Regional News category, Page 321
Heinz turns 150: Company has grown from regional phenomenon to global concernVideo
A young Henry Heinz got his business start in Sharpsburg, hawking horseradish to local grocers before the Civil War. By the time the United States entered World War I, he was leading a Pittsburgh-based, multimillion-dollar international company. The empire Henry John Heinz built marks its 150th anniversary this year, with...
Peoples, Equitable natural gas customers to see rate increases under PUC settlement
State regulators have approved a rate increase for Peoples Natural Gas, but lower than the utility had requested. The settlement with the Public Utility Commission combines the rates of the company’s Peoples and Equitable divisions. Peoples acquired competitor Equitable Gas Co. from EQT Corp. in 2013. Under the settlement, the...
Evans City man on motorcycle dies in Butler County crash
A 44-year-old Evans City man died in a crash in Butler County on Friday morning, state police said. According to state police, the crash happened shortly after 10:30 a.m. on Marburger Road, just south of Watters Station Road in Forward Township. Police said Robert J. Hauserman, 44, was driving a...
Wheeling man identified in fatal Washington County crash
A West Virginia man was identified Friday as the victim of a fatal two-vehicle crash Thursday morning along Route 22 in Washington County. Jerry Saragas, 38, of Wheeling, was killed in a head-on collision on Route 22 in Hanover Township at about 10:15 a.m., Washington County Coroner Tim Warco said....
Kanczes family sues YMCA over son’s death during outing in Somerset County
The family of the 15-year-old North Huntingdon boy who fell to his death in July while rappelling in Somerset County are suing the YMCA of Greater Pittsburgh and its affiliate in Beaver County for unspecified damages in Allegheny County court. The suit alleges the YMCA of Greater Pittsburgh and Camp...
Pa. groom-to-be accused of sexually assaulting wedding guest
Pennsylvania state police say a groom-to-be sexually assaulted one of his guests two days before his wedding. Prosecutors say Daniel Carney is charged with involuntary deviate sexual intercourse of an unconscious person and indecent assault. It wasn’t known Friday if the 28-year-old Stroudsburg man has retained an attorney. Authorities say...
Nonprofit aims to restore Allegheny County’s tree canopyVideo
If it seems you can see more of the sky in Allegheny County these days, you’re right. And that’s not necessarily a good thing. Allegheny County lost 10,000 acres of tree canopy between 2010 and 2015, according to a survey released last year by Tree Pittsburgh, a nonprofit group aiming...
Indiana to welcome Vietnam memorial replica
“The Wall That Heals,” a three-quarter-sized replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., will be displayed next week in Indiana County. Located on the outskirts of Indiana at Mack Park, site of the Indiana County Fair, the display will be open to the public around the clock from...
Zambelli Fireworks CEO resigns
The president and CEO of Zambelli Fireworks, Tom Bametzrieder, has resigned, according to a statement from the company. “We thank him for his service and wish him luck in his future endeavors,” Ed Meyer, a managing partner at Zambelli, said in a statement. The company did not provide further details...
Time is running out to vote for the fattest bear in Alaska
Katmai National Park and Reserve knows how to have a good time with its brown bears. In addition to a live webcam, catching all of the action of bears catching and feeding on salmon at the Brooks River, the park holds a fattest bear contest, complete with brackets and elimination...
PennDOT looking for 104 plow truck drivers this winter
If you like to drive trucks and have time this winter, PennDOT might have a job for you. The transportation department’s 12th district, which includes Westmoreland, Fayette, Washington and Greene counties, is looking to hire more than 100 winter road crew drivers this year. The positions are temporary but fulltime....
1 person killed in Route 22 crash in Washington County
The Washington County Coroner’s office reported one person was killed Thursday in a two-vehicle crash on Route 22 in Hanover Township. Coroner S. Timothy Warco said the identity of the victim in the 10:14 a.m. crash is being withheld pending notification of next of kin. The office reported that the...
Indiana County firefighters already in jail for arson accused of setting 2 more blazes
Two Indiana County volunteer firefighters already in jail for allegedly setting fire to an Amish furniture store earlier this year were charged this week by state police with setting two more fires last December. Nicholas Leone, 22, of Creekside, and Dylan Dalessio, 19, of Plumville, allegedly used a “Molotov cocktail”...
