Top Stories category, Page 1275
As end approaches, Trump gets doses of flattery, finality
NEW YORK — President Donald Trump’s administration is ending how it began, with over-the-top declarations of praise for the chief executive. But now the flattery is mixed with a sense of finality as key people in the president’s orbit are beginning to turn the page and acknowledge his defeat. Trump...
Additional few inches of snow recorded in Pittsburgh region
Western Pennsylvania woke up to a little extra snow Sunday morning, adding to the already large piles dumped across the state earlier this week. Accumulations reached between 1 and 3 inches across the region, according to Lee Hendricks, meteorologist for the National Weather Service in Moon, with Allegheny County totaling...
Police: Neighbor rescues boy from house fire in Crafton Heights
A boy was rescued from a house fire Saturday evening in Crafton Heights when a neighbor climbed onto the second floor and helped the boy through a window, police said. First responders were called to the fire in the 1100 block of Fredonia Street around 4 p.m. When they arrived,...
Editorial: Bishop-elect Larry Kulick, a shepherd who knows his flock
Whenever someone comes into a new position, there is usually a learning curve. We don’t expect Monsignor Larry Kulick will have that with his new role. On Friday, Pope Francis named him the new bishop of the Greensburg Diocese. He already knows the mechanics of the office. He has been...
Sen. Toomey stands firm on provisions to limit Fed’s emergency lending powers
Pennsylvania Sen. Pat Toomey said his demands that Congress eliminate more than $400 billion in Federal Reserve emergency lending powers approved under the CARES Act and to prohibit such programs in the future should have come as a surprise to no one. “Contrary to what Democrats suggested, this is not...
Trump downplays Russia in 1st comments on cyberattack
WASHINGTON — Contradicting his secretary of state and other top officials, President Donald Trump on Saturday suggested without evidence that China — not Russia — may be behind the cyberattack against the United States and tried to minimized its impact. In his first comments on the breach, Trump scoffed at...
‘A way to say thank you:’ Wreaths Across America event held at Penn Township cemeteryVideo
When Sharon Bollenbacher decided to spend her Saturday morning at Jeannette Memorial Park as part of a local initiative for Wreaths Across America, she knew the event would hold extra meaning. Bollenbacher’s 22-year-old daughter, Laura, is scheduled for her first deployment with the Army the day after Christmas, where she...
General sorry for ‘miscommunication’ over vaccine shipments
The Army general in charge of getting covid-19 vaccines across the United States apologized on Saturday for “miscommunication” with states over the number of doses to be delivered in the early stages of distribution. “I failed. I’m adjusting. I am fixing and we will move forward from there,” Gen. Gustave...
Westmoreland County posts 410 covid-19 cases; 8 more deaths
The Pennsylvania Department of Health on Saturday reported 410 new cases of the coronavirus in Westmoreland County. It was the fourth consecutive day the county reported fewer than 500 cases. On Friday, 248 cases were reported, marking the first time there were less than 250 cases since Dec. 7. Eight...
Pennsylvania posts nearly 10,000 new coronavirus cases; 217 deaths
Pennsylvania on Saturday reported 9,834 new coronavirus cases, as the Keystone State gets nearer to accumulating 550,000 cases. The new data bring the total cases to 548,489. That’s a jump of more than 67,000 cases from this time last week (481,118). Officials said 50,157 of total cases are considered probable....
Sounding off: Pennsylvanians need covid relief
Regarding the article “A bleak outlook for millions facing cutoff of jobless aid”: Enough is enough — millions of families continue to struggle to put food on the table and pay their rent. With the covid-19 virus surging again, Sens. Pat Toomey and Bob Casey must pass a robust covid-19...
Allegheny County reports another 1,000-new covid case day, 7 deaths
Allegheny County on Saturday recorded 1,015 new coronavirus cases — after a two-day reprieve from 1,000-case counts — as the community continues to rack up covid-19 infections during the holiday season. The report is a 188-case jump from Friday’s total of 827. On Thursday, 850 cases were reported. It’s the...
Washington County man arrested after stabbing in Coal Center
A Washington County man is facing homicide charges following the death of a 27-year-old man in Coal Center, according to the Washington County District Attorney. Dylan Lesnik, 27, of Coal Center, was arrested after police found Marshal Y. Craig dead in his Spring Street home of apparent stab wounds, District...
