Podcast: Inside the Penn State closure decision
Penn State’s Board of Trustees voted to close seven of the twelve branch campuses that were up for consideration in a virtual meeting on May 22. Those campuses, to close after the spring 2027 semester, are New Kensington, Fayette, DuBois, Mont Alto, Shenango, Wilkes-Barre and York. According to Penn State’s...
Man shows up at Knoxville convenience store with gunshot wound
Medics transported a man to the hospital early Wednesday after he showed up at a store in Pittsburgh’s Knoxville neighborhood with a gunshot wound. According to Pittsburgh Public Safety, city police were called after the man ran into a UniMart store in the 700 block of Brownsville Road. He was...
Shorter, smaller Three Rivers Arts Festival doesn’t dampen spirits of artists, visitors
Early June in Pittsburgh traditionally finds thousands of people heading to the Dollar Bank Three Rivers Arts Festival. But the annual event looks a little bit different this year. From June 5-8, the Arts Festival, a production of the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, will brighten the Strip District with creative spaces,...
Pittsburgh Diocese names new bishop as Pope Leo accepts Zubik’s resignation
Bishop Mark A. Eckman has been appointed the 13th bishop of the Diocese of Pittsburgh, succeeding Bishop David A. Zubik. The Holy See announced Wednesday that Pope Leo XIV appointed Eckman, who has served as an auxiliary bishop with the diocese since 2022. The pope accepted the resignation of Zubik,...
Woman dies after shooting in Pittsburgh’s Crafton Heights
A Pittsburgh woman is dead following a shooting Wednesday morning in the city’s Crafton Heights neighborhood. According to the Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office, Samantha Tabitha Howells, 52, was found with gunshot wounds to her upper torso after city police responded to a two-round ShotSpotter alert shortly before 4:30 a.m....
Businesses take advantage of opportunity as vendor partners for U.S. OpenVideo
Bob Rivers can’t wait for golf fans to try his coffee at the U.S. Open. The owner of National Grind Coffee & Tea Shop in Ellwood City has good reason to be excited for the event. As a vendor partner with the USGA, Rivers anticipates doing a full year’s worth...
The Stroller, June 4, 2025: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your non-profit’s community events, fundraisers and club meetings for free in The Stroller. Send information at least two weeks in advance to vndnews@triblive.com or The Stroller, 210 Wood St., Tarentum PA 15084. Please include a daytime telephone number. Follow the Stroller on X at @VNDStroller. Free garden strolls planned...
Former Jehovah’s Witness sentenced for child sexual assault
A Butler County man has been sentenced to 14 years in prison for sexually assaulting a pre-teen child, Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday said. Shaun Sheffer, 47, of Harmony was found guilty in January of three counts each of rape and indecent assault, including assault of a person less than...
Export family creates trust to fund new borough building
A family with Export roots wants to build the borough a new municipal center to host council meetings, provide offices for borough officials and create community meeting space. Two generations of the Orlic family have called Export home for much of their lives. Brian Orlic, of Penn Township, has worked...
Pittsburgh councilman flags land bank funding as ‘immediate concern’
A Pittsburgh councilman is warning that the city’s land bank will be broke by the end of next year unless a future funding source is found. “It’s an immediate concern,” Councilman Bobby Wilson, D-North Side, told TribLive Tuesday. Wilson, a member of the Pittsburgh Land Bank’s board, is looking to...
Man fatally shot during gunfight in Lawrenceville
The man who was shot dead in an alleged gunfight outside a Lawrenceville gas station early Tuesday evening in Pittsburgh has been identified. The Allegheny County Medical Examiners Office identified the victim as Michael Ehlinger, 56, of Pittsburgh’s Stanton Heights neighborhood. TribLive news partner WTAE reported that two men were...
UPMC reports $237 million operating income in Q1 2025
UPMC is off to a strong financial start in 2025, with both its health care and insurance services in the black last quarter for a total operating income of $237 million. The health care network made $142 million, while the insurance side — a drag on many recent quarterly reports...
‘I’m thinking I’m going crazy’: Woman finds stranger in mom’s room at UPMC Mercy hospital
Rae Corrado walked into a room at UPMC Mercy hospital expecting to find her mother. But instead of her mother, Gloria, she came face to face on Friday with a stranger lying in the hospital bed. A nurse insisted the unknown woman was her mother, Corrado of Oakmont told TribLive....
