Top Stories category, Page 656
West Nile virus found in Allegheny County mosquitoes
Mosquitoes collected by the Allegheny Health Department in Mt. Oliver Borough and in the nearby Pittsburgh neighborhoods of Beltzhoover and South Side Slopes have tested positive for West Nile virus. The infected mosquitoes were collected on July 11 as part of the department’s Vector Control Program. County health officials said...
Pfizer reports North Carolina pharmaceutical plant damaged by tornado, no serious injuriesVideo
A tornado heavily damaged a large Pfizer pharmaceutical plant Wednesday in North Carolina, the latest in a string of extreme weather events plaguing the U.S. on a day when floods deluged communities in Kentucky and scorching heat smothered Phoenix and Miami. Pharmaceutical company Pfizer confirmed that a large complex was...
IRS whistleblowers air claims to Congress about ‘slow-walking’ of the Hunter Biden caseVideo
WASHINGTON — House Republicans raised unsubstantiated allegations Wednesday against President Joe Biden over his family’s finances as they summoned IRS whistleblowers to testify publicly for the first time about claims the Justice Department improperly interfered with a tax investigation into Biden’s son Hunter. Lawmakers heard from the two IRS agents...
Pittsburgh International to get additional flights to California, Florida
The expansion of flights at Pittsburgh International Airport continues as the airport announced two sets of expanded service this week. United Airlines is adding another daily round-trip flight from Pittsburgh to San Francisco International Airport starting Aug. 1, according to a release. The flight will provide daytime flight service between...
Bank forecloses on Jeannette EMS building as state health department plans talks with agency
A bank wants to take possession of the Jeannette EMS station to cover a $340,000 debt. KeyBank filed the mortgage foreclosure action Wednesday in Westmoreland County court claiming the ambulance station on South Sixth Street defaulted on repayments of a $275,000 line of credit issued in 2008. The agency used...
Taylor Swift’s shows in Pittsburgh generated $46M, agency says
Taylor Swift’s two Pittsburgh concerts generated $46 million in direct spending, according to tourism agency Visit Pittsburgh. The megastar singer brought record-setting crowds to Acrisure Stadium for her Eras Tour in June. About 83% of ticketholders came from outside of Allegheny County and packed the region’s hotels. According to Visit...
Pittsburgh pool reopens after fatal shooting
Jack Stack Pool in Pittsburgh’s Brighton Heights neighborhood reopened Wednesday with new safety measures in place after a fatal shooting nearby last week. Mayor Ed Gainey and public safety officials said they met with lifeguards and pool management to offer trauma support care, listen to concerns and begin crafting a...
‘It’s always there’: Families of synagogue shooting victims reflect on what’s lost
There’s a weed growing in a bucket on Pittsburgh police SWAT Officer Tim Matson’s porch. It saved his life. Months after he was shot multiple times responding to an active shooter at the Tree of Life synagogue building in Squirrel Hill, Matson said Wednesday, he remained in a dark place....
Pittsburgh police chief says staffing ‘not in crisis’ despite officer shortage
Pittsburgh Police Chief Larry Scirotto said the police bureau’s staffing levels are “not in crisis,” as officials on Wednesday released the bureau’s first staffing study in more than a decade. According to the study, conducted by California-based Matrix Consulting Group, the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police has an “exceptional” response time...
Sara Innamorato resigns from state House amid budget impasse
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan newsroom powered by The Philadelphia Inquirer in partnership with PennLive/The Patriot-News, TribLIVE/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review and WITF Public Media. Sign up for our free newsletters. HARRISBURG — The state House will once again be tied at 101-101 following the resignation of a Western Pennsylvania Democrat. State...
Magisterial District Judge Mik Pappas resigns
The magisterial district judge for several of Pittsburgh’s East End neighborhoods has resigned, according to a letter obtained by the Tribune-Review. Mik Pappas was elected to Allegheny County’s 31st magisterial district in 2017, and announced last year that he would not seek reelection. District 31 includes the city’s Bloomfield, East...
Overnight closures of Andy Warhol Bridge end; work on Clemente underway
Overnight closures of the Andy Warhol Bridge have ended, Allegheny County officials said Tuesday. The closures, which began in late April, allowed for crews to install an enhanced lighting system on the span. There will be periodic single-lane closures during the day on the Andy Warhol and Rachel Carson bridges...
Fear, distrust, and an ethics office in chaos erode Penn State’s post-Sandusky reforms
This story was produced by the State College regional bureau of Spotlight PA, an independent, nonpartisan newsroom dedicated to investigative and public-service journalism for Pennsylvania. Sign up for our regional newsletter, Talk of the Town. STATE COLLEGE — John Champagne submitted his report just before noon on Oct. 28, 2021....
