Top Stories category, Page 1318
Latrobe man charged with terroristic threats after Hempfield search, school delay
A Latrobe man is being held without bond after state police said he made threats Friday with a shotgun and holed up in his mother’s house, prompting the delay of a Hempfield elementary school. Dale Owen Smith Jr., 32, is charged with two counts of terroristic threats. Troopers said in...
A welcoming sign from the Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy
The Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy wants people to know trails, playgrounds and lawns are for everyone. The conservancy invites people to enjoy the outdoors. The conservancy said Friday it will place “All Are Welcome” signs throughout Pittsburgh parks. It is part of a mission “to promote equity throughout the city’s shared...
Pittsburgh artist creates scene with replica of President Trump head
Yes, that indeed is a 7-foot gold replica of President Donald Trump’s head one might see, strapped to the bed of a U-Haul pickup truck driving around Pittsburgh. Arjen van Lith, a Dutch artist and writer living in Shadyside, designed and created the piece. It’s comprised of 3 millimeter coroplast,...
Pitt joins initiative to develop more diversity among faculty in STEM fields
The University of Pittsburgh is joining an initiative to develop a more diverse and inclusive STEM faculty. Pitt is one of 19 universities joining a three-year program to develop inclusive faculty recruitment, hiring and retention. The Aspire: The National Alliance for Inclusive & Diverse STEM Faculty program is facilitated by...
Voters in 11 Allegheny County precincts receive incorrect polling place information
Voters in 11 different precincts across Allegheny County will receive letters in the next few days updating their polling places after a mistake was made in the statewide database. The affected communities include Bethel Park, Braddock Hills, Brentwood, Green Tree, McCandless, Plum, West Mifflin and West View. County communications Director...
Leechburg Area to hold classes online for next 2 Wednesdays
Leechburg Area School District students will receive instruction remotely for the next two Wednesdays so custodians can thoroughly clean the district’s buildings on those days. The district has been holding classes in person all five days each week. The move, approved by the school board on Wednesday, was prompted by...
Trump doled out billions to drugmakers and hospitals with few strings attached
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration has pumped billions of dollars into the health care industry during the covid-19 crisis, padding bottom lines at some of the country’s most profitable businesses even as millions of Americans have been left struggling with mounting medical bills. And although taxpayer money has poured into...
Moon Area High School, middle school closed until Nov. 5 due to covid-19 cases
Moon Area High School and middle school will be closed for about a week after someone from the high school tested positive for covid-19, Superintendent Barry J. Balaski announced Thursday. Balaski posted the message on the front page of the district’s website, moonarea.net. Students from both schools will continue learning...
Behind the scenes at the Allegheny County elections warehouseVideo
A combination of high-tech machinery and old-fashioned paper pushing will be used to process and tabulate election results on Election Day in Allegheny County. Workers from the county’s election division will be joined by scores of others from 17 other county departments to process votes this year at the warehouse...
Gov. Wolf: Pennsylvania prepared for Nov. 3 election
Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf said Thursday the state is ready for Election Day. “Pennsylvania is prepared. We are protected for this election and voters can cast their ballots with confidence. We are going to have a fair election where everyone can vote without interference,” Wolf said. State election officials said...
Westmoreland commissioner claims county pay raises result of political threat
Westmoreland Commissioner Gina Cerilli on Thursday accused her Republican colleagues of buckling under a threat from the county controller when they granted a series of raises to his staff of auditors. “They should be ashamed,” Cerilli said about a reorganization of the auditing department that included $130,000 in raises handed...
Former Pittsburgh firefighter faces federal prison in sex case
A former Pittsburgh firefighter pleaded guilty in federal court on Thursday to traveling to Virginia to have sex with what he believed was a 10-year-old girl and her mother. Brian Kosanovich, 58, will be sentenced on charges of attempted coercion and enticement of a minor to engage in illegal sexual...
Man who assaulted New Kensington hockey referee gets probation, anger managementVideo
A Buffalo Township doctor who attacked a hockey referee during a recreational game in New Kensington earlier this month has accepted an agreement calling for two years’ probation and requiring that he attend anger management counseling sessions. New Kensington police charged the player, Dr. Jeremy Gregory Gilbert, 43, with assault...
