Local category, Page 2518
Hempfield high school students rally to create positive messageVideo
Hempfield Area High School students turned to the magic of Disney and the strength of superheroes to spread joy to elementary school students amid the coronavirus pandemic. In an almost six-minute video, more than 120 students recited popular quotes from “The Little Mermaid,” “Toy Story” and “The Lion King,” along...
Pittsburgh aerial photo depicts ‘ghost town’
On Saturday afternoon, David Kahley, chief executive of The Progress Fund of Greensburg, flew his plane over Pittsburgh and snapped an aerial view of a nearly deserted Downtown. “It was unnerving,” Kahley said. “The physical center of the town, its parks, roads, museum and stadium parking lots and rivers, were...
Police: Girl shot in Pittsburgh’s Sheraden neighborhood
A girl is recovering after apparently being shot Monday afternoon in Pittsburgh’s Sheraden neighborhood, officials said. Emergency dispatchers received a 911 call reporting the shooting in the 3100 block of Allendale Street shortly before 5 p.m., Pittsburgh Public Safety spokeswoman Cara Cruz said. Police officers arrived to find a female...
Pittsburgh-to-Harrisburg passenger rail service out until May
The suspension of the Amtrak train between Pittsburgh and Philadelphia, with stops in Greensburg, Latrobe and Johnstown, has been extended until May 4, a PennDOT spokeswoman said. Amtrak suspended passenger rail service between Pittsburgh and Philadelphia on March 19 because of low ticket sales as the spread of the coronavirus...
Parks Conservancy reminds visitors to practice social distancing
With state and local parks, state forests and trails seeing record numbers of visitors, the Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy is renewing its call for everyone to practice safe physical distancing. Proper physical distancing is maintaining a minimum of six feet from others. The parks conservancy also urges visitors to follow Gov....
Human remains found near Bethel Park trail; foul play not suspected
A trail walker discovered human remains Monday in Bethel Park, Allegheny County Police said. The person called 911 shortly before 11:30 a.m. after finding the remains while on a trail near trolley tracks, police said. County homicide detectives are investigating but “preliminary indications are that foul play is not suspected,”...
Harrison police seek owner of lost diamond engagement ring
Harrison police are looking for a woman who will say “I did!” when asked if she lost her diamond engagement ring. Township police have been holding the ring since Feb. 26, police Chief Mike Klein said Monday. Klein said a man found the ring in the parking lot of McDonald’s...
Cheron Shelton, acquitted of murder in Wilkinsburg shooting, to remain in prison pending federal trial
A Homewood man acquitted of murder earlier this year will remain in federal prison while he awaits trial on federal gun charges, a judge decided Monday. Cheron Shelton, 33, was indicted Feb. 25 on charges he was in possession of a gun despite being a convicted felon. The charge came...
Franklin Regional free meal service open to all students
Franklin Regional students do not need to be signed up for the school district’s free and reduced lunch program to receive free meals, officials said. As of Monday, the district has waiver approvals from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to provide free meals to all children. In cooperation with its...
Kiski Area High School grieves online for student killed in ATV crash
As soon as he heard the news, Principal Chad Roland began making a list. Kiski Area High School senior Dominic G. DeFalco, 17, was killed in a rollover ATV crash in Allegheny Township on Sunday. Now, amid a transition to full-scale digital learning and the stress of a global pandemic,...
Irwin, Trafford cancel council meetings
Trafford has canceled its April 7 meeting because of the shutdown restrictions and Irwin has canceled its council meeting on April 8, opting for a virtual meeting on May 13, if Gov. Wolf’s order against public gatherings remains in place. Council members will meet via a social media platform that...
Average gas price in Pittsburgh area remains firmly above $2 a gallon
Gasoline prices continue to fall in the Pittsburgh area and across the nation, but the local average remains above $2 a gallon, the price-tracking service GasBuddy reported Monday. The Pittsburgh area’s average per-gallon price stood at $2.23, down 3.6 cents from a week ago, according to GasBuddy’s survey of 731...
Harrison police issue warrant for man wanted on strangulation charge
Harrison police are looking for a man accused of punching and choking a woman. Township police charged Peter Paul Dott IV, 27, with strangulation, simple assault and terroristic threats in the incident that allegedly happened in the Natrona area of the township on Friday. On Monday, police Chief Mike Klein...
