Top Stories category, Page 384
Pa. voters along Lincoln Highway see little impact of reshaped presidential race
Nicholas Peiffer isn’t sure he will vote in November. Along with his mother, Peiffer, 21, owns a small skateboard shop in downtown Chambersburg, just across the street from the Franklin County Courthouse. “I know things aren’t great right now, but I’ve never been very political. Since I turned 18, my...
Will Israeli-Palestinian conflict protests, encampments resurface when college resumes?
Alon Leshem, a rising senior at the University of Pittsburgh, is energized to finish his computer science degree and to take secondary field of study courses involving Israel and Palestine. But, like other Jewish students at Pitt and elsewhere, his enthusiasm is tempered by knowing fall could bring renewed pro-Palestinian...
Still no answers: 1 year later, Plum community still awaits a cause for fatal Rustic Ridge house explosion
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Plum community to observe Rustic Ridge anniversary 1 year later with no answers
As a Plum community pauses to remember those who died in a fatal house explosion a year ago, questions about the cause remain unresolved, and a mayor is demanding answers. Six residents of the Rustic Ridge neighborhood died as a result of the massive Aug. 12 explosion, which sent shock...
Country star surprises Harrison girl who raised funds for police dog — buys the K-9 for Tarentum himself
Two songs into a concert Friday night to raise money so Tarentum could acquire a police dog, country music star Brian Kelley summoned to the stage the young girl from Harrison who had spearheaded the benefit. That’s when things really got interesting. After all, Kaley Bastine, 12, her parents and...
Court ruling could lead to Jordan Chiles losing her bronze medal
PARIS — Romania’s Ana Barbosu could replace American Jordan Chiles as the Olympic bronze medalist in gymnastics floor exercise after the Court of Arbitration for Sport voided an appeal from Chiles’ coach that vaulted her onto the podium. CAS ruled Saturday that the on-floor appeal by U.S. coach Cecile Landi...
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., 3rd-party candidates face ballot challenges in Pennsylvania
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 — Robert F. Kennedy Jr., his running mate, and at least nine third-party candidates are facing challenges that could see them kicked off of...
Debby finally moves out of the U.S., though risk from flooded rivers remains
Debby finally moved out of the U.S. on Saturday after the storm spent the better part of week unleashing tornadoes and flooding, damaging homes and taking lives as it moved up the East Coast after first arriving in Florida as a hurricane. Debby’s last day over the U.S. before blowing...
Man fatally shot in Pittsburgh’s Homewood
Pittsburgh police are investigating a homicide that occurred early Saturday in the city’s Homewood neighborhood. Following a two-round ShotSpotter alert, city police were dispatched just after 3:30 a.m. to the 7400 block of Idlewild Street. A man who had been shot in the head was found dead on the sidewalk...
Unity family’s ATV use on farm pits them against neighbors
A Unity family who wants an ordinance changed so they can ride all-terrain vehicles, quads and dirt bikes on trails on a farm are opposed by the residents of the Cambridge Point housing development near the property. Township supervisors will be tasked with deciding whether to change the municipality’s ordinance...
Arthur Smith’s offense, Justin Fields sputter in preseason debut with Steelers
As far as debuts go, this one was deserving of a mulligan for Arthur Smith, Justin Fields and the Pittsburgh Steelers offense. With Smith calling the plays for the first time as offensive coordinator and Fields starting at quarterback, the Steelers sputtered for much of the first half in a...
Former Florida Georgia Line singer’s gig boosts Tarentum police K-9 fund
Many people who attended a benefit concert in West Deer said they had no issue with travel or parking despite a nearby tunnel closure. The 130-year-old Rural Ridge Tunnel on Little Deer Creek Valley Road in Indiana Township closed Friday, the same day former Florida Georgia Line frontman Brian Kelley...
Trump headlines Montana rally after plane makes emergency landing
BOZEMAN, Mont. — Donald Trump traveled to Montana for a Friday night rally intended to drum up support for ousting the state’s Democratic senator, but the former president’s plane first had to divert to an airport on the other side of the Rocky Mountains because of a mechanical issue, according...
