Regional News category, Page 337
Army, community bands join forces for Blairsville concert
The U.S. Army 28th Infantry Division Band based in Torrance will share the bill with the Blairsville Community Concert Band for a joint concert Thursday in Blairsville. The bands will perform separately and in combination, beginning at 7 p.m. in the Veterans Memorial Park amphitheater at West Market and Water...
Accused traffic scofflaw’s luck runs out in New Stanton sting, police report
An Irwin man’s luck avoiding bench warrants for numerous traffic offenses in three Western Pennsylvania counties ran out Wednesday when he was ordered held in the Westmoreland County Prison on $1,500 bail after unsuccessfully attempting to escape police this month. Walter P. Hanns Jr. , 38, was arraigned on two...
Police: Dog found dead in Belle Vernon backyard had ‘obvious signs’ of starvation
A Belle Vernon man and woman are facing animal cruelty charges after a dog was found dead in their backyard Tuesday, according to court papers. Troopers said the dog had obvious signs of starvation and abuse. Christopher Michael Foreman, 35, and Rachel Marie Bonacci, 36, allegedly left the dog locked...
Motorcyclist taunts cop with wheelie; wrecks into fenceVideo
A motorcycle rider’s police-taunting stunt ends with a trip over the handlebars. Three dirt bike riders reportedly had been riding through an Allentown neighborhood Sunday when police were called, reports LehighValley.com. Witnesses said the riders used T-shirts to cover their faces as they sped past and flipped their middle fingers...
Military charity collects ‘surf-and-turf’ donations for troops overseas
Pittsburgh-area charity Military Connections is looking to serve a little surf-and-turf to troops overseas. But it’s not the kind you might think. Because lobster and steak are a bit pricey to ship internationally, the nonprofit is collecting donations of Swedish Fish and beef jerky. “We receive a lot of requests...
Free online resume help offered from Indeed and Goodwill
The Goodwill Industries Workforce Development Center in Pittsburgh’s Lawrenceville neighborhood is offering career assessments and helping job seekers with a better presence online. The free service is part of a partnership announced last month between Goodwill and the Indeed.com job website, both of which committed to help find jobs for...
2 troopers, prisoner released from hospital after incident outside Indiana County state prison
Two state troopers based in Indiana County were placed on administrative duties while authorities investigate how they and a state prison inmate got hurt Monday in an unmarked patrol car, according to state police. The troopers and the 20-year-old male prisoner were treated for minor injuries at Indiana Regional Medical...
Family of 5 hospitalized after fire at Burgettstown home
Five members of a Burgettstown family were hospitalized after an overnight fire at their home, WPXI reported. Firefighters responded to a call at about 10:30 p.m. to a home along Center Avenue. Here’s a look at the response from fire crews. When they arrived to a house along Center in...
What the UPMC-Highmark truce does and doesn’t mean for patients
A day after UPMC and Highmark reached a 10-year pact, patients across Western Pennsylvania are awaiting answers on precisely what the unexpected deal between the nonprofit health giants means for them. Patients who severed ties with longtime doctors are hopeful they can return to the physician teams who know them...
21 more people charged in federal prison drug smuggling ring
A federal grand jury in Pittsburgh has indicted more people and added charges in an investigation into a prison drug smuggling ring that authorities dismantled in January. “This drug trafficking organization, which consists largely of repeat offenders, peddled dangerous drugs in prisons and in our communities. If this type of...
Latest round of Catholic Charities grants supports housing, feeding programs
Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Greensburg has awarded $37,500 in grants to eight organizations from its Diocesan Poverty Relief Fund. The fund, founded by former Bishop Lawrence E. Brandt in 2009, is for organizations in the four-county diocese that accept and promote the mission of the Catholic Church in...
Richard King Mellon, R.K. Mellon Family foundations tap heir as new leader
Richard A. Mellon, a grandson of Richard King Mellon, has been named to lead the foundations that bear his grandfather’s name. He was unanimously appointed as chairman and CEO by the boards of both the Richard King Mellon Foundation and the R.K. Mellon Family Foundation, marking the beginning of the...
