Western PA Local News category, Page 2600
Collier Township to host virtual meeting
The Collier Township board of commissioners meeting scheduled for 7 p.m. on April 13 will be available virtually to residents. Those who wish can call in or use a link to watch virtually. To encourage public comment on agenda items, the township is asking residents to submit questions or comments...
2 dead, at least 18 more infected with covid-19 at St. Barnabas Nursing Home in Richland
A covid-19 outbreak has killed two people and infected at least 18 more residents at St. Barnabas Nursing Home in Richland, a spokesman confirmed Tuesday. No details were available about the pair of recent deaths linked to covid-19, the highly contagious disease caused by the coronavirus. It’s taken nine days...
Excela medical officer, Sen. Casey to take part in coronavirus ‘tele-town hall’
Sen. Bob Casey will host a discussion with Western Pennsylvania residents about the coronavirus pandemic on Wednesday , in the first of a series of “tele-town halls” planned across the state. The 6 p.m. event is targeted for residents of Allegheny, Armstrong, Westmoreland, Greene, Fayette, Washington, Beaver, Lawrence, Butler, Indiana,...
Highlands chooses Nicole Kocon to fill board vacancy
Nicole Kocon is the newest member of the Highlands School Board. Kocon, of Brackenridge, was one of two candidates the board interviewed for a Region 2 seat in an online meeting Tuesday. The meeting was held virtually due to the covid-19 pandemic. Kocon replaces Misty Chybrzynski, former board president, who...
Vote for your favorite local covid-19 themed short films in Steeltown contest
The covid-19 crisis and the stay-at-home order that goes with it have many people feeling like they’re living in a movie. Now, some have used the coronavirus pandemic as inspiration to make their own covid-19 themed short films, thanks to encouragement from Steeltown Entertainment. Steeltown, which supports film and digital...
Allegheny County Council passes real estate fee, recommends more inmate releases
Property owners filing deed and mortgage transactions in Allegheny County will now pay an additional fee. The $15 fee will be applied to those transactions, and revenue generated from that fee will be deposited in a fund to support the demolition of vacant, dilapidated properties. Allegheny County Council unanimously approved...
Plum fire victim fears homelessness; fundraising campaign launched
Two weeks after fleeing her burning home in Plum with her three children, Monica Hanner is again worrying about keeping a roof over their heads. The house Hanner shared with her children — ages 15, 12 and 8 — on Emerald Drive in Kellywood Estates was destroyed the morning of...
Jewish faith leaders say Passover adjustments during coronavirus should be taken in stride
Passover, one of the most widely celebrated Jewish holidays, begins at sundown Wednesday evening. And while the covid-19 crisis and stay-at-home orders will take some of the fun out of the occasion, Jewish faith leaders say it should be no less joyous. “Judaism throughout history has always been a religion...
Dick’s Sporting Goods furloughing ‘significant number’ of employees
Dick’s Sporting Goods announced Tuesday it will furlough a “significant number” of employees beginning Sunday, April 12, a response to the closure of its more than 800 stores nationwide as the country grapples with the coronavirus pandemic. In an update addressed to investors on its website, Dick’s said it is...
1, maybe more, bald eagles hatch at Harmar nest
The fuzzy gray head of at least one bald eagle chick was seen by a local photographer documenting the bald eagle nest above Route 28 in Harmar. The parents were seen feeding young in the nest as early as last Friday, April3, said Gina G. Gilmore of Fox Chapel, who...
Reservist from 911th Airlift Wing positive for coronavirus
A reservist who serves with the 911th Airlift Wing tested positive for covid-19 Monday, according to a spokeswoman for the unit. This is the first covid-19 case at the military base adjacent to Pittsburgh International Airport. The airman had no travel history to high-risk areas and was last on the...
Couple puts 3D printer to work making masks for front lines
Joe Dornetta never imagined the 3D printer he bought months ago would be anything more than a cool piece of technology to explore in his spare time. But a call from a friend who is a physician turned the 31-year-old construction worker’s plans for a new hobby into a supplier...
29 in Kane nursing home positive for coronavirus
At least 29 residents and employees at a Kane Community Living Center have tested positive for coronavirus, according to data from Allegheny County. The virus was first reported in Kane’s Glen Hazel location on March 25 when an employee tested positive. Two residents tested positive two days later. Since then,...
