Top Local and National News Stories category, Page 1502
Westmoreland County reports 9 new coronavirus cases
Westmoreland County has nine new covid-19 cases and no additional deaths, the Pennsylvania Department of Health reported Friday. The countywide case total is now 587, with 38 deaths, according to the department. There have been no reported coronavirus deaths in Westmoreland County since May 18. More than 16,000 county residents...
Man accused of firing 9 shots inside Jeannette apartment
A Jeannette man is being held in the Westmoreland County Prison after, police say, he fired nine shots inside his apartment, according to court papers. Jason Matthew Thomas, 31, is charged with discharge of a firearm into an occupied structure, reckless endangerment and drug and drug paraphernalia possession. City police...
Firework sales, complaints surge as 4th of July events are canceled across regionVideo
Fireworks wrapped in red, white and blue packaging piled up in Jeremiah Deshetler’s cart this week as he shopped at Phantom Fireworks in Hempfield with the help of his 11-year-old daughter, Caitlin. “Brentwood canceled their fireworks show very early during corona, so we’re trying to make up for that with...
Allegheny Health Network announces mobile covid-19 testing sites for next week
Allegheny Health Network’s mobile covid-19 testing unit will be in Pittsburgh’s Hill District and Hazelwood neighborhoods, Clairton and Duquesne next week. AHN personnel will operate the testing vehicle from 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. on the following dates: • June 29: Pittsburgh Housing Authority, 2435 Chauncey Drive in the Hill...
61 new coronavirus cases reported in Allegheny County, highest in 2 months
Allegheny County health officials reported 61 new cases of covid-19 Friday, a record high for daily cases in nearly two months. One new hospitalization and two deaths were also reported. The new cases reported Friday in Allegheny County represent the highest daily number since April 23. The new cases ranged...
Pittsburgh forms task force to handle explosion of fireworks complaints
Fireworks complaints in Pittsburgh have increased by nearly 400% so far this month over the same period in 2019 and the city plans to address it through increased enforcement. The city on Friday announced the creation of a task force, which includes police and Fire Bureau investigators, to actively enforce...
Confirmed new virus cases hit new high in U.S.
The number of confirmed new coronavirus cases per day in the U.S. hit an all-time high of 40,000 Friday — eclipsing the mark set during one of the deadliest stretches in late April — in a resurgence that has led some governors to backtrack or at least pause the reopening...
New Kensington native’s First Sip Brew Box wins national marketing awardVideo
Time was running out. Dennis Guy’s mother, Denise Peace, was extremely ill. He needed a business loan to boost his company. But this was about more than the money. He wanted his mother to know her son was following his dream. She always told him the sky was the limit....
Amber Alert issued for 1-year-old girl taken from Youngstown
Police are seeking help in locating a 1-year-old girl taken from her home Thursday in Youngstown, Ohio. An Amber Alert was issued for Nova Sheridan, who was taken just about 11:30 p.m. after her father broke into her mother’s home, according to missingkids.org. The baby is about 2 feet tall...
Swissvale shooting victim identified
The victim of a shooting Thursday in Swissvale has been identified by the Allegheny County Medical Examiner. Kellyn Toliver, 31, of Pittsburgh, was shot just before 6:30 p.m. along the 2000 block of Noble Street, county police said. First responders and police searched the area and found that Toliver ran...
U.S. Catholic bishops: Clergy sex abuse claims tripled in 2019
NEW YORK — U.S. Roman Catholic bishops said Thursday that the church tallied 4,434 sex abuse allegations against clergy in the 2018-19 audit year, triple the number seen the previous year, with much of the increase stemming from a wave of lawsuits and claims by survivors of decades-old molestation. In...
Police: Butler man arrested, two others sought in vandalism during May 30 Pittsburgh protest
A Butler man was arrested Thursday and accused of aggravated assault and other crimes in connection with the May 30 protests in Downtown Pittsburgh. Jordan Erdos, 20, was apprehended and taken to the Allegheny County Jail, police said. Erdos is charged with riot, recklessly engendering another person, aggravated assault and...
