Top Stories category, Page 219
Suicide, accidental deaths in Westmoreland dropped in 2024, coroner says
Westmoreland community relations and prevention Director Tim Phillips knows the county is doing something right in its efforts to reduce accidental drug overdose deaths. There was a nearly 15% decrease in those deaths in 2024, according to the Westmoreland County Coroner’s Office annual report released Tuesday — which also noted...
Boeing Starliner astronauts near trip home with SpaceX
NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams will soon get to fly home from the International Space Station, having flown up on Boeing’s Starliner, but headed home on a SpaceX Crew Dragon. The duo joined SpaceX Crew-9 commander Nick Hague on Tuesday for a pre-departure news conference from the space...
2 killed in Mississippi as powerful U.S. storms bring threatsVideo
NEW ORLEANS — Powerful storms killed two people in Mississippi, tore the roofs off an apartment building and a nursing home in a small town in Oklahoma and threatened more communities across the nation Tuesday with wide-ranging weather. The large storm system also brought blinding dust storms to the Southwest,...
Western Pa. residents flock to Pittsburgh to rally against Trump’s policies
Trisha Cleckley traveled by bus almost two hours from her Beaver Falls home on Tuesday morning to get to Pittsburgh in time to be part of the city’s 50501 anti-President Donald Trump protest. A pro-democracy and pro-human rights national movement, 50501 stands for 50 states, 50 protests, 1 movement. Pittsburgh’s...
Wall Street wipes out all post-election gains for S&P 500Video
Stocks racked up more losses on Wall Street Tuesday as a trade war between the U.S. and its key trading partners escalated, wiping out all the gains since Election Day for the S&P 500. The Trump administration imposed tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico starting Tuesday and doubled tariffs...
Western Pa. braces for sticker shock as tariffs bring uncertainty for consumers, businesses
Ami Robinson said she had been pinching pennies before President Donald Trump’s new tariffs against America’s three biggest trading partners took effect Tuesday. “I think things were already more expensive than they were last year,” Robinson, 40, of Dormont said after leaving the Target store in Downtown Pittsburgh. “It’s just...
Here’s what tariffs are and how they workVideo
WASHINGTON — Tariffs are in the news at the moment. Here’s what they are and what you need to know about them: Tariffs are a tax on imports Tariffs are typically charged as a percentage of the price a buyer pays a foreign seller. In the United States, tariffs are...
Leadership vacuum: Ragland withdraws as Pittsburgh police chief candidate, plans to retire
Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey is 0 for 2. Christopher Ragland, the city’s acting chief for just over four months since his predecessor quit, announced Tuesday he is resigning, too. More than that, Ragland withdrew his name from consideration to be permanent chief, a job the 30-year veteran had once coveted....
Lower Burrell considers allowing alcohol in parks for events only
People who attend events at Lower Burrell city parks may be able to enjoy an alcoholic beverage under a proposal from city council. Mayor Chris Fabry said the city will draft a proposal that would allow alcohol in city parks during events only. He intends for the proposed rules to...
Trump takes credit for ‘swift and unrelenting’ action in speech to Congress
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump took credit for “swift and unrelenting action” in reorienting the nation’s economy, immigration and foreign policy Tuesday in an address to Congress and the American people about his turbulent first weeks in office, as Democratic legislators immediately registered their dissent with stone faces, placards calling...
After initial hesitation, Ross votes to approve former Steeler’s medical marijuana dispensary
While the Ross commissioners voted to table the approval of a medical marijuana dispensary on McKnight Road at its last meeting, the nine member board voted unanimously Monday to allow the facility to operate. The dispensary will sit at 7725 McKnight Road, where G&G Fitness Equipment currently resides. That will...
Trump points out Marc Fogel and his mother, Corey Comperatore’s family during his speech before joint session of Congress
During his address to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday night, President Donald Trump acknowledged the former Oakmont teacher released from a Russian prison last month after three years in captivity and the widow and daughters of the Buffalo Township man killed in an assassination attempt last year at...
Are Pa. residents at risk of a measles outbreak? Here’s what the experts say
Measles, a highly contagious disease that was at one point believed to be largely eradicated in the United States, has seen an increase in cases over the past year. Among the most recently diagnosed cases of measles are several instances in New Jersey in mid-February and a confirmed case in...
