Top Stories category, Page 1517
26 new coronavirus cases reported in Westmoreland Co. as total jumps to 110
Westmoreland County saw its biggest single-day increase in coronavirus cases since the pandemic hit the county in mid-March. Twenty-six new cases were reported in the state health department’s update Friday, bringing Westmoreland’s total to 110, a 31% increase from the previous day. The health department reported 12 more deaths statewide...
Pennsylvania coronavirus deaths top 100 as state reports 1,404 new cases
Twelve more people died of coronavirus complications in Pennsylvania, bringing the state’s total to 102, and the state reported 1,404 new cases Friday, health officials said. The number of total cases in Pennsylvania now stands at 8,420. The 1,404 new cases mark the largest single-day increase since the state reported...
Commercial flights at Arnold Palmer airport to cease next week
Commercial flights at Arnold Palmer Regional Airport will stop starting Wednesday and, as a result, about a third of its 90 workers will be furloughed, officials said. Spirit Airlines, the lone commercial carrier at the Unity airport, will continue to operate its daily schedules through Tuesday but then will halt...
Pennsylvania halting pay for 9,000 state workers
Pennsylvania will stop paying about 9,000 state workers whose offices have been closed as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, officials said Friday. Paid leave for state employees whose work locations are closed and who are unable to work remotely will end April 10, according to Gov. Tom Wolf’s Office...
Allegheny County coronavirus cases reach 476, triple over past week
The number of confirmed cases of the coronavirus in Allegheny County tripled during the past week as the countywide total climbed to 476 on Friday. County officials reported 57 new cases Friday, compared to 63 new cases reported Thursday. The recent jump in cases reflects a significant increase in testing,...
State police cite Pa. woman for ‘going for a drive’ amid stay-at-home order
A York County woman this week was the first person in Pennsylvania to be cited for violating Gov. Tom Wolf’s stay-at-home order, according to state police. The 19-year-old woman was given a nontraffic citation for allegedly “going for a drive,” according to the citation obtained by Pennlive. State police spokesman...
Answering the Call: How a UPMC cancer doctor deals with coronavirus stressVideo
Like many health care professionals in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, Dr. Jessica Berger is social distancing as much as she can. But for Berger, a gynecological oncologist at UPMC Hillman Cancer Center, there are still many patients she has to see in person. A married mother of two...
Pittsburgh closes playgrounds, could close parks if social distancing wanesVideo
Pittsburgh officials have not ruled out closing city parks if residents fail to heed social distancing guidelines as they did last weekend. The city has already closed all playgrounds effective Friday, and basketball courts and the Mt. Washington overlooks have been closed since early this week. Public Safety Director Wendell...
Pittsburgh professors see flaws in coronavirus modeling, predict more grim outlook
Two Pittsburgh academics argue that much of the modeling regarding the trajectory of the covid-19 pandemic has been fundamentally flawed — and the real outlook for the disease is much more dismal. Wesley Pegden and Maria Chikina have joined an international conversation about projections of how dire the covid-19 pandemic...
Police: Bradenville pair showed kids how to smoke marijuana, gave them alcohol at parties
Two Bradenville residents are accused by state troopers of providing alcohol to several children during two birthday parties last year and demonstrating how to smoke marijuana, according to police reports. Janelle Anne Bias, 35, and Bryan Allen Green, 44, were charged Thursday with multiple counts each of corruption of minors,...
Pennsylvania flu cases drop significantly, state’s final report says
With influenza activity decreasing significantly across the state, Pennsylvania health officials have stopped updating a weekly report on flu activity for the season. Flu activity is down over the past few weeks and now below epidemic levels, according to a report from the Pennsylvania Department of Health for the week...
Employee at Murrysville Giant Eagle tests positive for covid-19
An employee at the Giant Eagle in Murrysville has tested positive for covid-19, store officials reported Thursday night. The regional chain has sought to keep customers informed by keeping a list of stores where employees have tested positive for the virus, and when that employee was last in the store....
