Week in Review: New covid-19 mitigation orders, WPXI anchor announces retirement, pickle balloon pops

In an effort to curb the spread of covid-19, state officials this week issued a one-night ban on alcohol sales the day before Thanksgiving, one of the biggest drinking nights of the year.

New orders by Gov. Tom Wolf also scaled back the maximum capacity for indoor and outdoor gatherings. Wolf stopped short of issuing a statewide stay-at-home order, but issued a stay-at-home advisory, more a plea than a requirement.

Covid-19 cases have been spiking over the past month, leaving state officials concerned over the possibility of overloading the number of beds and ventilators at hospitals.

Alcohol sales were banned from 5 p.m. Wednesday to 8 a.m. Thursday.

Jeannette secretary dies from covid-19

Dana Hall, a secretary at Jeannette City School District, died last weekend due to covid-19 complications.

Hall was last at work a week and a half ago. The 55-year-old was later admitted to Forbes Hospital in Monroeville, where she was placed on a ventilator. She died Sunday afternoon.

Hall was a Jeannette graduate and was employed at the district for 17 years, working as a special education secretary and as the school secretary at McKee Elementary.

Peggy Finnegan announces retirement

After 30 years, veteran WPXI-TV news anchor Peggy Finnegan announced she will retire from the station next month.

Her last day on the air will be Dec. 18. News anchor Lisa Sylvester will take her place on the 5 p.m. newscast.

Finnegan, 60, joined Channel 11 in January 1990, covering community news while announcing the births of her four children and a battle with breast cancer. During her time with the station, she anchored with David Johnson. The duo became the current longest-running pair of local news anchors in Pittsburgh.

School districts to sign off on safety measures

School districts in Westmoreland, Armstrong Allegheny counties have until 5 p.m. Nov. 30 to go fully remote or affirm they are complying with the state’s covid-19 safety measures.

The directive is in effect for all public schools in counties that have experienced a “substantial” level of transmission of covid-19 for at least two consecutive weeks.

Gov. Tom Wolf and Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine said chief administrators and the president or chairperson of the governing body of each affected district must sign a form saying they have either transitioned to full remote learning or are complying with state health orders.

Districts that don’t sign the form must suspend all extracurricular activities while their county remains at the substantial level.

Pittsburgh forms covid-19 task force

A task force was formed by Pittsburgh Public Safety to enforce new covid-19 restrictions.

The task force was formed at the request of Mayor Bill Peduto to help enforce Wolf’s new mitigation efforts including stopping alcohol sales the day before Thanksgiving and scaling back the maximum capacity for indoor and outdoor gatherings.

Pickle balloon pops

A 35-foot vinyl pickle that was supposed to be displayed in Downtown Pittsburgh suffered a large tear as crews were getting ready to display it.

The ornament, a custom-made Heinz pickle balloon, was being tested for a final time when installers hear a loud pop.

The pickle was designed to be suspended 50 feet in the air, and was a new feature this holiday season. It reflects a German-American holiday tradition of hiding an ornamental pickle on the Christmas tree. The first person to find it would receive an extra gift or a year of good luck.

More staffers test positive for covid-19 at Westmoreland Manor

Twelve staffers at Westmoreland Manor, the county-owned nursing home in Hempfield, tested positive for covid-19, facility officials said.

Since Sept. 19, 152 residents have tested positive for the virus, along with 60 staff members. Six residents died of covid-19 since the onset of the pandemic.

Officials at the facility said strict infection control practices are being maintained, with all residents and staff being monitored and screened daily.