Penn State reports chicken pox outbreak at State College
Penn State University has confirmed three cases of chicken pox on its main campus in State College. Students and staff who were in Mifflin Hall between Feb. 17 and 24 or in the Thomas Building on Feb. 20 between 1 and 3 p.m. may have been exposed, the university said...
HOV lanes closed indefinitely as Route 28 repairs are made
PennDOT has indefinitely closed the I-279/I-579 HOV lanes after crews found significant deterioration of a concrete column supporting a ramp over Route 28. Route 28 northbound is under a long-term single-lane restriction starting just south of the I-279 North/East Ohio Street exit while crews make temporary repairs and prepare for...
Pope Francis no longer requires mechanical ventilation after respiratory crisis
ROME — Pope Francis had stabilized enough Tuesday after two respiratory crises to be taken off noninvasive mechanical ventilation and receive just high flows of supplemental oxygen, as he continued his more than two-week long fight against double pneumonia, the Vatican said. Francis, 88, woke up and was resuming respiratory...
Suspect shot last month in East Vandergrift police raid dies
The man shot and critically wounded by police last month during a raid on his East Vandergrift apartment has died. Lyle Cessna, 52, died Monday afternoon at UPMC Presbyterian hospital, according to the Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office. He was awaiting a preliminary hearing in Armstrong County Court on a...
Zelenskyy calls Oval Office spat with Trump ‘regrettable,’ says he’s ready to work for peace
KYIV, Ukraine — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Tuesday the Oval Office blowup with U.S. President Donald Trump last week was “regrettable,” adding that he stands ready to work under Trump’s “strong leadership” to get a lasting peace. Zelenskyy’s remarks — an apparent attempt to placate Trump — came in...
Trump’s trade war draws swift retaliation as Mexico, Canada and China impose tariffs on the U.S.Video
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump launched a trade war Tuesday against America’s three biggest trading partners, drawing immediate retaliation from Mexico, Canada and China and sending financial markets into a tailspin as the U.S. faced the threat of rekindled inflation and paralyzing uncertainty for business. Just after midnight, Trump imposed...
Police say Pittsburgh interior designer bilked clients out of nearly $500K
A Pittsburgh interior designer is facing multiple charges after being accused of bilking clients of nearly half a million dollars. Lauren Piasecki, 44, of Morningside has been charged with various counts of theft by unlawful taking, home improvement fraud, receiving stolen property and deceptive business practices, the Allegheny County District...
Man pleads guilty to murder, attempted murder in shooting at suburban Chicago July 4 paradeVideo
WAUKEGAN, Ill. — An Illinois man pleaded guilty Monday to killing seven people and injuring dozens more when he opened fire on a 2022 Independence Day parade in a Chicago suburb, a stunning development moments before opening statements in his trial on murder and attempted murder charges. Appearing in a...
Driver pleads guilty to killing motorcyclist in Dormont crash, faces deportation
Christian Sluka played multiple instruments in his band, adored his cats and spent much of his time caring for and mentoring his three younger brothers. When he was killed last year while riding his motorcycle in Dormont, it left an emotional and physical void for his loved ones. “I feel...
Lawyers argue whether woman who pleaded guilty in Oakmont child death meant to kill
Alexis Herrera clearly thought of the 3-year-old girl as less than human, the prosecutor said. Herrera withheld food and water. She tied the girl up. She made her sit on the potty for hours. She struck her. She let the other children in the house hurt the girl, too. All...
Senate confirms Linda McMahon to lead Education Department as Trump pushes to shut it down
WASHINGTON — The Senate voted Monday to confirm former wrestling executive Linda McMahon as the nation’s education chief, a role that places her atop a department that President Donald Trump has vilified and vowed to dismantle. McMahon will face the competing tasks of winding down the Education Department while also...
Police charge trucker in West Virginia crash that pushed SUV of Fayette man into Cheat Lake
An arrest warrant has been issued for a tractor-trailer driver who authorities said was driving recklessly during a January snowstorm when the rig collided with an SUV driven by a Fayette County man, propelling it into West Virginia’s Cheat Lake. The Monongalia County Sheriff’s Office charged Sukhjinder Singh of New...