‘Gone too soon’: West Penn Power lineman remembered for acts of kindness at Madison serviceVideo
Dozens of West Penn Power utility trucks and ambulances on Thursday lined Main Street outside of Beatty-Rich Funeral Home in Madison to honor 27-year-old Dillon W. Walton, a utility lineman killed Oct. 21 in a crash on nearby Interstate 70. The overflow crowd of family, friends and co-workers, who parked...
Home for the holidays: Pa. health secretary urges that gatherings be limited to households
State officials are asking Pennsylvanians to limit holiday gatherings to those within their own households as the resurgence of the coronavirus pandemic continues. Department of Health Secretary Rachel Levine said Thursday there is evidence locally and nationally that such gatherings, large or small, are contributing to an increase in cases...
Westmoreland County reports 6 new coronavirus deaths, 74 new cases
Westmoreland County added six new coronavirus deaths, continuing a streak of 14 days with at least one new death in the county because of the virus. The six deaths are the most in a single day since May. The county saw five deaths on Wednesday and four on Tuesday. There...
Pennsylvania reports more than 2,200 new coronavirus cases, 44 deaths
Pennsylvania has experienced its largest spike in coronavirus cases during October. After reporting 2,202 new cases on Thursday, the state have accumulated 43,909 cases for the month with two days to go. At the start of the pandemic, cases grew quickly with 40,000 cases in April. But September recorded just...
PPG Ice Rink opening in November in Pittsburgh
Lace up your skates: The PPG Ice Rink is opening. Although Light Up Night has been canceled because of the covid-19 pandemic, the annual debut of the skating rink will be the Friday before Thanksgiving. Located in PPG Plaza between Third Avenue and Fourth Avenue, the rink will be open...
Pitt Library System acquires August Wilson archive
An adage taken from the title of a Thomas Wolfe novel states, “You can’t go home again.” However, August Wilson is doing just that. Or at least his archive is. The University of Pittsburgh Library System (ULS) has acquired the August Wilson archive with the help of Wilson’s widow, Constanza...
Allegheny County posts 149 new coronavirus cases, 2 deaths
Allegheny County on Thursday reported 149 new coronavirus cases with two new deaths. The county has seen an average of 131 new daily cases over the past seven days, while adding 920 new cases in that time. The county’s total number of cases stands at 15,449 with 10,695 recoveries. According...
Police looking for suspect in theft of $1,000 worth of Legos from Indiana Co. Walmart
Pennsylvania State Police are looking to identify a man suspected of stealing Legos from a Walmart in Indiana County. Police said they believe the man stole 11 Lego sets worth $989.45. The incident took place at a Walmart in White Township on Oct. 14, according to police. Photos show the...
Potentially thousands of requested mail ballots lost in Butler County, official says
Spotlight PA is an independent, non-partisan newsroom powered by The Philadelphia Inquirer in partnership with PennLive/The Patriot-News, TribLIVE/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, and WITF Public Media. Sign up for our free newsletters. HARRISBURG — Potentially thousands of mail ballots requested by Butler County voters appear to be lost, a county official said Wednesday,...
10-year-old Shaler student stops spotted lanternfly in its tracks
Ten-year-old Ludi Aguera didn’t realize the significance of the bug she squashed at the Shaler Area Elementary School track – she just thought it was a cool-looking moth. “I had no idea what it was,” said Ludi, who stumbled across a spotted lanternfly — an invasive insect with the potential...
Pine-Richland alum working on team searching for covid-19 vaccine
Kathy Strauss has always pretty good at math and science. But the 1974 Pine-Richland graduate didn’t necessarily envision a career in the medical profession or ever imagine that she would someday work on groundbreaking research in the mission to find a vaccine for the coronavirus. But Strauss, 64, recently was...
Zeta batters Southeast after swamping Gulf Coast; 6 deadVideo
NEW ORLEANS — Zeta sped across the Southeast on Thursday, leaving a trail of damage and more than 2.6 million homes and businesses without power in Atlanta and beyond after pounding New Orleans with winds and water that splintered homes and were blamed for at least six deaths. A Category...
