Top Local and National News Stories category, Page 1499
Parkway West westbound lanes reopen after Findlay crash involving wrong-way driver
Parkway West westbound lanes reopened to traffic after 11:30 p.m. Friday, following a wreck between the Moon Business Loop and the McClaren Road interchanges, according to PennDOT. Findlay Township Police confirmed that two vehicles were involved in a wrong-way crash. Westbound traffic was temporarily detoured via the Moon Business Loop...
Teen hospitalized after shooting in Penn Hills
A teenage boy who was walking from Pittsburgh was taken to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries after being shot Friday in Penn Hills, police said. The boy was shot once in the buttocks with a small-caliber weapon at about 5:30 p.m. while he was walking in the 200 block...
Ross Twp. nurse, a Hempfield native, heading to New York City to help in covid-19 fight
A Ross Township nurse who grew up in Hempfield is collecting health care supplies and non-perishable food for nurses in New York City, where he expects to be working the next eight weeks on the front lines of the coronavirus battlefront. Chad Taylor, 35, who is a staff nurse for...
Woman killed by train in Tarentum identified
A woman struck and killed by a train Friday night in Tarentum has been identified. Beth Graff, 39, of Tarentum was pronounced dead at the scene along the railroad tracks adjacent to Fifth Avenue, Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office reported Saturday afternoon. An investigation by Allegheny County police found that...
Face coverings recommended, but Trump says he won’t wear one
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump announced new federal guidelines Friday recommending that Americans wear face coverings when in public to help fight the spread of the new coronavirus. The president immediately said he had no intention of following the advice himself, saying, “I’m choosing not to do it.” The new...
McKees Rocks man accused of nearly beating 3-week-old daughter to death
A McKees Rocks man already awaiting trial for allegedly burning his infant son now is accused of beating his 3-week-old daughter nearly to death. Robert Andrews, 33, faces two counts of aggravated assault and one count of child endangerment in connection with a March 12 incident that left the infant...
Officials release image of suspect in Grove City bank robbery
Investigators are asking for the public’s help in identifying a man who robbed the Citizens Bank in Grove City. The FBI’s Pittsburgh Division and Grove City police have released a surveillance image of the suspect — a white man weighing about 180 pounds and standing between 5 feet 8 inches...
Pittsburgh food bank president worries about supply running out
Lisa Scales has worked in food banks for nearly 25 years. She was involved in food distribution efforts in response to Hurricane Katrina in Louisiana and to the 9/11 attacks in New York. She has never experienced anything like the need associated with the coronavirus pandemic. “I have never seen...
Grocery shoppers keep their distance as stores adopt new coronavirus measuresVideo
Caution tape blocking entrances, shoppers wearing masks and stickers placed on floors — all signs of grocery shopping’s new normal as stores adapt to the spread of coronavirus. “We’re slowly starting to see people adapt their own behaviors and really realize the gravity of the situation,” said Jannah Jablonowski, spokeswoman...
How to make facemasks from household itemsVideo
Pennsylvania Secretary of Health Rachel Levine on Friday asked all Pennsylvania residents — even those who are healthy or not showing symptoms of the coronavirus — to wear some type of face covering when in public. This could include a bandanna, T-shirt or other masks that are not medical grade....
Editorial: A glimpse of hope in Pitt’s covid-19 vaccine trial
Good news came out of Pittsburgh on Thursday. It came in the form of a fingertip-sized innovation with miniature needles made of sugar and virus proteins. It might be the vaccine that protects millions from the novel coronavirus pandemic. And it has been developed at the University of Pittsburgh School...
Pittsburgh’s Original Oyster House marking 150 years in age of coronavirus
Pittsburgh’s Original Oyster House has operated through two world wars, floods, the Spanish flu pandemic, the Great Depression and the collapse of the steel industry. Owner Jen Grippo is confident it can get through the coronavirus pandemic. “If we can survive all that, I would hope that we can survive...
Pennsylvania officials ask all residents to wear masks if they go out
Pennsylvania officials have asked all residents to wear a mask if they must leave the house — though they asked that people fashion their own and not seek the medical-grade mask that medical professionals need. It’s a change in course by Gov. Tom Wolf and Secretary of Health Rachel Levine....
