Morning roundup: Firefighter funeral to close Pittsburgh roads; 1 found shot in Knoxville

Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Monday, Nov. 25, 2024:

Funeral procession to close Pittsburgh roads

Roads in Pittsburgh will be closed beginning at 8 a.m. Monday for the funeral procession and Mass for Pittsburgh fire Battalion Chief John P. Walsh.

The Mass for Walsh is scheduled for 10 a.m. at St. Paul Cathedral on North Dithridge Street in Oakland.

To accommodate the gathering, police will close Fifth Avenue from Bellefield to Wilkins avenues from 8 a.m. until the service ends by noon.

No parking signs from 6 a.m. to noon have been posted along that section of Fifth Avenue. Tagging and towing will begin at 6 a.m. for vehicles that remain, Pittsburgh’s Department of Public Safety said.

Closures are expected on adjacent streets leading to Fifth Avenue to prevent traffic from entering the road, the public safety department said.

Pittsburgh Regional Transit Buses will be rerouted during the service.

Walsh, 60, a resident of Brighton Heights and a 37-year veteran of the fire bureau, died from heart disease Wednesday while in command at a fire in Pittsburgh’s East Hills neighborhood.

SWAT fails to find suspect after man found shot

A man was found with a gunshot wound to a knee after police responded early Sunday to alerts for 18 shots fired in the area of Bausman Street and Brownsville Road along the Knoxville and Mt. Oliver border.

The man, found in the road, was in stable condition when he was taken to a hospital, police said.

The shooter was believed to be in a nearby residence on Amanda Street. SWAT responded to search the residence, but the suspect was not found.

An investigation is continuing.

No more slowing down at Ohio Turnpike’s Eastgate

Open-road tolling for westbound travelers has begun at the Ohio Turnpike’s Eastgate toll plaza in Mahoning County, near the Ohio-Pennsylvania border, the Ohio Turnpike and Infrastructure Commission announced.

Westbound travelers entering Ohio from Pennsylvania with E-ZPass can stay to the left and keep driving at highway speed. Those using cash or credit cards will have to drive to the right, stop and pay a roundtrip, flat-rate toll to avoid additional fees.

All vehicles traveling eastbound through the Eastgate toll plaza have not had to pay a toll since April 10, when a new toll collection system went live.

The Ohio and Pennsylvania turnpikes are different. While Pennsylvania uses toll-by-plate, which means no stopping for all travelers, in Ohio those without E-ZPass have to stop at the toll plaza to avoid paying additional fees.