Top Stories category, Page 529
3 Pittsburgh Public Schools on modified lockdown through Friday due to online threats
Pittsburgh Public Schools district officials said three schools that share a campus will be under modified lockdown through Friday after threats were made over social media. Pittsburgh Public Schools spokesperson Ebony Pugh said the lockdown affects West Liberty PreK-5, South Brook 6-8, and Pittsburgh Pioneer Education Center. Those schools are...
U.S. military launches another barrage of missiles against Houthi sites in Yemen
WASHINGTON — The U.S. military fired another wave of ship- and submarine-launch missile strikes against Houthi-controlled sites Wednesday, multiple U.S. officials said, marking the fourth time in days it has directly targeted the group in Yemen as violence that ignited in the wake of the Israel-Hamas war continues to spill...
Astrobotic planning for failed lunar lander to re-enter Earth over the South Pacific
Officials at Pittsburgh-based Astrobotic believe their failed lunar lander will reenter Earth’s atmosphere over a remote area of the South Pacific, the company announced Wednesday. Astrobotic’s team has worked closely with NASA analyzing the Peregrine spacecraft’s travels and they do not anticipate any hazards. “A safe re-entry is our top...
Gun control measures advance out of Democratic-controlled Pennsylvania House committee
HARRISBURG — Democrats in majority control of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives advanced several gun control measures Wednesday, including one that would ban sales of automatic and semi-automatic guns, after years of standstill in the politically divided state government. The bills were passed by the Judiciary Committee on party lines...
Greensburg law firm gets $72K raise for Westmoreland water, sewer advice
A Greensburg law firm will be getting a 42% raise this year for the work it provides to the Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County. Avolio Law, led by Scott Avolio, has been the authority’s attorney since 2013, and, for the past decade, was paid a flat fee of $170,000 annually...
More than 122,000 water customers in region will see rates increase by 9%
Water and sewer rates will increase in April for Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County customers. Authority board members Wednesday unanimously approved 9% increases as part of a $117 million budget officials said was impacted by rising costs associated with the water and sewer service. “The board directed management to keep...
‘It’s unconscionable’: Adda Coffee and Tea workers rally against Pittsburgh closures
Nearly a week after a local coffee chain abruptly closed all of its locations, former employees, union workers and supportive local politicians gathered Wednesday morning to demand severance pay and criticize ownership. Adda Coffee & Tea House abruptly closed all four of its locations Jan. 11, claiming it has been...
Librarian Nicole Ruscitto takes aim at flipping pivotal South Hills state senate seat
One of Southwestern Pennsylvania’s most crucial state senate districts has a challenger, as school librarian and local basketball coach Nicole Ruscitto announced her candidacy Tuesday. Ruscitto, a Jefferson Hills Democrat who works in the South Park School District, is challenging Republican incumbent Sen. Devlin Robinson of Bridgeville for the 37th...
Supreme Court wrestles with major challenges to power of federal regulators
WASHINGTON — Conservative Supreme Court justices on Wednesday voiced support for weakening the power of federal regulators, but it was not clear whether a majority would overturn a major 40-year-old decision. Billions of dollars are potentially at stake in front of a court that, like the rest of the federal...
Saint Vincent College introduces new aviation degree
A new major at Saint Vincent College will propel students to careers in aviation and help them earn a license to become a pilot. The unique partnership behind the offering has been in the works for about a year, said officials from the Unity college, Arnold Palmer Regional Airport, Community...
What a new federal rule banning funny roadway signs means for Pennsylvania
Have you ever noticed the electronic sign “Don’t Drive Star Spangled Hammered” on the Parkway West and chuckled? Well, that and other similar quirky messages are going away in a couple years. They will be banned in 2026. The U.S. Federal Highway Administration has given states two years to implement...
Sen. John Fetterman to pen political memoir with ‘Friday Night Lights’ author
Pennsylvania’s U.S. Sen. John Fetterman’s unconventional political career, along with his many personal battles, sounds like the stuff of Shakespeare. Now, it will be a book that the hoodie-wearing Democrat is planning to write, with the help of “Friday Night Lights” author Buzz Bissinger. All this is according to a...
Resident warming frozen pipes sparks fire at Hempfield mobile home
A resident using a heat gun Wednesday morning to thaw pipes in a Hempfield mobile home sparked a fire that heavily damaged the home, according to fire Chief Anthony Kovacic. The resident escaped unharmed and called 911 about 10:30 a.m. Firefighters extinguished the flames, leaving about half of the Flamingo...
