Top Stories category, Page 1487
Tips lead troopers to man who allegedly stole car, dumped it in Unity lake
Tips from the public led state police to the man who was arrested Wednesday for stealing a car and dumping it in a lake in Unity Township. Damien J. Kolas, 47, of McKees Rocks, was arraigned on burglary, theft, criminal mischief and related charges in connection with the theft of...
1-year-old boy dies after ingesting heroin-fentanyl mix in Sharpsburg home; no charges, arrests
A 1-year-old boy died in September after ingesting a mix of heroin and fentanyl at a Sharpsburg home, authorities said Wednesday. Few details are available regarding the death of the boy, who was identified by the Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office as Latayvis Kane LeRoy Gervasoni. Emergency dispatchers received a...
Trump’s ‘Operation Warp Speed’ aims to rush coronavirus vaccineVideo
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration is quietly organizing a Manhattan Project-style effort to drastically cut the time needed to develop a coronavirus vaccine, with a goal to have 100 million doses ready by year’s end, according to two people familiar with the matter. Called “Operation Warp Speed,” the program will...
Swimming pools across Western Pa. looking to dive in when allowed
While some pools across the region have already decided to remain closed, including at least one in the Alle-Kiski Valley, others remain in a holding pattern in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic. Springdale Township’s Bouquet Park Pool will not open this year — and could possibly close for good,...
Pennsylvania’s ‘yellow’ phase doesn’t mean a return to ‘normal,’ official warns
As the first Pennsylvania regions inch toward a May 8 lift of restrictions, the state’s coronavirus death toll pushed past 2,000 on Wednesday and officials warned that moving to the “yellow phase” will not mean a return to normal. The 479 new deaths reported come from the Department of Health’s...
Pennsylvania reports 479 more coronavirus deaths as it catches up with data
State health officials reported nearly 500 new coronavirus deaths across Pennsylvania on Wednesday, pushing the death toll above 2,000 as officials cautioned that those deaths are from over the course of two weeks, not one day. The jump to 2,195 deaths — an increase of 479 — is part of...
Allegheny County reports 38 new coronavirus cases, adjusts death total
The Allegheny County Health Department reported 38 additional cases of the coronavirus Wednesday, bringing the countywide total to 1,273. That’s compared to 13 confirmed or probable cases reported Sunday, 13 reported Monday and 11 reported Tuesday. Of those cases, 1,229 are confirmed and 44 are listed as probable. A case...
U.S. study finds Gilead drug works against coronavirusVideo
For the first time, a major study suggests that an experimental drug works against the new coronavirus, and U.S. government officials said Wednesday that they would work to make it available to appropriate patients as quickly as possible. In a study of 1,063 patients sick enough to be hospitalized, Gilead...
Stocks charge higher on hopes for progress in fighting coronavirusVideo
Stocks around the world whipped higher Wednesday, riding a wave of optimism on encouraging data about a possible treatment for covid-19. The upswell of hope was so strong that investors completely sidestepped a report showing the outbreak drove the U.S. economy to its worst quarterly performance since the Great Recession....
10 ways to protect your skin while wearing a mask
During the covid-19 pandemic, many Americans are wearing face masks for extended periods of time for the first time in their lives. This has brought about a number of skin issues, from flaring of eczema to worsening of acne. Dr. Suzan Obagi, associate professor of dermatology at the UPMC Cosmetic...
Answering the Call: Giving birth during coronavirus crisisVideo
People usually aren’t excited about going to the hospital. But when families show up to have a baby, it often ends up being one of the best moments of their lives. With covid-19, things are different. At UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital, patients giving birth can only have one support person with...
Unity Giant Eagle worker tests positive for coronavirus
A Giant Eagle store in Unity was sanitized and reopened after an employee tested positive for the coronavirus, the grocery chain announced. The employee was last in the Mountain Laurel Plaza store along Route 30 on Thursday. The case was confirmed Monday, according to information posted on the company’s website....
Former Greensburgers enduring ‘stay at home’ in RomeVideo
Being quarantined at home for protection from the coronavirus pandemic doesn’t have to be all that bad — particularly if the view includes St. Peter’s Basilica at Vatican City in Rome, a former Greensburg couple said. “In order to leave the house, you have a ‘self-declaration’ on a piece of...
