Top Local and National News Stories category, Page 166
Arnold fire victim remains in ICU; fundraiser established for sisters who died
The mother of two women killed in an Arnold fire last week remains in a hospital intensive care unit recovering from the blaze, a longtime family friend said Thursday. Lori Muldrow, 61, remains in West Penn Hospital’s ICU because she inhaled smoke that damaged her lungs after her house at...
Carnegie Mellon creates committee to discuss role of The Fence tradition
Carnegie Mellon University President Farnam Jahanian on Thursday announced an official 17-member group tasked with making new recommendations for operation of The Fence, which has been a long-standing campus tradition. The announcement came in a letter two months after Jahanian temporarily shut down use of the Fence. The closure followed...
Where does Pennsylvania stand with school vaccine regulations?
After Florida’s surgeon general moved to end all state vaccine mandates, including school requirements, some Pennsylvanians may wonder if the same could happen here. As of now, every state has school vaccine mandates. If Florida follows through with the proposed plan, it would be the first state to completely withdraw...
4 Pittsburgh firefighters hurt battling blaze in South Side Slopes
Four Pittsburgh firefighters were treated at an area hospital after they were shocked Thursday morning while battling a blaze in the city’s South Side Slopes neighborhood. The firefighters, who authorities declined to name, “came into contact with an electrical current” inside an unoccupied home in the 100 block of Monastery...
Environmentalists hail ‘landmark’ $2.6M settlement with Beaver County company over microplastic pollution
A Beaver County plastics manufacturer has agreed to pay $2.6 million to settle a federal lawsuit filed by PennEnvironment and Three Rivers Waterkeeper over the discharge of microplastics in wastewater and stormwater in the Ohio River Basin. The proposed settlement with Styropek USA, which was announced Thursday, must be approved...
Woman accused of pocketing $37K in GoFundMe donations meant for injured cousin
State police have accused an Oklahoma Borough woman of pocketing more than $37,000 from an online fundraiser she established for an injured relative. Vanessa Renea Louise Lewis, 29, is charged with theft by deception, financial exploitation of a care-dependent person, receiving stolen property and theft by failure to deposit funds....
$6.2M expansion at Allegheny Valley Hospital in Harrison creates AHN rehab hub
A $6.2 million expansion at Allegheny Valley Hospital in Harrison will boost inpatient rehabilitation space by 70% and establish it as a rehab hub for parent company Allegheny Health Network. Space for patients recovering from injuries, surgery and serious illness will increase from 17 to 29 beds. Hospital President Dr....
Kennedy tries to defend covid-19 vaccine stance in raucous Senate hearingVideo
WASHINGTON — U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., facing pointed bipartisan questioning at a rancorous three-hour Senate committee hearing on Thursday, tried to defend his efforts to pull back covid-19 vaccine recommendations and explain the turmoil he has created at federal health agencies. Kennedy said the fired CDC director...
Defense questions trooper’s overdose in bid to nix assault, drug charges
A Pennsylvania State Police trooper testified this week he overdosed after being exposed to fentanyl during an arrest of a Pittsburgh man last year. “I woke up in the hospital later that day and was treated for a suspected overdose,” Trooper Joshua Wiskeman said during a pretrial hearing related to...
Changes planned for Parkway East’s Squirrel Hill interchange
PennDOT announced plans Wednesday to make changes to the Squirrel Hill interchange on the Parkway East (Interstate 376). The department said the goal of the project — between the Greenfield Bridge and Squirrel Hill Tunnel — will be to improve safety for travelers, reduce crashes and enhance pedestrian access on...
Death toll in Lisbon streetcar crash rises to 17 as Portugal observes national day of mourning
LISBON, Portugal — The death toll in the crash of a famous Lisbon streetcar popular with tourists rose to 17 Thursday after two people died from their injuries while receiving hospital care, an emergency services official said. The dead were all adults, Margarida Castro Martins, head of Lisbon’s Civil Protection...
‘Adoptive parent’ of 9-year-old found dead in Youghiogheny River facing abuse allegations in addition to murder charge
A Fayette County woman is charged with homicide and multiple other felonies after a 9-year-old girl from Dunbar was found dead Thursday morning. Kourtney Eutsey, 31, of Dunbar was charged Thursday with abuse of a corpse, aggravated assault and concealing the death of a child in addition to the murder...
