Top Stories category, Page 1432
U.S. health officials estimate 20 million Americans have had virus
WASHINGTON — U.S. officials estimate that 20 million Americans have been infected with the coronavirus since it first arrived in the United States, meaning that the vast majority of the population remains susceptible. Thursday’s estimate is roughly 10 times as many infections as the 2.3 million cases that have been...
Westmoreland County pays $50K to settle lawsuit, want row officers to start footing legal bills
Westmoreland County commissioners have had enough of paying out large sums of money to settle lawsuits filed against other elected officials. “We’re sending a letter to all of our row officers and elected officials telling them we want to hold them accountable,” said Commissioner Sean Kertes. Those comments came Thursday...
Banks lead gains for stocks on Wall Street in jumpy trading
Financial companies led stocks broadly higher on Wall Street Thursday as traders welcomed news that the Federal Reserve and other regulators are removing some limits on the ability of banks to make investments. The S&P 500 climbed 1.1% following a jumpy day of trading. At one point, the index was...
Flow of Point State Park fountain signals summer in Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh’s Point State Park fountain is flowing. Park Manager Jake Weiland said the fountain’s annual winter hibernation ended on Wednesday when staff turned on the pumps after about four weeks of prep work. “Lots of people think it’s as simple as turning on switches,” he said. “We’ve been working on...
Pittsburgh doctors document onset of Guillain-Barré Syndrome in covid-19 patient
Pittsburgh doctors found a potential connection between covid-19 and the onset of the autoimmune disorder Guillain-Barré Syndrome, according to a case study from Allegheny General Hospital. The neurologists, among the first in the country to document this link, published findings in the June issue of the Journal of Clinical Neuromuscular...
‘We started getting sores all over us’: Grand jury report blasts DEP, health department over fracking failures in Pa.
A scathing Pennsylvania grand jury report two years in the making blasted the state departments of Environment Protection and Health, alleging years of turning a blind eye to complaints against the oil and gas industry left residents exposed to harmful water and air pollution that caused nosebleeds, mysterious sores and...
Here’s where to see fireworks in Western Pa.
Although many public Fourth of July celebrations have been canceled because of crowd size restrictions, fireworks will light up the skies in various places around Western Pennsylvania. The area’s largest show, over Point State Park in Pittsburgh, is off for this year, but here are some alternatives: Beaver County Beaver...
Biddle’s Escape coffee shop owner sues WESA-FM, alleging defamation
The owner of a Wilkinsburg coffee shop is suing a Pittsburgh radio station over a story last year that contained allegations of sexual misconduct. Joseph Davis, owner of Biddle’s Escape, a popular indie coffee joint in the Regent Square neighborhood, claims in a lawsuit that the story was defamatory and...
Allegheny County reports 37 new covid-19 cases, 6 new hospitalizations
Allegheny County health officials reported 37 new covid-19 cases, six new hospitalizations and no new deaths on Thursday. Covid-19 cases have been rising locally this week. The county on Wednesday reported 45 new cases, matching the number of new cases reported on Monday. The 45 cases reported Monday and Wednesday...
Carnegie Science Center reopening, extending Mummies of the World exhibit
Carnegie Science Center is extending its popular Mummies of the World exhibition as the museum reopens after closing March 14 in the coronavirus shutdown. Mummies of the World had been scheduled to end in April. The show, presented in the center’s PPG Science Pavilion, displays 125 mummies and related artifacts...
Pa. man runs 218 miles to nursing home of virus-stricken ‘Nana’Video
SCRANTON — Endurance athlete Corey Cappelloni once ran six days through the Sahara Desert in what’s considered the most grueling foot race on Earth. But a 218-mile run to grandma after she was sickened with covid-19 turned out to be the longest, toughest and most rewarding of his life. Cappelloni...
‘Coming back and biting us’: U.S. sees virus resurgence
HOUSTON — A coronavirus resurgence is wiping out two months of progress in the U.S. and sending infections to dire new levels across the South and West, with hospital administrators and health experts warning Wednesday that politicians and a tired-of-being-cooped-up public are letting a disaster unfold. The U.S. recorded a...
State police association supports reform legislation passed by Pa. House, Senate
The Pennsylvania State Troopers Association on Wednesday issued a statement supporting police-reform legislation passed by the state House and Senate. “As troopers, we believe our Call of Honor is nothing less than a sacred oath. Every trooper must memorize it. In particular, it includes this line: ‘It is my duty...