Pittsburgh doctor shares his covid vaccination experience
Pittsburgh-based infectious disease expert Dr. Amesh Adalja has been front and center on national news programs, in newspaper articles and on radio shows since the coronavirus pandemic began. Adalja, who is a critical care, infectious disease and emergency medicine physician, has been treating patients at his hometown Butler Memorial Hospital...
Last call for sweets: Longtime Homestead bakery Blue Bonnet closing for good on Christmas Eve
The bread will no longer rise at Mantsch Blue Bonnet Bakery after Thursday. The longtime Homestead staple for fresh bread, homemade buns and tasty sweet treats from doughnuts to cakes to cookies is closing on Christmas Eve. “It’s time to retire,” said owner Michael Mantsch, 66, of West Mifflin, who...
New look, taste for Westmoreland-born Old Overholt, the country’s oldest whiskey brand
After 210 years of continuous production, America’s oldest whiskey brand — Westmoreland County-born Old Overholt — is undergoing a transformation. It’s part of a planned, long-range evolution to raise the iconic rye spirit from its customary, lower-shelf position alongside chums with names like Evan and Ezra to a top-shelf pantheon...
Westmoreland County Sheriff won’t enforce Gov. Wolf’s new covid-19 orders
Add Westmoreland County Sheriff James Albert to the list of law enforcement officers vowing not enforce Gov. Tom Wolf’s temporary covid restrictions. Last weekend, Wolf suspended all indoor dining, closed entertainment venues, limited indoor gatherings to 10 people and outdoor gatherings to 50 and restricted all other in-person businesses to...
Washington County man slain, authorities say
State police are investigating the murder of a 27-year-old Washington County man found dead in his Coal Center home, the Washington County Coroner said late Friday. The victim, Marshall Y. Craig, was found in his Spring Street home at 5:55 p.m. Friday, the coroner said. The cause of death is...
Medical examiner: Natrona Heights inmate died of heart disease in the Allegheny County Jail
A Natrona Heights man who was an inmate in the Allegheny County Jail died of heart disease last month, the Allegheny County Medical Examiner said Friday. Daniel Pastorek, 63, of Harrison, was found unresponsive in his cell on Thanksgiving at about 10:20 a.m., Warden Orlando Harper and the medical examiner...
U.S. clears Moderna vaccine for covid-19, 2nd shot in arsenal
WASHINGTON —The U.S. added a second covid-19 vaccine to its arsenal Friday, boosting efforts to beat back an outbreak so dire that the nation is regularly recording more than 3,000 deaths a day. Much-needed doses are set to arrive Monday after the Food and Drug Administration authorized an emergency rollout...
TV Talk: Peggy Finnegan bids Pittsburgh viewers farewell as she retires from WPXI-TV
Humble to the end, retiring WPXI-TV news anchor Peggy Finnegan twice tried to make Channel 11’s farewell coverage about everyone else. On Friday’s noon newscast, anchor Gordon Loesch tried to celebrate Finnegan but she turned it around and praised his work as an anchor and reporter over his 17 years...
UNC suspends 3 fraternities that feds linked to drug ring
RALEIGH, N.C. — The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill announced Friday that it has suspended three fraternities that have been linked to a drug trafficking ring that federal prosecutors say funneled large amounts of drugs into three college campuses. The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Greensboro announced on Thursday...
House passes bill to avert government shutdown; Senate next
WASHINGTON — The House passed a two-day stopgap spending bill Friday night to avert a partial government shutdown, trying to buy time for frustratingly slow endgame negotiations on an almost $1 trillion covid-19 economic relief package. Senate action wasn’t guaranteed but appeared likely before the midnight deadline. The House passed...
Alle-Kiski Valley restaurants continue to defy governor’s order suspending indoor dining
David’s Diner co-owner Lisa Speer said Friday she will not close her restaurant to customers looking to dine in, despite Gov. Tom Wolf’s order to suspend indoor dining and recent visits from health officials looking to enforce the order. Representatives of the Allegheny County Health Department stopped by the Springdale...
Family, friends honor Jafar Brooks with balloon release, memorial
In Arabic, the name Jafar means “rain or water that comes from heaven.” The words came from Khalid Samad, an activist from Cleveland who came to Homewood on Friday to pay his respects during a dedication to the young Jafar Brooks, who died Dec. 15 after being gunned down in...
