Top Stories category, Page 629
Hurricane Idalia hits Florida with 125 mph winds, flooding streets, snapping trees and cutting powerVideo
PERRY, Fla. — Hurricane Idalia tore into Florida at the speed of a fast-moving train Wednesday, splitting trees in half, ripping roofs off hotels and turning small cars into boats before sweeping into Georgia as a still-powerful storm that flooded roadways and sent residents running for higher ground. “All hell...
Rare ‘blue super moon’ will appear between the clouds this evening
If you’ve referred to something rare happening “once in a blue moon,” that time is now. The moon won’t be blue when it rises into the skies Wednesday evening, but the blue moon refers to the second full moon in a calendar month, according to NASA. A blue moon happens...
Morning Roundup: Peters Township High tops ranking of Pittsburgh schools
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Wednesday, Aug. 30: Peters Township High tops ranking of Pittsburgh schools Peters Township High School has been ranked the best high school in the Pittsburgh region by U.S. News and World Report. The annual rankings were released Tuesday evaluating...
South Side’s Carson City Saloon set to reopen
A popular Pittsburgh nightspot is reopening next week after closing in July because of concerns over safety and violence in the South Side. Carson City Saloon announced on its Facebook page that it will “see you soon” on Sept. 7 when doors open at 7 p.m. The sports bar temporarily...
Covid cases up slightly as health care providers prep for respiratory illness season
As students return to school and residents of Western Pennsylvania head inside for the fall, covid-19 cases are on the rise, local health care providers say. The increase in cases is modest compared with the past three years of larger pandemic waves, but it’s still representative of a seasonal uptick...
Vandergrift steel processing company for sale for nearly $10M
A longstanding specialty steel processing business is for sale in Vandergrift. MSI Corp., at 210 First St., is listed for $9.9 million by listing agent Scott Lewis of Edward Lewis Inc., based in Youngstown, Ohio. Owners Henry “Duke” and Gisela McLaughlin of Allegheny County, both in their 70s, are looking...
1 dead in Penn Hills attempted murder-suicide
A woman was hospitalized in critical condition Tuesday night after Allegheny County Police said she was shot in an attempted murder-suicide. Authorities said they were notified of the shooting on Thon Drive around 9:30 p.m. They reported finding a 41-year-old woman with multiple gunshot wounds and a 50-year-old man with...
Westmoreland 250: 10 unique things in Penn Township area
(Editor’s note: To mark Westmoreland County’s 250th birthday this year, we’ve come up with a list of 250 things — 10 things in 25 communities — that we consider to be important to the makeup of our area. This series will appear each week through December. If you have a...
122-year-old U.S. Steel is reviewing ‘numerous’ buyout offers
After receiving two buyout offers in the past month, U.S. Steel said Tuesday it is in the process of reviewing multiple offers for the storied company and symbol of American industrialization. U.S. Steel rejected a $7.3 billion buyout proposal from rival Cleveland-Cliffs two weeks ago, and that offer was followed...
Allegheny County to draft climate action plan
Western Pennsylvania’s largest county will develop a climate action plan to lay out its goals to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Allegheny County Council voted 15-0 on Tuesday to pass an ordinance compelling the county’s Department of Sustainability to draft a climate action plan by next July 1. Allegheny County Executive...
Pittsburgh area jobless rate hits record low, but workforce levels remain down
The seven-county Pittsburgh region’s unemployment rate fell in July to its lowest level in 47 years, but the labor force has yet to regain the 46,000 workers it had before the pandemic wreaked havoc on the economy. The unemployment rate fell by 0.2 of a percentage point to 3.7% in...
McCandless bank robbed Tuesday afternoon
McCandless police and the FBI are investigating a robbery at Huntington Bank on Tuesday afternoon. Officers were dispatched to the business in McIntyre Square along the 8000 block of McKnight Road shortly before 4 p.m., according to Allegheny County 911 dispatch. No injuries were reported. FBI Pittsburgh spokeswoman Catherine Policicchio...
Rib Fest gets earlier start this year on North ShoreVideo
Country music star Morgan Wallen will be performing on Wednesday and Thursday at PNC Park, but his reach will extend to Acrisure Stadium. The annual Miller Lite Kickoff and Rib Festival on Pittsburgh’s North Shore is opening Wednesday — a day earlier than usual — to accommodate the thousands of...