Powerball jackpot jumps to $1.7 billion after another night without a big winner
DES MOINES, Iowa — The Powerball jackpot has jumped to an eye-popping $1.7 billion, after yet another drawing passed without a big winner Wednesday. The numbers selected were: 3, 16, 29, 61 and 69, with the Powerball number being 22. Since May 31, there have been 41 straight drawings without...
Morning Roundup: 1 injured in South Park motorcycle crash; Liberty Tunnels feature lauded as historic landmark
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Thursday, Sept. 4: 1 injured in South Park motorcycle crash A section of Brownsville Road between Shang Road and Sylvania Drive was closed Wednesday night after a motorcycle crash. A social media post from the Broughton Volunteer Fire Department...
Online grocer Harvie, indebted and short on cash, seeks bankruptcy protection
Harvie, a farm-to-doorstep food delivery service based in Pittsburgh, is seeking bankruptcy protection as it grapples with around $2.4 million in debt. At least $144,000 is owed to small farmers in Pennsylvania and Maryland, according to filings last month in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Pittsburgh. Its largest creditor, JPMorgan Chase,...
School board to vote on renewing tax incentive program for Greensburg developers
Greensburg Salem school board will vote next week on renewing a tax incentive program intended to encourage commercial developments in Greensburg. The LERTA — Local Economic Revitalization Tax Assistance — program is a 10-year property tax abatement available to those building new developments or expanding the footprint of existing ones,...
Mom vows fight for justice after Taco Bell manager convicted in son’s killing wins new trial
A Taco Bell manager convicted of first-degree murder for killing one of the fast-food restaurant’s employees in Scott has won a new trial after his lawyer raised allegations of prosecutorial misconduct. Zairyre Simmons, 26, of Pittsburgh was sentenced in May to serve the rest of his life in prison with...
Trump administration asks Supreme Court to quickly take up tariffs case after appeals court loss
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration took the fight over tariffs to the Supreme Court on Wednesday, asking the justices to rule quickly that the president has the power to impose sweeping trade penalties under federal law. The government called on the court to reverse an appeals court ruling that most...
Upper Burrell sets guidelines for injection wells
Rules for injection wells are on the books in Upper Burrell. Supervisors on Wednesday approved regulations for injection wells that would allow them as a conditional use in industrial-zoned areas in the township only, although some residents asked for more time for things to be cleaned up or clarified in...
New developer makes another go at Murrysville car wash
If the application for Drake’s Car Wash looked familiar to Murrysville council, that’s because they’ve seen nearly all of it before. Council approved a plan a few years ago for Tommy’s Car Wash on the same spot, the former Choice Auto property on Route 22 near School Road. Tommy’s is...
Left and right joining forces to ban lawmakers from trading stock
WASHINGTON — An unusual alliance emerged in the House on Wednesday as lawmakers who agree on little else rallied support for a bill that would prohibit members of Congress and their families from owning and trading individual stocks. The group included darlings of the far right, the left, moderates and...
Shapiro says Pa. prepared should Trump decide to send National Guard to Philadelphia
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said the state has been preparing for the possibility that President Donald Trump could deploy the National Guard to Philadelphia ever since the White House sent troops to Los Angeles in June — a move that a federal judge ruled Tuesday was illegal. “Ever since the...
Judge reverses Trump administration’s cuts of billions of dollars to Harvard University
BOSTON — A federal judge in Boston on Wednesday ordered the reversal of the Trump administration’s cuts to more than $2.6 billion in funding research grants for Harvard University. U.S. District Judge Allison Burroughs sided with the Ivy League school, ruling the cuts amounted to illegal retaliation for Harvard’s rejection...
Epstein survivors implore Congress to act as push for disclosure buildsVideo
WASHINGTON — Survivors of Jeffrey Epstein’s sexual abuse made their voices heard Wednesday on Capitol Hill, pressuring lawmakers to force the release of the sex trafficking investigation into the late financier and pushing back on President Donald Trump’s effort to dismiss the issue as a “hoax.” In a news conference...
No prescription? No problem: Pa. clears a barrier to covid vaccines
Pennsylvanians seeking a covid-19 shot from their pharmacist no longer need a prescription after the state Board of Pharmacy changed its policies Wednesday. The change takes effect immediately, according to the Pennsylvania Department of State. Those interested in getting the vaccine should contact their pharmacies about availability “while pharmacies work...
