the storage of tons of a highly explosive fertilizer in a waterfront warehouse, while the government ordered the house arrest of several port officials. International aid flights began to arrive as Lebanon’s leaders...
Tarentum increases fine for excessive police calls to at least $300
Tarentum has increased by at least six times a penalty imposed on residents who have excessive calls for police and other emergency and public safety services. The ordinance council approved Tuesday replaces a 14-year-old ordinance, which had imposed a $50 “surtax” for each police response in excess of three every...
Woman trying to save pets rescued from burning home in New Castle
Firefighters in New Castle, Lawrence County, rescued a woman from a burning house after she went back inside to retrieve her pets. The fire broke out in the kitchen of the home along East Lutton Street shortly after midnight, according to Tribune-Review news partners WPXI-TV. Authorities told the television station...
Allegheny, Westmoreland school districts reveal plans for upcoming classes
In March, school districts across the state were ordered closed by Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf to help curb the spread of coronavirus. Now, they are now developing new health and safety protocols in an effort to restart instruction in the coming weeks. Some will begin with online instruction, some will...
Franklin Regional pushes back start date, modifies reopening plansVideo
The Franklin Regional School District has modified its plan for the 2020-21 school year and pushed back its start date to Sept. 8 after officials said new state health guidelines made it impossible to properly maintain social distance at its high school. Students up through eighth grade will have three...
USDA: ‘Mystery seeds’ include common plants, herbs but still should not be opened
Scientists have found that the “mystery seeds” being sent to addresses across the country represent at least 14 varieties of plants and herbs, a U.S. Department of Agriculture official said. And while many of them are common — mint, rosemary, sage — federal officials said not to plant them, though...
Bethel Park scraps full in-person learning, leaning toward some in-school days, some days online
Three weeks before school is scheduled to start, the Bethel Park School Board is changing course on how it will reopen to students and teachers. It’s scrapping its plan for a full return to the classroom. The board expects to decide on a different plan Tuesday, Aug. 11, according to...
O’Hara Council: Squaw Valley Park is now O’Hara Township Community Park
People watching the O’Hara Council meeting online via Zoom on Tuesday night erupted in cheers and applause following a vote to rename Squaw Valley Park. Council voted 6-1 to rename the site O’Hara Township Community Park, bringing a swift resolution to a two-month heated debate over removing the word Squaw...
Restaurants and bars banding together to give Gov. Wolf an ultimatum
Restaurant and bar owners plan to issue a threat to Gov. Tom Wolf later this week: “We’re going to stand together and open up at 100%,” said Rod Ambrogi, a restaurant owner in Bethel Park. The warning comes nearly two weeks after 42 politicians formally asked Wolf through signed letters...
High school bands eager to march on through pandemicVideo
The high school marching band’s drum line heralds the start of a fresh school year. Chris Snyder, band director at Deer Lakes High School, wasn’t going to let a pandemic kill that tradition. Since March, Deer Lakes students — like high schoolers nationwide — haven’t participated in school events, seen...
Garden club honors suffrage movement with appropriately colored flowers
This month marks the 100th anniversary of the day the 19th Amendment became law in the United States. On Aug. 26, 1920, following a battle seven decades long, American women were granted the right to vote. Not everyone is aware that suffragists adopted purple, white and yellow as the colors...
Westmoreland sheriff uses antibody tests to screen deputies for coronavirusVideo
Westmoreland County deputy sheriffs won’t have week-long waits to determine if they’ve been infected with the coronavirus. Sheriff James Albert said Tuesday his office secured up to 50 rapid antibody tests that his staff will use as a diagnostic tool to determine the likelihood of exposure to the virus. “As...
Progress ‘long ways away’ as urgency grows on coronavirus reliefVideo
WASHINGTON — Frustrated Senate Republicans re-upped their complaints on Tuesday that Democratic negotiators are staking too hard a line in talks on a broad coronavirus relief bill, but pressure is mounting for progress as covid-weary senators are eager to return to their home states for the August recess. Another negotiating...
Police arrest Delaware County man for returning to North Apollo home from which he was banned after assault
A Delaware County man previously charged with domestic assault was arrested Tuesday after he was found hiding inside a North Apollo home where the assault occurred, according to police. Police said Devante Grant, 21, of Lansdowne isn’t allowed in the Allison Avenue home because he previously assaulted a woman who...
Man detained after shooting near Wilkinsburg school, victim in critical condition
A 26-year-old man was taken to the hospital in critical condition Tuesday afternoon after he was shot near an elementary school in Wilkinsburg, according to Allegheny County Police. Police said they detained a 29-year-old man who they believe was responsible for the shooting. They did not identify him. The shooting...
Heinz Field Kickoff and Rib Fest canceled
There will be no ribs slathered in barbecue sauce over Labor Day weekend on Pittsburgh’s North Shore. The annual Heinz Field Kickoff and Rib Fest has been canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic, officials said Tuesday. The five-day festival had been scheduled to start Sept. 3 and run through Sept....
Victim in New Kensington witness intimidation trial says she fears for her life
A New Kensington woman testified Tuesday she fears for her safety after her cooperation with investigators was publicly disclosed during the prosecution of a man sentenced to death for the murder of a police officer. Tasha Williams, 39, told a Westmoreland County jury her life may still be in jeopardy...
Census Bureau announces date change for in-person counts
Local communities could be left scrambling after the Census Bureau confirmed there will be one less month to collect population counts vital for determining how federal funds are dispersed and the number of representatives each state has in Congress. The final date for collecting the once-a-decade survey is Sept. 30...
CDC predicts seasonal outbreak of rare childhood paralysis linked to virus
Starting this month, the United States should expect an outbreak of acute flaccid myelitis (AFM), a form of childhood paralysis thought to be caused by a viral infection, government health officials said Tuesday. Though AFM remains uncommon, it spikes in even-numbered years, with 238 cases identified in 2018, the Centers...
U.S. Rep. Conor Lamb: Investigate state health department over coronavirus oversight at Brighton Rehab
U.S. Rep. Conor Lamb on Tuesday renewed his criticism of the Brighton Rehabilitation and Wellness Center in Beaver County, calling for an additional investigation into how the Pennsylvania Department of Health oversaw the facility during the coronavirus pandemic. In a letter dated Monday to the federal Centers for Medicare &...
Pennsylvania Education Secretary Rivera to step down in October
Pennsylvania’s top education official plans to step down from his position in early October, the state announced Tuesday. Secretary of Education Pedro Rivera’s departure comes during the coronavirus pandemic and ongoing uncertainty for schools making their plans for the fall. According to a news release, Rivera will become president of...
