Brian C. Rittmeyer stories, Page 120
Pennsylvania flu deaths increase by 7, cases up 24%
Pennsylvania recorded another increase in flu-associated deaths in a season that has hit Southwestern Pennsylvania particularly hard. As of the week ending Feb. 1, flu-associated deaths increased by seven for a total of 40 this flu season, according to data released Tuesday by the state Department of Health. Most of...
New Kensington approves leasing 2 new police SUVs
The New Kensington Police Department will soon have two new vehicles on the road. City Council on Monday approved leasing two vehicles for four years for about $67,500. The city received a $50,000 state grant to help cover the cost. The vehicles will be 2020 Ford Explorer SUVs, police Chief...
Gasoline prices dip below $2 per gallon in spots as oil prices continue to sag
While not the case in the Pittsburgh area, nearly 5,000 stations across the United States are selling gasoline for less than $2 per gallon, according to price tracking service GasBuddy. “Oil prices continue to sag on worries over the spread of the coronavirus, blowing the door wide open for a...
Allegheny Valley Hospital president unveils plans for new yearVideo
Coming to Allegheny Valley Hospital as its new president was something of a homecoming for Dr. Vicenta Gaspar-Yoo. “Coming here was almost seamless,” she said Friday from her office at the Harrison hospital, part of Allegheny Health Network. “I trained in Pittsburgh. Everybody knew I was a product of Pittsburgh....
Veterans banners being sold to support restoration of Harrison memorial
Banners honoring Harrison’s military veterans are being sold to raise money for the restoration of the township’s World War II Honor Roll memorial. The 75-year-old sandstone memorial at Freeport and Springhill roads was partially restored last year. That work — which included stone repointing and repair, pressure washing, and patching...
Winning Cash 5 tickets sold in New Ken, Pittsburgh; $400K jackpot will be split
There’s another lucky Pennsylvania Lottery winner in the Alle-Kiski Valley. One of two jackpot-winning Cash 5 tickets was sold at the Golden Dawn supermarket on Freeport Road in New Kensington, the Pennsylvania Lottery announced Thursday. The other ticket was sold at UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital in Pittsburgh’s Oakland neighborhood. The ticket...
Harrison man’s question sparks discussion on bettering communities
A Harrison man who started an online effort to improve his community is taking it into the real world. Dylan Seelnacht, who grew up in Brackenridge and now lives in Harrison, asked on Facebook what people in those towns and Tarentum would like to see happen to make them better...
State awards Arnold $1.8M loan for sewer reconstruction
Arnold is getting a state loan of about $1.8 million to make improvements to its sewer system, Gov. Tom Wolf’s office announced Wednesday. The 20-year loan has a 1% interest rate for the first five years that rises to 1.743% for the remaining 15 years. The combined sewer system in...
Allegheny County flu death toll reaches 5, Health Department confirms
Two more Allegheny County residents have died from flu complications, bringing this flu season’s county death toll to five, according to the county’s Health Department. The latest deaths were people in their 30s who had underlying medical conditions, according to the Allegheny County Health Department. All of those who have...
$1M instant lottery ticket sold at Harrison supermarket
A regular customer of Community Supermarket in Harrison won $1 million on a $20 scratch-off lottery ticket. “I was thinking, ‘Please don’t cry because I’m going to cry with you,’ ” said office clerk Niki Dickey, who talked with the woman when she brought her winning ticket back to the...
New Kensington-Arnold School Board approves preliminary budget with 8% tax hike
The new president of the New Kensington-Arnold School Board says they have no choice but to raise property taxes, but the board’s past president says it should consider cutting staff instead. “Education will not be sacrificed,” said board President John Cope, who was elected in November. “Isn’t that why the...
Pennsylvania reports 9 new flu-related deaths
After a two-week respite, Pennsylvania reported an increase in flu-related deaths in the past week, according to the state Department of Health. As of the week ending Jan. 25, a total of 33 flu-related deaths have been reported this flu season, which started Sept. 29. That’s up by nine from...