Details from Oakmont girl’s death resemble physical, psychological torture
Nothing happens along 10th Street in Oakmont. “That’s why I live here. I have two children,” said resident Melissa Kwiatkowski. “This just makes you want to hold them a little closer.” Kwiatkowski, 52, was expressing shock Thursday over the death of 3-year-old Bella Seachrist, who lived in the same block...
3 police officers, Mad Mex employee test positive for covid-19 in Monroeville
Three police officers and a Mad Mex employee have tested positive for covid-19 in Monroeville. This was confirmed Thursday by municipal officials and the restaurant’s Facebook page Thursday. Monroeville Manager Tim Little said via email that the municipality “is following all Center for Disease Control guidelines with respect to positive...
15th Port Authority employee tests positive for coronavirus
Port Authority of Allegheny County on Thursday reported that another of its employees has tested positive for covid-19. Fifteen employees have tested positive for the coronavirus since the first case was reported on March 26, spokesman Adam Brandolph said. This is the first case involving a Port Authority employee since...
Lawyer for suspended Pirates pitcher Felipe Vazquez says evidence of child sex assault should be thrown out
The lawyer for suspended Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Felipe Vazquez said evidence collected by police during an investigation into sexual assault allegations were the product of an illegal search and should be barred from use by prosecutors in an upcoming trial. Vazquez, 28, has been in jail since September, when he...
Comcast offering free Wi-Fi for rest of year as nation works to reopen amid coronavirus
Comcast will keep its public Xfinity Wi-Fi hotspots open to everyone, including non-Xfinity customers, for the remainder of the year, the company said Thursday. The provider in March announced it would open access to its 1.5 million hotspots to anyone amid the coronavirus pandemic. “We saw a huge jump in...
Groups plan $1.1M historical restoration of path in Pittsburgh North Side park
Pittsburgh’s landmark Allegheny Commons Park in the North Side is about to receive a $1.1 million historical facelift. The Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy on Thursday announced plans for restoration of the North Promenade, a path paralleling North Avenue and running almost the length of the park. Plans call for a paved,...
U.S. health officials estimate 20 million Americans have had virus
WASHINGTON — U.S. officials estimate that 20 million Americans have been infected with the coronavirus since it first arrived in the United States, meaning that the vast majority of the population remains susceptible. Thursday’s estimate is roughly 10 times as many infections as the 2.3 million cases that have been...
Westmoreland County pays $50K to settle lawsuit, want row officers to start footing legal bills
Westmoreland County commissioners have had enough of paying out large sums of money to settle lawsuits filed against other elected officials. “We’re sending a letter to all of our row officers and elected officials telling them we want to hold them accountable,” said Commissioner Sean Kertes. Those comments came Thursday...
Banks lead gains for stocks on Wall Street in jumpy trading
Financial companies led stocks broadly higher on Wall Street Thursday as traders welcomed news that the Federal Reserve and other regulators are removing some limits on the ability of banks to make investments. The S&P 500 climbed 1.1% following a jumpy day of trading. At one point, the index was...
Flow of Point State Park fountain signals summer in Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh’s Point State Park fountain is flowing. Park Manager Jake Weiland said the fountain’s annual winter hibernation ended on Wednesday when staff turned on the pumps after about four weeks of prep work. “Lots of people think it’s as simple as turning on switches,” he said. “We’ve been working on...
Pittsburgh doctors document onset of Guillain-Barré Syndrome in covid-19 patient
Pittsburgh doctors found a potential connection between covid-19 and the onset of the autoimmune disorder Guillain-Barré Syndrome, according to a case study from Allegheny General Hospital. The neurologists, among the first in the country to document this link, published findings in the June issue of the Journal of Clinical Neuromuscular...
‘We started getting sores all over us’: Grand jury report blasts DEP, health department over fracking failures in Pa.
A scathing Pennsylvania grand jury report two years in the making blasted the state departments of Environment Protection and Health, alleging years of turning a blind eye to complaints against the oil and gas industry left residents exposed to harmful water and air pollution that caused nosebleeds, mysterious sores and...
Here’s where to see fireworks in Western Pa.
Although many public Fourth of July celebrations have been canceled because of crowd size restrictions, fireworks will light up the skies in various places around Western Pennsylvania. The area’s largest show, over Point State Park in Pittsburgh, is off for this year, but here are some alternatives: Beaver County Beaver...
