Natasha Lindstrom stories, Page 27
Police search for hit-and-run suspect in East Liberty crash that injured 2
Police are investigating a hit-and-run rollover crash in Pittsburgh’s East Liberty neighborhood that injured two people and sent one person to the hospital Sunday morning, officials said. Police and medics responded to a report of an overturned vehicle near Penn Avenue and Beatty Street around 10:15 a.m., Department of Public...
Man shot in Carrick in critical condition; police search for suspect who fled
Police are searching for a suspect believed to have shot and seriously injured another man Saturday night in Pittsburgh’s Carrick neighborhood, officials said. Officers responded to a report of shots fired in the 1500 block of Amanda Street around 7:45 p.m., Department of Public Safety spokesman Chris Togneri said. Police...
Man shot in shoulder walks into Mt. Oliver police station
Pittsburgh police are investigating a possible shooting early Saturday near where Mt. Oliver meets the city’s Carrick neighborhood. A man with a gunshot wound to the shoulder walked into the Mt. Oliver police station around 3:15 a.m., Department of Public Safety spokesman Chris Togneri said. He was taken by medics...
Police investigate Liberty Tunnel crash that injured motorcyclist
Police are investigating a two-vehicle crash just outside the Liberty Tunnel that left a motorcyclist in critical condition Friday night. Officials responded to a report of the crash involving a motorcycle and another vehicle around 11:35 p.m. at the tunnel’s south end, Department of Public Safety spokesman Chris Togneri said....
Boil-water advisory in effect for Harrison residents through Monday
A boil-water advisory remains in place for residents of Harrison’s Natrona neighborhood at least through Monday. Emergency services officials confirmed late Sunday that the advisory will continue until testing demonstrates that the local water is safe to drink. Residents should boil their water before using for drinking or cooking. Homes...
Route 130 reopens near Pa. Turnpike after motorcycle crash; 1 injured
At least one person was injured Sunday night in a crash involving a motorcycle and another vehicle along Route 130 just east of the Pennsylvania Turnpike, officials said. Officials received a report about 8 p.m. of the incident at Route 130 and Long Drive in Penn Township, a Westmoreland County...
Penn Hills School District gets $3.3M from state, nixes plan to raise taxes
A last-minute reprieve in the form of $3.3 million in state money has enabled leaders of the debt-ridden Penn Hills School District to scrap a plan to raise taxes for the coming school year. The boost also will allow the district to bring back six teachers and one specialist furloughed...
Crews find pickup truck reported missing in Loyalhanna Creek; no one injured
Water rescue crews on Saturday found the missing pickup truck that officials believed had sunk in Loyalhanna Creek during heavy rainfall the night before, officials said. Authorities located the car and determined there were no related injuries, a Westmoreland County 911 shift commander said shortly after 8 p.m. Saturday. Officials...
Man dies after being shot on residential street in Arnold
Police are investigating a fatal shooting Friday night on a residential street in Arnold, officials said. Westmoreland County 911 dispatchers received a report of a shooting about 6:30 p.m. in an alley between Taylor and Woodmont avenues, said Detective John Clark of the Westmoreland County District Attorney’s Office. Officials found...
Harrison girl, 7, a fundraising sensation, gets $7,500 surprise from Walmart
Kaohmi Gold, a Verona girl who turned 4 earlier this month, has set her sights on a new role model. Her name is Kaley Bastine of Harrison, and at 7, she’s not much older than Kaohmi. They both really like dogs and cops — and especially police dogs. Kaohmi has...
Fans fight traffic for Zac Brown Band, but it’s no Luke Bryan fiasco
Concertgoers fought rush-hour traffic and a crawling highway exit loop to get to the Zac Brown Band show Friday night at KeyBank Pavilion near Burgettstown. Still, many fans said getting into the outdoor amphitheater proved easier than prior events at the notoriously log-jammed venue. “Traffic was horrible,” lamented Elaina DiBucci,...
Allegheny County’s 911 dispatchers get upgraded digs with $18.2M facility in Moon Township
As storm spotters warned of thunder, lightning and gusty winds clustering near Cranberry on Friday afternoon, Allegheny County 911 dispatchers began to see a slight uptick in calls from gleaming new workstations near Pittsburgh International Airport. Fourteen initial call-takers promptly picked up the lines. Within 30 seconds, they routed each...
