Regional category, Page 197
Fine line divides local public and private universities on vaccine requirements
A fine line is dividing public and private universities in the region with regard to vaccine mandates. While private universities including Carnegie Mellon, Chatham, Seton Hill and Duquesne are requiring vaccinations for those on campus this fall, public universities here are stopping short of adopting mandates that state lawmakers —...
UFCW, Giant Eagle announce new contract with wage increases
A new four-year contract that Giant Eagle employees ratified last week includes wage increases, continues no-cost health care benefits and provides new protections for LGBTQ+ workers, according to a joint statement released Monday by the company and union. The agreement covers about 5,300 employees who are members of United Food...
Youngwood Wireless Zone to host annual backpack giveaway Aug. 1
The Youngwood Wireless Zone will donate school supplies to local families in its third annual School Rocks Backpack Giveaway. The Wireless Zone is an authorized Verizon retailer with 59 locations in Pennsylvania. Fifteen of the locations are participating in the giveaway, which launched in 2013. According to a press release,...
Pandemic leaves Western Pennsylvania bike shops struggling in shortageVideo
George Gatto’s bicycle shop flourished in summer 2020, as the first pandemic lockdowns eased and bike sales nationwide boomed. This summer, however, is a different story. The demand is still there, but manufacturing warehouses globally are empty, and places such as Gatto Cycle Shop in Tarentum are left scrambling. When...
The Friendly Stem in North Huntingdon joins area’s cut-your-own flower farmsVideo
Receiving a birthday bouquet is a special treat, but being able to pick your own takes it to another level. Thanks to her daughters and granddaughter, Beverly Rich of Unity celebrated her 81st birthday Thursday by choosing a vaseful of colorful blooms at The Friendly Stem, a new flower farm...
‘Aging in place’: Westmoreland among tops in nation for natural population loss
Westmoreland County had the seventh-largest natural population decline last year compared to counties across the country, according to population estimates from the census. The estimates show Westmoreland lost 1,943 people in 2020 through natural population changes, meaning there were more deaths than births. “The description of what’s happening in Westmoreland...
Entrepreneur, philanthropist John G. Rangos Sr. dies just before 92nd birthday
Entrepreneur and philanthropist John G. Rangos Sr. died Wednesday, one week shy of his 92nd birthday. Rangos died following a brief illness, according to a news release from the John G. Rangos Sr. Charitable Foundation. The release said he died surrounded by his children — John Rangos Jr., Alex Rangos...
Excela eyes covid vaccine mandate for hospital employees as delta variant spreads; nearly 40% of workers remain unvaccinated
Westmoreland County’s largest hospital system and employer is contemplating requiring health care workers to get vaccinated for covid-19 as concerns mount over the delta variant spreading rapidly among the unvaccinated. Excela Health, which employs about 4,300 across three hospitals and more than a dozen outpatient, testing and therapy providers, does...
Rural Pennsylvanians would get $500M broadband boost under Rep. Pam Snyder’s new bill
State Rep. Pam Snyder wants to ensure rural Pennsylvanians have access to high-speed internet — particularly since the covid-19 pandemic has made the persisting digital divide more apparent and problematic for those who don’t. The Greene County Democrat announced Wednesday she plans to introduce a bill to devote $500 million...
Unity latest community to weigh shared-road access for ATVs
Motorists in Unity might soon share the road with all-terrain vehicles, if township supervisors give their approval. Jim Yokopenic, who lives on Bruno Road, has asked the township to allow ATV use on his road and three others nearby, in the vicinity of the village of Marguerite — Pond, Coke...
15-year-old boy charged as adult in fatal stabbing in Fayette County
A 15-year-old Fayette County boy is charged as an adult in connection with a fatal stabbing Monday in rural Springhill Township. Christopher S. Gaydos Jr. of Smithton was ordered held without bond after his arraignment Tuesday on charges of criminal homicide, aggravated assault and reckless endangerment in Fayette County Tuesday....
Butler County man dies after getting caught in Ocean City current, but son pulled to safety
A Butler County man died Friday after getting caught in a strong current while swimming with his 7-year-old son in Ocean City, Md., but the man’s wife managed to rescue the boy. Jessica White, of Prospect, said she and her nephews were playing with water guns on the shore outside...