Pittsburgh Tech companies help pay for laptops for 7,000 city students
Pittsburgh’s technology sector is pulling together to provide computers for more than 7,000 city schoolchildren who need them for virtual learning during the coronavirus pandemic. The Pittsburgh Technology Council organized a teleconference and group chat on Tuesday where Gerardo Interiano, who heads government relations for Pittsburgh-based self-driving vehicle company Aurora,...
Work on Millerstown Road slide repair to resume Wednesday
Work to repair a slide on Millerstown Road in Fawn is scheduled to resume on Wednesday. Work on the slide had started Feb. 24, with the expectation of being finished in mid-April. The project was shut down on March 17 in compliance with Gov. Tom Wolf’s order due to the...
Westmoreland County worries about dwindling cache of protective gear
Shortages of personal protective equipment such as gowns and masks have become dire in Westmoreland County. The county’s supply is dwindling as the number of coronavirus cases rises, infecting staff and residents at two or more local nursing homes, where supplies are desperately being sought, Public Safety Director Roland Mertz...
Pittsburgh region jobless steady at 4.6% before business shutdowns
The seven-county Pittsburgh region posted a jobless rate of 4.6% in February, weeks before Gov. Tom Wolf shut down what the state deemed nonessential business. The 4.6% jobless rate, as adjusted for seasonal hiring factors, was the same as in January but 0.6 percentage points higher than the unemployment rate...
Levin’s hope for rescue likely over after Art Van Furniture bankruptcy liquidation
A federal judge has approved a petition to liquidate Art Van Furniture, the Michigan-based chain that in 2017 acquired the Levin’s and Wolf’s furniture stores scattered across Pennsylvania and Ohio. The order handed down in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware is effective Tuesday. It apparently quashes any opportunity for Robert...
$25K bonuses, other resources for Pa. essential workers could be on the way
Additional resources soon could be headed to workers on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic if proposed legislation is passed. The resources would become available through a Heroes Fund introduced by U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, a Democrat from Scranton, and through legislation proposed by state Rep. Austin Davis, D-Allegheny....
Highlands to interview 3 board candidates in virtual meeting
Highlands School Board is scheduled to interview three candidates for a vacant seat on the board Tuesday evening in its first virtual meeting since the covid-19 pandemic shuttered schools. An agenda for the meeting identified the candidates as Nicole Kocon, Autumn Monaghan and Debra Lehew. Lehew, the district’s former special...
Western Pa. residents can salute essential workers during ‘Illumination Ovation’
Western Pennsylvania residents tonight at 8 can salute essential workers — first responders, grocery store employees, health care providers and others — by switching on lights and standing outside applauding, cheering and banging pots and pans. The grassroots event dubbed “Illumination Ovation” has roots in the United Kingdom, where residents...
AHN to sterilize, reuse N95 masks for coronavirus protection
A sterilization technique developed by Allegheny Health Network will allow health care workers to reuse their N95 masks up to three times, hospital system officials said Tuesday. As covid-19 cases have increased nationwide, the supply of masks has dwindled. The N95 masks, fitted with respirators, filter out droplets and aerosolized...
20 new coronavirus cases in Westmoreland as statewide death count spikes
Westmoreland County reported 20 new coronavirus cases on Tuesday as deaths statewide soared to more than 200, according to state health officials. The new cases bring the county’s total count to 177 since the first cases of covid-19 were identified there March 19. Statewide, the 1,579 new cases — recorded...
Pennsylvania sees 78 new coronavirus deaths in biggest single-day spike
Coronavirus deaths in Pennsylvania jumped by 78, state health officials said Tuesday, marking the largest one-day increase as the running case count surpassed 14,000. Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine cautioned that there can be a delay in compiling data from over the weekend, meaning some numbers won’t make it...
Beaver County nursing home presuming all residents, staff have covid-19
A Beaver County nursing home facing the largest covid-19 outbreak in the region is presuming that all of its residents and employees may have the disease. Brighton Rehabilitation and Wellness Center in Brighton Township announced the approach Monday in an unsigned statement. “Thinking about the virus in this way allows...
