Regional News category, Page 295
NWS: Storms produced golf-ball sized hail, flash flooding
Some areas reported more than 2 inches of rain Saturday as thunderstorms drenched the Pittsburgh region, according to the National Weather Service. Flash flooding and golf ball-size hail were reported, meteorologist Myranda Fullerton said. “We saw anywhere from three-quarters of an inch total upwards of over 2 inches in some...
Pennsylvania reports 4 more deaths, 643 new cases of coronavirus
Four more people in Pennsylvania have died from covid-19, increasing the statewide coronavirus death toll to 38, state health officials said Sunday at their daily briefing. The state reported 643 new cases of covid-19. A total of 3,394 residents had tested positive as of noon Sunday. Confirmed cases are now...
Armstrong Township woman killed in Blairsville crash
A 50-year-old woman killed in a Blairsville crash on March 27 has been identified as Christina Anne Roberson of Armstrong Township. Roberson was driving north on South Walnut Street near Old Main Street shortly before 9:30 p.m. when she struck the curb after failing to make a left bend in...
Covid-19 pandemic provides ‘haunting’ parallel to deadly 1918 global flu infectionsVideo
Hauntingly similar. A little more than a century after a global influenza epidemic that cut a deadly path across Western Pennsylvania, that’s how Thomas Soltis describes the coronavirus pandemic that is spreading rapidly through much of Pennsylvania — having already killed 34 people in the state and more than 30,000...
Beaver County nursing home confronts covid-19 outbreak; at least 10 residents infected
A Beaver County nursing home is scrambling to contain an outbreak of covid-19 that has infected at least 10 residents, officials said Saturday. The Brighton Rehabilitation and Wellness Center began testing residents Friday night, and the first several results came back negative, the center’s leaders said in a statement. Results...
Turzai calls for end to construction stoppage
The speaker of the state House plans to introduce legislation that would allow all construction projects in the state to proceed under Gov. Tom Wolf’s closure of non-life-sustaining businesses. The governor ordered the closures March 19 to slow the spread of covid-19. After failing to change the mind of the...
Day care operators confused over state directives; reopening on holdVideo
Concern over changes in state rules and recommendations guiding child care centers amid the coronavirus scare — and worry over their liability if a child in their care becomes ill with covid-19 — have kept some closed after obtaining state waivers to remain open. “They have been confused and frustrated....
Pennsylvania reports 12 more deaths, 533 new cases of coronavirus
Twelve more people in Pennsylvania have died from covid-19, increasing the statewide coronavirus death toll to 34, state health officials said Saturday. Confirmed cases now are present in at least 56 of the state’s 67 counties, Health Secretary Dr. Rachel Levine said. “We are seeing this virus rear its ugly...
Giant Eagle employees in New Kensington, North Huntingdon and Wexford test positive for covid-19
Employees at five Giant Eagle stores have tested positive for coronavirus, including stores in New Kensington, North Huntingdon and Wexford, the company announced Friday. All five of the affected grocery stores have been thoroughly sanitized and are open for business, the company said in a statement. “Like other essential businesses,...
Week in review: Cornavirus sweeps nation, causes local leaders to take actionVideo
As the coronavirus continues to spread across Western Pennsylvania, several actions were taken by local leaders to help keep communities safe. Here’s a look at what happened this week. Businesses investigated After Gov. Tom Wolf ordered all non-life-sustaining businesses to temporarily shutter last week, a handful were investigated by local...
Butler County added to growing list of areas under Gov. Tom Wolf’s stay-at-home order
Butler County on Friday joined the growing list of Pennsylvania counties under Gov. Tom Wolf’s stay-at-home order. The order was scheduled to take effect at 8 p.m. Friday and continue until April 6. Individuals must stay at home “unless someone’s life depends on your leaving,” according to the order. In...
Congressman Mike Kelly of Butler tests positive for covid-19
U.S. Rep. Mike Kelly said Friday that he has tested positive for covid-19. The Republican from Butler, 71, said his symptoms are not severe and that he will continue to work from home until they subside completely. “My symptoms remain mild, and I will serve the 16th District from home...
