Top Local and National News Stories category, Page 1488
HGTV Smart Home 2020 located in Wexford
HGTV’s 2020 Smart Home is right in our backyard – it was constructed in Wexford by Pittsburgh-based Infinity Custom Homes. In a news release, HGTV highlighted Pittsburgh being voted as one of America’s Most Livable Cities, its food and arts scenes and outdoor amenities, as well as its reputation for...
Gov. Wolf projects $5 billion deficit for Pennsylvania, backs call for more federal aid
Gov. Tom Wolf has written to President Donald Trump to back calls from other leading governors for another $500 billion in federal aid for states fighting the spread of the coronavirus, warning that his office is projecting a budget deficit of up to $5 billion. The letter, dated Wednesday, was...
19th coronavirus death reported in Westmoreland
Officials said Thursday that a man died from the coronavirus in Westmoreland County, bringing the death toll to 19. Ten men and nine women in the county have died as a result of the virus, according to Coroner Ken Bacha. His office is being notified of the deaths sooner than...
Stocks climb as pandemic winners pull away on Wall Street
NEW YORK — Even in this new stay-at-home, increasingly jobless economy, some businesses are making out as clear winners, and gains for Amazon, health care companies and stocks in other pockets of the market helped prop up Wall Street on Thursday. The S&P 500 rose 0.6% after flipping between small...
5.2 million more seek unemployment aid as U.S. layoffs spreadVideo
WASHINGTON — The wave of layoffs that has engulfed the U.S. economy since the coronavirus struck forced 5.2 million more people to seek unemployment benefits last week, the government reported Thursday. Roughly 22 million have sought jobless benefits in the past month — easily the worst stretch of U.S. job...
Man sues Pittsburgh diocese, alleging sexual abuse by priests decades ago
A New Hampshire man is suing the Roman Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh based on allegations that three priests sexually assaulted him in the 1960s and early ’70s, court records show. The lawsuit filed Wednesday in Allegheny County Common Pleas Court further accuses the diocese and co-defendant Bishop David Zubik of...
Covid-19 crisis could cost Pennsylvania hospitals $2 billion per month, health advocates warn
Pennsylvania’s hospitals stand to lose as much as $2 billion every month the pandemic-spurred shutdown goes on, the state’s largest hospital advocacy group said Wednesday. Gov. Tom Wolf’s order canceling elective medical procedures as part of the covid-19 measures is estimated to rack up $1.5 billion in collective monthly hospital...
Thousands protest Michigan governor’s social distance orderVideo
LANSING — Thousands of flag-waving, honking protesters drove past the Michigan Capitol on Wednesday to show their displeasure with Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s orders to keep people at home and businesses locked during the coronavirus outbreak. As snow fell, others got out of their vehicles and raised signs, one of which...
GOP bill would relax Pennsylvania business shutdown
HARRISBURG — The GOP-controlled Legislature sent Gov. Tom Wolf a bill Wednesday that would force him to allow some businesses to reopen during the pandemic, but its fate was unclear. The Senate approved the legislation on a party-line vote, sending it to Wolf’s desk for his signature. Wolf hasn’t explicitly...
Allegheny County officials: More coronavirus testing needed before businesses can reopen
Efforts to slow the spread of the coronavirus in Allegheny County are working, but more testing is needed before physical distancing measures can be lifted, officials said during a press call Wednesday. “I think these numbers are incredibly encouraging, but I think it’s too soon to celebrate,” said Dr. Debra...
Fayette County dairy farmer helps arrange 4,860-gallon milk delivery to needy
Fayette County dairy farmer Louie Diamond knew a lot of area families would be short on money during the coronavirus pandemic and with children home from school wanting milk, he decided to lend a helping hand. This week, the Masontown resident teamed with the American Dairy Association North East and...
‘It cannot get worse’: Airlines see fewest travelers since 9/11 attacks
The number of people boarding flights in the United States reached a new low Tuesday, with likely the fewest travelers in a single day since flights were grounded in the immediate aftermath of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. The Transportation Security Administration said 87,534 people boarded flights Tuesday, down 96% from...
