Top Local and National News Stories category, Page 1193
In a first for UPMC, this drive-thru clinic treated 500 vaccine seekers eager to roll up their sleeves
Five hundred people got their first dose of the Moderna vaccine at the launch of a drive-thru clinic Wednesday at the UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex in Cranberry. The hospital system is partnering with the Pittsburgh Penguins to continue a covid-19 community vaccination event series. On Monday, the two teamed up...
Police investigate suspect’s motive in Atlanta-area killings
ATLANTA — A white gunman accused of killing eight people, most of them women of Asian descent, at three Atlanta-area massage parlors was charged with murder Wednesday in an attack that sent terror through the Asian American community that’s increasingly been targeted during the coronavirus pandemic. Robert Aaron Long, 21,...
New covid cases for Allegheny, Westmoreland, Pa. remain above 7-day average
Allegheny and Westmoreland counties, as well as Pennsylvania, all reported new coronavirus cases higher than their seven-day averages on Wednesday. Allegheny added 285 cases, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Health, 38 higher than its seven-day average of 247. Westmoreland’s 73 additional cases are above its average of 65, while...
Pitt, Carnegie Mellon launch joint center to combat extremist hate
Carnegie Mellon and the University of Pittsburgh are joining forces in a new research center designed to study and seek ways to halt the proliferation of extremist hate. The announcement comes amid rising fears about ethnic violence against Asian Americans. On Tuesday night in Atlanta, a gunman killed eight people,...
Zebra, camel OK’d for Victory Stables in Washington Township
Things are about to get exotic in Washington Township. Township supervisors on Thursday approved a request by Victory Stables on Camp Nancy Road to house two exotic animals. Victory Stables manager Jessica Corbin, 31, said she plans to acquire a zebra and a camel within the next few months and...
Beaver federal credit union head charged with embezzling $2 million
The former president and CEO for the credit union at International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local Union No. 712 in Beaver was charged in federal court this week with embezzling more than $2 million. Stacey Shaw, of Industry, is charged by criminal information with embezzlement and willful failure to file...
Wall Street closes higher after Fed says will keep rates low
Stock closed higher Wednesday, reversing an early slide after the Federal Reserve reassured Wall Street that it expects to keep its key interest rate near zero through 2023. The central bank’s renewed commitment to keeping rates at rock bottom lows comes even as its latest economic forecast calls for growth...
Editorial: A smart, phased-in return to more restaurant and bar service
Cautious optimism. That may be the best path to tread going forward in the coronavirus pandemic. Cautious optimism puts the idea of being careful first, but anchors it to a positive outlook. It focuses on the goal without being reckless. That is what Gov. Tom Wolf promoted Monday when he...
Child border crossings are surging, straining U.S. facilities
WASHINGTON (AP) — A surge of migrants on the Southwest border has the Biden administration on the defensive, with the head of Homeland Security acknowledging the depth of the problem but insisting it’s under control and saying he won’t revive a Trump-era practice of immediately expelling teens and children. The...
Despite pandemic, these Western Pa. lawmakers cashed in on taxpayers’ dime
Spotlight PA is an independent, non-partisan newsroom powered by The Philadelphia Inquirer in partnership with PennLive/The Patriot-News, TribLIVE/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, and WITF Public Media. Sign up for our free newsletters. Despite the coronavirus pandemic and a lengthy statewide shutdown, Pennsylvania state lawmakers — led by Democrats in the House — still...
On verge of strike, United Steelworkers rally outside ATI’s Brackenridge facility
Leisa Brothers held up a rubber chicken in one hand, and in her other, a handwritten sign against the management of Allegheny Technologies Inc.: “Corporate greed is killing the American dream.” “We’re fighting for a fair contract,” said Brothers of Sarver, a United Steelworkers janitor who has worked at the...
State Rep. Jeff Pyle retires for health reasons, says hardest part is ‘I didn’t think I was done yet’
Nine-term state Rep. Jeff Pyle, R-Ford City, retired Tuesday because of health issues. Pyle, 56, is in his second round of battling cancer. He first was diagnosed with kidney cancer less than two months into his first term as a state representative in early 2005. Pyle beat the disease then,...
