Top Local and National News Stories category, Page 853
Gas price decline streak hits 40 days; Pittsburgh-area prices among highest in state
Gas prices have been coming down across the country for 40 days in a row, but average prices in Southwestern Pennsylvania remain above the national and state averages and among the highest in the state. According to AAA, the national average on Monday was about $4.36. That’s about 17 cents...
Is $810 million worth a $2 Mega Millions ticket? It depends
DES MOINES, Iowa — Is $810 million worth $2? That’s a good question, given it costs $2 to buy a Mega Millions lottery ticket that could pay off with an estimated $810 million prize, the nation’s fourth-largest jackpot, after the game’s next drawing Tuesday night. Isn’t it an obvious question?...
Mine safety emerged as top priority after Quecreek accident
Two decades after the last Quecreek miner was pulled to safety, four men with deep roots in Pennsylvania coal country have carried forward the lessons learned during those anguish-filled days in July 2002 when the eyes of the world were on Somerset County. For those men — John Urosek, 65,...
Early-morning storms give way to rising temperatures
Storms rolled through Southwestern Pennsylvania early Monday morning, bringing with them spurts of heavy rainfall but since clearing the region. The National Weather Service issued a flash flood warning for Allegheny County and parts of Beaver County as thunderstorms producing heavy rain swept across the region, bringing 1 to 3...
Man dead after police-involved shooting in Washington County
Pennsylvania State Police are investigating after a man was shot and killed by police in Washington County. According to a state police report, officers with the Monongahela City Police Department responded to 1029 Lincoln St. in Monongahela around 9:20 p.m. Sunday for reports of shots fired and an attempted homicide....
Western Pa. food banks squeezed by increased costs, demand for assistance
Rising food costs are driving a renewed demand at food banks in the region that already were serving more people because of the covid pandemic. “The cost of getting a gallon of milk is sometimes a hardship,” Westmoreland Food Bank CEO Jennifer Miller said. After the pandemic hit, the Westmoreland...
Wolf quietly steers $40M to Pitt, Pa.’s other state-related universities
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan newsroom powered by The Philadelphia Inquirer in partnership with PennLive/The Patriot-News, TribLIVE/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, and WITF Public Media. Sign up for our free newsletters. HARRISBURG — Gov. Tom Wolf plans to quietly give Pennsylvania’s four state-related universities including Penn State and Pitt a one-time $40...
Butler-Freeport Community Trail celebrates 30 years of recreation alongside Buffalo Creek
The Butler-Freeport Community Trail, one of the first major “Rails to Trails” initiatives in Southwestern Pennsylvania, is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year. Maintained by the Butler-Freeport Community Trail Council, an all-volunteer group, the 21-mile trail was one of the first 400 rail trails built in America. Chris Ziegler, president...
With temperature records poised to fall, city residents flee heat if they canVideo
PROMISED LAND, Pa. — It’s not exactly flowing with milk and honey — just ask the area’s struggling black bears — but Promised Land offered respite Sunday for city folks in the Northeast trying to escape a nearly weeklong hot spell that only threatened to intensify. Those with the resources...
Jan. 6 panel deepens probe to Trump Cabinet, awaits Ginni ThomasVideo
WASHINGTON — The House Jan. 6 committee said Sunday it will interview more former Cabinet secretaries and is prepared to subpoena conservative activist Virginia “Ginni” Thomas, who’s married to Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, as part of its investigation of the Capitol riot and Donald Trump’s role. Lawmakers said they...
Homewood shooting leaves 1 person dead
Pittsburgh police are investigating a fatal shooting that took place early Sunday morning in Pittsburgh’s Homewood neighborhood. Police were called to the 7000 block of Kelly Street in Homewood around 3:20 a.m. As they were investigating evidence that a shooting had occurred, Wilkinsburg police reported that they’d located a vehicle...
One thing voters agree on: Fresh voices needed in politics
NEW YORK — As he campaigns for a Manhattan congressional seat against fellow Democrats twice his age, 38-year-old Suraj Patel harnesses the frustration of his generation toward those who have held office for decades. In his telling, Reps. Jerry Nadler, 75, and Carolyn Maloney, 76, are part of a crop...
