Top Local and National News Stories category, Page 1275
Westmoreland County sees record jump in covid cases with 505
Westmoreland County on Thursday added 505 new cases of coronavirus to break its daily record by 68 cases. Of the new cases, 483 are confirmed out of 1,005 new tests. The county has now had 12,369 cases of covid-19 with 9,918 of those confirmed and 1,307 recorded as probable, according...
Pennsylvania reports 2nd-highest daily covid case count
Pennsylvania on Thursday reported 11,972 additional cases of coronavirus, the second-highest single-day increase. The previous record was 12,884 cases reported on Dec. 5. The state’s seven-day new case average hit its highest level at 10,065, joined by the seven-day total of 70,452 new cases. Of Thursday’s additional cases, 11,066 are...
Revised plans for building at former Wholey’s warehouse approved by Pittsburgh Planning CommissionVideo
Plans for a new tower on Penn Avenue at the former Wholey’s cold storage warehouse between Pittsburgh’s Strip District and Downtown areas were given approval this week by the Pittsburgh Planning Commission. New York-based JMC Holdings is developing the site at 1501 Penn Ave., which it bought in 2018 for...
Allegheny County reports 1,166 new covid cases, 2nd-highest daily tally
Allegheny County on Thursday reported its second-highest number of cases recorded in a single day with 1,166. This raises the total cases since March to 36,707. The county’s seven-day case average climbed to a record 881, and the seven-day case total recorded a new high of 6,164. Of the new...
Pedestrian killed in crash involving Washington County detective
A Washington County detective was “involved in an accident with a pedestrian” Wednesday night, authorities said. Washington County District Attorney Gene Vittone did not identify the detective involved but noted that he was on duty at the time. The incident happened shortly before 8 p.m. along National Pike, or Route...
FDA panel endorses widespread use of Pfizer covid-19 vaccine
WASHINGTON — A government advisory panel endorsed widespread use of Pfizer’s coronavirus vaccine Thursday, putting the country just one step away from launching an epic vaccination campaign against the outbreak that has killed close to 300,000 Americans. Shots could begin within days, depending on how quickly the Food and Drug...
Pittsburgh playwright August Wilson to be honored with Forever Stamp
Stamp collectors soon can grab a piece of Pittsburgh history with a new Forever Stamp honoring legendary playwright August Wilson. The U.S. Postal Service will dedicate the stamp Jan. 28, the first day of its release, with a virtual ceremony on its Twitter and Facebook pages. The stamp will be...
Tensions rise over masks as virus grips smaller U.S. cities
MISSION, Kan. (AP) — Arguments over mask requirements and other restrictions have turned ugly in recent days as the deadly coronavirus surge across the U.S. engulfs small and medium-size cities that once seemed safely removed from the outbreak. In Boise, Idaho, public health officials about to vote on a four-county...
Despite Trump’s venting and threats, Biden’s win is sealed
WASHINGTON — There’s plenty of noise but no cause for confusion as President Donald Trump vents about how the election turned out and vows to subvert it even still. This truth is self-evident: Joe Biden is on track to become president Jan. 20. The machinery of government and democracy is...
Man dead in St. Clair Township ATV crash
A 69-year-old New Florence man died when his ATV flipped in St. Clair Township Wednesday, according to state police. Joseph Bucceri was pronounced dead at the scene. Bucceri was driving his Yamaha Grizzly ATV on Robb Run Road just before noon when he lost control, according to police. The vehicle...
Ex-Greensburg doctor sentenced to 1 year in prison for selling scripts
A former Greensburg physician with a gambling habit who operated an addiction treatment practice was sentenced to one year and a day in federal prison, federal prosecutors said Wednesday. Dr. Nabil Jabbour, 69, was sentenced in U.S. District Court in Pittsburgh on three counts of distributing buprenorphine and single counts...
U.S. surpasses grim milestone of more than 3,000 covid deaths in a day, a new record
For the first time during the coronavirus pandemic, the United States surpassed 3,000 deaths in one day, according to data compiled by the Covid Tracking Project. The project, which tallies state-level coronavirus data, reported 3,054 covid-19 related deaths on Wednesday night— a significant jump from the previous single-day record of...
