Top Stories category, Page 1108
Pittsburgh Restaurant Week returns with dining safety in mind
The next two weeks are an opportunity to dine out and support struggling food establishments returning to business amid the pandemic. The semiannual Pittsburgh Restaurant Week kicked off Monday and runs through Aug. 22. It also is held in January. Nearly 40 restaurants will participate. They are offering new menu...
Man hit, killed by train on South Side
A man was killed Tuesday after being hit by a train on the South Side, according to Pittsburgh police. Emergency responders were called by a CSX conductor to an area near Muriel Street just before 2:30 a.m. The conductor reported that a person spotted on the tracks was hit by...
Fox Chapel Area school board approves universal masking
An angry, boisterous crowd marched out of the Fox Chapel Area School Board meeting after members voted to require masks at all grade levels when school returns this month. More than a dozen people booed the board’s decision, decrying universal masking and saying their liberties are being violated. The board...
Police: Man treated for medical issue shoots at first responders, flees
A Clairton man is awaiting arraignment after police said he shot at them following treatment for a medical issue by paramedics. Michael S. Spence, 28, is facing numerous charges in two cases, including aggravated assault, terroristic threats and reckless endangerment. Police and paramedics responded to Spence’s home on Wylie Avenue...
Citizens Bank set to close Ligonier, New Kensington, Ross branches
Citizens Bank is set to close branches in Ligonier Borough, Ross Township and New Kensington by early December. Bennett Griesmer, spokesman for Citizens Financial Group, confirmed the New Kensington branch, at 901 Fifth Ave., is slated to close Nov. 17, while additional closures are set for Dec. 7, at the...
Canada reopens its border for vaccinated U.S. visitorsVideo
DERBY LINE, Vt. — Canada lifted its prohibition on Americans crossing the border to shop, vacation or visit on Monday while the United States is maintaining similar restrictions for Canadians, part of a bumpy return to normalcy from covid-19 travel bans. U.S. citizens and legal residents must be both fully...
Jury seated in trial of Allegheny Township man charged in 6 sex assault cases
A Westmoreland County jury was seated Monday to hear evidence in six cases against an Allegheny Township man charged with sexual assaults against two young children, a teenager and two adults. Prosecutors contend Eric Alan Wright, 50, raped two children — including one accuser who told police the sexual assaults...
Sewickley Academy issues letter to parents addressing reasons for changes, including ‘toxic culture’
The Interim Head of School at Sewickley Academy, Ashley Birtwell, sent out a letter Aug. 4 to parents addressing the recent turmoil of events that have occurred at Sewickley Academy over the past six weeks. The letter, which the school also sent to the Sewickley Herald, comes after Academy representatives...
Former state prison in Hempfield scheduled for sheriff’s sale
A former state prison in Hempfield is scheduled to be sold at a Westmoreland County Sheriff’s sale on Sept. 7 as part of a mortgage foreclosure seeking payment of $5.6 million. The sheriff’s sale notice is the most recent chapter in the ongoing saga of the former prison located on...
Pittsburgh man pleads guilty to leaving explosives outside PNC Plaza
A Pittsburgh man pleaded guilty in federal court Monday to leaving a backpack full of combustibles near PNC Plaza in Downtown Pittsburgh last year. Matthew Michanowicz, 53, pleaded guilty to one charge of violating federal firearms laws. Michanowicz, of the city’s Duquesne Heights neighborhood, was arrested by Pittsburgh police in...
5 things to know about lambda and other covid variants
The delta variant of covid-19 is the main focus of health officials right now because it accounts for most new cases across the country, but experts also have an eye on the lambda variant that already swept through South America. The lambda variant was discovered in Peru in December ,...
#PHiLLTERspace looks to save Penn Hills Cinemas by transforming it into a live entertainment hub
A local talent and Penn Hills resident hopes to save and transform the space at Penn Hills Cinemas into a live entertainment hub. The project dubbed “#PHiLLTERspace” will use the theater as a community live arts experience center while it is not showing movies by combining grassroots and independent live...
