Top Local and National News Stories category, Page 1474
Pitcairn family staying with relatives after fire burns their home
A Pitcairn family is being helped by relatives after their home caught fire Monday evening. No injuries were reported in connection with the fire at a 2½-story home near the intersection of 12th Street and Brinton Avenue, Pitcairn Assistant Fire Chief Tommy Dick reported. He said the occupants were outside...
AG William Barr to condemn rioting at much-anticipated House hearing
WASHINGTON — Attorney General William Barr is defending the aggressive federal law enforcement response to civil unrest in America, saying “violent rioters and anarchists have hijacked legitimate protests” sparked by George Floyd’s death at the hands of Minneapolis police. Barr will tell members of the House Judiciary Committee at a...
Power mostly restored after Monday’s storms roll through region
Power was expected to be restored by about 6:30 a.m. to the last of the homes affected by Monday’s storm-related outages, according to the West Penn Power website. There are about 40 customers without electricity in Westmoreland County and less than 10 in Allegheny County, after storms rolled through the...
Strangest Pirates home opener everVideo
If a Pirates home opener were played in the Twilight Zone, this is probably what it would look like. Ninety minutes before the first pitch with the Milwaukee Brewers, the normally teeming streets and sidewalks around PNC Park were practically empty. There were no pedestrians marching to the ballpark across...
Mt. Pleasant woman charged with DUI in Rt. 31 crash that injured 2 pedestrians
State police say a Mt. Pleasant woman was nearly three times over the legal limit of alcohol when she veered off Route 31 early July 3 and struck two pedestrians in Mt. Pleasant Township, seriously injuring one. Elizabeth M. Sirianni, 30, was arraigned Monday on charges of driving under the...
Police: Vehicle suspected in Wilkinsburg homicide located in Rankin
Allegheny County police on Monday said they located a vehicle suspected of being involved in a Wilkinsburg homicide. A 27-year-old man died Sunday after being shot in the head near the intersection of Ardmore Boulevard and Marlboro Avenue late that morning. Officers were looking for a silver and green sedan...
Westmoreland controller does about-face on mask wearing
After more than a week of public shame and praise, Westmoreland County Controller Jeffrey Balzer masked up — and all it took was a text from his daughter. Balzer, the three-term Republican, was both criticized and supported after he was confronted by a citizen just before a public meeting this...
Pelosi, others hail John Lewis as ‘conscience’ of CongressVideo
WASHINGTON — In a solemn display of bipartisan unity, congressional leaders praised the late Democratic Rep. John Lewis as a moral force for the nation on Monday in a Capitol Rotunda ceremony rich with symbolism and punctuated by the booming, recorded voice of the late civil rights icon. House Speaker...
Family of Monroeville man says he ‘died happy’ on raceway
James “Big Jim” Baker’s death at Keystone Raceway last week was exactly the way he’d have wanted to go out. For this, his family said, they are grateful. “He’d say, ‘If I die in that car, I’ll die happy,’ ” his daughter, Nichole Baker, said of her father. “He died...
Greensburg prepares for Thursday vice presidential visit
Before he was sworn as Greensburg’s new police chief two weeks ago, Robert Stafford said he hoped the city would remain peaceful. Westmoreland’s county seat has been the site of a few relatively small Black Lives Matters protests against police brutality, in contrast to large and violent protests in Pittsburgh,...
Westmoreland officials fear growing jail population could lead to virus outbreak
Westmoreland County Prison officials said Monday they are preparing for the worst as the lockup’s inmate population continues to rise and, with it, the risk for additional coronavirus cases at the jail. Warden John Walton said nearly 160 new inmates have been booked into the county jail during the past...
Pennsylvania child care facilities struggling under pandemic conditions
Families and facilities across Pennsylvania face a mounting challenge when it comes to child care during the coronavirus pandemic, officials said Monday. “I think we can all agree that we’ve never seen anything like this before,” said Diane Barber, executive director of the Pennsylvania Child Care Association, a nonprofit advocacy...
