Regional category, Page 200
Westbound Turnpike lanes temporarily closed between Butler Valley, Cranberry until midnight
The Pennsylvania Turnpike’s westbound lanes will be closed briefly tonight between the Butler Valley and Cranberry exits until just before midnight, Turnpike officials announced. Westbound travelers can take Route 8 north, Route 228 west and I-79 south, which will bring them to the Cranberry interchange. From there, they can follow...
New Special Agent in Charge of FBI’s Pittsburgh office talks priorities
Newly appointed Special Agent in Charge of the Pittsburgh FBI field office Michael Nordwall spoke on a range of topics in a news conference Wednesday, including the bureau’s priorities in Pittsburgh and the importance of help from the public. Nordwall comes from Washington, D.C., where he’d been serving as the...
William Howard Taft sworn in as chief justice a century ago, made mark in Pittsburgh
One hundred years ago Wednesday, William Howard Taft, the 27th president of the United States, made history. On June 30, 1921, Taft was sworn in as chief justice of the United States, making him the first and only U.S. president to also serve as chief justice of the Supreme Court....
‘Severe’ blood shortage prompts donation centers to make a call to arms
Clentin Martin was found where he usually is every 56th day or so — giving blood. “I always felt that it was an obligation to do,” Martin, 74, said while donating at the American Red Cross blood drive at St. Bruno Catholic Church in Greensburg. “It’s something that everybody needs.”...
Heat, humidity to give way to rain, cooler temperatures
The Pittsburgh region is expected to get a break Wednesday from the blistering heat and oppressive humidity when storms roll through in the afternoon. The three-day stretch of hot weather began Sunday when the temperature hit 88 degrees followed by highs of 92 on Monday and Tuesday. The average temperature...
Point Park University requiring covid vaccine for students attending in-person classes this fall
Point Park University will require students to be vaccinated against covid-19 if they want to attend in-person classes or participate in activities this fall, officials announced. University President Paul Hennigan said the decision to require vaccinations is “based on on the success of the covid-19 vaccinations now widely available, and...
Washington County man gets 28 years for child sex abuse convictions
A Washington County man has been sentenced to 28 years behind bars for documenting acts of child sexual exploitation and abuse, federal prosecutors said Tuesday. Sean Houston, 48, of Centerville also must pay nearly $29,000 — $13,700 in victim restitution and a $15,000 fine to the court, Acting U.S. Attorney...
Extension eases application crunch for municipalities seeking pandemic relief
Some area municipalities were scrambling this week to submit applications for federal pandemic relief funding, with an initial deadline looming Wednesday. They got a break from that crunch when officials extended that deadline by a month. The state Department of Community and Economic Development “started urging municipalities to apply as...
Defense seeks plea deal in 2019 death of East Huntingdon baby
The lawyer for a Fayette County man charged with first-degree murder of an 11-month old East Huntingdon child told a judge on Tuesday his client was ready to plead guilty to a lesser charge. Assistant Public Defender Jack Manderino said Derrick A. Bass, 31, of Uniontown indicated his desire to...
Area jobless rate down slightly; labor force shrinking
The Pittsburgh region lost 10,700 workers from the seven-county labor force in May and is 31,000 below May 2020 during the covid restrictions on the economy, a problem that continues to plague the region, according to economic data the state released Tuesday. “The labor force is not showing any rebound...
Officials: Pool collapse causes propane leak in Fayette County
Several homes were evacuated in Fayette County Tuesday afternoon after an above-ground pool collapsed, pushing a 500 gallon propane tank into a neighbor’s home, causing a propane leak, officials said. Crews responded to Fords Hill Road in Redstone Township around 1:30 p.m., according to Rich Lenk, fire chief for the...
Pilot, passenger injured when small plane crashes in rural Washington County
Two people were injured when a small plane crashed Monday evening in rural Washington County, according to authorities. Officials learned of the crash-landing in a large pasture near School and Short Cut roads in Somerset Township around 6:15 p.m., according to state police. Several ambulances, fire trucks and medical helicopters...