Drivers urged to wait to fill up as gasoline prices continue to tumble
Gasoline prices in the Pittsburgh area and nationwide continue to fall on oil prices that are nearing their lowest level since October, an industry analyst said. “While the national average could fall into the $2.30s before all is said and done, the downward move likely won’t last much more than...
Brackenridge, Harrison and Tarentum continue joint planning effort
An effort to develop a joint comprehensive plan for Brackenridge, Harrison and Tarentum is scheduled to take another step forward with a public meeting next month. “We want everybody to come,” said Elaine Kramer, a designer and planner with the Pittsburgh-based consulting firm Pashek+MTR, which has been working with a...
Fire heavily damages house under construction on Bagdad Road, Allegheny Township
Fire caused extensive damage to a house under construction in Allegheny Township on Sunday afternoon. The fire at 1241 Bagdad Road was reported shortly after 1 p.m., a Westmoreland County emergency dispatcher said. Volunteer firefighters from seven or eight departments from the Alle-Kiski Valley responded. No one was in the...
Week in review: Pitt mourns student’s death; Antonio Brown jailedVideo
It was a week of mourning and concern across the Pittsburgh area. The news included the tragic death of a promising University of Pittsburgh student, and several Mt. Pleasant students being hurt in a car crash. Crime news included Ex-Steeler Antonio Brown making headlines again, and a Latrobe man being...
Mediation fails to resolve former Highlands teacher’s federal lawsuit against district
Mediation has so far failed to resolve one former Highlands School District employee’s federal lawsuit against the district, while a related case is set to head into its mediation. A mediation session for teacher Jason Smith’s case was held Thursday, according to court records. Smith, formerly a fourth-grade teacher at...
Police investigate exchange of gunfire in Chalfant
Allegheny County Police are investigating after gunfire was exchanged in Chalfant Wednesday night. According to county police, officers from neighboring Forest Hills and Wilkins Township responded to a call of shots fired in the 700 block of Greensburg Pike around 10 p.m. Wednesday. Officers found damage to the front of...
Fire marshal to investigate cause of East Deer house fire
An East Deer man said he was trying to thaw frozen water pipes when his home caught fire Thursday morning. The fire at 931 Bellview St. was reported around 5:45 a.m., according to Allegheny County 911. No injuries were reported. Zachary Shutak, 24, said he was using a heat gun...
Air pollution warning in effect for Clairton, Liberty areas of Allegheny County
An air pollution warning is in effect Thursday for the Clairton and Liberty areas of Allegheny County. The National Weather Service had said the “code orange” alert applied to five counties in Southwestern Pennsylvania and parts of two other counties, but corrected its alert around midday Thursday to apply to...
Police: Carrick convenience store damaged in hit-and-run targeted by thief
Pittsburgh police are investigating a theft from a Carrick convenience store that was damaged in a hit-and-run earlier this week, according to Pittsburgh police. Officers went to the Uni-Mart in the 1900 block of Brownsville Road just before 12:30 a.m. Thursday in response to a reported theft. Police said a...
Former Highlands principal’s federal lawsuit going to mediation
A former Highlands School District principal’s federal lawsuit against the district is going into mediation, according to court records. Attorneys for the school district and Heather Bigney have agreed to evenly share the costs of mediation. Bigney resigned as principal of Highlands Early Childhood Center in October 2019 . She...
Rate of new flu cases slows in Western Pennsylvania
Confirmed cases of the flu in Western Pennsylvania increased at a slower rate last week than in either of the previous two weeks, according to state Department of Health data. “While it is far too early to say that flu season has peaked, we have seen fewer cases over the...
Highlands hires new principal for elementary school
Highlands Elementary School has a new principal. Stan Whiteman was hired at an annual salary of $108,000. His start date is not yet known, school board President Misty Chybrzynski said. Whiteman is coming to Highlands from the Duquesne City School District, where he was director of curriculum, instruction, assessment and...
Outbound Parkway West reopens after crash
The outbound Parkway West has reopened after a crash caused it to be closed Tuesday morning, according to PennDOT. Westbound I-376 was closed between the Banksville Road on-ramp and the Parkway Center exit, Exit 68. It caused traffic to back up through the Fort Pitt tunnel....