Bill would allow Pennsylvania restaurants to serve to-go cocktails during pandemic
At least one local restaurateur thinks a proposed bill that would allow restaurants to sell liquor products to-go is “too little, too late.” House Bill 327, which the Pennsylvania House of Representatives passed Tuesday, would allow a restaurant or hotel with a valid liquor license that lost more than 25%...
3 men hospitalized after being shot in Homewood, 2 in critical condition
Three people were hospitalized, two in critical condition and a third reported to be stable, after being shot in Pittsburgh’s Homewood neighborhood. City police responded to a ShotSpotter alert along the 1200 block of Mohler Street about 5:30 p.m. Tuesday. Authorities said officers discovered a man who has been shot...
Police say car they were looking for was not involved in McKeesport shooting
Allegheny County Police have called off a search for a car originally believed to have been tied to shootings in McKeesport and cleared its owner. Two 15-year-old boys were shot Tuesday around 9:20 p.m. in the 900 block of Craig Street near the city’s Crawford Village housing development. Both boys...
10 of Port Authority’s 12 covid-19 cases linked to West Mifflin garage
The Port Authority of Allegheny County reported Tuesday its 12th employee has tested positive for covid-19. The vast majority of the public transit agency’s coronavirus cases reported so far — including the latest one — are linked to the same West Mifflin maintenance garage. “We are concerned,” Port Authority spokesman...
Joe Biden wins Ohio’s mail-in primary delayed by coronavirusVideo
COLUMBUS — Joe Biden won Ohio’s presidential primary Tuesday, clinching a contest that was less about the Democratic nomination and more about how states can conduct elections in the era of the coronavirus. The primary was the first major test of statewide elections via mail amid an outbreak. And the...
Editorial: Hospitals need elective surgery to survive
There are some things we want back after weeks in a pandemic lockdown. We want happy hour and Sunday brunch and a shopping trip that doesn’t feel like deploying on a military maneuver. But there are other things we need. New hips. Gallbladder removal. Coronary angioplasty to see if an...
Masked man who police say planned to rob North Huntingdon bank gets prison sentence
A man who police say wore a rubber mask depicting a heavily wrinkled, middle-aged man as part of a failed bomb plot and bank robbery in North Huntingdon could serve up to two years in jail. Luke Joseph Dell, 35, of Ohio pleaded guilty Tuesday to terroristic threats and bomb...
Pittsburgh free water about to dry up, rough estimate puts cost as high as $20 million
Pittsburgh could face an annual $20 million water bill starting this year unless the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission reconsiders a recent order requiring the city to begin paying the Pittsburgh Water and Sewer Authority for total water usage, officials said. Last year the city and PWSA negotiated a cooperation agreement,...
Pittsburgh food bank hosting drive-up distributions in Beaver, Greene counties
Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank will host two more drive-up distributions this week that can provide food boxes for more than 3,000 vehicles in Greene and Beaver counties. The food bank will distribute food boxes from 10 a.m. to noon Thursday at the Greene County Fairgrounds in Franklin Township. The...
Excela Health considers return to elective surgeries while stressing safety
Excela Health is moving cautiously toward resuming elective surgeries after state health officials on Monday gave conditional approval for such procedures. State Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine said hospitals and surgical centers could once more perform elective procedures as long as they would remain capable of handling a potential...
County officials ‘knocking on wood’ Westmoreland Manor remains virus-free
As nursing and personal care homes have been the hardest hit by the coronavirus throughout the country and state, precautions put in place have so far enabled the 400-bed Westmoreland Manor to be spared, officials said Tuesday. The county-owned nursing home, the largest of the 66 nursing home or personal...
Lawsuit alleges Brighton Rehab performed coronavirus drug experiments on residents
A class-action lawsuit alleges that lack of oversight by the state Department of Health allowed Brighton Rehabilitation in Beaver County to perform drug experiments on patients under the guise of clinical trials to prevent coronavirus. The lawsuit, filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court, alleges that the department has scaled down...
