Top Stories category, Page 206
Penn State faculty senate asks admin to pause campus closure decision
The Penn State faculty senate passed a positional report this week opposing the closure of commonwealth campuses and asked the university administration to pause the decision until an impact assessment can be conducted. Faculty senators have not shied away from expressing their concerns about closing campuses and how even before...
Some fear effort to aid developers in Pittsburgh will doom broader housing reform
Pittsburgh City Council on Wednesday advanced a bill to shrink the minimum size of lots for residential development, casting further doubt on the future of a broader housing reform package that has been stalled for months. The measure, sponsored by Councilman Bobby Wilson, D-North Side, would allow developers to build...
Tax diversion for Esplanade project approved by Pittsburgh Public Schools board
The Pittsburgh Public Schools board on Wednesday approved a tax diversion for the sprawling Esplanade development, which plans to bring a Ferris wheel, housing and other amenities to the city’s Chateau neighborhood. The developer, Cecil-based Piatt Companies, has now secured approval from the city and school district for the tax...
More storms expected in Western Pennsylvania
Another round of storms is expected to hit Western Pennsylvania on Thursday, even as communities are still reeling from severe weather that knocked down trees, ripped roofs from buildings and left thousands without power on Tuesday. A threat of thunderstorms — some severe — will return Thursday afternoon and evening,...
Fan in critical condition after falling from Clemente Wall during Pirates game
A fan fell over the Clemente Wall, a 21-foot drop onto the right-field warning track at PNC Park, halting play Wednesday night in the seventh inning of the game between the Pittsburgh Pirates and Chicago Cubs. Andrew McCutchen had just reached second base following an RBI double that ricocheted off...
School districts deal with lost power, cleanup
Schools throughout the Alle-Kiski Valley and well beyond were shuttered Wednesday, and maybe longer, after Tuesday’s fast-moving thunderstorms. Several trees, two power poles and a transformer were brought down by strong winds at New Kensington-Arnold’s Valley High School and a portable toilet was flipped upside down. The district canceled school...
Lawsuit blames bar for serving man who caused cousin’s death in DUI crash
A man who caused a drunk-driving crash last year in Pittsburgh that killed his cousin is being sued for negligence in her death along with the Mt. Washington bar where they were said to be drinking that night. Eonna Page, 25, was killed on March 2, 2024, in a crash...
Evergreen Drive-In screen toppled; Westmoreland County recovers from storms, 79 mph winds
Joe Warren has been in the drive-in movie scene for about six decades. But he has rarely seen devastation to an outdoor theater like he did Wednesday morning at Evergreen Drive-In. Warren, owner of the East Huntingdon theater, surveyed the splintered wooden trusses and bent metal scraps piled in the...
What is a derecho? Meteorologists weigh label after powerful storms slam Western Pa.
After powerful storms swept through Western Pennsylvania this week, meteorologists hesitated to apply labels — though terms like derecho began to circulate. A derecho is a fast-moving, long-lived windstorm that the National Weather Service says can produce tornado-like damage — but in a single, straight path. To qualify, it must...
Prosecutor says officer killed in gunman’s Pennsylvania hospital attack was hit by fire from police
YORK — An officer killed while responding to a Pennsylvania hospital siege was struck by a shotgun blast fired by police that also hit an armed man holding hostages, a prosecutor disclosed at a news conference Wednesday. The attacker and West York Patrolman Andrew W. Duarte were killed in the...
School districts weigh options on instruction as power restoration work continues
School leaders spent most of Wednesday reviewing their options as many districts were forced to cancel classes after a destructive storm cut through the region Tuesday evening, knocking out electricity and leaving some roads impassable. And just like a snow day in winter, those same leaders were looking at their...
Costly cyber charter tuition is consuming tens of millions of new state dollars for poor Pa. schools
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan, and nonprofit newsroom producing investigative and public-service journalism that holds power to account and drives positive change in Pennsylvania. HARRISBURG — A surge of taxpayer money approved last year to help students in Pennsylvania’s poorest schools is being used by dozens of districts to...
Harrison funeral home tied to pet cremation scandal expected to be sold
The listing agent facilitating the sale of Vereb Funeral Home in Harrison said he was unaware the owner was entangled in alleged criminal activity. Patrick Vereb, 70, of Hazelwood was charged Monday by the state Attorney General’s Office with theft of almost $660,000 after taking money for pet cremations but...