DEP suspects pesticide or herbicide caused massive fish kill on Chartiers Creek
The state Department of Environmental Protection suspects that a pesticide or herbicide caused a killed thousands of fish in Chartiers Creek in Washington County. Chartiers Creek, a tributary of the Ohio River, runs from the center of Washington County to Allegheny County, emptying into the Ohio at McKees Rocks. The...
Pennsylvania casino income continues to break records
Pennsylvania casinos continue to see year-over-year growth, with the industry posting a record $3.87 billion in revenues last fiscal year, according to state regulators. The influx of revenues for casino operators comes after covid-related restrictions had facilities shuttered for several months during the 2019-20 fiscal year, with casinos reporting $2.7...
Steelworkers still sparring with ATI as employees return after months-long strike
Lingering grievances are flaring up between the United Steelworkers and Allegheny Technologies Inc., despite the two parties inking an agreement last week to end a months-long strike by 1,300 employees. The union declared that members voted last Tuesday to ratify a four-year contract after months of stalled talks with ATI...
Boaters beware: High waters on Allegheny River from Kinzua to Pittsburgh for 5-7 days
Torrential storms over the weekend caused water levels to rise significantly on the Allegheny River from the Kinzua Dam in Warren to Pittsburgh, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said. Water levels are decreasing but will stay elevated for the next five to seven days, according to Megan Gottlieb, water...
Code Orange air quality action day issued for Western Pa. on Tuesday
In response to wildfires spreading across northern and western Canada, officials with the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection declared Tuesday a Code Orange air quality action day for several areas of the state, including parts of Allegheny and Westmoreland counties. According to a news release from the department, light winds...
2 dead in Fayette murder-suicide
State police investigated a murder-suicide Saturday in Fayette County that left two men dead. Troopers said they were dispatched to a shooting on East End Road in Bullskin just before noon and found Chad William Lowry, 34, of Connellsville, dead. The suspect fled in a truck, police said. While investigators...
With workers in high demand, Western Pa. teens are filling the void
As businesses have taken “closed indefinitely” signs out of their windows and reopened their doors, the landscape of a post-pandemic workforce is changing and depending on an unexpected demographic — teens. Teenagers have become one of the largest segments of the working population. The Associated Press reported that, in May,...
Family of Connellsville woman who needs double organ transplant issues plea for help covering medical costs
The family of a Connellsville woman launched a fundraising campaign to help cover the cost of a double organ transplant. The family of Rebecca Rowan, 26, started the GoFundMe page following an incident while Rowan and her brother were hiking in Arizona. Family members say the Fayette County siblings went...
Western Pa. among nationwide areas seeing dangerous rise in opioid epidemic
Throughout the height of the covid-19 pandemic, it seemed as if the opioid epidemic had come to a sudden halt — largely because coronavirus headlines dominated newsstands, television broadcasts and everyday conversation. The latest overdose death figures from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, however, convey a starkly opposite...
Pitt faculty unionization vote slated, Pitt says
The University of Pittsburgh’s faculty members will be able to vote starting next month on whether they want the United Steelworkers to represent them in contract negotiations. The Pennsylvania Labor Relations Board decided the secret-ballot vote for about 3,000 employees will be conducted from Aug. 27 to Oct. 12, the...
Woodland Hills principal heads home to Aliquippa as superintendent
Woodland Hills High School is losing a principal, and the Aliquippa School District is gaining a new superintendent. On Wednesday, the Aliquippa School Board unanimously voted to hire Phillip K. Woods, who grew up in Aliquippa, as its superintendent. He replaces Superintendent Peter Carbone. Woods has been principal at Woodland...
Wildlife associate sues Nemacolin after bear attack on guided safari
A Wexford woman who worked as a wildlife associate at Nemacolin Wildlife Adventure is suing her employer after a Himalayan black bear almost killed her while performing a trick with it two years ago for a tour group. Megan Alborg, 24, had just started working at Nemacolin, when, on July...
Penn State trustees vote to raise tuition for 2021-22 school year
HARRISBURG — Penn State will impose its first tuition increase for incoming in-state undergraduate students since the 2017-18 school year, under a plan approved by trustees on Thursday. Incoming Pennsylvania resident students will see a 2.5% tuition increase at all campuses for the 2021-22 school year. At the University Park...
