Watchdog: Thousands more children taken from their families than previously disclosed
WASHINGTON — It seems likely that thousands more migrant children were split from their families than the Trump administration has acknowledged, in part because officials were stepping up family separations long before the border policy that prompted international outrage last spring, a government watchdog said Thursday. It’s unclear just how...
State: Rostraver Volunteer Firefighters’ Relief Association needs to increase bond
A recent state audit found the Rostraver Township Volunteer Firefighters’ Relief Association needs to increase its bond to cover cash assets. Pennsylvania Auditor General Eugene DePasquale said the association was in compliance with all other applicable state laws, contracts, bylaws and administrative procedures as they relate to the receipt of...
Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful accepting registrations for 2019 Great American Cleanup of PA
Registration is now open for the 2019 Great American Cleanup of PA, according to Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful. The three-month initiative, from March 1 to May 31, is a way for clubs, schools, businesses and organizations to clean up local areas. Registered events can get free trash bags, gloves and safety...
North Huntingdon police response team trains at Norwin schools
The North Huntingdon Police Department emergency response team is conducting training and walk-through drills at all seven of Norwin School District’s buildings. Police issued an alert at about 3 p.m. Thursday to inform residents of the training and that there is not a need for alarm when seeing police at...
Trump denies Pelosi aircraft for planned trip abroad
WASHINGTON — It took President Donald Trump one day to flex his executive power back at House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, denying her an aircraft for a planned trip abroad in apparent response to her attempt to delay his State of Union address amid their government shutdown clash. The nation’s two...
Greensburg Diocese launches recruitment effort for Catholic schools
The Greensburg Catholic Diocese is launching a marketing and recruitment drive for its 13 Catholic schools at church Masses next week. The kickoff, scheduled to begin in advance of enrollment open houses at schools in Armstrong, Fayette, Indiana and Westmoreland counties, will feature students, parents, teachers and staff members at...
‘Star Trek’ star George Takei supports Pittsburgh anti-gun effort
A Squirrel Hill man’s Facebook fundraiser for anti-gun groups received some star-studded recognition Wednesday from one of social media’s most prolific users. George Takei, best known for his role as Hikaru Sulu on the original “Star Trek” TV show, on Wednesday posted a Tribune-Review story about Ron Gaydos on his...
Asteroids are smacking Earth twice as often as before
WASHINGTON — Giant rocks from space are falling from the sky more than they used to, but don’t worry. For the past 290 million years, large asteroids have been crashing into Earth more than twice as often as they did in the previous 700 million years, according to a new...
California storm moving out after battering state for 3 days
SAN FRANCISCO — The storm that pummeled much of California for three days began moving east Thursday after causing at least six deaths, forcing wildfire victims threatened by floods to flee their homes and plunging nearly 300,000 utility customers into darkness. The winter storm is forecast to drop heavy rain,...
Britain’s Prince Philip, queen’s husband, in car accident
LONDON — Buckingham Palace says the 97-year-old husband of Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Philip, has been in a car accident but wasn’t injured. The palace said the two-vehicle accident happened Thursday afternoon near Sandringham Estate, the queen’s country retreat in eastern England. The Norfolk Constabulary says officers responded to...
Fans buy Melissa Gilbert’s ‘Little House on the Prairie’ memorabilia
GENOA TOWNSHIP, Mich. — More than 200 items belonging to “Little House on the Prairie” star Melissa Gilbert and her husband, Emmy-winning actor Timothy Busfield, have been purchased in an estate sale in Michigan. Items sold in the American Eagle Auction & Appraisal Co. online auction this month included a...
CDC sees possible link between opioids and birth defect
NEW YORK — Health officials are looking into a possible link between prescription opioids and a horrific birth defect. Babies born with the defect have their intestines hanging outside the stomach, due to a hole in the abdominal wall. Surgery is often needed to fix it. Roughly 1,800 such cases...
