Top Stories category, Page 1525
World leaders to meet virtually to coordinate virus responseVideo
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Leaders of the world’s most powerful economies will convene virtually on Thursday to try and coordinate a response to the fast-spreading coronavirus, which has shuttered businesses and forced well over a quarter of the world’s population into home isolation. The meeting for the Group of...
Highlights of Congress’ $2.2 trillion virus relief packageVideo
WASHINGTON — What’s exactly in the massive $2.2 trillion package to rush aid to businesses, workers and a health care system slammed by the coronavirus pandemic? The package, written by Trump administration officials and Democratic and Republican Senate leaders, was released late Wednesday night and unanimously approved by the Senate....
Pennsylvanians are doing well at social distancing, location data shows
Pennsylvanians have improved their ability to social distance since Gov. Tom Wolf instilled various mandates in the past week, one study shows. Unacast, a phone data company, used data from mobile phones to track the average change in distance traveled by individuals in each state and country. Across the United...
Port Authority reduces person-to-person contact at Downtown service center
Port Authority of Allegheny County is taking additional social distancing measures at its Downtown Pittsburgh service center in response to the global coronavirus pandemic. Hours at the center are reduced from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. weekdays. Window transactions will be limited to the replacement of ConnectCards. Fees for those...
Senate passes coronavirus rescue package on unanimous voteVideo
WASHINGTON — The Senate late Wednesday passed an unparalleled $2.2 trillion economic rescue package steering aid to businesses, workers and health care systems engulfed by the coronavirus pandemic. The unanimous vote came despite misgivings on both sides about whether it goes too far or not far enough and capped days...
Freeport Area reports high school coronavirus case
A member of the Freeport Area High School community has tested positive for infection with the coronavirus, according to the school district. Superintendent Ian Magness reported the case in a letter to district families and residents posted Wednesday on the district website. Magness said that “the person in question was...
Pennsylvania Sens. Casey and Toomey happy with virus rescue bill
Pennsylvania Sens. Pat Toomey and Bob Casey didn’t see eye-to-eye in the days leading up to the U.S. Senate’s agreement on a historic $2 trillion emergency bill. But they are both glad the deal was struck shortly after midnight on Wednesday. The Senate passed the bill late Wednesday night, following...
Butler County reports 1st death from covid-19
A patient at Butler Memorial Hospital has died of covid-19, marking the first death in Butler County attributed to the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, officials said Wednesday. No details were immediately available about the person who died, such as their age, residence or any underlying health conditions. The...
At a glance: Distance learning in your school district; when classes could resume
Many school districts are conducting or have plans to begin distance learning for students while schools are closed. Below is information released by districts about when distance learning will begin and when, eventually, students might return to classrooms. This list will be updated and school districts added as information becomes...
Entrepreneurs fill shopping void in wake of pandemic
Eric Fulton’s plans of opening a deli in Scottdale were quickly dashed when the coronavirus pandemic hit. Now he’s the unexpected proprietor of a small Pittsburgh Street store selling toilet paper, bread, cleaning supplies and produce. Members of borough council and Mayor Chuck King recently helped Fulton clear out tools...
Gov. Wolf announces new loan program for small Pa. businesses
Loans of up to $100,000 will be available to for-profit businesses with 100 or fewer full-time employees through a new state program intended to help businesses during the coronavirus outbreak, Gov. Tom Wolf announced Wednesday. The financial assistance, a total of $60 million called the Covid-19 Working Capital Access Program...
Signs of the time: Business marquees, windows offer message of hope, unity during coronavirus pandemic
Call them signs of the time. A wide range of businesses are closed under Gov. Tom Wolf’s order in reaction to the coronavirus pandemic. Many are advertising something different these days on their marquees and windows: messages of hope and unity. TribLIVE photographers captured images from across the region. Some...
Pennsylvania lawmakers vote to delay primary until June 2 over coronavirus
HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania lawmakers voted Wednesday to delay the state’s primary election by five weeks to June 2, potentially past the spike of the state’s spreading coronavirus cases. The measure passed both chambers of the Republican-controlled state Legislature on Wednesday and Gov. Tom Wolf, a Democrat, said he will sign...