Apollo-Ridge officials condemn racist social media posts ahead of game against Valley
Apollo-Ridge School District officials Tuesday condemned racist images targeting Valley High School’s football team ahead of the schools’ scheduled game Friday in New Kensington. In a statement, Apollo-Ridge Superintendent Matt Curci said the racist material posted to social media was brought to officials’ attention Monday night. One image was a...
Pittsburgh Regional Transit drops covid vaccine requirement
Pittsburgh Regional Transit is ending its covid-vaccine requirements for existing and future employees this week after implementing the policy for over a year and a half. The policy change comes after a protracted battle with the transit-worker union, which opposed the vaccine mandate and filed an unsuccessful injunction and more...
Allegheny County Jail must address shortage of corrections officers, health care workers, audit says
An audit released Tuesday said Allegheny County Jail is short-staffed by more than 125 corrections officers, while more than half of the jail’s budgeted health care positions are unfilled. Allegheny County Controller Corey O’Connor, D-Squirrel Hill, acknowledged in the audit that hiring has been a challenge across all employment sectors,...
Pa.’s state-owned universities now offering Google Career Certificates
Students attending Pennsylvania’s state-owned universities can now earn tech industry-recognized certificates during their undergraduate studies through a new partnership with Google, Gov. Josh Shapiro announced Tuesday. The initiative is intended to move students more quickly and less expensively from campuses into good-paying, high-demand jobs. It also would help employers meet...
Pittsburgh looking to allow limited deer hunting in some city parks
In an effort to curb Pittsburgh’s deer population, city officials are looking to allow limited deer hunting in some city parks this fall. Legislation before Pittsburgh City Council would clear the way for a targeted hunting program in the city’s Frick and Riverview parks, said Maria Montaño, a spokeswoman for...
2 of 3 people accused in Tarentum robbery hoax have prior felony arrests for theft
Two of the three people accused of staging an armed robbery at Asay’s newsstand in Tarentum last week already were facing felony theft charges when the alleged crime was committed, according to court records. Connor Whited, 26, and his girlfriend, Leah Baczynski, 24, are accused of hatching a plan for...
Rapper Eminem tells GOP presidential candidate to stop using his music at campaign events
The real Slim Shady is standing up and telling a Republican presidential candidate to sit down. Grammy Award-winning rapper Eminem recently sent a cease-and-desist letter to Vivek Ramaswamy. The GOP presidential candidate, who has been polling in third behind former President Donald Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, is known...
Job vacancies, quits plunge in July in stark sign of cooling trend in the U.S. job market
WASHINGTON — Businesses posted far fewer open jobs in July and the number of Americans quitting their jobs fell sharply for the second straight month, clear signs that the labor market is cooling in a way that could reduce inflation. The number of job vacancies dropped to 8.8 million last...
See which drugs President Biden is targeting for Medicare price-lowering talks
WASHINGTON — The Biden administration is targeting the blood thinner Eliquis, diabetes treatment Jardiance and eight other medications for Medicare’s first-ever drug price negotiations as it seeks to lower medical costs for Americans. The administration on Tuesday released a list of the 10 drugs for which prices will be negotiated...
Conservative groups draw up plan to dismantle U.S. government and replace it with Trump’s vision
WASHINGTON — With more than a year to go before the 2024 election, a constellation of conservative organizations is preparing for a possible second White House term for Donald Trump, recruiting thousands of Americans to come to Washington on a mission to dismantle the federal government and replace it with...
Category 4 Hurricane Idalia projected to hit Florida with ‘catastrophic’ storm surgeVideo
TAMPA, Fla. — Hurricane Idalia strengthened to a dangerous Category 4 storm Wednesday morning as it steamed toward Florida’s Big Bend region and threatened to unleash life-threatening storm surges and rainfall. Florida residents living in vulnerable coastal areas were ordered to pack up and leave as Hurricane Idalia gained strength...
Roundup: 2nd tornado confirmed in Fayette County
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Tuesday, Aug. 29: 2nd tornado confirmed in Fayette County A second tornado in Fayette County during Friday’s storms has been confirmed by the National Weather Service. The two tornadoes struck around 2:30 a.m. in the Mill Run area and...
