Top Stories category, Page 115
1 dead, 1 injured in East McKeesport crash
A man is dead and another is in the hospital after a fatal two-vehicle crash Friday night in East McKeesport. Allegheny County Police reported to the intersection of Fifth Avenue and Penn Avenue just before 7 p.m. Both drivers were transported to an area hospital where one was pronounced dead,...
‘Deliberate, patient approach’ resolved Tarentum SWAT incident peacefully, police chief says
A roughly three-hour SWAT standoff in Tarentum on Thursday was resolved peacefully because of a “deliberate, patient approach that prioritized time, communication and containment,” said William Vakulick, the borough’s police chief. “We’re grateful that yesterday’s incident on East Eighth Avenue was resolved without injury to the individual involved, the public...
Grocery tenant to fill Community Supermarket in Harrison will be ‘a tough sell’
Local grocery guru Doug Sprankle predicts it will be a tough sell to replace the closing Community Supermarket in Harrison. “It’s probably going to be near impossible,” said Sprankle, whose family owns supermarkets in Saxonburg, Leechburg and Kittanning. “The capital to open a business like that is insane. It’s a...
Westmoreland Land Bank amps up effort to sell vacant properties
Formerly vacant properties could soon be on the market in Westmoreland County. The county’s land bank, the agency responsible for collecting and rehabilitating properties, has put out a call for private Realtors as part of an effort to amp up sales that officials say will help pay for the next...
Ligonier woman killed by falling tree branch at softball event in McKeesport
A Ligonier woman was killed Wednesday after tree branches fell on her at a youth softball event in McKeesport. Gendie Miller, 49, was attending the event to watch her teenage daughter participate. USA Softball of Western Pennsylvania officials said the incident took place prior to game play during the Western...
Charleroi councilman claims glass plant will reopen, but other officials cannot confirm
The former Corelle Brands LLC glass plant in Charleroi, which produced Pyrex bakeware until it closed in April, could be reopened this year with a foreign producer, according to a Charleroi official. Councilman Larry Celaschi claimed in an email to fellow borough officials Thursday that negotiations with a potential buyer...
In Epstein furor, Trump struggles to shake off a controversy his allies once stoked
WASHINGTON — Despite the sun bearing down on him and the sweat beading across his face, President Donald Trump still lingered with reporters lined up outside the White House on Friday. He was leaving on a trip to Scotland, where he would visit his golf courses, and he wanted to...
Education Department says it will release billions in remaining withheld grant money for schools
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration is releasing billions of dollars in withheld grants for schools, the Education Department said Friday, ending weeks of uncertainty for educators around the country who rely on the money for English language instruction, adult literacy, and other programs. President Donald Trump’s administration had suspended more...
The challenges facing Pa.’s huge, old road system, and what it means for the budget
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan, and nonprofit newsroom producing investigative and public-service journalism that holds power to account and drives positive change in Pennsylvania. HARRISBURG — Public transit is a key issue holding up Pennsylvania’s budget, but top Republicans have said they don’t want to spend more money on...
Rep. Mike Kelly reprimanded by House ethics panel over wife’s stock purchase tied to steel company
The House Ethics Committee issued a formal reproval Friday of Rep. Mike Kelly, R-Pa., following a yearslong investigation into an insider-trading allegation over his wife’s purchase of stock in a steel company in his Butler-area congressional district. The panel also said Kelly and his wife, Victoria Kelly, should divest of...
Rep. Summer Lee questions use of masks in ICE raids
When federal agents use unmarked vehicles and wear masks during raids that are part of the Trump administration’s crackdown on illegal immigration, it violates basic civil rights and contradicts democratic principles, two members of Congress wrote U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem in a letter released Friday. The letter was...
Police: New Alexandria man sought after former landlord’s lawnmower explodes
State police are looking for a New Alexandria man they believe injured his former landlord in an explosion in Salem Sunday. James M. Sever, 54, is charged with criminal attempt, aggravated assault and unlawful possession of weapons of mass destruction for allegedly placing a bomb underneath his former landlord’s lawnmower,...
Johnstown family sues companies over prosthetic arm fire that killed 2
A Cambria County family is suing multiple companies after their 14-year-old daughter and 22-year-old son died in a fire they contend was started by the batteries in a prosthetic arm. The family is suing several companies, including Union Orthotics & Prosthetics Co. LLC, located on Liberty Avenue in Pittsburgh, and...
