Top Local and National News Stories category, Page 549
Trump’s decades of testimony provide some clues about how he’ll fight for his real estate empire
NEW YORK — Donald Trump has testified in court as a football owner, casino builder and airline buyer. He bragged in a deposition that he saved “millions of lives” by deterring nuclear war as president. Another time, he fretted about the dangers of flung fruit. Conditioned by decades of trials...
Building the Valley: Upper Burrell’s Union Barn event venue brings people together
As a former police officer, Mike Seefeld often saw people at their worst. Now, he’s seeing them at their best at his family’s new business, the Union Barn in Upper Burrell. “I wanted to do something totally different from what I’ve been doing,” he said. Seefield and his wife, Susie,...
Gaza has lost telecom contact again, while Israel’s military announces it has surrounded Gaza City
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — Gaza came under the third total communications outage since the start of the war, while Israel’s military announced late Sunday that it had encircled Gaza City and divided the besieged coastal strip into two. “Today there is north Gaza and south Gaza,” Rear Adm. Daniel...
Drop in Jeannette’s Democratic voters reflected in city council shift
In the past 20 years, the number of Democrats registered to vote in Jeannette has decreased by about 2,000 while the number of Republican voters has risen by 400, according to West moreland County statistics. Now, that shift will be reflected in city council. After Tuesday’s election and once a new...
Spending of covid relief to be focus of new commissioners’ board
Westmoreland commissioners voted last week to allocate $270,000 from the county’s pool of American Rescue Plan funds, and, as a result, about half of the $105 million pool of covid-relief cash received from the federal government in 2021 has been spent. Commissioners will have nearly $53 million to allocate by...
School board meetings attract crowds as races become next political frontier
From book bans to gender-neutral bathrooms, culture wars have found a battlefield in Western Pennsylvania schools. National politics increasingly are influencing school boards, as party lines are splitting members over hot button issues such as sex education, trans rights and the appropriateness of classroom materials. School boards’ once-marginally attended monthly...
Protest marches from U.S. to Berlin call for halt to Israeli bombing of Gaza
WASHINGTON — From Washington to Milan to Paris, tens of thousands of pro-Palestinian demonstrators marched Saturday, calling for a halt to Israel’s bombardment of Gaza. The marches reflected growing disquiet about the mounting civilian casualty toll and suffering from the Israel-Hamas war. Protesters, particularly in countries with large Muslim populations,...
U.S. Rep. Summer Lee among Democrats who could face challenges over stance on Israel
ST. LOUIS — Most members of Congress have stood firmly behind Israel since the Hamas attack last month, but not Cori Bush. The Missouri Democrat called Israel’s response a “war crime” and an “ethnic cleansing campaign” and was among the few House members who opposed a resolution supporting Israel. Her...
Trump calls DeSantis ‘wounded, falling baby bird’ at Florida GOP summit
KISSIMMEE, Fla. — Gov. Ron DeSantis made his case for the presidential nomination at the Florida Republican Party’s annual summit Saturday, only for Donald Trump to compare him to a “wounded, falling baby bird” in casually dismissing the governor’s chances. “He asked me for the endorsement,” Trump said of DeSantis...
WPIAL announces sites, times for Friday’s football playoff games
WPIAL football playoffs All games at 7 p.m. Friday Class 6A Semifinals No. 4 Mt. Lebanon (5-5) vs. No. 1 Central Catholic (9-1) at Fox Chapel No. 3 Canon-McMillan (6-4) at No. 2 North Allegheny (9-1) Class 5A Semifinals No. 1 Peters Township (11-0) vs. No. 5 Moon (6-5) at...
Loyalhanna convenience store sustains damage in fire
A convenience store in Loyalhanna Township sustained significant damage in a fire Friday night. Saltsburg, Bell Township and New Alexandria volunteer fire departments responded to a fire at Marshall’s Market, located along Route 981, around 10:15 p.m. Friday, according to a Westmoreland County 911 dispatcher. None of the fire departments...
Arab envoys reject Blinken’s call for limited war pause in Gaza
Secretary of State Antony Blinken took U.S. calls for “humanitarian pauses” in the Israel-Hamas war to key Arab allies, who publicly insisted on an immediate cease-fire instead. The rift played out on Blinken’s tour of the Middle East against the backdrop of a growing backlash against the death toll in...
