Regional News category, Page 343
Rainfall record set Wednesday
Mother Nature shattered a seven-year-old rainfall record on Wednesday. A total of 1.93 inches fell at Pittsburgh International Airport, where the National Weather Service takes its official measurements, according to meteorologist Bill Modzelewski. That broke the record of 1.29 inches for rain on May 29 that had stood since 2012....
Help sought from Attorney General regarding wastewater pollution into Monongahela River
Two county district attorneys have referred their concerns over pollution to the Monongahela River to the state Attorney General’s Office for further investigation. Washington County District Attorney Eugene Vittone and Fayette County District Attorney Richard Bower recently discussed the matter with Chief Deputy Attorney General Rebecca Franz, who is with...
Route 28 reopens, flood watch remains
Route 28 in Pittsburgh reopened early Thursday morning after it was closed due to flooding, according to Allegheny County 911. Most of Western Pennsylvania remains under a flash flood watch until 11 p.m. Thursday, according to the National Weather Service. Much of Beaver County is under a flood warning. Showers...
Motorcyclist uses flannel shirt to save bald eagle on Chester County highway
A Lancaster man used his flannel shirt to rescue an injured bald eagle that had plopped down in the middle of a Route 30 bypass, stopping traffic, in Downingtown, Chester County, on Saturday, according to media reports. Dandon Miller was on his motorcycle when he encountered the traffic jam and...
Police: Philly man fleeing arrest in assault case kills pedestrian
Police say a man fleeing arrest in a sexual assault case struck and killed a female pedestrian in Philadelphia. Police say 36-year-old Raheem Geathers was spotted in a vehicle on a north Philadelphia street at about 2:45 p.m. Tuesday. Police say he recognized an approaching police sergeant and drove onto...
Pa. man charged with selling rattlesnakes hospitalized for bites
WILLIAMSPORT — A Pennsylvania man charged with illegally catching and trying to sell venomous eastern timber rattlesnakes has been hospitalized after being bitten by snakes. Cody Short was bitten by eastern timber rattlesnakes Friday night, said Mike Parker, a state Fish and Boat Commission spokesman. The bites happened hours after...
Pittsburgh region remains under severe storm watch as wild weather fires back up
Severe weather has made its way back into the region. The National Weather Service in Moon issued a severe thunderstorm watch for Western Pennsylvania until 7 p.m. Western Pennsylvania got a short break from the wild weather that flooded homes, closed roads and prompted evacuations, but storms began to bubble...
Roofers union looking for apprentices due to retirements, workload
The United Union of Roofers, Waterproofers, and Allied Workers Local 37 in Bellevue need to fill 40 open apprentice positions, according to a representative at the union’s Joint Apprenticeship Committee on Monday. The Union has jurisdiction in a number of counties in Western Pennsylvania including Allegheny, Armstrong, Beaver, Indiana, Somerset,...
Western Pa. braces for more storms while coping with damage, flooding
Heavy rains and winds tore through several Western Pennsylvania counties Tuesday evening causing down power lines, trees and flooded roadways. Swift water rescue teams in Butler County conducted 10 rescues to evacuate people from rising water in Zelienople, Forward Township, Harmony and Evans City, according to county dispatchers. Butler County...
Aliquippa man pleads guilty to federal drug and gun crimes
An Aliquippa man accused of fentanyl-heroin distribution and firearms violations pleaded guilty in federal court. Landon Alexander Gatta, 23, admitted guilt before Senior District Judge Joy Flowers Conti to charges of possession with intent to distribute 40 grams or more of a fentanyl-heroin mixture, possession of a firearm and ammunition...
IUP team to present research on biodiversity in Honduras
Four students from Indiana University of Pennsylvania, including two from Allegheny County, are headed to Central America in June as presenters at an international symposium on biodiversity in Honduras. The seminar, organized by their IUP faculty advisor, Dr. Josiah Townsend, will focus on the group’s research on biodiversity in Honduras....
New youth homelessness program looking for volunteer host homes
A new program that aims to reduce youth homelessness in Armstrong, Indiana, Washington and Westmoreland counties is looking for volunteers to provide host homes. The Bridge2Home program will connect youth ages 16-20 who are experiencing housing instability with volunteer host homes for temporary housing. The program is a newly-funded outreach...