1 dead following Braddock shooting
Allegheny County Police detectives are investigating the shooting death of a man early Sunday morning in Braddock. Emergency crews were called to the 800 block of Braddock Avenue just before 1:50 a.m. for a report of a shooting. They arrived to find 38-year-old Alon Carrington of Braddock, who’d been shot....
‘Burst of joy’ reverberates 20 years after first word Quecreek miners were still alive
Four agonizing nights after the Quecreek miners were trapped underground, their families sought solace around a campfire outside the Sipesville Fire Hall. They gazed at the stars and prayed for a miracle. Clinging to each other and their hopes for a good outcome, the families maintained a round-the-clock vigil, vowing...
Ex-Gov. Mark Schweiker says Quecreek rescue proof miracles do happen
Twenty years ago this week, Gov. Mark Schweiker stepped to a podium in an abandoned Somerset County grocery store converted to a makeshift media center, pumped both fists in the air and proclaimed that, against all odds, nine men trapped 240 feet underground for 77 hours had been rescued from...
Officer Brian Shaw Foundation concert: Where brotherhood and gift baskets meet
A restaurant and bar in Lower Burrell has become the hub for planning and raising tens of thousands of dollars in honor of Officer Brian Shaw to help police, high school students and communities. Shaw, of Lower Burrell, was a New Kensington police officer who was shot and killed after...
Pro wrestling on display in New Kensington, just ahead of a wrestling school’s opening
Pro wrestling came to the heart of New Kensington on Saturday evening at the Voodoo Brewery along Fifth Avenue. Seven matches were scheduled in an event dubbed MV Young’s Backyard BBQ. Michael Young, 27, a Lower Burrell native, was the main attraction. He’s the organizer and current singles champion for...
Power companies rush to restore electricity after Saturday’s storms in Southwest Pennsylvania
The storm that blew through the region Saturday afternoon left tens of thousands of households without power, as one of the region’s two major power companies reported significant progress while the other reported more customers were affected. Trees and power lines were down all across the region after high winds...
Recent UFO reports spur excitement at annual Kecksburg UFO Festival
The Kecksburg UFO Festival hasn’t taken place in the years since the covid-19 pandemic began. During that same time, U.S. military officials declassified information that includes hundreds of reports of unidentified flying objects. And while nothing at the festival focused on that specifically, it wasn’t far from the minds of...
10 things we learned from Jan. 6 committee hearings on the Capitol attack
The events leading up to Jan. 6, 2021, represent more than just the day when Trump loyalists stormed the U.S. Capitol. In a series of public hearings, the House committee investigating the deadly Capitol attack has laid out the “arc of carnage” that was sparked months earlier on Election Night...
In Uvalde, closeness complicates accountability for shooting
UVALDE, Texas — After the massacre at Uvalde’s Robb Elementary School in May, Jesse Rizo was worried about his old friend, police chief Pete Arredondo. Blame for the botched police response was being directed heavily at Arredondo when Rizo texted him just days after the shooting: “Been thinking of and...
UN health agency chief declares monkeypox a global emergency
LONDON — The chief of the World Health Organization said the expanding monkeypox outbreak in more than 70 countries is an “extraordinary” situation that now qualifies as a global emergency, a declaration Saturday that could spur further investment in treating the once-rare disease and worsen the scramble for scarce vaccines....
Mega Millions jackpot swells to $790M, nation’s 4th largest prize
DES MOINES, Iowa — Lottery officials on Friday raised the Mega Millions grand prize to $790 million, giving players a shot at what would be the nation’s fourth largest jackpot. The next drawing is on Tuesday. The jackpot has grown so large because there hasn’t been a winner in three...
1 dead after police pursuit, rollover crash at Allegheny County Airport
Allegheny County Police are investigating a pursuit that ended in a fatal crash early Saturday morning at the Allegheny County Airport. At about 3:20 a.m. Saturday, county police said the driver of a black Cadillac Escalade nearly struck a Duquesne Police Department vehicle on Route 837 near Center Street and...
State AG accuses used car dealer of selling unsafe cars with useless warranties; owner denies wrongdoing
The state Attorney General’s Office has taken legal action against a Sharpsburg used car dealership accused of knowingly selling numerous vehicles that weren’t roadworthy and came with worthless warranties. Attorney General Josh Shapiro on Friday announced his office has filed a lawsuit against JK Motor Cars at 1214 Main St....