What Pennsylvania’s $47.6B budget does for the state’s rural communities
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. Sign up for our north-central Pa. newsletter, Talk of the Town, at spotlightpa.org/newsletters/talkofthetown. BELLEFONTE — Officials in rural Pennsylvania didn’t get everything they wanted in...
Man’s fatal 7-story leap from Renewal halfway house window prompts lawsuit
The family of a man who died last year after jumping out of a seventh-floor window at a halfway house in Downtown Pittsburgh sued the federal government and the facility on Thursday. Thomas Spencer III, 24, died on April 17, 2023. On Thursday, his father, Thomas Spencer Jr., who is...
Franklin Regional’s Spencer Lee takes wrestling silver in Paris, but to his fans he’s goldVideo
Greg Sill was heartbroken by Spencer Lee’s loss in the Olympic wrestling finals Friday, but he couldn’t help but feel an overwhelming sense of hometown pride. The assistant varsity wrestling coach at Franklin Regional High School watched in awe before 2017 graduate Lee took home a silver medal from Paris....
Hunker woman is latest to sue county over Giant Slide safety concerns at Mammoth Park
A Hunker woman, who says she was injured in February on the Giant Slide in Mammoth Park, claims in a lawsuit filed this week that the 100-foot amusement ride is unsafe. Ashley M. Coonelly says that she traveled down the slide at a high rate of speed and was unable...
Flights, county fair coincide with Westmoreland Airshow this year
Zachary Stull spent Friday morning at the auto shop, preparing his car for a 15-hour drive from Westmoreland County to Orlando, Fla. Stull, 43, of Bolivar, scheduled a trip to Disney with his wife and their 6-year-old son months ago. He realized only four days ago that the Spirit Airlines...
Barrel & Flow beer fest ‘making a real impact’ on the Black brewing experience
A few days before the Barrel & Flow festival, the event “Welcome to Pittsburgh: A Celebration of Black Culture,” presented by Crafted for Action and Velum Fermentation on the South Side, generated excitement. Day Bracey, founder of Barrel & Flow, describes the festival as both a community and a movement....
Franklin Regional grad Spencer Lee falls in Olympic gold medal match
Spencer Lee’s dream of becoming an Olympic champion fell just short Friday afternoon in the men’s freestyle 57 kg final. Japan’s Rei Higuchi, the top seed, used a takedown early in the second period to defeat Lee, 4-2. Higuchi got a second takedown late in the match when Lee tried...
Canceled Taylor Swift concerts in Vienna leave traveling fans stranded and disappointed
Melissa Turner was in Montreal waiting to board her connecting flight to Austria en route to a Taylor Swift concert when she learned it had been canceled. Swift’s three Eras Tour concerts this week in Vienna were canceled following a foiled terrorist attack, the New York Times reported — affecting...
Fire-damaged Second Avenue Commons homeless shelter on track to partly reopen in November
After a June fire displaced about 175 homeless people staying at Second Avenue Commons in Downtown Pittsburgh, officials are hopeful the five-story shelter will reopen in time for winter. The first three floors are on track to restart services in November, when winter shelters typically open to provide added indoor...
The Wellness Collective has innovative approach to connect patients with therapists
Shanon Williams was joking with her husband and business partner Chris about how “speed dating” to connect with therapists and wellness practitioners would be interesting. The founders of The Wellness Collective made the hypothetical a reality with Mental Wellness Speed Dating. In a time when mental health is at the...
Russia declares federal emergency in border region under attack from Ukrainian forces
KYIV, Ukraine — Russia’s Ministry for Emergencies on Friday declared the situation in the Kursk region a “federal level” emergency, four days after hundreds of Ukrainian troops poured over the border in what appeared to be Kyiv’s biggest attack on Russian soil since the war began. Meanwhile, a Russian plane-launched...
Morning roundup: Pittsburgh police raid homeless encampment; bridge closes in Forward Township
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Friday, Aug. 9: Pittsburgh police serve search warrants for encampment policy violations Police said detectives seized quantities of crack cocaine and lorazepam pills believed to be intended for sale from two tents located on Grant Street between First Avenue...
