Patrick Varine stories, Page 75
Delmont seeks additional land for recreation to offset industrial use at Shield’s Farm
When an underground gas storage facility was installed on a small section of the Shield’s Farm property in the early 1990s, Delmont officials approved it without realizing they were potentially violating the terms under which the farmland was purchased. “Shield’s Farm was acquired many years ago with Project 70 funding...
‘The real McCoy’: Greensburg native appointed acting Pa. attorney general
More than three decades ago, Michelle Henry was walking the halls of Greensburg Salem High School with her classmates. This week, the 53-year-old Greensburg native was named acting Pennsylvania attorney general. After graduating from high school and Allegheny College, Henry headed east to attend the Widener University School of Law,...
Clairton man suspected in deadly Pitcairn shooting arrested
A Clairton man was arrested Wednesday in connection with a fatal shooting Jan. 2 in Pitcairn. Daniel Kelly, 21, of Clairton, faces a homicide charge and weapons violations, the sheriff’s office said. The victim, Nekye Smith, had been shot in the head around 4 p.m. in the 400 block of...
Pa. Resource Council asks amateur photographers to turn their ‘Lens On Litter’
Pennsylvania was home to a half-billion pieces of litter in 2020, and that was just along the roads, according to a survey commissioned by the state’s Department of Environmental Protection and PennDOT. That’s disheartening news to Pennsylvania Resource Council Executive Director Darren Spielman, especially since the council’s annual Gene Capaldi...
Time to change antiquated Pa. tax system, municipal league says
In 1965, Lyndon Johnson was president of the United States, the country was involved in a war in Vietnam, and the Fab Four — The Beatles — held what many consider to be the first stadium rock concert in New York City. Without as much fanfare, Pennsylvania leaders that same...
Sociologist sees ‘haunting’ similarities between 20th, 21st century pandemic responses in U.S.
The last time Tom Soltis spoke to the American Association of University Women’s Murrysville chapter, it was during the emergence of the omicron variant of the covid-19 virus. Soltis recently retired after a career teaching sociology and anthropology at Westmoreland County Community College. He also is the author of “An...
Police say intoxicated woman hit garbage truck driver in Mt. Lebanon
A Waste Management driver was transported to Mercy Hospital on Wednesday after being struck by a car in Mt. Lebanon, according to Tribune-Review news partner WPXI. Police said a 34-year-old garbage man on his route was bringing a trash can to the truck when he was struck along Kenmont Avenue...
Route 380 crashes in Murrysville: ‘You can’t eliminate human error’
Eleven crashes, eight injuries and one death in four years. Those are the traffic statistics Murrysville police recorded going back to the start of 2019 for the section of Route 380 — barely a mile of roadway — between routes 286 and 366. A number of factors come together to...
1 arrested following SWAT standoff in Garfield
A man was taken into custody Thursday following a standoff with police in Pittsburgh’s Garfield neighborhood. Police said they were called to a home in the 5000 block of Columbo Street around 3 p.m. after receiving reports that a man had barricaded himself inside with a 4-year-old child. A woman...
1 person taken to hospital following Aliquippa shooting
Police are investigating a shooting that took place early Friday morning in Aliquippa. A Beaver County 911 supervisor said police were called to the 2300 block of Mill Street around 5:15 a.m. for a report of a shooting. One person was transported to a local hospital. Additional information was not...
UPMC East to add robotic surgical system in Monroeville
UPMC East will join more than 20 other hospitals throughout the health system in adding robotic-assisted surgery as an option for patients. The da Vinci Surgical System allows surgeons to make small incisions and perform surgery using tiny robotic surgical instruments and cameras. At UPMC East, a dual-console system will...
Murrysville area: Franklin Regional lecture series, East End Kids auditions, comedy benefit, more
Email news briefs and event information to pvarine@triblive.com. Franklin Regional to start parent, community lecture series Franklin Regional officials will host the first speaker in the Franklin Regional Parent & Community Lecture Series on Jan. 25 with a presentation by dietitian Ruth Harper. It will be at 6 p.m., Jan....