From alpha to lambda — a guide to the Greek alphabet of covid variants
First, many called it simply the coronavirus, then covid or covid-19. Now, we are keeping track of descriptors like alpha, beta and gamma, the variants of covid-19. The World Health Organization created this naming system to make them easier to publicly discuss. Viruses are constantly changing through mutation, which results...
Mike Lange leaving Penguins broadcast booth
Hockey nights in Pittsburgh will never be the same. After 46 years in the broadcast booth, the legendary Mike Lange has called his last Penguins game. The team announced Monday that Lange, 73, will not return to play-by-play duties when the season begins in the fall. Lange will continue to...
Wilkins man claimed to be policeman during traffic stop, troopers say
A Wilkins man was arrested Friday after police said he claimed to be a law enforcement officer during a traffic stop with a state trooper, according to court papers. Jonathan Matthew Kauric II, 38, who also lists a Mt. Pleasant address, is charged with impersonating a public servant, disorderly conduct,...
Fake covid vaccine cards online worry college officials
SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. — As the delta variant of the coronavirus sweeps across the United States, a growing number of colleges and universities are requiring proof of covid-19 vaccination for students to attend in-person classes. But the mandatory requirement has opened the door for those opposed to getting the...
Senate Dems unveil $3.5T budget for social, climate efforts
WASHINGTON — Senate Democrats unveiled a budget resolution Monday that maps $3.5 trillion in spending boosts and tax breaks aimed at strengthening social and environmental programs, setting up an autumn battle over President Joe Biden’s domestic policy ambitions. The measure lays the groundwork for legislation later this year that over...
‘Code red for humanity’: UN report says global warming nears limits
Earth’s climate is getting so hot that temperatures in about a decade will probably blow past a level of warming that world leaders have sought to prevent, according to a report released Monday that the United Nations called a “code red for humanity.” “It’s just guaranteed that it’s going to...
Detectives: Women’s fight was cause of Arnold shooting
A fight between two women resulted in four people, including a juvenile, being shot in Arnold on Sunday night, police said. The shooting in the 2000 block of Kenneth Avenue, near Moore Street, was reported about 11:15 p.m. According to Westmoreland County detectives, who were called to help with the...
Senators push infrastructure bill a step closer to passageVideo
WASHINGTON — Senators hoisted the $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure package over another hurdle late Sunday, a coalition of Democrats and Republicans pushing it closer to passage despite a few holdouts trying to derail one of President Joe Biden’s top priorities. The rare bipartisan momentum was holding steady, a reflection of...
Californians endure intense weekend of wildfire fearsVideo
After four years of homelessness, Kesia Studebaker thought she finally landed on her feet when she found a job cooking in a diner and moved into a house in the small community of Greenville. She had been renting for three months and hoped the stability would help her win back...
Powerball adds 3rd weekly drawing
Jackpots that have put millions of dollars into the pockets of Pennsylvanians could be on the rise soon after Powerball officials announced a third drawing per week in 48 states. Beginning Aug. 23, Powerball drawings across the country will be held on Mondays in addition to Wednesdays and Saturdays. Players...
Police: Fire at Swissvale hot dog shop intentionally set, investigation ongoing
A popular Swissvale hot dog shop was closed Sunday after a fire. Police said they were dispatched to D’s Six Pax & Dogz around 2:30 a.m. for a dumpster fire. The Braddock Avenue business is in the Swissvale section of the Regent Square neighborhood that also includes parts of Edgewood...
New outdoor concert venue in Harmar set to hold 1st act next month
So far, it seems to be a pretty well-kept secret. But a new outdoor concert venue is coming to Harmar. The Mountain View Amphitheater is at 10 Rich Hill Road, off Route 910. It’s up the hill from the Harmarville business district and not far from Pennsylvania Turnpike Exit 48...
Experts: Attaining herd immunity for covid might not be realistic
The light at the end of the covid-19 tunnel might be dimming as the more contagious delta variant surges, vaccination rates wane and experts say the long-sought herd immunity might be beyond reach. Herd immunity has been a buzzword and, for many, the end goal, since the pandemic began sweeping...
