Top Stories category, Page 664
Tarentum boaters have until Oct. 31 to remove items from boat docks
A decision by Tarentum Council to eliminate boat docks at Riverview Memorial Park has enraged longtime users who feel they are scapegoats for what they called the borough’s swankier aspirations. Boaters have until Oct. 31 to dismantle sheds, roofs and other amenities because of concerns over a lack of state...
Hempfield high school project plan is millions of dollars over budget, must be revised
Contract bids for the first phase of the Hempfield Area Senior High School renovation project are millions of dollars over budget, and the project must be revised before construction can begin. That’s what architects from SitelogIQ told the Hempfield Area School Board at a public meeting Wednesday afternoon. The architects...
Pittsburgh-area health insurers request rate increases
The Pittsburgh region’s biggest health insurers are seeking rate increases for plans on the individual market, some up to 13%, according to the Pennsylvania Insurance Department. Highmark Inc. is asking for an average rate increase of 11.2% and the Highmark Coverage Advantage Inc. insurance plan is requesting an increase of...
At least 36 killed on Maui as fires burn through Hawaii and thousands race to escapeVideo
Thousands of Hawaii residents raced to escape homes on Maui as blazes swept across the island, destroying parts of a centuries-old town and killing at least 36 people in one of the deadliest U.S. wildfires in recent years. The fire took the island by surprise, leaving behind burned-out cars on...
Special counsel got a search warrant for Twitter to turn over info on Trump’s account, documents say
Special counsel Jack Smith’s team obtained a search warrant in January for records related to former President Donald Trump’s Twitter account, and a judge levied a $350,000 fine on the company for missing the deadline to comply, according to court documents released Wednesday. The new details were included in a...
Penn State gender pay gap is among worst compared to public Big Ten schools, federal data show
This story was produced by the State College regional bureau of Spotlight PA, an independent, nonpartisan newsroom dedicated to investigative and public-service journalism for Pennsylvania. STATE COLLEGE — Penn State is facing at least one allegation of wage discrimination, while salary data show the university’s gender pay gap is among...
Utah man suspected of threatening President Joe Biden shot and killed as FBI served warrant
SALT LAKE CITY — An armed Utah man accused of making violent threats against President Joe Biden was shot and killed by FBI agents hours before the president landed in the state Wednesday, authorities said. Special agents were trying to serve a warrant on the home of Craig Deleeuw Robertson...
Derry Township man held for court in 16-year-old murder case
During one of their daily meetings to use drugs, Timothy Smartnick said Charles E. Ream told him a secret. They were at a hotel in Monroeville sometime in 2009 or 2010 when Ream said he went to Samantha Lang’s Derry Township home in 2007. Smartnick testified during Ream’s preliminary hearing...
Wooden boxes stocked with food, supplies placed in Wilkinsburg to aid underserved residents
A wooden box stands at the corner of Wilkinsburg’s Laketon Road and Douglas Drive. Behind a purple door adorned with the expression “Explore your full potential” are shelves stocked with everything from nonperishables such as boxed macaroni and cheese, long-grain rice and canned corn to jars of baby food, socks...
Millions struggle to pay AC bills in heat waves. Federal aid reaches only a fraction
DENVER — Bobbie Boyd is in a losing battle against near triple-digit temperatures in northwest Arkansas. Her window air conditioner runs nonstop and the ballooning electric bill carves about $240 out of her $882-a-month fixed income. So the 57-year-old cuts other necessities. Boyd eats one meal a day so her...
Mike Tomlin: All healthy players will see action in Steelers’ preseason opener
Mike Tomlin acknowledged the obvious Wednesday when he said that second-year quarterback Kenny Pickett will need more preseason snaps this year than, say, a more seasoned quarterback. As far as how many more reps Pickett might need, Tomlin wasn’t ready to answer that question. The Pittsburgh Steelers open the preseason...
Free backpack giveaway Thursday welcomes all Kiski Area students
Nothing screams back-to-school like a new backpack. Kiski Area School District faculty, staff and volunteers are making sure any students enrolled in the district have access to a new backpack this year with a free giveaway event Thursday at Kiski Area High School. The Back to School Backpack Bash, in...
