Regional category, Page 31
2 earthquakes recorded about a hundred miles from Pittsburgh
Two earthquakes occurred about a hundred miles southwest of Pittsburgh this week near the same southeastern Ohio town. A 3.1 magnitude earthquake occurred just after 4 a.m. Tuesday about a mile away from Pleasant City — a 0.18-square-mile village east of Columbus. A 3.4 magnitude was recorded near the area...
As data centers spread, their leaders push for transparency, consistency in state regulations
Last year, Duquesne Light Co.’s network service peak load was nearly 2,700 megawatts. And a hyperscale data center commonly ranges from 60 megawatts to several hundred megawatts, according to C. James Davis, director of rates, energy procurement and federal affairs at Duquesne Light. “A single data center could account for...
Hot enough for ya? Temperatures move above typical April in Western Pa.
Surprised by this week’s rise in temperatures? According to the National Weather Service’s Pittsburgh office in Moon, there is some validity to that reaction. Temperatures are forecast to reach into the low 80s on Thursday, with a 30% chance of going above 82 degrees, said meteorologist Liana Lupo. Late April...
Tariffs spark fireworks order cancellations as America’s 250th looms
Steve Kubrick believes he might have dodged a bullet for buying his fireworks for an Independence Day display in New Kensington last year before the U.S. tariffs on China came in. “I bought mine last year,” said Kubrick, owner of the AK Valley Park in New Kensington. “That might have...
Aliquippa man sentenced to 15 years for making, selling fake drugs on the darknet
An Aliquippa man was sentenced Wednesday to 15 years in federal prison in connection with a sweeping drug distribution scheme in which he manufactured counterfeit Oxycodone, Adderall and Xanax pills to sell. Jacob Blair, 27, pleaded guilty in December before U.S. District Court Judge Amy Berman Jackson to a charge...
Feds OK settlement between Shapiro, grid manager to control electricity prices
Federal regulators approved a deal between Gov. Josh Shapiro and PJM Interconnection to limit some electricity price hikes. PJM is a regional transmission organization, which works to secure generation capacity for utility companies within its 13-state network. It holds annual auctions in which the lowest bidder earns the right —...
26 Walmart stores in Pa. to be remodeled
Walmart announced Wednesday it plans to remodel 26 stores across Pennsylvania this year, including some local shops. The nearest stores in the greater Pittsburgh area getting remodeled include Richland, Harrison, Johnstown, Washington, Somerset, Monaca and Punxsutawney. The remodels will focus on enhancing the associate experience and community engagement, Walmart said....
Logging poised to accelerate in Allegheny National Forest under emergency declaration
Swaths of Allegheny National Forest in northwestern Pennsylvania could be on the chopping block as the federal government moves to increase logging in national forests across the country, a move environmental advocates say could leave lasting harm. In a memo released this month, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins put...
Pittsburgh metro area air among worst in country, study says
The Pittsburgh region’s air is among the most polluted in the country, according to a study by the American Lung Association. The Pittsburgh-Weirton-Steubenville metro area ranked 16th worst in the nation for daily particle pollution and 12th worst for year-round particle pollution, the report found. Kevin Stewart, director of environmental...
Hillandale Farms, giant egg producer, sells for $1.1B
Hillandale Farms, among the nation’s top egg producers with a corporate office in Hempfield, was sold last month for $1.1 billion to a Luxembourg-based company. Hillandale Farms, founded by Orland Bethel in 1958, sold its 20-million chicken operations in late March to Global Eggs, according to news reports. Hillandale Farms...
How will he be judged? Pope Francis’ legacy pondered across religious and social lines
Just a few months into his papacy, Pope Francis made a statement that drew global attention. Chatting with reporters in July 2013, on the plane back from his first foreign trip, he posited, “If someone is gay and he searches for the Lord and has good will, who am I...
Pittsburgh, Greensburg Catholic bishops, other faith leaders remember Francis as an empathetic shepherd
Pope Francis will be remembered for his empathy, humility and gentle leadership, Southwestern Pennsylvania religious leaders told TribLive Monday. Francis, 88, died about 7:30 a.m. Rome time — about 1:30 a.m. locally. His death came the day after Christians celebrated Easter, the highest holy day of faith. “I think all...
Recently retired Cardinal O’Malley — who grew up in Western Pa. — is headed to the Vatican. Could he be the next pope?