Pittsburgh woman gets probation in multi-million dollar home health care fraudVideo
A Pittsburgh woman involved in a multi-million dollar fraud home health care fraud scheme was sentenced to four years of probation and ordered to pay more than $94,000 in restitution to the state’s Medicaid program, federal prosecutors in Pittsburgh said Wednesday. The sentencing of Terra Dean, 46, in U.S. District...
U.S. ranks behind EU, Australia and U.K. in vaccine buys but says it will meet goalVideo
Thirty-one countries around the globe have reserved more covid-19 vaccine per capita than the United States, according to a Bloomberg analysis of country vaccine agreements. The U.S. Operation Warp Speed program is credited with shaving years off the typical development timeline for vaccines that are now on the brink of...
Virtual menorah lighting, scaled-back parade set in Pittsburgh to celebrate Hanukkah
Dark times need illumination. At 5 p.m. Thursday, 1,000 homes in the Pittsburgh area will light the first candle on their menorah celebrating the opening of Hanukkah, the festival of lights. They will do it virtually because of the pandemic. “It is so important that people stay connected,” said Adam...
Allegheny County officials: State covid restrictions are neededVideo
Allegheny County officials again said they are expecting new covid-19 restrictions from the state to be announced soon. “We thought today there were going to be some announcements around mitigating strategies,” County Executive Rich Fitzgerald said during a virtual news conference Wednesday. “Obviously they are needed. … These numbers are...
Peoples natural gas customers getting bill credit after utility’s $4.3B acquisition
Most residential customers of Peoples Gas in Pennsylvania saw a discount on their recent bills as a result of the natural gas company being acquired in a $4.3 billion deal earlier this year. Essential Utilities announced in mid-March that it had completed its acquisition of Peoples. That followed the state...
Pa. appellate court delivers another loss to Trump’s GOP allies seeking to void state’s election results
PHILADELPHIA — A Pennsylvania appellate court on Wednesday denied the latest in a string of legal challenges seeking to roll back certification of the election results, ending the last active court battle in the state over the outcome of the race. In a four-page opinion, Commonwealth Court President Judge Mary...
Plans for Target in Downtown Pittsburgh set for January hearing
Plans for a downsize Target that will be located in the iconic Kaufmann’s building Downtown are set for a January hearing before the Pittsburgh Planning Commission. Christine Mondor, the commission’s chairwoman, said Target presented the plans for review and a hearing is set for next month. The commission doesn’t comment...
Hunter Biden tax probe examining Chinese business dealingsVideo
WILMINGTON, Del. — The Justice Department is investigating the finances of President-elect Joe Biden’s son, including scrutinizing some of his Chinese business dealings and other transactions, a person familiar with the matter told The Associated Press on Wednesday. The revelations put a renewed spotlight on questions about Hunter Biden’s financial...
Report: Pittsburgh spends more on police than other cities
On the heels of a Pittsburgh City Council meeting where dozens of residents called for drastic reductions to the $111 million in spending proposed for police in the 2021 budget, the local arm of a Harrisburg-based think tank released a report Wednesday that recommends the city rework its spending priorities....
Feds charge 30 as part of investigation into drugs and weapons in Pittsburgh-area Pagans Motorcycle ClubVideo
As part of a long-term investigation into the Pagans Motorcycle Club in Western Pennsylvania, FBI agents got permission to tap 10 phones. Over a period of several weeks, they said they heard members of the Pagans, their suppliers and sources talk about the kind of heroin they were selling; where...
Gov. Tom Wolf tests positive for covid
Gov. Tom Wolf said Wednesday his covid-19 diagnosis is a reminder that no one is immune from the virus that has infected more than 445,000 people in Pennsylvania. Wolf, 72, said he tested positive for the virus during a routine test and he has no symptoms. His wife, Frances, is...
North Allegheny schools going back to full remote instruction
North Allegheny students returned to an online-only form of instruction Dec. 16 and will continue until at least Jan. 18 to help slow the spike in covid-19 cases gripping the region, district officials announced. The district informed families by letter that the change back to remote instruction is being made...
Pa. cites Western Pa. bars for violating covid restrictions
More than a dozen bars in Allegheny and Westmoreland counties received citations from the state’s Bureau of Liquor Control Enforcement in November for violating covid-19 mitigation measures, ranging from not requiring masks to serving alcohol without food. In addition, an East Carson Street bar was hit with a weeklong closure...