Liquor license auction open for some Southwestern Pa. counties
The Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board (PLCB) on Wednesday issued an invitation for bids for a set of expired restaurant liquor licenses, including some available in a handful of Southwestern Pennsylvania counties. Twenty expired licenses are being auctioned Sept. 27. One license each is available in 20 counties, which includes one...
Wild mushrooms suspected of killing 3 who ate a family lunch together in Australia
SYDNEY — Australian police on Wednesday were trying to figure out how three people died and a fourth became critically ill after apparently eating wild mushrooms at a family lunch. Homicide detectives have been investigating the case. Police have interviewed the woman who they say cooked the meal at her...
Harris says new rule means ‘thousands of dollars’ for workers on federal construction projects
PHILADELPHIA — Vice President Kamala Harris on Tuesday announced changes to labor rules that could give higher wages to construction workers on federal projects. In a speech in Philadelphia, Harris said the Labor Department has provided the first update in decades to the Davis-Bacon Act of 1931, a law that...
Mega Millions player in Florida wins $1.58 billion jackpot, the third largest prize in U.S. history
Someone in Florida won a $1.58 billion Mega Millions jackpot Tuesday night, ending a stretch of lottery futility that had stretched for nearly four months. A Publix grocery store in Neptune Beach sold the winning ticket, according to the Florida Lottery. The winning numbers drawn were: 13 19 20 32...
Morning Roundup: Car crash leads to violent attack in Hazelwood, police say
Here are some news items from this morning, Wednesday, Aug. 9: Car crash leads to violent attack Pittsburgh Police said a car crash led to a violent attack Tuesday afternoon in the city’s Hazelwood neighborhood. Police were called to Trowbridge Street shortly after 4 p.m., where they located a male...
Norwin board member sues superintendent, district over criticism of social media post
A Norwin School Board member is suing the district and its superintendent, claiming his First Amendment right to free speech was violated. Alex Detschelt of North Huntingdon claims Superintendent Jeffrey Taylor violated his rights Oct. 28, according to the suit filed in U.S. District Court in Pittsburgh. Taylor criticized Detschelt’s...
Hardware, electrical stores adapt to federal light bulb legislation
Jim Zink is not sure what to do with his remaining stock of incandescent light bulbs. Federal rules that took effect Aug. 1 prohibit the sale of most bulbs patented over a century ago by Thomas Edison. Now, Zink — owner of Hummell Brothers lighting store in Jeannette — is...
Westmoreland 250: 10 unique things in Latrobe
(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...
Voters in Ohio reject GOP-backed proposal that would have made it tougher to protect abortion rights
COLUMBUS — Ohio voters on Tuesday resoundingly rejected a Republican-backed measure that would have made it more difficult to change the state’s constitution, setting up a campaign this fall that will become the nation’s latest referendum on abortion rights since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned nationwide protections last year. The...
Riverfront brawl brings unwelcome attention to historic civil rights city in AlabamaVideo
MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Three white boaters in Alabama’s capital city will be charged with misdemeanor assault for a riverfront brawl with a Black boat captain that drew nationwide attention, with more charges likely to come, police said. Videos of the incident, which circulated widely on social media, have proven crucial...
Boat dock leases terminated in Tarentum
Boaters demanded answers from Tarentum Council on Tuesday night regarding future leases at the riverfront, but most people didn’t like what they heard. Council voted to terminate dock leases on Oct. 31 due to aged utilities, safety issues and legal concerns. The move infuriated longtime boaters who said they’ve poured...
Body cam footage shows Ligonier Township man was shot with handgun, stun gun nearly simultaneouslyVideo
Ligonier Valley police officers who responded to a domestic call fired a stun gun and a handgun nearly simultaneously when confronted last month by a man wielding a machete, body camera footage obtained by the Tribune-Review shows. The man, Robbie Thomas Saunders, 59, died later July 2 at Conemaugh Memorial...
Breakfast program impacts student health, participation in school, leaders say
Gov. Josh Shapiro spent his lunch hour Tuesday at Penn Hills Elementary School talking about breakfast. The recently approved state budget includes a $46.5 million increase for the Universal Free Breakfast Program, resulting in morning meals for the state’s 1.7 million public school students. Funding will level the playing field...