Man fatally shot after domestic dispute in Pittsburgh
A man died Saturday morning after being shot by a woman in what Pittsburgh police say started as a domestic dispute. Officers were dispatched to the Maple Ridge Apartment complex on the 2100 block of Park Hill Drive in East Hills around 11:30 a.m. Saturday to investigate reports of a...
Right turn on red? With pedestrian deaths rising, U.S. cities are considering bans
CHICAGO — Sophee Langerman was on her way to a bicycle safety rally in Chicago’s Lakeview neighborhood in June when a car turning right rolled through a red light and slammed into her bike, which she was walking off the curb and into the crosswalk. The car was moving slowly...
Manor church’s free clothing store expands hours, options to meet community need
Grandparents trying to clothe their grandchildren. A woman looking for clothes to bring with her to rehab. A nursing student in search of affordable scrubs for school. Refuge Boutique, a free clothing store run by Refuge Church in Manor, has helped people in each of these scenarios. In the spring,...
Homicide accusations against nurse Heather Pressdee raise scrutiny of state, nursing home vetting processes
Administrators and staff at five nursing homes where Harrison nurse Heather Pressdee worked either were suspicious or knew outright that she was harming patients, according to charges filed Thursday by the state Attorney General’s Office. Pressdee, 41, was charged in connection with 17 total deaths at five nursing homes in...
Missing Ford City teen found unharmed
A Ford City girl who went missing Friday night was found and returned to her parents by Southern Armstrong Police. Gabriella Dunmore, 14, went missing sometime after 5:15 p.m. Friday, possibly heading to Pittsburgh, police Chief Chris Fabec said. The police department sent an update on the case via Facebook...
Volunteer search party being formed Sunday to find missing Springdale man
A search party is being formed to help locate a Springdale man who has been missing since Monday. Volunteers are wanted at 10 a.m. Sunday at Pittsburgh Syria Shrine Center at 1877 Shriners Way in Harmar. The goal is to locate Sean Dugan, who was reported missing by Springdale police...
Milk carton shortage could hit school lunchrooms in Pa., other states
The tiny, half-pint cartons of milk served with millions of school lunches nationwide might soon be scarce in some cafeterias, with districts across the country scrambling to find alternatives. The problem is not a shortage of milk but the cardboard cartons used to package and serve it, according to dairy...
Youngwood man charged with multiple counts of child rape, sexual assault
An arrest warrant has been issued for a Youngwood man accused of multiple counts of child rape, according to state police. Nathan A. Fitzpatrick, 21, of Youngwood faces charges of child rape, sexual assault, indecent assault and rape by forcible compulsion filed Friday by state police out of Greensburg. The...
Absorber tank pulled down at former Springdale power plant; injunction case to resume
An absorber tank at the former power plant in Springdale was knocked down Thursday afternoon. The action at the plant, formally called the Cheswick Generating Station, is part of the remediation efforts at the site, said Scott Reschly, vice president of Charah Solutions. Cheswick Plant Environmental Redevelopment Group, a subsidiary...
Killer on the loose: Maine mass shooter was alive for most of massive search, autopsy suggests
PORTLAND, Maine — The Army reservist who fatally shot 18 people at two locations in Lewiston before disappearing into the night was alive and possibly on the run during a good portion of the huge search that led to community-wide shelter-in-place orders, according to the Maine medical examiner’s office. Robert...
Allegheny County, statewide races spending millions this year as election nears
As the final weekend before Tuesday’s general election approaches, an even greater influx of political ads are expected for candidates to make their final push. Already, this year’s Allegheny County races have raised extremely large amounts of money, said Samuel Chen, an Allentown-based political strategist who works on local and...
Pa. court filing fee discount ends
Discounted court filing fees that originated during the summer’s budget stalemate in Harrisburg have ended. State lawmakers this week reauthorized a $40.25 surcharge assessed on most court-related documents filed in courthouses throughout Pennsylvania. Since Aug. 1, the cost to file documents such as divorces, deeds and mortgages were discounted by...
AGH, nurses strike deal on 3-year contract
After a final 26-hour negotiation meeting, unionized nurses at Allegheny General Hospital struck a deal with hospital management on a new contract. The three-year agreement between the 1,200 nurses and nurse practitioners represented by SEIU Healthcare Pennsylvania and AGH’s parent company, Allegheny Health Network, will make significant investments in wages...