Irwin restaurant owner donates lunch to police, EMS serviceVideo
Restaurants across the state may be limited to takeout and delivery services only, but that isn’t stopping Sam Murray, an Irwin restaurant owner, from donating to first responders. On Friday, Murray prepared fish tacos for North Huntingdon police officers as a way to give back to those working on the...
Video chats keeping seniors in Pennsylvania nursing facilities connected with families
Terry Dobradenka never video-chatted before the coronavirus pandemic. Now, platforms such as FaceTime and Zoom are keeping the 90-year-old retired nurse connected with family members who know her as Gigi. They can’t visit her at Lower Burrell’s Bayberry Place personal care home because of restrictions aimed at preventing the spread...
Closed businesses take slice out of Pennsylvania Lottery sales
The nonessential business closures ordered by Gov. Tom Wolf last month are cutting into Pennsylvania Lottery sales, which could mean less money for programs that benefit older residents. According to lottery officials, preliminary indications are sales for traditional scratch-off and draw games have dropped off by about 25% since many...
26 new coronavirus cases reported in Westmoreland Co. as total jumps to 110
Westmoreland County saw its biggest single-day increase in coronavirus cases since the pandemic hit the county in mid-March. Twenty-six new cases were reported in the state health department’s update Friday, bringing Westmoreland’s total to 110, a 31% increase from the previous day. The health department reported 12 more deaths statewide...
Pennsylvania coronavirus deaths top 100 as state reports 1,404 new cases
Twelve more people died of coronavirus complications in Pennsylvania, bringing the state’s total to 102, and the state reported 1,404 new cases Friday, health officials said. The number of total cases in Pennsylvania now stands at 8,420. The 1,404 new cases mark the largest single-day increase since the state reported...
Commercial flights at Arnold Palmer airport to cease next week
Commercial flights at Arnold Palmer Regional Airport will stop starting Wednesday and, as a result, about a third of its 90 workers will be furloughed, officials said. Spirit Airlines, the lone commercial carrier at the Unity airport, will continue to operate its daily schedules through Tuesday but then will halt...
Pennsylvania halting pay for 9,000 state workers
Pennsylvania will stop paying about 9,000 state workers whose offices have been closed as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, officials said Friday. Paid leave for state employees whose work locations are closed and who are unable to work remotely will end April 10, according to Gov. Tom Wolf’s Office...
Allegheny County coronavirus cases reach 476, triple over past week
The number of confirmed cases of the coronavirus in Allegheny County tripled during the past week as the countywide total climbed to 476 on Friday. County officials reported 57 new cases Friday, compared to 63 new cases reported Thursday. The recent jump in cases reflects a significant increase in testing,...
State police cite Pa. woman for ‘going for a drive’ amid stay-at-home order
A York County woman this week was the first person in Pennsylvania to be cited for violating Gov. Tom Wolf’s stay-at-home order, according to state police. The 19-year-old woman was given a nontraffic citation for allegedly “going for a drive,” according to the citation obtained by Pennlive. State police spokesman...
Answering the Call: How a UPMC cancer doctor deals with coronavirus stressVideo
Like many health care professionals in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, Dr. Jessica Berger is social distancing as much as she can. But for Berger, a gynecological oncologist at UPMC Hillman Cancer Center, there are still many patients she has to see in person. A married mother of two...
Pittsburgh closes playgrounds, could close parks if social distancing wanesVideo
Pittsburgh officials have not ruled out closing city parks if residents fail to heed social distancing guidelines as they did last weekend. The city has already closed all playgrounds effective Friday, and basketball courts and the Mt. Washington overlooks have been closed since early this week. Public Safety Director Wendell...
Pittsburgh professors see flaws in coronavirus modeling, predict more grim outlook
Two Pittsburgh academics argue that much of the modeling regarding the trajectory of the covid-19 pandemic has been fundamentally flawed — and the real outlook for the disease is much more dismal. Wesley Pegden and Maria Chikina have joined an international conversation about projections of how dire the covid-19 pandemic...