Highmark, UPMC to pay patients’ out-of-pocket costs for covid-19 treatments
Western Pennsylvania’s two largest insurers pledged Thursday to eliminate any out-of-pocket costs for patients who are treated for covid-19 at an in-network hospital. Both UPMC and Highmark committed to waiving all deductibles, co-pays and co-insurance costs for insurance members who receive in-network, inpatient care related to covid-19, the disease caused...
State police: Convenience store, restaurant, bar customers can’t stick around to play video games
The state police don’t want bar patrons playing video gambling machines under normal conditions, let alone during the coronavirus pandemic. State police have received “an influx of public inquiries related to liquor licensees allowing patrons to remain in their establishments to operate video gambling devices, sometimes marketed as ‘games of...
State urges those laid off from pandemic closures to apply for unemployment, business aid
With 1 million jobless claims filed in the past two and a half weeks, employees at the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry have been scrambling to respond to a record-high number of requests for immediate financial aid during the pandemic-spurred shutdown. Most labor department employees are working from home....
Navy captain who pleaded for help in coronavirus outbreak on carrier relieved of commandVideo
The Navy on Thursday has relieved the captain of the coronavirus-stricken USS Roosevelt shortly after his plea for help for his sailors went public. Capt. Brett Crozier, who commands the aircraft carrier with a crew of about 5,000, will be relieved of his command but keep his rank and remain...
3rd resident of Beaver County nursing home with covid-19 dies
A third resident who tested positive for covid-19 at Brighton Rehabilitation and Wellness Center has died, officials announced Thursday. Two other residents with advanced dementia previously died after contracting the disease, according to Dr. David Thimons, the facility’s medical director. “There are currently 38 in-house residents that have tested positive,”...
Hundreds of Westmoreland County employees to be furloughed Friday
Furloughs of hundreds of Westmoreland County employees will begin at the end of the workday Friday, but the final number of workers who will be off the job still is in flux, officials said. Commissioners last week announced that budget strains caused by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic prompted a suspension...
Drive-up coronavirus testing suspended at Pittsburgh zoo, Aliquippa
The Central Outreach Wellness Center has suspended its drive-up coronavirus testing indefinitely, staff said Thursday. Alexander Young, director of marketing, said that as covid-19 spreads, testing becomes less of a necessity. “As more people become infected, it’s less important to know who has it and who doesn’t and to treat...
Confirmed coronavirus cases hit 1 million worldwideVideo
NEW YORK - The number of coronavirus infections worldwide has hit 1 million, with more than 50,000 deaths, according to the tally kept by Johns Hopkins University. The figures were another bleak milestone in the epidemic that has forced the lockdown of entire countries and brought economies to a shuddering...
High-speed disinfecting process proves invaluable to Western Pa. ambulance crewsVideo
As the coronavirus continues to spread and send many patients to the hospital, ambulance crews are balancing a thorough disinfection process with getting back on the road as quickly as possible. It’s a situation that has led to an uptick in business for cleaning and restoration companies that have a...
UPMC nurse opens up about front-line battle against coronavirusVideo
There is no doubt that Western Pennsylvanians are indebted to the people on the front lines in the fight against covid-19. They include Jonathan Crossett, a nurse clinician who is part of the covid-19 response team at UPMC Presbyterian Hospital in Oakland. Crossett, a married father of a 4-month-old boy,...
Philips Respironics ramping up ventilator production, soon to include a lower-cost unit
A Dutch manufacturer says it hopes to triple the production of hospital ventilators being assembled in Murrysville and Carlsbad, Calif., between now and the end of September. “In March, our production capacity was 1,000 ventilators per week. In two months, we hope to double that … and by the end...
Pittsburgh Youth Chorus students create ‘virtual choir’ video performanceVideo
The children of the Pittsburgh Youth Chorus aren’t interested in waiting until the coronavirus pandemic is over to begin making music again. And while all 223 members of the organization’s six choirs weren’t able to fit, 18 students had a chance to be part of its first “virtual choir,” performing...
Westmoreland County adds 12 new coronavirus cases as total hits 84
Westmoreland County reported 12 new coronavirus cases on Thursday as the statewide total jumped by more than 1,200 cases, Pennsylvania health officials said. There are now 84 patients with covid-19 in Westmoreland County. The case count in Pennsylvania now stands at 7,016. The 1,211 new cases amount to a 21%...
