Top Local and National News Stories category, Page 1492
Officials: Allegheny County Jail inmate dies; death not suspicious or covid-19 related
An inmate in the Allegheny County Jail in Pittsburgh died Saturday. Warden Orlando Harper issued a statement that “the death does not appear to be suspicious, nor related to covid-19.” According to Harper, medics were called about 12:15 p.m. to tend to an unresponsive inmate. Attempts to revive him were...
Allegheny Township boy doesn’t let illness or coronavirus stop 7th birthday party
Seven-year-old Kohldon Haggerty had to put off his birthday plans the past two years because of illness. But not this year — despite even the coronavirus and its social distancing restrictions. Kohldon celebrated Saturday outside his Allegheny Township home with a bona fide parade, complete with police cruisers, fire trucks,...
U.S. death toll overtakes Italy’s as Midwest braces
CHICAGO — The U.S. death toll from the coronavirus eclipsed Italy’s for the highest in the world Saturday, surpassing 20,000, as Chicago and other cities across the Midwest braced for a potential surge in victims and moved to snuff out smoldering hot spots of contagion before they erupt. With the...
Evans City man, 74, dies in Wexford vehicle crash
An Evans City man was killed in a vehicle crash Friday in Wexford, according to a release from the Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office. Stephen Morten, 74, was identified as the accident victim. The crash happened just after 11 a.m. along Perry Highway. Further details were not yet available. McCandless...
Pandemic isolation adds another hurdle for those in drug recovery
Samantha Woollen is staying active in her recovery by talking on the phone with her counselor and participating in virtual Narcotics Anonymous meetings. But she knows others may not be able to do the same. “I know some people that don’t have phones … and they really need the help,”...
Police identify suspect accused of spitting on Giant Eagle employee in Edgewood
Allegheny County Police are seeking a 23-year-old East Liberty man who they said spit on a manager at the Edgewood Giant Eagle grocery store this month. Brandon Thompson is accused of terroristic threats, simple assault, reckless endangerment and other charges in connection with an April 1 incident at the store...
State reports 1 new covid-19 death in Westmoreland, bringing total to 6; coroner reports 11 deaths
One new coronavirus-related death was reported in Westmoreland County on Friday, according to state health officials. The state reported 16 new county cases, which is a 2.8% increase, bringing the respective totals to 218 confirmed cases and six deaths. Coroner Kenneth Bacha is critical of the state’s recording system, saying...
State reports 8% increase in covid-19 cases in one day, 78 more deaths
Seventy-eight new coronavirus-related deaths were reported to the Pennsylvania Department of Health throughout the day Friday, bringing the state’s death toll to 494, according to state health officials. The total coronavirus case count is 21,655, the data show. It was the second consecutive day in which 78 new deaths were...
1 more covid-19 related death reported in Allegheny County; stats now broken down by race
One more person in Allegheny County died from the coronavirus, county health officials said Saturday, bringing the countywide total to 19. Of those who died, 18 were white and one was black, officials said. All of those people were over the age of 65, according to a statement released by...
New Kensington Shop ‘n Save to close at the end of April
A family-run Shop ’n Save in New Kensington is closing after about a decade in the city. The grocery store in the Central City Plaza will close its doors for good April 30. Co-owner Lauren Beter of New Kensington said the move is due to decreased sales the past few...
Dr. Louis Falo talks Southwest Greensburg, Pitt coronavirus vaccine and Dr. Anthony Fauci
He learned teamwork on the football field at Greensburg Central Catholic High School more than 40 years ago. Like three classmates on that 1977 team, Louis Falo went on to medical school. Today, the Southwest Greensburg native and researcher at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine leads an elite...
Henry L. Hillman Foundation giving more than $4 million in emergency grants to help fight covid-19
The Henry L. Hillman Foundation has released more than $4 million in emergency grants since mid-March in response to the unfolding covid-19 pandemic. More funds are anticipated to be released in the coming days and weeks, foundation officials said Friday. “Our board convened right away wanting to offer what we...
4th Port Authority employee tests positive for covid-19
A fourth Port Authority worker has tested positive for covid-19, authority officials said Friday. The bus driver, who has been on light duty since Feb. 12 and works out of the East Liberty garage, self-reported the test result, according to the authority. The employee is at home after last working...
