Top Local and National News Stories category, Page 5
Endangered mussels disappearing beneath Western Pennsylvania rivers
Beneath the surface of the Allegheny River, some of the region’s most endangered creatures are quietly disappearing. Freshwater mussels — small, often overlooked creatures buried in the riverbed — are in steep decline across Western Pennsylvania, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. While largely unseen, the species are...
School bus driver charged with DUI after ‘erratic’ ride with Bethel Park volleyball team
A school bus driver faces DUI and other charges after police say she drove the vehicle into oncoming traffic, swerved between lanes and rolled through at least one stop sign while shuttling student-athletes late last month to Bethel Park High School. Police said Jeanne Bennett, 68, of Bethel Park had...
Peoples Natural Gas pipeline project begins on Route 22 in Monroeville
Peoples Natural Gas is installing nearly 4,000 feet of new pipeline along Route 22 in Monroeville, a project expected to last into early July. As part of a modernization upgrade throughout its service area, Peoples crews will install new pipeline along the highway between Old William Penn Highway, near the...
Supreme Court restores access to abortion pill mifepristone through telehealth, mail and pharmacies
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Monday restored broad access to the abortion pill mifepristone, blocking a lower-court ruling that had threatened to upend one of the main ways abortions are provided across the nation. The order signed by Justice Samuel Alito temporarily allows women seeking abortions to obtain the...
More than $1M in new fines handed down to Mills mall owners
Almost $1.5 million was added to existing fines owed by the companies that operate the Galleria at Pittsburgh Mills in Frazer on Monday. District Judge Michael Girardi imposed the fines for Pitt Galleria Realty, Pitt Realty, Pitt Galleria CH and Pitt Galleria Nassim — also known as Namdar Realty Group...
Tim Benz: The Penguins’ Evgeni Malkin decision will be the ultimate test of Kyle Dubas’ conviction
At this point, we’ve heard every reason why the Penguins should let Evgeni Malkin retire this summer or walk away as an unrestricted free agent to play elsewhere in 2026-27. Malkin will turn 40 on July 31. He’s a wing now, not a center. He only played 56 games this...
Kevin Gorman’s Take 5: Wild week showed Pirates how they need to play to win
Ben Cherington called it a crazy week for the Pittsburgh Pirates, who started their seven-game homestand getting swept by the St. Louis Cardinals and ended it with a sweep of the Cincinnati Reds. “We got punched in the face against the Cardinals, no doubt,” Cherington said Sunday in a guest...
Upper St. Clair schools hit by national hoax threat
Upper St. Clair School District parents were alerted on Monday that a general threat made against the district was a part of a national hoax. The school sent out an email stating that school district officials learned of the incident in the morning. Local and federal law enforcement agencies verified...
Hemingway’s Cafe goes quiet after 43 years in Oakland
Hemingway’s Cafe in Oakland served its last pitcher in the wee hours of Monday morning, ending its 43-year run in the heart of the University of Pittsburgh’s campus. Last call came around 1 a.m. and was met with a round of applause. More than 50 customers were hanging on, soaking...
What to know about hantavirus, the illness suspected in a cruise ship outbreak
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — A rodent-borne illness is suspected of causing an outbreak aboard a cruise ship that has killed three people and sickened others. Studies indicate hantaviruses have been around for centuries, with outbreaks documented in Asia and Europe. In the Eastern Hemisphere, it has been linked with hemorrhagic fever...
U.S. fights to reopen Strait of Hormuz as the UAE comes under attack in a test of Iran truce
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — The U.S. military said it fired on Iranian forces and sank six small boats targeting civilian ships as it moved to reopen the Strait of Hormuz on Monday. The United Arab Emirates, a key American ally, said it had come under attack from Iran for...
Brentwood’s Crack’d Egg announces it’s closing downVideo
The Crack’d Egg, a Brentwood restaurant that sparked attention for fighting covid-19 restrictions, announced it is closing. In a social media post, the owners said they contemplated closing last year but decided to sign an additional one-year lease. “And here we are in 2026,” the post continued. “Costs through the...
