Top Stories category, Page 1393
Better Business Bureau issues warning about possible scams related to census
The Better Business Bureau of Western Pennsylvania issued a warning regarding potential phishing scams related to the census. The census, which determines how federal funds are distributed along with the number of congressional seats each state is allocated, has been sending emails encouraging people to respond to the once-a-decade survey...
Republic, United airlines could lay off nearly 250 Pittsburgh-based employees because of pandemic
Nearly 250 employees of two of the airlines that serve Pittsburgh International Airport could be laid off Oct. 1 because of the coronavirus pandemic, according to filings with the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry. They include 66 United Airlines employees and 183 employed by Republic Airways. Each airline filed...
New Kensington officials want local control over use of fireworks
New Kensington will urge its state representatives to repeal the law that legalized fireworks in Pennsylvania. In a resolution city council approved Monday, the city said it will make the request “since calls for more local control over the usage of commercial fireworks has been largely ignored by the Pennsylvania...
Komen Pittsburgh Race for the Cure goes virtual this year
Thousands of Komen Pittsburgh Race for the Cure participants may not be gathering in Schenley Park this year, but event organizers are not letting that stop their mission. The race, which typically draws 15,000 people to the Flagstaff Hill section of the park, will celebrate its 28th year virtually, said...
2 tornadoes confirmed in eastern Pennsylvania during storm
PHILADELPHIA — The National Weather Service has confirmed that tornadoes touched down in Bucks and Montgomery counties during Tuesday’s storm. The weather service office in Mount Holly, New Jersey said more details would be provided later such as the strength and exact location of the storms, which were among six...
Continuing recent trend, Pennsylvania reports under 1,000 new covid-19 cases
Pennsylvania added 705 new covid-19 cases and 12 deaths on Wednesday. Wednesday marks the eighth straight day the state has posted new cases below 1,000. In that eight-day span, they have averaged 791 new cases a day, which is 17.3% less than the previous eight days (956 between July 21-28)....
Maryland men arrested in alleged 3-county robbery spree
Police arrested two Maryland men early Wednesday for an alleged armed robbery spree that authorities say spanned three counties. Rexford Enoch Prince-Wright, 23, and Elijah Sayon, 22, both of Hagerstown, face robbery charges in connection with four incidents early this week, according to Allegheny County Police Sgt. Todd Dolfi. County...
Westmoreland County adds 11 new coronavirus cases
Westmoreland County added 11 new coronavirus cases on Wednesday, according to data from the Pennsylvania Department of Health. With the 11 new cases, the county’s total rose to 1,475 since the first cases were reported in March. All 11 cases were confirmed, bringing the county’s total to 1,437 confirmed and...
Hampton police arrest mother, daughter on felony drug charges
A woman and her daughter are facing drug charges after Hampton Township police say they saw one of them visiting the home of a known narcotics dealer, according to authorities. Hampton police detective Robert Grondwalski was working an undercover detail on July 27 when he said he spotted Ember Alt,...
Allegheny County adds 70 new coronavirus cases, 5 new deaths
Allegheny County’s number of new coronavirus cases dropped back into double digits on Wednesday, but there was an uptick in hospitalizations and deaths. The county’s health department reported 70 new cases, nine hospitalizations and five deaths. Since the first cases were reported in March, Allegheny County has seen 8,512 cases,...
Virginia man accused of transporting 100 pounds of marijuana on Pa. Turnpike in Mt. Pleasant Township
Drug charges were held for court Tuesday against a Virginia man state police accuse of transporting 100 pounds of marijuana on the Pennsylvania Turnpike in Westmoreland County earlier this year. Navdeep Singh Chahal, 30, of Lorton, Va., will face formal arraignment in October, according to online court records. A state...
TSA: Loaded handgun found in Connellsville man’s bag at Pittsburgh International Airport
A Connellsville man told federal security officers he forgot he had a loaded .380-caliber handgun in his carry-on bag Tuesday when he was stopped at a Pittsburgh International Airport security checkpoint. Transportation Security Administration officers spotted the gun on the monitor of an X-ray machine. The gun was confiscated, but...
