Top Stories category, Page 102

A woman was grazed to the head by a gunshot wound in a shooting in Allentown early Sunday morning, Pittsburgh police said. She was treated by medics and taken to the hospital in stable condition. First responders were notified by 911 and ShotSpotter that someone had possibly been shot in...

Dave Torrence vividly remembers his first fire call in 1974 with the Highland Hose Volunteer Fire Company — it was the night he joined the Tarentum department. “I got in bed and the whistle blew,” said Torrence, 72, a lifelong borough resident. “I just thought, ‘Here we go.’ ” Fellow...

When certified nursing assistant Helen Noel arrives for work each day at The Grove at Irwin nursing home, her attention is pulled in multiple directions. “When I go in, there might be four or five (patient) lights going off,” she said. “Who do I answer — your mother, your sister?...

Greta Van Fleet frontman Josh Kiszka fittingly sang a brief line from “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” — the theme song from “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” — in the band’s concert Saturday night at PPG Paints Arena. For fans of classic rock, it was a beautiful day in the neighborhood as...

For Jason Albert, whitewater kayaking is a form of therapy. Albert, 38, of Oak Ridge, N.J., has been kayaking since 2017. This is his first season back on the water following a two-year recovery from a car accident that hurt his back. “There’s a lot of people that have come...

The Pittsburgh Zoo & Aquarium opened at its normal time of 9:30 a.m. Saturday with modified operations as crews continued to clear debris from Friday’s tornado. A statement issued by spokeswoman Alex Cauley said zoo officials had recommended arriving after 11 a.m. and noted there would be some temporary restrictions...

The price is right for Dane Dyson. When the 22-year-old Yough Senior High graduate realized it would cost him $22,000 to attend a career school to learn the tricks of the plumbing and heating, ventilation and air conditioning trades, he opted instead to join a local union apprentice program. Dyson...

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 — More than a month out from the June 30 budget deadline, top Pennsylvania lawmakers are beginning a new round of negotiations with few...

From the printer to the sweeper to the decorations on the wall, almost everything in Anna Vukovich’s Youngwood home reminds her of her daughter Jennifer. Jennifer’s comforter is still on the bed in her childhood bedroom, her purse still hangs on a hook on the wall. “Everytime I pull something...

A man died Friday evening in a two-vehicle crash in Shaler. Allegheny County Police said the crash occurred at about 7:40 p.m. in the 3100 block of William Flynn Highway. The victim was not immediately identified. He was traveling alone, as was driver of the other vehicle. That person was...

PHILADELPHIA — Sen. John Fetterman, who has been open about his struggle with depression, wants to create a federal commission focused on mental health. Fetterman, a Pennsylvania Democrat, introduced a bill last week with Sen. Tina Smith, D-Minn., to create the commission, which would provide policy recommendations to Congress and...

The National Weather Service confirmed Saturday that an EF-0 tornado with winds of up to 70 mph struck the Harrison City area of Westmoreland County on Friday. Teams were out Saturday in the daylight to gather data and evaluate the damage at four suspected tornado sites, said NWS meteorologist Lee...

A McKees Rocks man caught with methamphetamine, fentanyl and an illegal Glock switch that converts handguns into fully automatic weapons pleaded guilty Friday in federal court to drug and gun crimes. Reginald Blunt, 32, pleaded guilty to drug trafficking and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon before Senior...

Embattled Westmoreland County Register of Wills Sherry Magretti Hamilton was ordered to transfer an estimated $500,000 in funds collected by her office over the last four months to the controller’s office by May 28. The register of wills office — which oversees the filing and processing of adoptions, guardianships, wills...

More than two dozen residents of a Latrobe personal care home will need to find other accommodations before July 8. Latrobe Manor administrator Kim Cecere said this week the home is working with families of its residents to find other placements for them. The 28 residents include elderly people and...

Vern Hess welcomed news that the Steelers will play on Christmas Day this year. After the NFL schedule was released the Steelers fanbase had mixed reactions — and many weren’t positive. The team does not play a divisional game until Nov. 17 and opens the season with three out of...

A man was arrested when, police say, he tried to mail about 2 pounds of cocaine to California from the New Kensington post office. Jonathan Ray Booher, 33, was arraigned Friday before New Kensington District Judge Frank J. Pallone Jr. on charges filed by the Office of Attorney General of...

Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey’s administration refused Friday to cooperate with the city’s independent fiscal watchdog in her probe of questionable payments to a contractor. The decision to withhold records from Controller Rachael Heisler caps a week of controversy for the administration, which acknowledged that it would discipline employees for violating...

Westmoreland County is looking at internet speed, and fast. County officials put out a last-minute call urging residents to participate in online testing of existing internet services as part of a necessary requirement to qualify for funds needed to enhance local broadband infrastructure. Testing needs to be completed before Thursday...

A federal judge on Friday denied a request for a new trial filed by the man convicted of killing 11 people at a Squirrel Hill synagogue more than five years ago. U.S. District Judge Robert Colville used the terms “entirely baseless” and “meritless” when describing arguments from defense lawyers. Robert...

The Greensburg man wanted in connection with a December hit-and-run in Greensburg that seriously injured a 76-year-old woman while she was crossing Main Street using a wheeled walker was jailed Friday night. Christopher M. Degnan, 44, was charged with aggravated assault by vehicle, accidents involving injury and four summary counts...

According to new data from the U.S. Census, Pittsburgh’s population was … stable. The city added 300 people from 2020 to 2023, about a 0.1% increase, according to data from the bureau this week. The estimates show that the city grew from 302,955 people in 2020 to 303,255 in 2023....

Dr. Matt Kocher was setting up an operating room during his anesthesia fellowship at UPMC Children’s Hospital in Lawrenceville when nurse Alexis Mamros asked if he had ever received anesthesia. He replied that he had, during his cancer treatment. Curious, Mamros asked for details. Kocher mentioned he remembered another patient...

One person was killed and another injured in a shooting early Friday morning in Pittsburgh’s Duquesne Heights neighborhood, according to public safety officials. First responders were dispatched to the 200 block of Plymouth Street just before 4 a.m. after a resident called reported a man she didn’t know had knocked...