Morning Roundup: State police nab suspected child sex abuser in sting operation
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Monday, May 4: State police nab suspected child sex abuser in sting operation The Fayette County District Attorney’s office in a news release said Pennsylvania State Police arrested a man last week on sexual abuse of children charges in...
Madden Monday: On Sidney Crosby’s future — ‘I don’t think he’s going anywhere. Period’
Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby is eligible for another contract extension this offseason. Based on his 74 points in 68 games this season, there’s no reason to believe the Penguins wouldn’t want to give him one. The question is, though, does he want to sign one? Given his age and...
What3words app gains local popularity as large events come through PittsburghVideo
Just three words can be the difference between someone being completely lost — or knowing exactly where they are, at any point in the world. What3words is an app that uses a geocoding system to divide the world into 3-meter (10-foot) squares and assigns each a unique, three-word address. It’s...
Westmoreland County comprehensive plan: Population drops despite growth efforts
Westmoreland County’s comprehensive plan, implemented in early 2019, was designed to reimagine the future. That reimagining is occurring, just at a slower pace than first anticipated, officials said last week as the county issued its latest report on the progress made on future planning. “It’s rewarding to see accomplishments, but...
State study looks at possible consolidation of certain Westmoreland County fire stations
A state study examining the fire service in New Stanton, Youngwood and Hempfield’s Midway-St. Clair area determined the stations should be consolidated. New Stanton Council President Cory Thoma said council is set to vote Tuesday on whether to form a committee to look into the matter further and start discussions...
Completion of Pennsylvania’s panel for ‘America’s Tapestry’ celebrated in Shaler
Millions of stitches over thousands of hours by hundreds of people have produced in Shaler a colorful representation of Pennsylvania’s history as one of the original 13 colonies. Work on the state’s embroidered panel for America’s Tapestry, part of the celebration of the 250th anniversary of the signing of the...
Woman stabbed by unknown man in Aliquippa
A woman was expected to be OK after being stabbed by an unknown man early Sunday morning in Beaver County, according to state police. Aliquippa officers went to the 400 block of Franklin Avenue around 1 a.m. for a report of a woman who had been stabbed once in the...
Agent hit by buckshot from the gun of man charged in correspondents’ dinner attack, prosecutor saysVideo
WASHINGTON — Authorities have determined that buckshot from the gun of the man charged with trying to storm the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner in an attempt to kill President Donald Trump struck a Secret Service agent, according to the federal prosecutor overseeing the investigation. Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. attorney...
How a weaker dollar is quietly making life more expensive
NEW YORK — A hidden force is quietly pushing up costs for everything from your summer vacation to your weekly grocery bills: a weaker U.S. dollar. The dollar has fallen about 10% against other major currencies since President Donald Trump returned to the White House, a pullback potentially playing a...
At the Pittsburgh Marathon, families track and cheer runners mile by mile
Teo Heckman had a game plan. He started out the morning Sunday at the Pittsburgh Marathon start line, followed by a walk over the Allegheny River to the North Shore. The Portage man used the marathon’s smartphone app to keep track of seven family members, including his wife, who were...
Trump keeps us up in the air with his hints of what’s coming in a new batch of UFO files
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump says the Pentagon is preparing to release some “very interesting” UFO files uncovered by his administration, generating a mix of buzz and skepticism as he hints at new revelations around questions of alien life. Trump started stoking interest in the extraterrestrial in February, directing federal...
Trump says the U.S. will ‘guide’ stranded ships from the Strait of Hormuz, starting on Monday
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — The United States will launch an effort on Monday to “guide” stranded ships from the Iran-gripped Strait of Hormuz, President Donald Trump said, giving few details about what could be a sweeping effort to help hundreds of vessels and some 20,000 seafarers. Trump said in...
Cold start to Pittsburgh Marathon doesn’t dampen spirits of runners, spectators
The weather was warming up throughout the morning as Pittsburgh Marathon runners took off in high spirits Sunday for their annual trek through the city’s neighborhoods. The temperature was just 35 degrees at the start, but the cold conditions didn’t seem to dampen the spirits of the runners or spectators....