‘This will be a game-changer’: Duquesne University opens medical college
Students in the inaugural class of Duquesne University’s medical college will learn the intricacies of human anatomy through the time-tested method of dissecting cadavers. But they also will slip on a high-tech headset with eyewear and instantly see before them a hologram of the human body. They can walk around...
Demolition of Tree of Life building begins, making way for memorial design
As contractors braved the bitter cold Wednesday and started demolishing parts of the Tree of Life-Or L’Simcha building, Carole Zawatsky grew nostalgic. The head of a nonprofit working to rebuild the Squirrel Hill synagogue where 11 Jewish congregants were killed during a Shabbat service Oct. 27, 2018, Zawatsky said her...
Top House Democrats endorse Rep. Summer Lee in contested primary
U.S. Rep. Summer Lee, D-Swissvale, is gathering some major support ahead of her contested spring primary, as she hopes to hold on to her seat during what is likely to be an expensive and competitive election. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, of New York, endorsed Lee on Wednesday, her highest...
Frigid conditions persist, shuttering and delaying over 300 schools in Western Pa.
More than 300 schools in Western Pennsylvania delayed or canceled classes Wednesday morning in the face of continued frigid temperatures, sub-zero wind-chill readings and lingering snow. Pittsburgh Public Schools closed for a second straight day Wednesday, a move its leaders announced Tuesday night. Other districts, such as Greensburg-Salem, Hempfield Area...
Morning Roundup: 1 shot in Homestead; Beaver County man killed in crash
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Wednesday, Jan. 17: 1 hospitalized in Homestead shooting A man was hospitalized Wednesday morning after being shot in the back in Homestead, Allegheny County Police said. The non-fatal shooting was reported at about 4:20 a.m. in the 1000 block...
TV Q&A: With SportsNet Pittsburgh changing tiers on Comcast, what does that mean for regional sports network fees?
Q: I’m one of the subscribers to Comcast’s Xfinity Popular TV package that will apparently be losing access to SportsNet Pittsburgh on Jan. 16 to watch Penguins and Pirates games. I have been paying $13.30 as a regional sports fee. I wonder if that fee will be removed since I...
Editorial: Are passengers, airports served by JetBlue-Spirit ruling?
In April 2022, JetBlue Airways decided to make a bid for Spirit Airlines. The move came after Frontier Airlines attempted a merger. Three months later, Frontier walked away, leaving JetBlue as the only remaining suitor. This was a big deal, but it left some worried about what it meant going...
Penn-Trafford unites general, special education students through bocce
Penn-Trafford High School is one of the latest Western Pennsylvania schools to start an interscholastic sports team that purposely fills its roster with students who have intellectual disabilities and ones who don’t. Penn-Trafford’s new bocce team is part of the Special Olympics’ 13-year-old Unified Champion Schools program, which uses sports...
Unused metal detectors from Acrisure Stadium to be donated to Leechburg schools
Leechburg Area School District plans to boost security thanks to a sharp-eyed school security officer and the generosity of officials at Acrisure Stadium. Mike Kapustik, a security guard at Leechburg schools, recently noticed unused metal detectors inside a storage area during a visit to Acrisure Stadium. “One of our security...
Police: Pittsburgh man dies in crash along Freeport Road in O’Hara
A Pittsburgh man has died after being involved in a two-vehicle crash Tuesday evening along Freeport Road in O’Hara, Allegheny County Police reported. Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office identified the deceased as Michael Vernon, 74. An Allegheny County emergency dispatcher said the wreck occurred around 6:30 p.m. near the intersection...
Lawmakers announce bipartisan effort to enhance child tax credit, revive tax breaks for businesses
WASHINGTON — The chairmen of the top tax policy committees in Congress announced a bipartisan agreement Tuesday to enhance the child tax credit and revive a variety of tax breaks for businesses, a combination designed to attract support from lawmakers of both political parties. The roughly $78 billion in tax...
Shooter who killed 5 people at Colorado LGBTQ+ club intends to plead guilty to federal hate crimes
DENVER — The shooter who killed five people and endangered the lives of over 40 others at an LGBTQ+ nightclub in Colorado Springs plans to plead guilty to new federal charges for hate crimes and firearm violations under an agreement that would allow the defendant to avoid the death penalty,...