BOSTON — Cardinal Sean Patrick O’Malley, who recently retired as Archbishop of Boston, will attend Pope Francis’s funeral at the Vatican but will not vote for the next pope. O’Malley, who turns 81 in June, lost his coveted voting rights once he turned 80, an aide close to O’Malley tells...
‘Very humble and very patient’: W. Pa. Catholics mourn Pope Francis
Meeting Pope Francis made for a memorable, albeit unusual, 25th wedding anniversary celebration for Nat and Melanie Pantalone. The Greensburg couple, about 20 priests and several others celebrating their anniversaries had a private Mass in April 2015 in Rome with the first Latin American pontiff. Nat Pantalone remembered being nervous...
19-year-old shot, killed in girlfriend’s Washington County home, coroner says
A 19-year-old man’s death in Washington County on Sunday is being investigated as a homicide, the county coroner’s office said. According to the coroner, Devyon Dennis, of Uniontown, was shot inside his girlfriend’s residence in the Washington Estates mobile home park on Broadmore Drive in Canton. The incident was reported...
Team that resurrected dire wolf has Pitt, Penn State connectionsVideo
Some of the scientific groundwork that paved the way for a rebirth of the long-extinct dire wolf took place in Pennsylvania. With much fanfare, Texas company Colossal Biosciences announced April 7 that its scientists had returned the dire wolf, a species extinct for more than 10,000 years, “to its rightful...
Power tools: Robotics research at Carnegie Mellon aims to revolutionize everyday tasksVideo
At this year’s Consumer Electronics Show, the world’s foremost tech conference, farming machinery giant Kubota introduced Flash, a vehicle-mounted camera that creates ultra-detailed images to help farmers care for their crops. It was an idea born in a Carnegie Mellon University robotics lab and another example of the revolutionary technology...
Man, juveniles convicted of poaching white-tailed deer in Somerset County, prohibited from hunting for decades
It will be decades before three people convicted of poaching 19 white-tailed deer in Somerset County over a two-month span in 2020 are allowed to hunt again, according to the Pennsylvania Game Commission. Although authorities were able to tie 19 poached deer to the three suspects, they said they believe...
Penn State trustees speak out against branch campuses closing
Four current or former Penn State University trustees, including late football Coach Joe Paterno’s son, are urging the university administration not to close any of the school’s branch campuses. “The easy decision is to close campuses because it requires the least thought and inflicts pain elsewhere,” said the op-ed, published...
Gov. Shapiro talks about arson attack in ‘Good Morning America’ interview
In an interview with “Good Morning America” on Friday, Gov. Josh Shapiro condemned the rise of politically motivated threats in the wake of the attempted homicide and arson attack April 13 at the Governor’s Residence. “It’s real,” Shapiro told co-host George Stephanopoulos. “I mean, this is sadly a real part...
Judge pauses effort to revoke status of Gannon U. students from India
A federal judge in Pittsburgh on Thursday reinstated — at least temporarily — two international students at Gannon University in Erie who learned this month their status as scholars had been terminated by the Trump administration. The students — who sued the U.S. attorney general, secretary of the Department of...
News media hail Google ‘monopoly’ ruling
News media organizations applauded a federal judge’s ruling Thursday that Google, the premier internet search engine, illegally monopolized the lucrative online advertising market. U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema ruled that Google, a $348 billion behemoth owned by Alphabet Inc., created a monopoly over advertising software used by publishers. “This ruling...
Penn State branch campus closure announcement delayed
Upper Burrell Supervisor Ross G. Walker III hopes no news is good news. The longtime township supervisor said that, since learning of the potential closure of his township’s Penn State New Kensington campus, he has not heard anything from Penn State administration regarding the school’s future. “It could make you...
Columbia Gas seeks 11.3% hike; consumer advocate claims rate is higher
Columbia Gas of Pennsylvania wants to boost the monthly gas bill of a typical residential customer 11.3%, but a state consumer advocate says the change could be illegal. The gas distribution rate hike from Columbia Gas would raise the average residential monthly gas bill from $138.50 to $154.30, while small...
Massive steel transport expected to slow traffic on Western Pa. roads
A truck carrying a massive load of 153 tons of steel will wind its way through Western Pennsylvania on Thursday, slowing traffic on major arteries from Allegheny County to Columbiana County, Ohio. The superload will cause rolling traffic stoppages as it needs two lanes to move through, PennDOT officials said....