1 dead from covid-19 at Concordia’s Butler senior community; 2 employees infected in Monroeville, Baden
Concordia Lutheran Ministries confirmed Friday that a Butler assisted living community resident has died of covid-19, marking the first death linked to the coronavirus outbreak at the network’s senior care facilities in Western Pennsylvania, Ohio and Florida. The person who died Thursday night at Concordia at the Orchard in Butler...
Police: 15-year-old in stolen car crashes during chase, 2 injured
Police say a 15-year-old boy driving a stolen car led police on a chase Friday morning that ended when he crashed into an SUV in Richland Township, injuring its elderly driver. The boy and a 64-year-old woman, who was one of two occupants in the SUV, were both listed in...
Mental health experts, sports figures ‘Team-Up to Cope with Covid’
Social distancing, self-isolation, working from home — or no work at all — have added to the mental health challenges people face during the covid-19 crisis. And the postponement of public events and sports seasons has taken away what would certainly be welcome distractions. With these elements in mind, Embrace...
Jumonville’s towering cross a ‘beacon of hope’ for 7 decades atop Fayette ridgeVideo
Heather Withrow was drawn to the Cross of Christ in the 1990s. Towering 60 feet atop Dunbar’s Knob, at the highest point above the affiliated Jumonville Camp and Conference Center, the shining white cross can be seen from miles away, including from Route 40. Withrow discovered her favorite view of...
Fearing hospital bankruptcy, Gov. Wolf offers $450M in loans to financially strapped providers
Gov. Tom Wolf on Friday announced more than $450 million in low-interest loans meant to keep hospitals afloat as they continue to lose revenue amid the coronavirus pandemic. Hospitals statewide have canceled elective surgeries and nonurgent procedures to free up bed space and limit the spread of covid-19. At the...
3 coronavirus deaths now reported at Kane Community Living in Glen Hazel
Three Kane Community Living residents have now died from coronavirus-related complications, according to data from Allegheny County. That’s up from two deaths that were reported Friday. The deaths occurred in Kane’s Glen Hazel location, where at least 25 residents have tested positive for covid-19. Eight tests among residents still are...
How Western Pa. religious leaders are altering Easter sermons during coronavirus pandemic
Father Tom Gramc used to spend entire days surrounded by people and parishioners. He went from preaching morning Mass to hearing afternoon confessions to visiting grade schools in the Diocese of Pittsburgh. Yet as Easter approaches, he spends his days in Zoom meetings or fielding calls and emails from parishioners,...
Outside PPG Paints Arena and Rivers Casino, groups rally to feed the hungryVideo
Hundreds of people waited in long lines Friday in Pittsburgh’s Uptown neighborhood as part of a food distribution event to address those in need during the coronavirus pandemic. Across town, outside Rivers Casino, members of the Iota Phi chapter of Omega Psi Phi fraternity collected food donated by the casino...
‘Drive-thru’ funeral visitation to be held in Scottdale for local pastor
Despite being stricken by cancer, the Rev. Kimberly M. King stood in the parking lot of Owensdale United Methodist Church last Sunday passing out palms to members of two congregations in Fayette and Westmoreland counties where she preached for more than a decade. “Kim felt so strong about the Christian...
Worldwide deaths from the coronavirus top 100,000
NEW YORK — The worldwide death toll from the coronavirus has hit 100,000, according to the running tally kept by Johns Hopkins University. The sad milestone comes as Christians around the globe mark a Good Friday unlike any other — in front of computer screens instead of in church pews....
Gov. Wolf approves release of up to 1,800 inmates amid coronavirus concerns
Up to 1,800 Pennsylvania prison inmates scheduled for release in the next year could be temporarily released as part of a plan to reduce the spread of coronavirus, Gov. Tom Wolf said Friday. Eligible inmates could start being released to home confinement or community facilities as early as Tuesday, according...
Analysis: Coronavirus shows benefit of learning from other nations
In 1910, when a contagious pneumonic plague was ravaging northeastern China, a physician there concluded that the disease traveled through the air. So he adapted something he had seen in England. He began instructing doctors, nurses, patients and members of the public to wear gauze masks. That pioneering of masks...