You Be You Music, a nonprofit children’s music school, finds home of its own in Millvale
Georgia English rejects the idea that making music is only for the precious, famous few and everyone else is a loser if they try. “We assign shame to anyone who tries to express themselves musically but fails,” she said. “We laugh at people who bomb their ‘American Idol’ auditions, and...
Some tomatoes, cucumbers sold in Pennsylvania recalled
Tomatoes and cucumbers purchased at local Western Pennsylvania stores could be contaminated with salmonella, health officials said. Ray & Mascari Inc. of Indianapolis, recalled 4 Count Vine Ripe Tomatoes packaged in clam shell containers because of potential contamination with salmonella. Salmonella can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young...
USGA to open U.S. Open merchandise tent early for fans without tickets
Golf fans without tickets to attend the U.S. Open next week still will have the opportunity to purchase tournament merchandise, according to the USGA. The merchandise pavilion at Oakmont Country Club will be open to the public from Thursday to Sunday, prior to the tournament, the organization said. Featuring a...
New Kensington approves preliminary agreement for Tri-Cities daylight fire crew
A cooperative, firefighter’s duty crew between Lower Burrell, New Kensington and Arnold is a step closer to become a reality. New Kensington Council on Monday approved a preliminary agreement between the city, Lower Burrell and Arnold, to establish a Tri-Cities duty crew for daytime volunteer fire coverage among the three...
Passenger testifies Bruce Alvarado was shooting at police after 2023 car chase
Amber Barkhamer wanted out of the stolen Jeep Patriot. Police were chasing the SUV with their sirens blaring and lights flashing while Bruce Alvarado, 40, stayed on the road, dodging other motorists and weaving in and out of traffic, she testified Tuesday. “He said he wasn’t going to jail today,”...
Latrobe caretaker accused of assaulting woman
A Latrobe woman’s caretaker was jailed Monday for allegedly pulling the woman’s hair to lift her out of a wheelchair and then dropping her onto the floor, where she hit her head, Latrobe police said. Nicole M. Crusan, 48, allegedly mistreated the 71-year-old stroke victim, who was on the floor...
Crabtree Sunoco store sells $1M scratch-off ticket
A Latrobe-area man is $1 million richer thanks to spending $20 on a $1 million-winning “Jackpot” scratch-off ticket at a Crabtree store last month. “They (sales clerk and winner) were both excited that he won” on May 25, said Tim D’Aurora, owner of the Crabtree Gas & Co along Route...
Voodoo Brewing Co. to close North Shore location
Pittsburgh’s North Shore is losing a pub. After a final night on Tuesday, Voodoo Brewing Co. will shut its doors. The pub made the announcement Sunday on its Facebook page thanking the North Shore and patrons for business over the almost three years its been in operation there. “What a...
Kamins donate $11.5 million to Heinz History Center
The Senator John Heinz History Center will soon be even more accessible to children and students. On Tuesday, the History Center announced a gift of $11.5 million from philanthropists Daniel G. and Carole L. Kamin. The longtime supporters of the History Center and other Pittsburgh institutions have offered the monetary...
Storms delay work, finish date on long-awaited Oakmont parking lot
The completion date for a long-awaited parking lot in Oakmont’s business district is being pushed back. Oakmont Community Foundation president Ray Rogers said work on the lot along Allegheny Avenue has been slowed repeatedly by bad weather. Oakmont was hit hard by severe thunderstorms at the end of April, leaving...
Roundup: Forest Hills school van crash sends driver to hospital
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Tuesday, June 3: Forest Hills school van crash sends driver to hospital A school van driver was taken to a hospital for evaluation following a crash Monday afternoon in Forest Hills. The van collided with another vehicle at Filmore...
Penn Hills man charged with homicide by vehicle, DUI in November crash in Monroeville
Police have charged a Penn Hills man with homicide by vehicle while driving under the influence in a Nov. 3 Monroeville crash that resulted in the death of his passenger and injuries to himself and two occupants of another vehicle. Marcus E. Alston Sr., 49, also is charged with involuntary...