GOP coronavirus plan includes another $1,200 check, cuts unemployment benefit to $200Video
WASHINGTON — Senate Republicans presented their $1 trillion plan to bolster the pandemic-ravaged U.S. economy in a series of bills that would trim extra unemployment benefits, send $1,200 payments to most Americans, and shield businesses, schools and other organizations from lawsuits stemming from covid-19 infections. The $1 trillion package was...
Mt. Pleasant man accused of operating meth lab in car, resisting arrest jailed on $50K bond
A 34-year-old Mt. Pleasant man allegedly threatened his mother and police as multiple officers arrested him last week after an almost two month-long drug investigation. Joe P. Biller is accused of operating a mobile meth lab out of his car, according to borough police. He’s being held in the county...
Steelers camp cancellation hits Latrobe-area businesses in bottom lineVideo
Saint Vincent College’s Chuck Noll Field looks green and healthy, unlike many other grassy areas in a region still recovering from recent dry weather. One reason for such a prime condition is that no Bearcats athletes have been on the field since the college campus in Unity closed a few...
Planet Fitness to require all members to wear masks starting Aug. 1
Starting Aug. 1, members of Planet Fitness won’t just be banned from grunting. They’ll be banned from going bare-faced too. The fitness club company said the mandatory mask mandate for all members and employees was put in place to ensure that all gym members can “gym confidently in a safe...
Dick’s Sporting Goods joins other retailers closing on Thanksgiving
Dick’s Sporting Goods joined a growing number of retailers that will be closed on Thanksgiving. The Findlay-based national chain announced Monday that all of its stores, including Dick’s, Field & Stream and Golf Galaxy, would be closed for the holiday. “We are so thankful to our teammates for their hard...
Cops: Sewickley Township man strips naked after domestic, standoff with officers
A Sewickley Township man is being held without bail after state police said he stripped naked on his porch Saturday after threatening and attacking family members, according to court papers. Joseph Patrick Gracan, 53, is facing numerous charges including strangulation, aggravated assault and terroristic threats. Police were called to Lowber...
Pennsylvania posts 839 new covid-19 cases on Monday
The Pennsylvania Department of Health announced 839 new cases of covid-19 on Monday. For the second straight day, the state reported a new case count below 1,000. There have been a total of 108,264 cases of covid-19 in Pennsylvania since the beginning of the pandemic in March. On Monday, there...
Westmoreland County adds 11 new covid-19 cases
A day after Westmoreland County saw its 10th highest day of new covid-19 cases, just 11 new cases were added Monday. In the same report, the Pennsylvania Department of Health added no new covid-19 deaths to the county’s total of 43. Of the latest batch of individuals testing positive, all...
New hospitalizations for covid-19 remain low for Allegheny County
For a fifth straight day, the Allegheny County Health Department announced a new covid-19 case count below the 200 mark. On Monday, officials reported 180 new cases, the ninth time in the past 10 days the count has been in the 100s; there were 96 cases reported on July 22....
Experimental covid-19 vaccine is put to its biggest testVideo
The biggest test yet of an experimental covid-19 vaccine got underway Monday with the first of some 30,000 Americans rolling up their sleeves to receive shots created by the U.S. government as part of the all-out global race to stop the pandemic. The glimmer of hope came even as Google,...
Here is where Allegheny Health Network is conducting covid-19 tests this week
Allegheny Health Network released dates for covid-19 testing at the network’s mobile clinic and drive-thru locations. Because of increased demand, patients must be experiencing symptoms to receive a test at an AHN site, officials said. AHN recommends that asymptomatic patients — including those who believe they’ve come in contact with...
On Portland’s streets: Anger, fear, and a fence that divides
PORTLAND, Ore. — The party at the Salmon Street Springs fountain, a riverfront landmark in the heart of Portland, was just getting started. Dozens of drummers beat out entrancing rhythms and a crowd of hundreds danced joyfully as the setting sun cast a soft pink glow on distant Mount Hood....
Man in stable condition after shooting in Sheraden
A man was in stable condition early Monday after being shot in Pittsburgh’s Sheraden section, according to city police. Officers responded to the incident at about 2:20 a.m. in the 2700 block of Glen Mawr Street. Police said the victim suffered a gunshot wound to the leg but was conscious...