New alert system designed to save Pittsburgh firefighters time, stress
A new alert system installed across Pittsburgh’s firehouses will streamline responses and cut down on stress that wears on firefighters from listening to every call every moment they’re in the station, Public Safety officials said in introducing the system on Wednesday. Dispatches are only heard by the station or stations...
‘Beautiful ride’: Irwin family, friends celebrate adoption of two brothersVideo
The anticipation was getting to be too much for 6-year-old Ryan Salany. “Mommy, how many minutes?” he asked again. Minutes turned into seconds and soon enough his long-awaited adoption hearing had arrived. At his adoptive parents’ Irwin dining room table, Ryan and his 2-year-old brother, Caleb, officially became new members...
Protesters: Pittsburgh bar has dress code that discriminates against Black peopleVideo
More than 100 protesters gathered outside a Downtown Pittsburgh bar Wednesday, protesting a dress code they say discriminates against Black individuals and Black members of the LGBTQ+ community. An incident happened over the weekend at 941 Saloon on Liberty Avenue, that sparked the protest, according to Devar Ferguson, a leader...
Food banks still operating in ’emergency mode,’ seeing increased demand in Western Pa.
While mile-long lines of cars outside the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank are not the norm these days, the need to provide food to struggling families in Southwestern Pennsylvania remains. “We’ve been in response mode to the crisis for the last three months, and we continue to see a higher...
Police: Oakmont family charged with death of 3-year-old girl
A third person wanted in connection with the death of a 3-year-old girl in Oakmont turned herself into Allegheny County Police headquarters Thursday morning. Police had issued a warrant for Alexis Herrera, 20, after charging her, along with the victim’s father, Jose Salazar-Ortiz Sr., 29, and stepmother, Laura Ramriez, 27,...
Trafford councilman criticized for transphobic joke about state health secretary
A Trafford councilman is under fire for making a comment he deemed a joke about Pennsylvania Health Secretary Dr. Rachel Levine’s gender on Gov. Tom Wolf’s Facebook page. Wolf on his Facebook page Sunday wished a happy Father’s Day to all Pennsylvania dads. Zack Cole, a Republican councilman who chairs...
Allegheny County health officials warn of coronavirus spread in younger people
Allegheny County officials said there has been a community spread of covid-19 among young people, which could be detrimental to those most vulnerable to the virus. The county on Wednesday reported 45 new covid-19 cases, matching the number of new cases reported on Monday. The 45 cases reported Monday and...
Penn Hills man gets life in prison for 2017 Jeannette murder
An Allegheny County man was sentenced Wednesday to serve life in prison without parole for a 2017 fatal shooting in Jeannette. Darrelle Tolbert-McGhee, 31, of Penn Hills, was convicted in January of first-degree murder for the April 13, 2017, daylight shooting of Michael Wilson on Clay Avenue. Police said Wilson,...
Pittsburgh Council split on hiring consultant for review of police actions during protests
Pittsburgh City Council members were evenly split Wednesday over a Citizen Police Review Board request to hire a consulting company for a review of police actions during recent protests. The CPRB had requested $25,000 to hire Texas-based Densus Group to assess police use of force during protests Downtown and in...
Indiana County man charged in robbery, shooting on same day
Police charged an Indiana man with involvement in a drive-by shooting in the borough and an armed robbery in neighboring White Township, both occurring on Tuesday. State police said Thomas Edward Lindsay, 20, was taken into custody without incident Wednesday at a residence in the township. He is charged with...
GNC files for bankruptcy, plans to close up to 1,200 stores
Pittsburgh-based health and wellness retailer GNC Corp. filed for bankruptcy and plans to close 800 to 1,200 stores, including several in Western Pennsylvania, unless it finds a buyer willing to pay at least $760 million under an agreement with lenders. Saying the covid-19 pandemic “had a dramatic negative impact on...
Teen killed, others injured in South Fayette train crash
A teenage girl was killed and two others were hurt Wednesday, after they were struck by a train in South Fayette. The crash happened near the intersection of Wabash Avenue and Millers Run Road, according to a news release from Allegheny County police. The teenagers were walking across an elevated...