Pitt enrolling participants for covid-19 booster shot trial
The University of Pittsburgh is enrolling participants for a trial of booster shots that mix vaccines against covid-19. The goal is to see, for example, if a dose of Pfizer after a round of Moderna gives people stronger and broader protection. Pitt’s Pittsburgh Vaccine Trials Unit (PVTU) is one of...
$1M lottery tickets sold in Wilkinsburg, Somerset County
One man became a millionaire with a Pennsylvania Lottery scratch-off ticket purchased in Wilkinsburg, and another lottery player won more than $1 million with a ticket bought in Somerset County. A man, who said he preferred not to have his name published, won $1 million after purchasing a Millionaire Maker...
A wild weather week in store for Western Pennsylvania
Western Pennsylvania residents won’t need to go to Kennywood to feel like they’re on a roller coaster this week: A weather roller coaster, that is. The week begins with blistering heat. The average for this time of year is 82 degrees, but we could be hitting at least 90 degrees...
Victim of fatal motorcycle wreck in Washington County on Sunday identified
The Washington County coroner has identified the victim of a fatal motorcycle accident in Twilight borough on Sunday morning. Dustin Michael Chiodo, 35, of Bentleyville in Washington County, was riding his motorcycle along Twilight Hollow Road shortly after 4:30 a.m. in the tiny borough when he failed to negotiate a...
What you need to know as the Pa. mask mandate lifts
In light of rising covid-19 vaccination rates, Pennsylvania no longer has a mandate that masks be worn in public settings. Businesses still may require a mask to be worn, and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines still call for masks in public transportation, airports, shelters, prisons and hospitals. Dr....
Law ‘diverts punishment’ to drug addicts, Pa. judge says in vacated conviction
Advocates tallied a win — albeit a narrow one — in federal court this month when the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals vacated a Montgomery County woman’s conviction and 21-year sentence for sharing a fatal dose of drugs with a friend. A divided three-judge panel ruled that the federal drug...
Experts: Pa. law intended to punish drug dealers in overdose cases could be backfiring
A decade ago, amid rising casualties from drug abuse, a Pennsylvania drug law was revised to target dealers responsible for overdose deaths. The new statute was termed “drug delivery resulting in death,” or DDRD in legal shorthand. It called for 20- to 40-year prison sentences for anyone who sells or...
320-mile trek from Philly to Lower Burrell on track to raise nearly $300K for vets; founding charity member dies
When the climb got roughest during the 320-mile trek across Pennsylvania, Tucker McCullough mustered the energy to press forward by invoking the past. Accompanied by five comrades on the PA Hero Walk from Philadelphia to the Alle-Kiski Valley, the Army veteran recalled the many brave soldiers who traversed the same...
First woman, Black bishop chosen to helm Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh
The Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh voted Saturday to elect the Rev. Ketlen Solak as its ninth bishop, making the Delaware minister the first woman and person of color to helm the religious leadership post in Western Pennsylvania. Solak, the rector of Brandywine Collaborative Ministries in Wilmington, Del., and a native...
WVU board OKs tuition hike, $1.1B budget for next year
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — West Virginia University tuition is going up this fall, the school’s Board of Governors decided on Friday as it also approved a budget of about $1.1 billion for the next fiscal year. Tuition will climb 1.87% for resident students, or $84 a semester. Nonresident students’ tuition will...
Connellsville man killed on Armstrong County road
A Connellsville man was killed early Saturday when he was struck by a vehicle in Armstrong County. Pennsylvania State Police in Kittanning said Alan Lipscomb, 29, was laying in the middle of State Route 422 near Worthington Slate Lick Road shortly after 2:30 a.m. when he was hit by an...
How Indiana Normal School dropout Nellie Bly became the world’s best-known woman
INDIANA — When Nellie Bly completed her globe-circling journey in 1890, the New York World hailed the intrepid journalist as “the best-known and most widely talked-of young woman on earth today.” But had she not dropped out of Indiana Normal School a decade before, no one would have ever heard...
PennDOT announces 1-day road closure near Freeport High School football field
A one-day closure on Monroe Road will impact drivers in Buffalo Township on Monday. PennDOT announced the closure, which will impact a stretch of Monroe Road from Sarver Road to the intersection of State Route 356. The area stretches from Freeport Area High School’s football field to the Butler-Freeport Rails...
