Top Stories category, Page 303
3 people displaced by fire at Taylor Avenue home in Arnold
A basement fire Saturday in a home on Taylor Avenue in Arnold displaced three residents but caused no injuries, Arnold fire Chief Eric Gartley said. Firefighters responded about 12:30 p.m. to a single-family house at 1419 Taylor Ave. when smoke was seen. Alerted to the fire by a neighbor, a...
Mark Cuban stumps for Kamala Harris’ economic agenda, says Trump’s will increase inflation
Billionaire and Pittsburgh native Mark Cuban knows a bit about starting and growing businesses, but he first learned about being broke, eating condiment sandwiches and scraping by to keep a fledgling enterprise going. Speaking to a room of small business owners and entrepreneurs Saturday in East Liberty, Cuban, 66, used...
Biden rallies Pittsburgh’s union base to support Harris
President Joe Biden returned to Pittsburgh on Saturday, rallying and canvassing with building trades workers, selling Vice President Kamala Harris as a continuation of his pro-labor policies and the best hope to improve wages and union rights into the future. Biden rallied Saturday afternoon with about 100 members of the...
New limits, oversight for Pa.’s medical marijuana doctors proposed in response to Spotlight PA investigation
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 — The Pennsylvania Department of Health would be empowered to impose new limits on doctors who want to practice in the state’s medical marijuana...
Trump leaves Michigan rallygoers waiting for hours to tape Joe Rogan podcast
TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. — Many of Donald Trump’s supporters left a Michigan rally before he arrived after the former president kept them waiting for three hours to tape a popular podcast interview. Those who remained at the outdoor rally on an airport tarmac huddled in the cold Friday night as...
Harris and Beyoncé ignite a Houston rally with a double-barreled argument against Trump
HOUSTON — Kamala Harris and Beyoncé ignited a Houston rally with a double-barreled argument against Donald Trump on Friday, with the superstar telling the Democratic nominee’s biggest crowd ever that it was “time to sing a new song” as Harris warned that her GOP opponent was dead set on further...
Pitt graduate student workers to vote next month on whether to unionize
Graduate student workers at the University of Pittsburgh will vote in a state-supervised election next month on whether to join the United Steelworkers, the union already representing faulty and staff there. The election Nov. 18, 19 and 21 involves 2,000 teaching, research and other graduate assistants. It will be overseen...
Elon Musk continues to announce $1 million daily winners
After a few days of non-activity, the website for Elon Musk’s PAC is again announcing $1 million daily winners. A letter from the U.S. Department of Justice to America PAC warned that its giveaway in battleground states to swing voters could be illegal. The letter indicated the prize money could...
Looking back at another 7-0 Pitt team and how its star-crossed season ended on a cold, rainy day in Texas
New Year’s Day morning, 1983, dawned cold and rainy in Dallas, but Tom Flynn had seen worse. He grew up in Western Pennsylvania and had played in similar conditions at Penn Hills High School and Pitt. Later, he played in snowstorms with the Green Bay Packers. Truth be told, the...
As walking pneumonia cases rise nationally, how does Western Pa. fare?
With cold and flu season heating up, cases of walking pneumonia are increasing across the United States. But is the illness on the rise in Western Pennsylvania as well? Local health care experts shared mixed thoughts. What is it? Walking pneumonia is a mild lung infection that can be caused...
206-year-old bridge a sight to see for visitors to depleted Yough River Lake
Karen Wolfe did something this week that few others have done over the past 80 years. She walked the main street of Somerfield and its 206-year-old Great Crossings Bridge, landmarks that are normally about 50 feet underwater at Youghiogheny River Lake in southwestern Somerset County. “We had to come up...
‘It was just too special’ son says of Model T McKee family donated to Lincoln Highway Experience
The 1927 Model T Touring chugged to life, just like David McKee remembered. After the car slowly was backed out of his late father’s Ligonier Borough garage Friday afternoon, it was time for some fun on a sunny fall day. “This is my last ride, so I’m going to …...
Israel launches strikes on targets in Iran risking escalation in Mideast wars
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Israel pounded Iran with airstrikes early Saturday, saying it was targeting military targets in retaliation for the barrage of ballistic missiles the Islamic Republic fired upon Israel earlier this month. Explosions could be heard in the Iranian capital, Tehran, though there was no immediate information...
