Local category, Page 2405

Uncertainty caused by the coronavirus pandemic and business shutdowns ordered to control it appear to be good for the gun business in Pennsylvania. A surge in gun sales that started in mid-March as Pennsylvania’s coronavirus cases began to steadily increase caused a 14.4% year-to-year increase in the number of background...

Two former employees of the Aramark industrial laundry facility in Pittsburgh’s East Liberty neighborhood are accusing the Aramark Uniform and Career Apparel company of unfair labor practices. Angela Smith, 42, and her son, Kendall Smith, 21, both of Duquesne, said they were fired from their jobs at the facility after...

Pennsylvania State Police arrested two people for allegedly growing hallucinogenic mushrooms in an Indiana Borough apartment. The suspects are a 39-year-old man and a 26-year-old woman. Charges are pending, and police have not identified the suspects to the public. Investigators received a tip about the apartment on the 900 block...

Gov. Tom Wolf said he believes it should be left to state governments — not the president — to decide when and how to loosen restrictions imposed to slow the spread of the coronavirus. “We had the responsibility for addressing the needs that we all had, and that involved closing...

Coronavirus has changed almost everything, but some people who work in Greensburg say they’re still facing one all-too-familiar scenario: parking tickets. “I think it’s ridiculous that we’re being ticketed during a pandemic,” said Tracy Scott, who works at the Welcome Home shelter on South Maple Avenue. She’s been given several...

The Highlands School Board unified in choosing new leadership Monday, in contrast to when the board last reorganized in December. The nine-member board had to select a new president and vice president following the resignation of former President Misty Chybrzynski in March and the appointment of Nicole Kocon to replace...

The Shop ‘n Save grocery store chain is donating $10,000 to benefit the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank and Westmoreland County Food Bank as demand for their services has soared during the coronavirus crisis. The donation, funded by the brand’s independent retailers, is equivalent to 50,000 meals. “The customers and...

The Franklin Regional School District will restart the Sloan “elementary campus” project later this month despite concerns by four of its nine school board members. “There’s really no certainty when a good time to move forward is,” said board member Gary English. “I think we should err on the side...

It’s a sign of the times. People hunkered down in their homes waiting for the coronavirus pandemic to recede can’t help sending messages to the outside world. While many are dispatching to a broad audience via social media, others are taking a rather analog approach. Messages of support and encouragement...

The messages are simple but uplifting. The front of the Platinum Ridge skilled nursing facility in Brackenridge was covered Tuesday morning with colorful and encouraging messages created by its workers. The goal: To help alleviate the tension and uncertainty of the coronavirus crisis. “We want to make everybody happy when...

Sixty more people across Pennsylvania died from the coronavirus, state health officials said Tuesday. The Pennsylvania Department of Health said 1,146 new cases of covid-19 were reported Monday, bringing the state’s running tally to 25,345. There were 1,366 new cases reported Monday and 1,178 on Sunday. The death toll now...

A Monroeville volunteer firefighter was arrested and charged last week with having inappropriate sexual contact with a 10-year-old girl. Ryan Costa, 26, of Monroeville is the municipality’s second volunteer firefighter in April to have been charged with inappropriate sexual contact with a minor. Gregory Allen Lauffer, 23, of Monroeville was...

Pittsburgh is preparing to refinance $161 million in debt while interest rates remain low, a move that officials say will result in significant savings. Margaret Lanier, the city’s treasurer and finance director, said the refinancing of nearly $161.3 million would cover capital bonds issued in 2012, 2014 and 2018. She...

Three more Allegheny County residents have died from the coronavirus, bringing the countywide total to 24, health department officials reported Tuesday. The people who died from the coronavirus ranged in age from 56 to 103. The Allegheny County Health Department also reported 17 new cases of covid-19, increasing the countywide...

Community members are being invited to share their ideas for a mural planned for the side of the Walt’s Deli building in New Kensington. The mural is a project of the Community Arts and Reintegration Project (CARP), administered by the Center For Applied Research at the University of Pittsburgh at...

Allegheny Health Network has launched new coronavirus testing sites in Braddock and Pittsburgh’s North Side, the health system announced Tuesday. The Braddock testing site is located at the AHN Urgent Care at 501 Braddock Ave. The North Side testing site is at 1004 Arch St., at the former Divine Providence...

Two Greensburg women are accused by police of drug delivery resulting in death in connection with a February fatal overdose, according to court papers. Jamie Lynn Dickant, 34, is accused of supplying a fatal dose that killed Justine Baker, 32, on Feb. 11, city police said. Baker’s spouse, Mary Elizabeth...

A Fayette County woman missing since last week was found safe, according to Pennsylvania State Police in Uniontown. Karissa Nicola, 30, was reported missing after she didn’t return from a walk along East Main Street in New Salem on Friday, police said. Troopers said public tips aided authorities in locating...

Two more people died from the coronavirus in Westmoreland County, bringing the current death toll to 15, officials reported Tuesday. The majority of the county’s fatalities are linked to senior living communities, said Coroner Ken Bacha. The two most recent deaths occurred at hospitals, but were people who had been...

For Baldwin-Whitehall School District Superintendent Dr. Randal Lutz, the class of 2020 commencement was personal – his youngest daughter, Jenna, is a part of the senior class. Lutz said that he had the privilege of handing his older daughter, Carly, her diploma four years ago, and he always envisioned doing...

Pittsburgh police are searching for the driver of a vehicle that crashed into a police SUV then fled, pubic safety officials said The hit-and-run happened about 12:30 a.m. Tuesday in the 1500 block of Brighton Road in the city’s California-Kirkbride neighborhood. Officers were leaving the Zone 1 station when the...

Drive-in theaters appear tailor-made for social distancing: Expansive fields of grass let vehicles park more than six feet apart, providing families with a safe night out in relative isolation. Yet drive-ins are subject to the conditions facing most businesses during the coronavirus pandemic. Local drive-ins have sat empty since Gov....

Now that the covid-19 crisis has forced Pennsylvania schools to turn to online instruction for the remainder of the academic year, Carnegie Science Center is offering to help educators. The resources being offered include educational activities, videos and lesson plans on Carnegie Science Center’s new Online Educator Resources page. The...

Small Acts of Kindness Erin Wagner-Haggerty of Allegheny Township would like to recognize Dawn Smith-Galia of Tarentum for making over 500 cotton face masks with replaceable melt blown filters. Masks are placed in bags of three along with treats and handmade thank-you cards with a poem and have been donated...