Western PA Local News category, Page 2560
Collaboration between WCCC, Hempfield allows students to graduate with associates degree
Hempfield students are now able to graduate with more than a high school diploma. A new collaboration between the school and Westmoreland County Community College allows students to obtain an Associates of Arts degree from the college’s School of Humanities, Social Sciences and Public Services while still attending high school....
Hempfield recognition ceremony moved online due to coronavirus
Almost 130 Hempfield middle school students were honored virtually this week after an annual Academic Breakfast was canceled because of the coronavirus. Each year, students from Harrold, Wendover and West Hempfield middle schools who finish in the top 10% of their classes attend the breakfast where they are awarded for...
Giant Eagle teams with domestic violence groups to help raise awareness during pandemic
Giant Eagle and local domestic violence programs have teamed up to reach victims during covid-19 pandemic. Law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and around the world have cited an increase in domestic abuse incidents the past few months. Giant Eagle officials announced Thursday they have postcards in 42 locations in...
Elected officials, businesses in 4 Pa. counties sue to end coronavirus shutdown
Citing growing frustration with emergency orders that closed businesses and halted political campaigns, three state lawmakers and U.S. Rep. Mike Kelly, R-Butler, Thursday joined a group of local business owners and four southwestern counties in a federal lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of Gov. Tom Wolf’s orders. County commissioners from Butler,...
Proposal to test all inmates at Allegheny County Jail for coronavirus fails
The Allegheny County Jail Oversight Board voted down a proposal Thursday to test all inmates for coronavirus, including those who show no symptoms. The proposal was modeled after testing conducted in late April in Montgomery County, where officials tested all inmates at the county jail regardless of whether they were...
Reopened campgrounds see rush of guests while observing social distancingVideo
Families anxious to get away from it all after weeks under Pennsylvania’s stay-at-home orders have flocked to the area’s privately owned campgrounds. Still, they haven’t escaped from social-distancing guidelines in force as a precaution against the spread of the coronavirus. While camping facilities at state parks aren’t set to open...
Stimulus checks made out to deceased people should be returned, government says
The last thing Lori Hughes expected to receive in the mail was a $1,200 stimulus check made out to her mother, Sharyn Davis, who died last July. The 54-year-old Smithton resident is now left deciding the best course of action for sending the money back to the federal government after...
Duquesne University graduates visit campus ahead of virtual graduation
They won’t have the graduation they dreamed of, but some Duquesne University graduates descended on campus Thursday for an impromptu picture-taking day. They wore caps and gowns and stood on the picturesque walkway that crosses the Uptown campus. Duquesne is hosting a virtual ceremony Friday. “The class of 2020 has...
Community-supported agriculture thriving during pandemic
Community-supported agriculture has been around for years, said Don Kretschmann, owner of Kretschmann Family Farm in Beaver County. But now, during a public health crisis, the assets of local, organically-grown produce is really catching on. Moreover, the long-standing distribution method is built for the time of social distancing: Most customers...
Honeybees can gang up and fry Asian giant ‘murder hornets’
If they follow their Japanese counterparts, maybe U.S. honeybees could surround and fry an invading Asian giant “murder hornet” entering its hive, according to a Carnegie Museum of Natural History expert. Agriculture authorities in Washington State are creating a national buzz trying to eradicate the aggressive and invading Asian giant...
Franklin Regional librarians start home-delivery service for students
What’s a school librarian to do with no students in the buildings? Take the books to the kids, of course. “Our theory was: they’re staring at a screen all day, and when we offered them the possibility of checking out e-books, the thought was ‘Oh, more screen time,’” said Franklin...
Greensburg woman charged with stalking sheriff’s deputy
Westmoreland County detectives have issued an arrest warrant for a woman who allegedly stalked a sheriff’s deputy and made a fake 911 call that brought police to the deputy’s mother’s home. Westmoreland County Sheriff’s Deputy Casey Cameron told investigators he’s never met Nishee Sanford, 41, but that her behavior has...
