Top Stories category, Page 1399
Former GOP presidential candidate Herman Cain dies after covid-19 battleVideo
ATLANTA — Herman Cain, former Republican presidential candidate and former CEO of a major pizza chain who went on to become an ardent supporter of President Donald Trump, died Thursday of complications from coronavirus. He was 74. Dan Calabrese, who authored a post on Cain’s website announcing the death, told...
Allegheny County data shows parties becoming a growing source of coronavirus
While Allegheny County bars and restaurants are still linked to the most covid-19 cases, case investigations show a growing number of infected individuals have reported attending private parties and other large gatherings. Dr. Debra Bogen, director of Allegheny County’s Health Department said Wednesday parties, weddings, funerals, religious services and gyms...
Dunkin’ to shut down about 800 stores by end of 2020
Dunkin’ said it plans to shut down about 800 of its U.S. stores by the end of 2020, according to a release posted Thursday. There was no word on which stores would be closing. A new Dunkin’ store is set to open soon in East Huntingdon’s Countryside Plaza. The doughnut...
Motorcyclist killed in early morning crash in Beechview
One person was killed Thursday in a motorcycle crash in Beechview, authorities said. Police responded at about 6:40 a.m. along Crane Avenue, near Brashear High School. No other vehicles were involved. Crane Avenue is shut down at Route 51. BREAKING: Motorcyclist killed in earlier crash on Crane Ave, near Brashear...
Trump floats November election delay – but he can’t do that
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump is for the first time floating a “delay” to the Nov. 3 presidential election, as he makes unsubstantiated allegations that increased mail-in voting will result in fraud. The dates of presidential elections — the Tuesday after the first Monday in November in every fourth year...
Greensburg hosts Pence visit, Rally for Black Lives event
Greensburg experienced opposite ends of the political spectrum Thursday, hosting a Cops for Trump rally and a Rally for Black Lives about a half mile from each other. Vice President Mike Pence attended the noon Cops for Trump rally held in Mid Town Plaza, next door to city hall and...
U.S. economy shrank at record-breaking 33% rate last quarterVideo
WASHINGTON — The U.S. economy shrank at a dizzying 33% annual rate in the April-June quarter — by far the worst quarterly plunge ever — when the viral outbreak shut down businesses, throwing tens of millions out of work and sending unemployment surging to 14.7%, the government said Thursday. The...
1.4 million seek jobless aid as virus keeps forcing layoffs
WASHINGTON — More than 1.4 million laid-off Americans applied for unemployment benefits last week, further evidence of the devastation the coronavirus outbreak has unleashed on the U.S. economy. The continuing wave of job cuts is occurring against the backdrop of a spike in virus cases that has led many states...
Enrollment booming for cyber schools, online academies
With families concerned about the safety of students returning to schools amid the covid-19 pandemic, cyber charter schools and the online academies run by school districts are seeing an increase in demand, officials of the schools said. “Pennsylvania’s public cyber charter schools have been inundated with inquiries about their schools...
Officials: Shooting claims boy in Uniontown
Uniontown police are searching for a suspect in a fatal shooting Wednesday night on the city’s Lenox Street. One person was confirmed dead, according to police. The victim was a male juvenile, according to a Fayette County 911 dispatch supervisor. The shooting was reported at about 9:30 p.m. Additional details...
Officials ID man killed in assault at Kennedy Township hotel
A 29-year-old man was charged with involuntary manslaughter after an assault Wednesday left another man dead in a Kennedy Township hotel. The suspect, Cecil Guy, was detained after police responded to the motel along the 100 block of Kisow Drive shortly before 8 p.m. and found a man unresponsive with...
4 Big Tech CEOs tell Congress they don’t stifle competitionVideo
WASHINGTON — The leaders of Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Google fended off accusations Wednesday that their companies stifle competition, under intense questioning from lawmakers who have been i nvestigating Big Tech’s market dominance for the past year. Amazon’s Jeff Bezos, in his first appearance before Congress, Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg, Sundar...
Reschenthaler self-quarantines after House colleague tests positive for covid-19
U.S. Rep. Guy Reschenthaler, R-Peters, Washington County, announced Wednesday he’s self-quarantining for 14 days after coming into close contact with a colleague who tested positive for covid-19. The possible exposure occurred Tuesday at a House Judiciary Committee hearing, when Reschenthaler was in close proximity to Rep. Louie Gohmert of Texas....