Winners of Pa. House special elections sworn into office
State Rep. Eric Davanzo and two other victors from last month’s special election were sworn in to office Monday in Harrisburg. Davanzo, R-South Huntingdon, will complete the remaining nine months in the seat previously held by state Rep. Justin Walsh, who resigned in January after he was elected to be...
New child porn charges added against North Huntingdon man accused of child rape
A North Huntingdon man arrested last October on multiple charges of raping and sexually abusing a girl was arrested again Monday on 26 new child pornography-related charges. John W. Wilbanks, 39, was arraigned before District Judge Joseph DeMarchis on multiple counts of child pornography, criminal use of a communication facility,...
‘Pandemic’ overtime pay cost Westmoreland County nearly $700K in 1st 2 weeks
Westmoreland County paid $678,000 in overtime wages to more than 1,200 employees for nearly two weeks of work in late March during the early days of the coronavirus pandemic. Commissioners instituted “pandemic” pay for staff required to report in person for work at the courthouse and in other county offices...
Answering the Call: Pittsburgh nurse talks about her worries during coronavirusVideo
Meghan Dawson is a nurse who works directly with high-risk maternity patients at UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital. With covid-19 cases rising, she worries about her patients and herself. A wife and mother, Dawson talked with the Tribune-Review about the strain of her job and the toll it is taking on her...
Pa. ramps up effort to get businesses to help make medical equipment
An online portal created by state officials will help identify businesses that are building much-needed medical supplies and guide others who might be able to pivot their manufacturing toward creating those supplies, Gov. Tom Wolf said Monday. The Manufacturing Call to Action Portal will streamline the process for manufacturers who...
UPMC researchers developing test to measure antibodies in fight against coronavirus
UPMC researchers are among those nationwide and around the world working to learn more about blood tests that could help physicians understand how a person’s body has responded to covid-19. The blood test would measure whether a person has antibodies to SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes covid-19, and could show...
Giant Eagle to limit number of people allowed in stores
Giant Eagle said Monday it will begin limiting the number of customers who can shop at each store at one time. “As supermarkets, convenience stores and pharmacies remain in operation as essential community resources, we believe it’s vital to heighten our social distancing and sanitization procedures throughout the store,” company...
Tarentum’s Hebe statue does her part by donning colorful face mask
A statue of the Greek goddess Hebe is making a fashionable public health statement at one of the Alle-Kiski Valley’s busiest intersections. The 5-foot, 500-pound statue at the foot of the Tarentum Bridge on the Tarentum side of the Allegheny River is wearing a colorful floral mask with a yellow...
Franklin Regional will combine committee-of-the-whole, voting meetings in April
The Franklin Regional School Board will hold both of its monthly meetings on the same night, April 13. The board’s committee-of-the-whole meeting will be followed by its monthly voting meeting. As with the most-recent meeting, deliberation and voting will be livestreamed through the district’s YouTube page, Youtube.com/user/FranklinRegionalSD. A link to...
Pittsburgh police instructor tests positive for coronavirus; recruit class suspended
A Pittsburgh Police Academy firearms instructor tested positive for covid-19, prompting officials to suspend a 28-member recruit class The city’s Public Safety Department is working to identify everyone, including recruits, who came into contact with the instructor. Officials sent the instructor home on Wednesday after he began exhibiting symptoms similar...
Former Tarentum councilman accused of pistol-whipping man, claims self-defense
A former Tarentum councilman is accused of pistol-whipping a man during an altercation in Forest County, according to state police. State police arrested Thomas Andrew Grates Jr., 52, of Tarentum, at a camp in Kingsley Township on Friday. On Monday, Grates said he had been defending himself and denied using...
Cops: Derry Township man charged with indecent exposure, scuffling with troopers
A Derry Township man accused of exposing himself to a girl in an apartment complex was arrested Saturday after, police say, he scuffled with state troopers. Police were called to the Scott Court apartment complex about 8:30 p.m. after receiving complaints that Brian A. Hoffman, 33, was exposing himself to...