Additional water system costs upset some Springdale officials
Unforeseen costs on the $7.5 million Springdale water system renovations are leaving some Springdale Council members unhappy. Change orders totaling nearly $41,000 were brought to council this week. Of that amount, at least $29,000 were unexpected costs. In addition, another unforeseen turn of events may result in council having to...
LA teachers, district to resume negotiations amid strike
LOS ANGELES — Teachers walked rainy picket lines Thursday at Los Angeles schools for a fourth day ahead of a new round of contract negotiations that a union leader said is unlikely to quickly end the walkout. “After 21 months of negotiations I think it would be an unrealistic expectation...
Tarrs woman accused of forging prescriptions for oxycodone pills
A Tarrs woman is accused of forging two painkiller prescriptions at an East Huntingdon doctor’s office where she worked as a medical assistant, according to court papers. Davina Lee Potoka, 44, allegedly wrote the prescriptions for herself for 120 oxycodone pills each, state police said. Potoka is charged with acquisition...
Lawsuit: Woodland Hills substitute head-butted student
The Woodland Hills School District is being sued in connection with an incident involving a substitute teacher who allegedly head-butted a student in October. Richard Novak is accused of head-butting a 10th-grade student Oct. 24 while serving as a substitute teacher, according to a civil rights lawsuit filed by Pittsburgh...
Unity bank robbed, state police search for suspect
State police at Greensburg are searching for a man who robbed the First National Bank on Route 30, east of the Route 981 intersection, in Unity on Thursday. The man entered the bank just before 11 a.m. and gave a teller a threatening note that demanded money, police said. He...
Costa calls for state no-interest loan fund for federal workers
Pennsylvania’s top Democrat in the state Senate could get support from a Westmoreland County Republican in setting up a no-interest loan fund for federal employees and contractors in the state affected by the partial government shutdown. Senate Minority Leader Jay Costa Jr., D-Forest Hills, on Thursday began circulating a memo...
Kiski Valley sewage pump stations getting ready for upgrade
The design is complete for the upgrade of Kiski Valley Water Pollution Control Authority pump stations. All but one pump station has been designated for upgrades and modernization. Some of the pump stations haven’t been updated in 40 years or more. The pump stations are located in East Vandergrift; Elder...
Police: 2 killed in shooting at IHOP in Alabama
HUNTSVILLE, Ala. — An employee and a customer at an IHOP restaurant in northern Alabama were killed in a Wednesday night shooting that also injured another employee. Huntsville Police Lt. Michael Johnson told news outlets the shooting happened shortly before 10 p.m. Wednesday after a male customer argued with a...
Police: 3 suspects identified in Pa. Walmart arsons; 3 hurt
HANOVER — Police say they have identified three suspects in a pair of arsons at a Walmart store in central Pennsylvania that injured three people. West Manheim Township police say two fires were set inside the South Hanover store during store hours Tuesday night. Three Walmart employees reported smoke inhalation...
Pittsburgh seeking input on how to improve, expand parks
The Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy and city officials have scheduled a series of meetings over the next four months in each of Pittsburgh’s 90 neighborhoods to gather input on enhancing city parks. Officials want to develop an equitable approach to investing in the park system, which includes 165 parks, parklets and...
Springdale residents could experience low water pressure, discolored water on Friday
Springdale Borough residents may experience low water pressure and discolored water on Friday. The changes could occur between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m. as crews continue to work on the borough’s water improvement project. The $7.5 million project includes upgrades to the borough’s water treatment plant and replacing aging waterlines....
Allegheny Township to push for state, federal consensus on stormwater
Allegheny Township officials want the state and federal governments to decide what agency should be contacted about problems with stormwater. The idea, they say, is to give local officials a central resource to tap for a quick resolution when dealing with drainage problems and issues that often create flooding. The...
U.S.-led coalition airstrikes pound IS areas in eastern Syria
BEIRUT — Syrian activists are reporting intense airstrikes on the last area held by the Islamic State group in the country’s east where the extremists’ control has been shrinking over the past weeks. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Thursday the airstrikes hit the 5.8 square miles controlled...