Post-Gazette newsroom union to vote whether to strike; objects to ‘unfair’ changes
Unionized newsroom employees of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette will vote whether to go on strike in response to what the union deems unfair working conditions and other controversial changes imposed by management. The vote will be decided by secret ballots that will go out in the mail to members in coming...
Westmoreland Manor residents can have in-person visits for first time since March
Visitation with residents of Westmoreland Manor resumed this week in an outdoor setting, under a tent on a patio in front of the county-owned nursing home in Hempfield. County officials Wednesday announced new safety measures and other precautions associated with the resumption of visits to the nearly 400 Manor residents,...
Man found in Gilpin river search taken to hospital; police investigating
A West Leechburg man who was the subject of a Kiski River search Tuesday night in Gilpin was taken to a hospital with an apparent unrelated medical condition, according to township police. Police Chief Chris Fabec did not identify the 39-year-old man, citing medical privacy issues. He said the man...
Allegheny County’s covid-19 investigators find most restaurants complying with guidelinesVideo
In its first week, Allegheny County’s new Covid Field Response Team visited around 350 establishments, Health Director Dr. Debra Bogen said in a news conference Wednesday. Of the businesses visited – which included bars, restaurants, convenience stores and others – 87% received a satisfactory report, while 13% had at least...
Bell Township man’s race car, hearse make memorial victory lap at Lernerville SpeedwayVideo
The crowd of about 150 people at Lernerville Speedway on Wednesday afternoon was quiet until the roar of the sprint car owned by the late “B-Dog” Hawkins brought applause and tears. A popular local race car driver, Brandon D. “B-Dog” Hawkins, 26, of Bell Township was a union laborer who...
Port Authority reports 3 new covid-19 cases
Three more Port Authority of Allegheny County employees have tested positive for covid-19, spokesman Adam Brandolph said. The new cases bring the number of covid-19 cases involving Port Authority employees to 32. Two of the new cases are bus drivers: one based in Collier and the other in Ross. Both...
U.S. death toll from coronavirus hits 150,000
PROVIDENCE, R.I. — The death toll from the coronavirus in the U.S. hit 150,000 on Wednesday, by the far the highest in the world, according to the tally kept by Johns Hopkins University. The bleak milestone comes amid signs that the nation’s outbreak is beginning to stabilize in the Sun...
Struggling restaurant owners tell Pa. lawmakers: ‘We’re limping along here’Video
With a $20,000 monthly mortgage payment, the owner of a Hempfield brewpub told state legislators his business is barely breaking even under a state-mandated 25% customer capacity order. “We’re limping along here, and we need help,” said Greg Cammerata, owner of IronRock Tap House. Cammerata and IronRock executive chef Arnold...
Pelosi orders masks for voting after Rep. Louie Gohmert tests positive for coronavirusVideo
WASHINGTON — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi will require that masks be worn on the House floor after a Republican member of Congress tested positive for the coronavirus. The member, Texas Rep. Louie Gohmert, often shunned wearing masks and was known to vote without one. Pelosi announced on the House floor...
I-579 ‘cap’ project remains on schedule despite pandemic; 1st concrete slabs set into place
Construction of a “cap” linking the Hill District to Downtown Pittsburgh remains on schedule despite restrictions necessitated by the coronavirus pandemic, PennDOT officials said Wednesday. The nearly $30 million I-579 Urban Connector, known as the I-579 “Cap,” is still on pace to open in 2022, according to PennDOT. The first...
Census Bureau to send out emails to spark response rates
The Census Bureau is making one last effort to contact people who have not yet responded to the once-a-decade survey by sending out emails. Households in low-responding census tracts will receive an email from 2020census@subscriptions.census.gov encouraging people to fill out the form online, as well as informing them why the...
Western Pa. residents among those receiving ‘mystery seed’ packets
Shawn O’Mahony of Penn Hills ordered a bunch of seeds online to jump-start his 2020 garden. So, when a couple of packets he didn’t recognize showed up in the spring, it didn’t seem like a big deal. “I received two of them a couple months ago,” O’Mahony said. “They were...