Clorox wipes will be hard to find through the rest of 2020
Clorox wipes are the new toilet paper. You’ll have a hard time finding the brand of cleaning wipes until early next year, company officials said in an earnings call Tuesday. Linda Rendle, CEO-elect for the Clorox Co., said they will continue to ramp up production through the rest of the...
Negligence probed in deadly Beirut blast amid public angerVideo
BEIRUT — Investigators probing the deadly blast that ripped across Beirut focused Wednesday on possible negligence in the storage of tons of a highly explosive fertilizer in a waterfront warehouse, while the government ordered the house arrest of several port officials. International aid flights began to arrive as Lebanon’s leaders...
Tarentum increases fine for excessive police calls to at least $300
Tarentum has increased by at least six times a penalty imposed on residents who have excessive calls for police and other emergency and public safety services. The ordinance council approved Tuesday replaces a 14-year-old ordinance, which had imposed a $50 “surtax” for each police response in excess of three every...
Woman trying to save pets rescued from burning home in New Castle
Firefighters in New Castle, Lawrence County, rescued a woman from a burning house after she went back inside to retrieve her pets. The fire broke out in the kitchen of the home along East Lutton Street shortly after midnight, according to Tribune-Review news partners WPXI-TV. Authorities told the television station...
Allegheny, Westmoreland school districts reveal plans for upcoming classes
In March, school districts across the state were ordered closed by Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf to help curb the spread of coronavirus. Now, they are now developing new health and safety protocols in an effort to restart instruction in the coming weeks. Some will begin with online instruction, some will...
Franklin Regional pushes back start date, modifies reopening plansVideo
The Franklin Regional School District has modified its plan for the 2020-21 school year and pushed back its start date to Sept. 8 after officials said new state health guidelines made it impossible to properly maintain social distance at its high school. Students up through eighth grade will have three...
USDA: ‘Mystery seeds’ include common plants, herbs but still should not be opened
Scientists have found that the “mystery seeds” being sent to addresses across the country represent at least 14 varieties of plants and herbs, a U.S. Department of Agriculture official said. And while many of them are common — mint, rosemary, sage — federal officials said not to plant them, though...
Bethel Park scraps full in-person learning, leaning toward some in-school days, some days online
Three weeks before school is scheduled to start, the Bethel Park School Board is changing course on how it will reopen to students and teachers. It’s scrapping its plan for a full return to the classroom. The board expects to decide on a different plan Tuesday, Aug. 11, according to...
O’Hara Council: Squaw Valley Park is now O’Hara Township Community Park
People watching the O’Hara Council meeting online via Zoom on Tuesday night erupted in cheers and applause following a vote to rename Squaw Valley Park. Council voted 6-1 to rename the site O’Hara Township Community Park, bringing a swift resolution to a two-month heated debate over removing the word Squaw...
Restaurants and bars banding together to give Gov. Wolf an ultimatum
Restaurant and bar owners plan to issue a threat to Gov. Tom Wolf later this week: “We’re going to stand together and open up at 100%,” said Rod Ambrogi, a restaurant owner in Bethel Park. The warning comes nearly two weeks after 42 politicians formally asked Wolf through signed letters...
High school bands eager to march on through pandemicVideo
The high school marching band’s drum line heralds the start of a fresh school year. Chris Snyder, band director at Deer Lakes High School, wasn’t going to let a pandemic kill that tradition. Since March, Deer Lakes students — like high schoolers nationwide — haven’t participated in school events, seen...
Garden club honors suffrage movement with appropriately colored flowers
This month marks the 100th anniversary of the day the 19th Amendment became law in the United States. On Aug. 26, 1920, following a battle seven decades long, American women were granted the right to vote. Not everyone is aware that suffragists adopted purple, white and yellow as the colors...
Westmoreland sheriff uses antibody tests to screen deputies for coronavirusVideo
Westmoreland County deputy sheriffs won’t have week-long waits to determine if they’ve been infected with the coronavirus. Sheriff James Albert said Tuesday his office secured up to 50 rapid antibody tests that his staff will use as a diagnostic tool to determine the likelihood of exposure to the virus. “As...