Cops: Couple jailed on $200K bond after chase, shooting near Saltsburg
A Westmoreland County woman and her boyfriend were jailed on $200,000 bond each after a vehicle chase and shooting Wednesday. The incident began in Indiana County and ended along Route 981 in Westmoreland County, according to state police. Cheyenne S. Nipps, 21, of Loyalhanna Township, and her boyfriend, Steven Aukerman,...
Students eligible for free lunch to receive $370 in SNAP benefits to cover rest of school year
Students who are eligible to receive free or reduced-price meals at school can now be reimbursed for the meals they are no longer getting. The Wolf Administration announced a new program Thursday that will let students benefit from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Students who are eligible through the...
East Deer Commissioners reschedule May meeting
The East Deer Commissioners are postponing their May meeting. Originally scheduled for for May 14, it will now be held at 7:30 p.m. May 20. “At this point we need to cancel that meeting, and we are rescheduling right now for May 20,” the township said in an e-mailed statement....
Baking supplies, other staples remain low — or altogether gone — at local grocers amid pandemic
Baking is helping people pass the time under stay-at-home orders, gauging from aisles normally filled with flour, sugar and brownie mixes at several local grocery stores. Cake mixes, chocolate chips and other staples were hard to come by at Target and Giant Eagle in North Huntingdon this week. Stocks of...
Pittsburgh dumps sand in skateboard park to prevent break-ins
Pittsburgh dumped sand into the bowl of a skateboard park in its Polish Hill neighborhood to thwart repeated break-ins by kids, the Department of Public Works director said. Director Mike Gable said he got the idea after seeing sand used to deter people from congregating during the coronavirus pandemic at...
Murrysville begins leaf collections, lifts burn ban
Spring leaf and yard waste collection will kick off this weekend in Murrysville. Republic Services will collect leaf and yard waste left at the curb the night before May 9 and 16. To schedule a pickup, call Republic at 877-788-9400. For those with a fire pit or burn barrel, the...
Monroeville furloughs library, senior center employees
Full-time employees at the Monroeville library and senior center have been furloughed until July 6, according to an announcement posted on the municipality’s website. “This was a difficult decision because we know the services that the library and senior citizen center bring to the community, but because of the uncertainty...
Police: Kiski woman accused of burning infant with cigarette tried to intimidate child’s mother
A Kiski Township woman accused of burning a 1-year-old with a cigarette faces more charges after allegedly trying to intimidate and harass the girl’s mother. Kiski Township Police charged Lisa Culp, 46, with intimidation, stalking and harassment on Tuesday, according to court records. Police previously charged Culp with aggravated assault,...
Open-business rally proposed in Unity to urge easing of covid-19 restrictions
Local restaurant and small business owners anxious to see covid-19 restrictions eased in order to welcome back patrons plan to rally this month along Route 30 in Westmoreland County. Jamie Huemme, co-owner of Sharky’s Cafe in Unity, and township Supervisor Mike O’Barto are organizing the rally. They plan to hold...
UPMC officials say small Mother’s Day visits OK as they push Pennsylvania to reopen
UPMC’s top emergency medicine expert said Thursday that people can go out and “safely” partake in small Mother’s Day visits, maintaining his suggestion is not in conflict with the stay-at-home order that will remain in effect for Allegheny and 42 other counties this weekend. “I think having a visit with...
Pennsylvania’s pause on evictions and foreclosures extended
People can’t be evicted from rental properties and mortgage foreclosures will remain halted through July 10, Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf said Thursday. But rents, including back rent, and unpaid mortgage payments still will need to be paid, Wolf and state Attorney General Josh Shapiro said in a joint livestream. A...
Murrysville community adult scholarships still accepting applications
The form education may take in the next few months remains up in the air, but community organizations are still seeking applicants for scholarships: • The Murrysville-Export Rotary Club has extended the application deadline for its Westmoreland County Community College scholarship through May 15. Applications will be accepted from graduating...
Pittsburgh sinkhole that swallowed bus to be filled soon
Pittsburgh’s infamous, bus-swallowing sinkhole is about to fade into history. Pittsburgh City Council has approved an agreement with the Pittsburgh Water and Sewer Authority to split the estimated $536,000 cost of repairing the giant sinkhole that opened at 10th Street and Penn Avenue Downtown on Oct. 28. A Port Authority...