Uniontown couple accused of robbing 80-year-old man after ATM stop
State police in Uniontown arrested a Uniontown couple in connection with a strong-arm robbery of an 80-year-old Dunbar Township man outside his home. David E. Millero, 29, and Tiffany L. Evans, 27, were arrested on multiple criminal charges in connection with the robbery and assault of John O. Welsh about...
Pennsylvania starting to make moves on plastic bag bans
Regional grocery chains Giant Eagle and Shop ’n Save are starting to get their feet wet in the anti-plastic bag movement — an initiative Kroger recently took by storm after vowing to eliminate the single-use plastic from their stores by 2025. Each year, more than 380 billion plastic bags and...
Tornado watch issued for most of Western Pa.
A line of storms moved through Western Pennsylvania on Tuesday, dropping rain and hail in some places and spurring a lookout for tornadoes in all but three counties. The National Weather Service issued warnings for severe thunderstorms and tornadoes until 4:30 p.m. in Armstrong and Indiana counties as the system...
Gas prices continue decline as summer driving season begins
Gasoline prices continued falling last week as the summer travel season got underway, according to price-tracking website GasBuddy.com. Prices at gas stations in the Pittsburgh area dropped 5 cents in the past week to an average of $3.05 per gallon, according to GasBuddy and its daily survey of 731 stations....
Cops: Somerset County meth lab discovered after explosion
An explosion which sent a suspected drug manufacturer to the hospital, brought investigators to his meth lab in Somerset County, according to state police. Zachary Maust, 33, of Berlin Township, allegedly was in his father’s garage in Brothersvalley Township on May 18, making meth using the “one-pot method,” which involves...
Officials: 2 tornadoes hit Saturday in Indiana County
Two tornadoes touched down in Indiana County over the weekend, damaging a home and uprooting trees, the National Weather Service confirmed Monday. Meteorologists said a tornado with a wind speed of up to 90 mph touched down just before 8:30 p.m. Saturday along High Rise Drive in Burrell Township. It...
Ohio man attacked by bull near Pennsylvania gas well dies
ALBION, Pa. — Officials say an Ohio man attacked by a bull while he was checking or tending a northwestern Pennsylvania gas well earlier this month has died. The Erie Times-News reports that the Erie County coroner’s office said Sunday that 69-year-old Clovis Stephens died Saturday afternoon at UPMC Hamot....
Uniontown man sought in Fayette shooting
A Uniontown man is wanted for allegedly shooting another man several times outside a bar late Saturday night, state police at Uniontown said. The suspect, David Dwayne Brooks, 26, is accused of shooting a 25-year-old Uniontown man outside Bar None at 231 Pittsburgh Rd., North Union Township, at about 11:30...
After cloudy morning, storms expected Sunday afternoon
A partly cloudy morning is expected to give way to rain on Sunday afternoon across western Pennsylvania. Showers and thunderstorms are likely to hit the region around 3 p.m. Sunday, bringing between one-quarter-inch and one-half-inch of rain, according to the National Weather Service in Moon. Temperatures are expected to rise...
Regional power outages affecting about 400 customers
The storm that swept through Southwestern Pennsylvania Saturday night has left about 300 FirstEnergy customers without power and about 120 Duquesne Light customers still without electrical service as of Sunday morning. FirstEnergy reported that it expects to restore power at various times from Sunday morning through the afternoon in communities...
Braddock’s Battlefield museum gets boost from Fort Ligonier
The Battle of the Monongahela has become known to many as “Braddock’s Defeat.” British Gen. Edward Braddock failed in his 1755 campaign to wrest Fort Duquesne — the future site of Pittsburgh — from French forces. He was mortally wounded, and his forces routed in the July 9 battle with...
Aldi recalls flour for potential E. coli contamination
The Aldi grocery chain has recalled five-pound bags of all-purpose Baker’s Corner flour it sold in Pennsylvania and 10 other states because of possible contamination with E. coli bacteria. The recall applies to all lots of the five-pound flour sacks with any “best if used by” date that bear the...
Memorial Day observances planned
Following are some Memorial Day observances planned in the area: Bovard Monday, 10:30 a.m., ceremony at honor roll next to Bovard Volunteer Fire Company on Jefferson Street; Featured speaker: Retired Greensburg police chief and Vietnam veteran Walter J. “Wally” Lyons Greensburg VFW Post 33 Monday, 11 a.m., ceremony at Westmoreland...