Pittsburgh Public Schools to begin remote learning plan
Pittsburgh Public Schools on Wednesday released its detailed plan for remote learning, combining online lectures and assignments with packets of materials distributed by the district. “Our ultimate goal in our service delivery model is really about being very flexible,” said Chief Academic Officer Minika Jenkins in a video news conference...
Online sales keep Western Pa. breweries, distilleries, wineries in business during coronavirus pandemic
In the age of coronavirus, we drink alone. But sales figures from the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board, based on heavy traffic to its Fine Wine & Good Spirits website, and reports from distilleries and wineries in the region since the covid-19 pandemic shut down the Keystone State a month ago...
More than 300 free meals served daily in Freeport-Buffalo Township area, donations sought to continue
A Freeport Realtor and a community activist are serving 320 free meals, five days a week to the unemployed, the elderly, frontline workers and anyone else in need.. No questions are asked. No waiting list. Just home cooked meals from scratch. And you can donate if you like. The food...
Pennsylvania launches task force to address coronavirus outbreaks among minorities
The governor’s office on Wednesday announced a new task force aimed at analyzing and addressing disproportionate coronavirus outbreaks in minority communities across Pennsylvania. The goal of the Covid-19 Response Task Force for Health Disparity is to identify disparities and make recommendations to Gov. Tom Wolf on how to address the...
How should you spend your stimulus check? Here is what experts say
The check is not in the mail. But that big coronavirus stimulus check — up to $1,200 for singles, $2,400 for married couples and an extra $500 for each qualified child — might be in your bank account if the IRS has direct deposit information on you. Some families will...
Pennsylvania orders businesses to turn away customers who don’t wear masks
Customers and employees will soon be required to wear masks inside businesses still operating, and those who don’t wear masks will be denied entry, state Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine said Wednesday. The order, which includes dozens of other requirements, will go into effect 8 p.m. Sunday. It dictates...
Police arrest East Liberty man accused in spitting at Edgewood Giant Eagle
An East Liberty man accused of spitting on a Giant Eagle employee April 1 in Edgewood was arrested Wednesday in Braddock by Allegheny County Sheriff’s detectives. Brandon Thompson, 23, was found at about 12:20 p.m. in a house in the 400 block of Library Street in Braddock. He was found...
Comcast launches preview of new streaming service
Comcast began offering a preview of the premium tier of NBCUniversal’s new streaming service Peacock to some customers on Wednesday. With most people under stay-at-home restrictions because of the coronavirus pandemic, Comcast said it has seen a 50% increase in on-demand consumption year-over-year. Voice remote searches for free content are...
Pennsylvania rolls out data on nursing home coronavirus cases
Pennsylvania is now sharing data on cases of coronavirus at long-term care facilities and personal care homes in each county. Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine made the announcement during a virtual news conference Wednesday. The information can be found on the health department’s coronavirus page. Levine said the Department...
China didn’t warn public of likely pandemic for 6 key days
In the six days after top Chinese officials secretly determined they likely were facing a pandemic from a new coronavirus, the city of Wuhan at the epicenter of the disease hosted a mass banquet for tens of thousands of people; millions began traveling through for Lunar New Year celebrations. President...
Victim in fatal New Kensington motorcycle crash identified
New Kensington police on Wednesday identified the man who died after the motorcycle he was driving hit a deer on Sunday. Police Chief Bob Deringer identified the man as James R. Snyder, 49, from the North Hills area. Snyder died from his injuries at Allegheny Valley Hospital in Harrison. The...
Employee at McDonald’s in Allegheny Township tests positive for coronavirus
An employee at the McDonald’s restaurant in Allegheny Township has tested positive for covid-19, causing a temporary closure of the restaurant along Hyde Park Road. Owner Dan Delligatti said the site is being sanitized and is expected to reopen when cleaning is complete. “Our highest priority is to protect the...
With commerce frozen, retail sales plunge unprecedented 8.7%Video
WASHINGTON — U.S. retail sales plummeted 8.7% in March, an unprecedented decline, as the viral outbreak forces an almost complete lock down of commerce nationwide. The deterioration of sales far outpaces the previous record decline of 3.9% that took place during the depths of the Great Recession in November 2008....