Cops: Mt. Pleasant man shot at men who claimed he threw beer can at woman
A 57-year-old Mt. Pleasant man was arrested by state police on multiple criminal charges, including attempted homicide, after allegedly firing a handgun at two men who confronted him about assaulting a woman at a public housing complex in Fayette County last weekend. Charles Edward Chandler was arrested following the incident...
2 state troopers, prisoner injured during trip to prison in Indiana County
Two state troopers and a prisoner were injured Monday afternoon on their way to the state prison in Indiana County. The troopers, who are assigned to the Indiana County station, and the prisoner, a 20-year-old man, suffered minor to moderate injuries inside the troopers’ unmarked patrol vehicle just before 12:30...
Cops: Somerset County camp directors did not report alleged child abuse incident
Two directors of TeenQuest, a Christian youth retreat and summer camp in Somerset County, were charged Monday with failing to report an incident of alleged child abuse at the facility in March, according to state police. Mark S. Witt, 69, who founded the youth mission camp in rural Milford Township...
Many patients celebrate UPMC-Highmark agreement, but some remain skeptical
Thousands of patients across Western Pennsylvania breathed a unified sigh of relief after hearing news of a deal being struck between UPMC and Highmark. Kathy and Jack Swanger watched Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro’s news conference live on television from their home in New Kensington. “In some ways, it’s like...
Fayette man killed in off-road vehicle crash in Middlecreek Township
A Fayette County man died of injuries sustained when he crashed his off-road vehicle Saturday night in Middlecreek Township. State police said Joseph A. Cole, 33, of Mill Run, was driving north on Scullton Road near Whipkey Dam Road shortly after 10:15 p.m., when his vehicle left the roadway, ran...
Rain returns briefly before string of mild days
After three days of sunny — and dry — weather, thunderstorms are expected to return Monday with potentially damaging winds and hail, according to the National Weather Service. Rain is expected late in the afternoon, just in time for rush hour, with stronger storms coming through after midnight. Temperatures will...
Police suspect speed a factor in fatal Butler County crash
A Grove City man was killed Saturday afternoon in a single-vehicle crash in Butler County. According to state police, Ian Campbell, 29, is suspected of driving at a high rate of speed on Route 108 when he lost control of his 2010 Jeep Wrangler and overturned near the intersection of...
Authorities try to ID parts of human legs found near Susquehanna River
WILLIAMSPORT — Authorities say portions of two sawn-off human legs were found on a central Pennsylvania riverbank last month. The Lycoming County coroner said last week that the legs were found by a fisherman May 11 along the Susquehanna River near the Hepburn Street Dam in Williamsport. Coroner Charles Kiessling...
Pa. jobless rate sets record low; nonfarm jobs at record high
Pennsylvania’s unemployment rate remained at a record low level in May, while the number of nonfarm jobs rose to a record high, the state said Friday. The jobless rate remained at 3.8%, the same as in April and the lowest since records were kept dating back to 1976. The unemployment...
Police seek Tarentum man in Fayette County homicide
A Tarentum man is wanted by state police in connection with the Sept. 17 shooting death of a Fayette County man outside his home. Trooper Richard Sizer said police are seeking the whereabouts of Omari Parker Jr., 18, who is wanted in connection with the slaying of Tywain James Reid,...
State: Chronic wasting disease appears to be spreading
State game authorities have identified three more deer in Somerset County that have tested positive for chronic wasting disease, according to the Pennsylvania Game Commission. The white-tailed deer, which had been killed after being struck by cars, were tested after being picked up by the state’s roadkill contractor, the Somerset...
Westmoreland, Allegheny companies to benefit from manufacturing grants
Several Westmoreland and Allegheny county manufacturers will benefit from state grants focusing on the Manufacturing PA initiative. Approved by Gov. Tom Wolf Friday, the grants embed graduate and undergraduate students with local manufacturers where they will start research projects aimed at developing new technologies and advancing innovation across the state....
Public asked to plant gardens for bees/pollinators at PennDOT rest stops, interchanges, traffic islands
It’s National Pollinator Week (June 17-23) and PennDOT is asking the public to plant pollinator gardens at approved PennDOT-owned properties including rest stops, interchanges and traffic islands in Armstrong and Clarion counties, as well as other areas covered by the district. Individuals or groups such as clubs, schools, churches, businesses...