Pedestrian killed by vehicle on Birmingham Bridge, police say
Pittsburgh police said a man was killed Wednesday night after being struck by a vehicle on the Birmingham Bridge. Police and emergency responders went to the bridge just before 7:30 p.m. and found an injured man on the road. The vehicle’s driver remained at the scene. The victim was taken...
Sheraden standoff ends in arrest
Pittsburgh police SWAT officers arrested a man wanted on felony assault charges who had barricaded himself inside a house in Pittsburgh’s Sheraden neighborhood for several hours early Wednesday. Police responded to a home in the 2900 block of Sheraden Boulevard around 2 a.m. for a report of a domestic dispute....
1 flown from rollover crash in Washington Township
A woman was flown by medical helicopter following a crash early Wednesday morning in Washington Township, according to emergency officials. First responders were called to the intersection of Route 380 and Greensburg Road (Route 366) around 1 a.m. for a report of a car that had rolled over and struck...
Nonprofits host events for National Human Trafficking Awareness DayVideo
Awareness of human trafficking and its impact on communities can start with something as simple as red sand in the crack of a sidewalk. Staff and volunteers from Blackburn Center in Greensburg have been part of the Red Sand Project since 2017, bringing focus to the presence of human trafficking....
Pitt professor, DuoLingo co-founder will be inducted into National Inventors Hall of Fame
Two Pittsburgh residents will be inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame’s 2023 class, hall officials announced earlier this month. Rory Cooper, a University of Pittsburgh professor and founder of the Human Engineering Research Laboratories, and DuoLingo CEO Luis von Ahn are among 16 innovation pioneers whose inventions range...
Donegal mine worker airlifted after arm is caught in machinery
A worker at the Rustic Ridge mine in Donegal was injured late Monday when his arm became trapped in a mining machine, according to emergency officials. Emergency crews were called to the mine on County Line Road shortly after 9 p.m. for a report that a 22-year-old worker’s arm was...
New covid variant — dubbed ‘kraken’ — found in Western Pa.
A new strain of covid nicknamed the “kraken” for its dominance over previous strains of the virus has been found in the Western Pennsylvania region, health officials said. Officially known as XBB.1.5, the new covid variant has jumped from just 1% of cases to become the dominant strain in the...
Export Historical Society applies for grant to convert coal mine entrance
Export Historical Society officials are hoping to work with the borough, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection’s Bureau of Abandoned Mine Reclamation and the Society for Mining and Metallurgy Exploration to create a historical area at one of the few bituminous coal mine sites able to be safely viewed by...
Western Pa. technical schools among recipients of $1.2M in state equipment grants
Parkway West Career & Technology Center Executive Director Darby Copeland was frank about educators’ ability to keep their students on the cutting edge of technology. “Like all schools, none of us has a big bucket of money laying around,” Copeland said. That made it all the more important for Copeland...
Plum man arrested, charged with assaulting zTrip driver
A Plum man has been arrested and police are seeking two additional suspects after authorities said the trio assaulted a driver with ride-booking service zTrip early Sunday and stole her car. Wayne K. Griffin Jr., 18, of Plum, was charged with motor vehicle robbery, criminal conspiracy, simple assault and receiving...
Can council presidents make a motion? State boroughs association says yes
Delmont Council President Andy Shissler had to restrain himself from using his newfound power at the borough’s Dec. 13 meeting. Or perhaps he just didn’t want his first presidential motion to be payment of an annual service fee. “I’d rather not make my first motion paying Westmoreland Transit,” Shissler joked....
Farrell man charged in death of Sharon teenager
Sharon city officials announced an arrest in Saturday’s shooting death of a 17-year-old. Curtis R. Coleman III, 19, of Farrell, has been charged by Sharon police. Emergency officials were called to West Budd Street around 9 p.m. Saturday where they found Gavin Beighley, 17, of Sharon, who had been shot...
No injuries following late-night fire in Arlington
There were no reported injuries following a fire late Sunday in Pittsburgh’s Arlington neighborhood, emergency officials said. Fire crews were called to the 100 block of Cologne Street around 11 p.m. Pittsburgh Battalion Chief James Dolan told Tribune-Review news partner WPXI-TV that firefighters quickly got the duplex fire under control....