Dog gets $2,000 reward for helping capture escaped Pennsylvania inmate Michael Burham
A chocolate Lab mix in Warren County is getting spoiled after his owners were presented Tuesday with $2,000, part of a reward authorities had offered for information leading to the apprehension of jail escapee Michael Burham. Ron and Cindy Ecklund were given $2,000 cash from Warren County Crime Stoppers for...
Photos: Pittsburgh’s Wiz Khalifa, Snoop Dogg perform sold-out show at Star Lake
Rappers Snoop Dogg and Pittsburgh’s own Wiz Khalifa brought the High School Reunion tour Tuesday night to the Pavilion at Star Lake in Burgettstown. The show was sold out. Snoop, a noted Pittsburgh Steelers fan, gained prominence on the rap scene in 1992 from appearances with Dr. Dre. He’s since...
Pitt’s new chancellor begins her tenure with some questions for students, staff
College and university leaders who are new in their job almost always arrive on campus promising some form of a listening tour to take the pulse of the place. At the University of Pittsburgh, Chancellor Joan Gabel is taking things a bit further in her first week. She emailed Pitt’s...
Morning Roundup: Police say juvenile injured in Braddock shooting
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Wednesday, July 19: Police say juvenile injured in Braddock shooting Pennsylvania State Police said one person was injured in a shooting early Wednesday morning in Braddock. Emergency dispatchers said police were called to the 200 block of 6th Street...
‘He will serve his country,’ but first, Pirates have high hopes for Paul SkenesVideo
During Paul Skenes’ two years at the Air Force Academy, there was little he loved more than folding his 6-foot, 6½-inch, 260-pound frame into an F-15 fighter aircraft. Even if it meant hitting his head on the roof of the cockpit and enduring 9 Gs of force, or about nine...
PennDOT announces detours, shuttle service for 6-week closure of New Kensington Bridge
A six-week closure of the New Kensington Bridge will start Monday, PennDOT confirmed Tuesday. The bridge spanning the Allegheny River between East Deer and New Kensington is scheduled to close to all traffic around 9 a.m. Monday and remain closed through Sept. 4. The nearly century-old bridge is being closed...
Up in the air: The cost of auto repair, insurance climbing
Following suit with rising costs and inflation, the costs of automobile ownership, insurance and necessary repairs have soared in recent years and are expected to continue. Frank Ferra, president of Ferra’s Automotive Services in Sharpsburg, says expenses including wages, rent, taxes, equipment and insurance, along with the costs for parts,...
2 Westmoreland men indicted in federal Snapchat hacking case
Two Westmoreland County men are among seven people who were indicted by a federal grant jury in Erie alleging they conspired to hack into Snapchat accounts, steal explicit photos and videos and distribute them on the web, federal prosecutors said. Edward Michael Grabb, 31, of Jeannette and Michael Paul Yackovich,...
West Mifflin Council unanimously condemns former Century III Mall
West Mifflin Council voted unanimously Tuesday to condemn the former Century III Mall. The vote was 6-0 with Councilman Anthony Topolnak absent. Attorney Nicole Nino, filling in for borough Solicitor Phil DiLucente, said the property owner, Moonbeam Capital Investments, has 30 days to appeal. She said she could not comment...
Jill Biden touts airport funding, workforce development during Western Pa. visit
Flanked by scores of cranes, first lady Jill Biden visited the Pittsburgh region Tuesday in an effort to remind the region that the Biden administration supports, and provided funding for, many of its largest infrastructure projects. In a speech just outside of Pittsburgh International Airport, she praised Western Pennsylvania for...
Michigan charges 16 fake electors for Donald Trump with election law and forgery feloniesVideo
LANSING, Mich. — Michigan’s attorney general filed felony charges Tuesday against 16 Republicans who acted as fake electors for then-President Donald Trump in 2020, accusing them of submitting false certificates confirming they were legitimate electors despite Joe Biden’s victory in the state. Attorney General Dana Nessel, a Democrat, announced Tuesday...
Pennsylvania Turnpike motorists to be hit with 5% toll hike next year
Pennsylvania Turnpike travelers will see a 5% toll hike in January, continuing a 15-year trend of annual rate increases by the Turnpike Commission. The new toll rates are scheduled to take effect Jan. 7, equaling the most recent percentage increase, imposed earlier this year. Next year, the most common toll...