Highlands School District board OKs 1% tax hike for the coming school year
Property taxes in the Highland School District will climb by 1% for next school year, which is about $25 per $100,000 in assessed property value, district officials said . The tax hike is less than the 3.3% increase in a preliminary budget that school board members approved last month. “I’m...
What the UPMC-Highmark truce does and doesn’t mean for patients
A day after UPMC and Highmark reached a 10-year pact, patients across Western Pennsylvania are awaiting answers on precisely what the unexpected deal between the nonprofit health giants means for them. Patients who severed ties with longtime doctors are hopeful they can return to the physician teams who know them...
UPMC, Highmark reach 10-year deal for patient coverage
UPMC and Highmark struck a truce Monday that will allow Western Pennsylvanians to maintain access to hospitals and doctors across both rival health systems for at least the next 10 years. Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro hailed the unexpected contract — inked six days before UPMC and Highmark were scheduled...
Sen. Toomey lauds Trump for calling off Iran strikes, supports stricter economic sanctions
U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey on Friday lauded reports of President Donald Trump’s decision to call off a planned strike on Iran in retaliation for an American drone shot down earlier this week. Toomey said that “it’s commendable that the President’s instinctive approach is to try to avoid an escalation that...
Hill District man charged in fatal Homewood shooting
A Hill District man is charged with homicide in connection with the shooting death of a Pittsburgh man nearly three months ago. Geron Anderson, 24, is accused in the killing of Kenneth Baptiste Jr. in Homewood on March 30, Department of Public Safety spokeswoman Cara Cruz said. Shortly before 1...
Church targeted by alleged terrorist unites in worship, welcomes Muslim neighbors
Knowing they were the target of an accused terrorist’s foiled bomb plot did not deter the congregants of a North Side church from worshipping Thursday night. As rain pounded the pavement outside, a few dozen men, women and children who belong to Legacy International Worship Center filed through the red...
Syrian refugee charged with plotting to bomb Pittsburgh church
Federal investigators arrested a Syrian refugee living in Pittsburgh on charges of plotting to bomb a church in the city’s North Side next month to support the terrorist group ISIS, the U.S. Department of Justice said Wednesday. Mustafa Mousab Alowemer, 21, who resided in a Northview Heights housing complex and...
Beaver County man confessed to robbing 4 Western Pa. banks of more than $26K
A Beaver County man confessed to robbing four banks across Western Pennsylvania of more than $26,000, federal prosecutors said. Patrick Acierno, 34, of Freedom pleaded guilty to four counts of bank robbery. The banks were robbed between September 2018 and March of this year, U.S. Attorney Scott W. Brady said....
Highmark-insured seniors who use UPMC could get another chance to switch plans
Highmark-insured seniors and people with disabilities who use UPMC hospitals and doctors may get another chance to decide which insurance plan they want to have for the remainder of 2019. U.S. Health Secretary Alex Azar informed U.S. Sen. Bob Casey by phone that the Centers for Medicaid & Medicare Services...
12 contenders vie to represent District 8 on Allegheny County Council
A dozen contenders are vying for the open seat on Allegheny County Council left vacant by the death of Charles Martoni. Several Democratic council members grilled each applicant for 20 minutes during a public meeting Monday night at the Allegheny County Courthouse. They asked about individual qualifications, priorities and experience...
Patients seek clarity as UPMC-Highmark split looms
The latest clash of Pittsburgh health care titans UPMC and Highmark made for a stressful several months for patients like Evie Bodick. Not only has the 74-year-old Springdale woman been dealing with several health problems, including heart and lung issues, diabetes and cancer, but she was told last fall that...
3 injured in head-on Route 356 crash in Allegheny Township; 1 driver to be chargedVideo
Three people were hospitalized Friday night in a head-on collision on Route 356 in Allegheny Township, and alcohol may have played a role, police said. One driver is expected to be charged with DUI because police suspect he may have been under the influence of alcohol, narcotics or both, Allegheny...
East Franklin doctor guilty in $13 million ‘fountain of youth’ health fraud scheme
A former East Franklin doctor is guilty of plotting to defraud patients and insurers out of more than $13 million in a so-called “fountain of youth” medical treatment scheme, a jury found Friday. Dr. Samirkumar J. Shah, 56, a cardiologist who also has ties to Kittanning and Fox Chapel, was...