Pittsburgh seeks state coronavirus notification system for first responders
Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto said the city is working with state officials on a system to notify public safety employees if they come into contact with someone testing positive for covid-19. City officials, including Public Safety Director Wendell Hissrich, last week said city firefighters, paramedics and police were not being...
Primanti’s to give out free beer with takeout orders for 1 day
If you order Primanti Bros. to go Thursday, the restaurant chain will throw in a free beer — and bring it to your car. The company turned its bartenders to “cartenders” as restaurants shut down in-house dining during the coronavirus pandemic. “As we were going through this crisis, we tried...
Pa. buying ventilators, N95 masks as hospitalizations due to coronavirus grow
Of the more than 1,000 coronavirus patients across Pennsylvania, 38 have been admitted to an intensive care unit, state health officials said Wednesday. Hospitals statewide have a collective 3,400 ICU beds, according to Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine, and about 40% of them are available. Covid-19 cases reached 1,127...
Harrison shuts down public works department after employee’s relative tests positive for covid-19
Harrison shut down its public works department and closed its municipal building to the public after a family member of a public works employee tested positive for covid-19, township Manager Rich Hill said Wednesday. The department has a total of 10 employees, consisting of eight workers and two supervisors, Hill...
Wolf allows gun stores to reopen on limited basis during coronavirus shutdown
Pennsylvania firearms dealers may now operate on a limited basis, according to a revised list of businesses that can or cannot continue physical operations under Gov. Tom Wolf’s order mandating closures to slow the spread of covid-19. Under the order, sporting goods stores remain among businesses considered “non-life-sustaining” and are...
$50 million state aid package, future recovery help, ready for Gov. Wolf’s signature
Both the state House and Senate passed a $50 million recovery package Wednesday intended to help families and businesses deal with the growing economic fallout from the coronavirus threat. According to press releases sent by several Republican senators, Senate agreed Wednesday the package after the House had done so earlier....
5 more cases of coronavirus in Westmoreland County; total up to 16
Five more confirmed cases of coronavirus were reported in Westmoreland County on Wednesday, bringing the total to 16. The Pennsylvania Department of Health released updated figures about noon. Statewide, cases exceeded 1,000, with eastern counties reporting the highest totals. Four more patients died, according to the state’s figures. Philadelphia County...
Pa. coronavirus cases top 1,000; 4 more deaths reported
Coronavirus cases in Pennsylvania crested 1,000 Wednesday, health officials said, and four more patients have died. From Tuesday to Wednesday, 276 new cases were identified, according to Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine. The cases now total 1,127. She noted 11 deaths in the state, up from seven reported deaths...
Pennsylvania Secretary of Education says on time graduation for high school seniors a priority
Ensuring that high school seniors graduate on time is among his top priorities as Pennsylvania grapples with the prospect of an extended school shutdown because of covid-19 fears, Secretary of Education Pedro Rivera said Wednesday, stressing that the school year cannot be extended beyond June 30. “We’ve put a full...
Allegheny County reports 30 new coronavirus cases; total hits 88
Allegheny County reported 88 active coronavirus cases Wednesday, up from 58 on Tuesday, marking the biggest single-day increase since the county first began reporting cases. Of the 88 active cases, 13 individuals were hospitalized. That total does not include the two Allegheny County residents who have died from complications from...
Employee at Kane Community Living in Glen Hazel tests positive for coronavirus
An employee at a Kane Community Living Center tested positive for the coronavirus, officials said Wednesday, though they noted the employee doesn’t work with residents. Dennis Biondo, director of the Kane centers, said the employee at the Glen Hazel location has not worked since Thursday. “There are no positive cases...
Pittsburgh garbage collection resuming Thursday after workers sent home
Pittsburgh sent home its environmental services workers with pay Wednesday morning after they voiced concerns about the coronavirus pandemic, but they will resume normal trash pickup on Thursday, officials said. Residents scheduled for garbage pickup on Wednesday should leave their bags at curbside for collection on Thursday, according to the...