Western Pa. buildings offer charging stations, supplies, shelter after storms
Municipalities and local organizations around the region have stepped up as shelters, offering residents a place to charge their devices and get assistance in the wake of Tuesday’s severe storms, which left thousands without power. People can find electricity at: Plum Borough Municipal Building is operating on a generator and...
Photo gallery: Evergreen Drive-In in East Huntingdon damaged in storm
Evergreen Drive-In in East Huntingdon Township was damaged Tuesday during the severe storms that hit the region. Related • `Short, sharp storm`: Fast-moving squall line leaves death, widespread destruction in Western Pa. • Power companies expect restoration time to be 5-7 days in wake of storms • Photo gallery: Storm...
‘Short, sharp storm’: Fast-moving squall line leaves death, widespread destruction in W.Pa.
Crews and residents in Southwestern Pennsylvania on Wednesday began the long process of cleaning up after a severe storm described by officials as an “unprecedented event” left at least three people dead and hundreds of thousands without power. Duquesne Light Co. estimated it could take five to seven days to...
Power companies expect restoration time up to 5 days in wake of storms
About 130,000 Duquesne Light customers in the region — still without power Wednesday because of the severe storms Tuesday evening — may have to wait for five days before they have electricity restored, a company official said. The storm that caused an “unprecedented event in the history of Duquesne Light”...
U.S., Ukraine sign economic deal after Trump presses Kyiv to pay back for help in repelling Russia
KYIV, Ukraine — The U.S. and Ukraine announced on Wednesday an economic agreement after a weekslong press by President Donald Trump on Ukraine to compensate Washington for billions in military and economic assistance to help Ukraine repel the Russian invasion. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a video posted to...
Pittsburgh Marathon, Pitt graduation and Pirates game coincide on Sunday
May the fourth be with you on Sunday (May 4), when Pittsburgh will have three major events happening. The Dick’s Sporting Goods Pittsburgh Marathon is expecting the biggest participation in its history with more than 46,000 participants; the University of Pittsburgh is hosting its largest-ever graduation class and the Pirates...
Greensburg man pleads guilty to lesser charges in fatal overdose
Westmoreland County prosecutors dismissed a charge of drug delivery resulting in death in connection with the fatal overdose of a Greensburg man who died in 2023. Hugh Hawkey, 49, of Greensburg, pleaded guilty Tuesday to lesser drug-related counts after a Westmoreland County judge ruled in favor of the defense’s challenge...
Photo gallery: Storm damage leaves residents cleaning up throughout Pittsburgh region
Residents woke up Wednesday morning and started to assess the damage from the storm that ripped through the Pittsburgh region Tuesday night. See photos from around the region. Related: • 2 dead after storms with 70 mph wind slam region...
Pa. Sen. Costa pitches regional, multi-county transit authority for Southwestern Pa.
Pennsylvania Sen. Jay Costa, D-Forest Hills, is pitching the idea of a regional, multi-county public transit authority as Pittsburgh Regional Transit braces for a fare increase and drastic service cuts. In a memo, Costa said he plans to introduce legislation “in the near future” to create such a transit agency....
‘Our region stands to lose something’: Students, residents rally in hopes of halting PRT cuts
For Wilkinsburg high school student Cameron Taylor, there’s only one way to get to school — by bus. Out of the 569 students who attend City Charter High School in Downtown Pittsburgh, most are like Cameron and rely on public transit to commute. Given Pittsburgh Regional Transit’s proposed increase in...
Democrats, Republicans outline visions for Pittsburgh in mayoral forum
The candidates seeking to lead Pittsburgh as mayor outlined their positions on key issues like public safety and affordable housing in a pair of debates held at Point Park University’s Pittsburgh Playhouse Downtown. Tuesday’s mayoral forum included all four candidates, separated into two separate debates, one for the Republicans and...
Photo gallery: Storms whip through Pittsburgh region knocking out trees, wires, power
Severe thunderstorms raced across Western Pennsylvania on Tuesday evening, downing trees, re-routing traffic and causing widespread power outages. See photos from around the region. Related: • Man electrocuted in South Side Slopes as storms with 70 mph wind down trees, wires, knock out power...