Police: Beaver County man killed by son in connection with alleged Publishers Clearing House scam
A Massachusetts man accused of killing his father in Beaver County’s New Sewickley Township told authorities he did so to spare his father humiliation over being duped in a Publishers Clearing House scam, court records show. Michael Miklaucic, 57, of Plymouth, Mass., is charged with homicide in the death of...
Pa. health official says all Phase 1A appointments should be scheduled by March 31
Vaccine providers across the state should have all appointments for people in Phase 1A scheduled by the end of the month, Acting Secretary of Health Alison Beam said in a new order Monday. The order amends a previous one from February, adding a subsection requiring providers to “use best efforts”...
Many Pa. indoor venue owners say Wolf’s easing of restrictions isn’t enough
While many in the hospitality industry cautiously celebrated the coming return of bar service and 2 a.m. last calls, others in the entertainment industry expressed dismay at the comparatively low capacity levels covid-19 restrictions keep them at. Gov. Tom Wolf on Monday announced he would roll back a slew of...
Moderna begins testing its covid-19 vaccine in children as young as 6 monthsVideo
Moderna Inc. said it has begun delivering experimental doses of its covid-19 vaccine to children as part of a study to determine whether it is safe and effective in those as young as 6 months. The trial aims to enroll about 6,750 volunteers in the United States and Canada. The...
Commissioners to declare Westmoreland a ‘Second Amendment County’ in favor of gun rights
Westmoreland County commissioners will approve a resolution to support gun rights this week. Republican commissioners Sean Kertes and Doug Chew, along with Democrat Gina Cerilli Thrasher, said they will declare Westmoreland a “Second Amendment County,” a move they concede has no teeth but shows support for gun owners. “There are...
U.S.: Putin approved operations to help Trump against Biden
WASHINGTON — Russian President Vladimir Putin authorized influence operations to help Donald Trump in last November’s presidential election, according to a declassified intelligence assessment that found broad efforts by the Kremlin and Iran to shape the outcome of the race but ultimately no evidence that any foreign actor changed votes...
86-mile stretch of Pa. Turnpike to close this weekend for bridge project
The Pennsylvania Turnpike is scheduled to close in both directions for several hours this weekend between New Stanton and Breezewood. Turnpike officials said the closure will begin at 11 p.m. Saturday and reopen to traffic by 6 a.m. Sunday as part of a bridge removal project. The closure is necessary...
FBI says Pennsylvania woman filmed inside Capitol on Jan. 6
SCRANTON — A Pennsylvania woman allegedly cheered on rioters as they stormed into the U.S. Capitol in early January and was photographed in a trashed conference room inside the building, the FBI said in a newly unsealed affidavit. Annie C. Howell of Swoyersville was charged earlier this month with trespassing,...
Homeland Security chief defends handling of border surge; attempted crossings on pace to hit 20-year peak
WASHINGTON — Faced with a rising number of migrants at the southwest border and criticism from all sides, the Biden administration’s head of Homeland Security insisted Tuesday that the situation is under control as he defended a policy of allowing children crossing by themselves to remain in the country. Homeland...
McKees Rocks sues Alcosan, saying construction will ruin boroughVideo
McKees Rocks borough officials believe that a tunnel project being proposed by Allegheny County Sanitary Authority will result in economic, environmental and social injustice in their community. They filed a lawsuit Tuesday to stop it. The complaint, filed against Alcosan, includes multiple claims for public nuisance, alleging that the construction...
Allegheny County’s covid hospitalization number drops to October level
Allegheny County has its fewest number of covid-19 patients hospitalized since October, according to the latest state Department of Health data. On Tuesday, there were 135 covid patients hospitalized, down from 153 on Monday. That number has decreased since 172 were hospitalized on Thursday. Tuesday’s number was the lowest since...
Voter outreach led to big drop in rejected mail ballots
The coronavirus pandemic triggered an unprecedented surge in mailed ballots last year, raising concerns that a flood of first-time absentee voters would lead to another record: more ballots tossed out for missing deadlines, signatures or other reasons. Those fears never materialized. An analysis by The Associated Press found that the...
Ohio lowers age limit for vaccine to 16 years old and up
COLUMBUS, Ohio — The coronavirus vaccine will be available to anyone in Ohio 16 years and older by the end of the month, Gov. Mike DeWine announced Tuesday. A significant increase in vaccine supplies expected in the state warrants the eligibility expansion, the governor said. Currently, Ohioans 50 and older...