1 dead in Beaver County crash
One person died after an early-morning crash in Beaver County, according to a Beaver County 911 dispatcher. Officials responded to Route 168 in Big Beaver shortly after 2 a.m. The road was closed between Larchwood Drive and Oak Hill Road, Tribune-Review news partner WPXI-TV reported. The dispatcher confirmed the road...
Meadows Casino sports book coming next week
Sports betting is likely coming to Washington County’s Meadows Casino next week, with online wagering through fantasy sports giant DraftKings not far behind, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported. The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board unanimously approved the sports-betting license Wednesday. Casino officials told the board it would start taking bets Tuesday in...
Sheetz says it will boost workers’ pay by $16.8M
Convenience store chain Sheetz Inc. said Wednesday it will spend $16.8 million to increase the pay of almost all of its 17,300 employees at its 596 stores spread across Pennsylvania and five other states. “This means that nearly all store employees at 279 locations in Pennsylvania will experience an increase...
Pittsburgh sets record for warmest low temp, extending growing season
Wednesday morning’s low temperature of 69 degrees was expected to break a 135-year-old record for the highest low temperature ever recorded on an Oct. 2, according to the National Weather Service. National Weather Service meteorologist Lee Hendricks said the temperature was unlikely to dip below the 69 degrees recorded around...
Revolutionary War markers target for cleanup at North Huntingdon, West Mifflin cemeteries
Some 240 years after soldiers fought for the nation’s freedom, the local chapter of an organization devoted to patriotism and historic preservation wants to clean the markers of those buried in North Huntingdon and West Mifflin. The Queen Alliquippa Daughters of the American Revolution wants to clean the bronze markers...
Scratch-off lottery tickets taken in burglary of Lawrence County restaurant
Hundreds of Pennsylvania scratch-off lottery tickets with a face value of several thousand dollars were taken in the burglary of a Lawrence County restaurant, according to state police. State police said Ryder’s Restaurant on Route 18 in Wilmington Township was burglarized between 6:30 p.m. Sunday and 6 a.m. Monday. In...
Pittsburgh region jobs drop, jobless rate rises slightly
The Pittsburgh area continued to lose jobs in August, the fourth consecutive month in which the seven-county region lost nonfarm jobs, the state said Tuesday. “This is not a good sign. We’re hitting a trend of not growing jobs like we once did. There is a lot of worry in...
FBI will retrieve records for patients of Fayette physician arrested on drug charges
Patients of a Fayette County physician who was arrested last month and charged with swapping opioids for sex found themselves at odds when they tried to retrieve their medical records from his shuttered practice. But authorities said Tuesday that they have set up a process for patients to retrieve their...
$1 million Cash 5 lottery ticket sold in Fayette County
Tina Harris, owner of the Chalk Hill Market in rural Fayette County, said a $1 million jackpot-winning Pennsylvania Lottery Cash 5 ticket purchased Monday at the store is the largest winning ticket ever sold there. “Oh my God! That’s awesome it was sold here, and good for whoever bought it...
Man wanted for W.Va. murder, Western Pa. attempted homicide in custody
A man who police said was “armed and dangerous” and wanted in connection with a murder in West Virginia and is facing charges in Washington County is in custody, officials said. Brian Edward Lyons II faces first-degree murder and attempted homicide charges in Marion County, W.Va., and in connection to...
Johnstown nonprofit offers free consultation services to counter bullying
A Johnstown-based nonprofit is reaching out to provide an extra resource for parents, students and teachers looking to counter school-based bullying. The Center for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention, boasting a staff of health, mental health and education professionals, took more than 1,000 calls from public and private schools in...
Western Pa. health experts alarmed by ‘unacceptable’ rise in maternal deaths
Local doctors say the rising number of maternal deaths in the state is “unacceptable” and “scary,” and they are working to create more comprehensive ways to care for pregnant and postpartum women. According to data from the state Department of Health, an increasing trend in pregnancy-related deaths occurred from 2012-16...