Lancaster County says 2,500 voter registrations being investigated for possible fraud
HARRISBURG — A criminal investigation is underway in the crucial presidential battleground of Pennsylvania after election workers in one county flagged about 2,500 voter registration forms for potential fraud. Two other counties were alerted to look for similar problems. The forms arrived at the Lancaster County elections office shortly before...
Nuns push back after GOP political activist casts doubt on their Pennsylvania voting registration
ERIE — A group of Pennsylvania nuns says a conservative political organizer posted “false and misleading information” about them by claiming no one lives at their home in Erie and making vague threats to consult his lawyers about them. The Benedictine Sisters of Erie put out a news release this...
Preeti’s Pitt homicide case ends with mistrial
The trial for a Pittsburgh man accused of killing a North Hills honors student at a Strip District restaurant ended in a mistrial on Thursday after a police officer referenced the defendant’s previous criminal record. A new trial date for Howard Hawkins is scheduled for Jan. 13 before Allegheny County...
Poplawski, on death row for killing 3 Pittsburgh cops, raises new questions about jury’s conduct
Richard Poplawski, convicted of killing three Pittsburgh police officers 15 years ago, claimed in a recent court filing that the jurors who sentenced him to death may have been unduly influenced during a field trip they took during an off day in the trial. Poplawski, 38, is asking an Allegheny...
AP sources: Chinese hackers targeted phones of Trump, Vance, people associated with Harris campaign
WASHINGTON — Chinese hackers engaged in a broader espionage operation targeted cellphones used by Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, his running mate, JD Vance, and people associated with the Democratic campaign of Kamala Harris, people familiar with the matter said Friday. It was not immediately clear what data, if any,...
Eastbound Route 30 reopens following North Huntingdon crash
The eastbound side of Route 30 reopened shortly before 8:30 p.m. in North Huntingdon following a motorcycle crash Friday evening. Westmoreland 911 officials said the crash, between a motorcycle and another vehicle, was reported just before 5:15 p.m. on Route 30 near Colonial Manor Road. Information on injuries from the...
Chartiers Valley appoints Woodland Hills’ Dan Castagna as superintendent
Chartiers Valley School District has appointed a new superintendent with a base salary of $250,000. The school board Thursday evening voted 6-3 to appoint Dan Castagna, who is currently superintendent of the Woodland Hills School District, as its leader for the next five years. His contract will run from Jan....
Phil Lesh, founding member of Grateful Dead and influential bassist, dies at 84
LOS ANGELES — Phil Lesh, a classically trained violinist and jazz trumpeter who found his true calling reinventing the role of rock bass guitar as a founding member of the Grateful Dead, died Friday at 84. Lesh’s death was announced on his Instagram account. Lesh was the oldest and one...
Police raid 2 vape shops, convenience store in Lower Burrell
It was Round 2 of raids against vape shops in Westmoreland County on Friday morning — this time, in Lower Burrell. Police seized items from three city businesses: Burrell Tobacco and Vape at 3087 Leechburg Road; Discount Vape in the Hillcrest Shopping Center; and a convenience store at 2700 Leechburg...
What the presidential candidates are up to todayVideo
It’s Friday, but this close to Election Day, the campaigns aren’t taking a weekend break. Here’s a peek at what’s been going on 11 days before the election. Where is everyone? For the two presidential candidates, everything is bigger in Texas today. Democratic presidential candidate Vice President Kamala Harris will...
Giant poop emoji statue arrives in Washington
A giant poop emoji statue has arrived on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. And, yes, you read that sentence correctly. The satirical statue is meant to “honor” Jan. 6 insurrectionists, and it will be on the Mall until Wednesday, the Washington Post reported. “This memorial honors the brave men...
Pittsburgh police Chief Scirotto to step down amid refereeing controversy
Pittsburgh police Chief Larry Scirotto is resigning Nov. 1, capping more than a week of controversy over his decision to return to part-time refereeing at NCAA basketball games. Scirotto sent an email just after 10 a.m. Friday to the 751-member Pittsburgh Bureau of Police notifying the force of his decision....