Average U.S. gas price falls below $2 a gallon
The national average price of gasoline has fallen below $2 a gallon for the first time in four years, price-watching service GasBuddy announced Friday. The last time the U.S. average was $1.99 a gallon was March 23, 2016. In Pennsylvania, the top 10 lowest prices ranged from $1.55 to $1.79...
PUC asks residents to delay digging projects during covid-19 emergency
The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission is asking the public and businesses to delay nonessential digging projects. “While the Pennsylvania One Call system has remained fully operational through this pandemic, we join them in asking consumers, businesses and contractors to not begin any nonessential construction,” PUC Commissioner John F. Coleman Jr....
Experts: Little worry about groceries transmitting coronavirus
Relax, your food isn’t trying to kill you — probably. While grocery stores have increased sanitation measures amid the coronavirus pandemic, some consumers are worried they have more cleaning to do when they get their goods home. Pittsburgh-based infectious disease and critical care physician Dr. Amesh Adalja doesn’t think shoppers...
Nonprofits adjust services, volunteer opportunities to keep serving communities
As businesses close and workers face drastic pay cuts, the need for functioning nonprofit organizations has never been greater, said Phil Koch, executive director of the Community Foundation of Westmoreland County. Unfortunately, those nonprofits are facing the same challenges as everyone else. “Many of our nonprofit organizations rely on events...
Pennsylvania reports 531 new coronavirus cases as total tops 2,000Video
Coronavirus cases in Pennsylvania rose by more than 500 from Thursday to Friday, bringing the total statewide to more than 2,000. The state Department of Health reported 531 new positive tests, the second day in a row in which new cases topped 500. The total stands at 2,218. That total...
Pittsburgh region population slide continues, led by losses in Westmoreland County
The Pittsburgh region continues to lose residents, according to new estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau. Population estimates for Westmoreland County once again show a downward trend, something local officials have been combating for at least a decade. The county’s population declined by 16,172 between 2010-20, the largest loss of...
Western Pa. colleges donate protective gear for first responders, health care workers
A number of colleges and universities across Western Pennsylvania are donating supplies to first responders, hospital workers and others on the front line of the coronavirus pandemic. Saint Vincent The switch to online learning means lab procedures are suspended for the rest of the spring semester at the Unity college’s...
Solitary scenes from Uniontown amid coronavirus pandemic
As Western Pennsylvanians practice social distancing and businesses temporarily close as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, Tribune-Review photographer Sean Stipp explored Uniontown and the surrounding area on Thursday. Fayette County has eight reported coronavirus cases, a number that has increased throughout the week. Pennsylvania reported 560 new cases Thursday,...
Monroeville lab looks to help fill gap in covid-19 testingVideo
A Monroeville lab that handles molecular and genetic testing has ramped up to offer testing for covid-19, beginning with senior citizens and staff working at care facilities it services. MHS Labs began testing patient samples on Thursday and had completed a few dozen tests by midday Friday, said Sean Waters,...
Army Corps looks at Western Pa. sites for possible overflow medical facilities
The Army Corps of Engineers’ Pittsburgh District has begun evaluating possible alternate medical sites that would be used in the event hospitals are overrun treating patients with covid-19. The number of covid-19 cases in Western Pennsylvania has not stretched medical systems to the point where more space is needed to...
Need work? Here are companies that are hiring during coronavirus pandemic
There are still some businesses hiring as the covid-19 pandemic continues to devastate the labor market. Foremost are retail jobs like those at Giant Eagle. The O’Hara-based grocery chain has been busy and it is working to offer temporary jobs to those who have been impacted by the shutdown. Giant...
Uniontown lawyer suspended after charges of money laundering
The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania Disciplinary Board will temporarily suspend Uniontown attorney Tancredi Williams Calabrese, who was arrested last month on charges of money laundering. “It has been found that his continued practice of law is causing immediate and substantial public or private harm because of his misappropriation of entrusted...
Pa. new jobless claims jump to 649,000 since March 15
Pennsylvania has seen almost 650,000 new claims for unemployment compensation in less than two weeks — an indication of just how hard the governor’s order closing non-life-sustaining businesses and its ripple effect has slammed the state’s economy. Gov. Tom Wolf said he expects the figure to climb to 800,000 through...