Law student arrested in Pittsburgh amid allegations of child sexual abuse in Tonga
A Mormon missionary accused of sexually abusing at least 14 children in Tonga was arrested on Thursday in Pittsburgh. William James Purdy faces charges of sexual exploitation of children and transporting a minor with intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct in federal court in Utah. Following a hearing on...
Woman sues Uniontown, Latrobe firms after husband electrocuted on the job
A Fayette County woman whose husband was electrocuted while working on an air conditioning unit for a company in Latrobe is suing his employer and the customer. Lauren McGalla, of Fairchance, filed the complaint on Thursday in Allegheny County Common Pleas Court against Technimark LLC in Latrobe and Hranec Corp....
Deportation flights from Florida’s ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ detention center have begun, DeSantis says
OCHOPEE, Fla. — Deportation flights from the remote Everglades immigration lockup known as ” Alligator Alcatraz ″ began in the past few days, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said Friday. The flights operated by the Department of Homeland Security have transferred about 100 detainees from the immigration detention center to other...
1 killed in crash along Route 51 in Jefferson Hills
A person was killed in a multiple vehicle crash along Route 51 Friday morning in Jefferson Hills, police said. Allegheny County Police received the call about the crash a few minutes before 6:30 a.m. So far, medical examiners had confirmed one fatality, a couny police spokeswoman said. The identity of...
Heat, stored ammunition complicate Vandergrift fire response
About a dozen departments responded to a fire that tore through the upper floors of a Vandergrift home Friday morning. No one was injured in the blaze at 404 Emerson St., according to Vandergrift No. 1 VFD Chief Randy Dunmire. He said the numerous crews on site did a great...
McCormick and HUD secretary tour U.S. Steel’s Braddock facility, hint at housing plans
Federal officials hinted Friday morning at plans to build more housing near U.S. Steel’s Edgar Thomson Works as the firm’s new owner, Nippon Steel, prepares to spend big on upgrades. “When you create jobs, there’s a housing need,” said Housing and Urban Development Secretary Scott Turner at a news conference...
A man is halted climbing the U.S.-Mexico border wall. Under new Trump rules, U.S. troops sound the alarm
NOGALES, Ariz. — Inside an armored vehicle, an Army scout uses a joystick to direct a long-range optical scope toward a man perched atop the U.S.-Mexico border wall cutting across the hills of this Arizona frontier community. The man lowers himself toward U.S. soil between coils of concertina wire. Shouts...
Child dies after incident in Hersheypark’s water park, CEO says
A 9-year-old died Thursday after an incident at the Boardwalk at Hersheypark, the theme park’s CEO said. Hersheypark lifeguards immediately performed life-saving efforts after finding the child who was in distress, Hershey Entertainment & Resorts Company CEO John Lawn said in a late-night statement Thursday. The child was taken to...
Derry native tackles big job as Steelers’ team dietitian
While the Pittsburgh Steelers are at training camp for the next three weeks, a nighttime snack before another hard day of practice might be a steak, chicken or salmon filet with potatoes, rice and vegetables. It’s not everyone’s go-to bedtime bite, but it is part of the nutrition plan mapped...
Trump, Jerome Powell bicker over Fed building renovations as president ratchets up pressure campaignVideo
WASHINGTON — After months of criticizing Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, President Donald Trump took the fight to the Fed’s front door on Thursday, publicly scorning the central bank chief over the ballooning costs of a long-planned building project. Powell pushed back, challenging the president’s latest price tag as incorrect....
U.S. cuts short Gaza ceasefire talks and accuses Hamas of lacking ‘good faith’
WASHINGTON — The United States is cutting short Gaza ceasefire talks and bringing its negotiating team home from Qatar to discuss next steps after Hamas’ latest response “shows a lack of desire” to reach a truce, President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff said Thursday. “While the mediators have made...
Federal regulators approve Paramount’s $8 billion deal with Skydance, capping months of turmoil
NEW YORK — Federal regulators on Thursday approved Paramount’s $8 billion merger with Skydance, clearing the way to close a deal that combined Hollywood glitz with political intrigue. The stamp of approval from the Federal Communications Commission comes after months of turmoil revolving around President Donald Trump’s legal battle with...
