Laurels & lances: Doses, closures, alternatives
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Laurel: To house calls. To reach the 70% vaccination threshhold that experts say is necessary to fight off the coronavirus pandemic, it is important to get to as many adults as possible. Protecting people with medical conditions that put them at particular risk is even more important.
But home care for people with serious needs or for the elderly is increasingly common. They are less likely or unable to visit clinics or pharmacies for the vaccine shot.
That is why it is necessary to bring the vaccine to them. EMS providers around Westmoreland County are working with Excela Health, the Department of Public Safety and the United Way to do just that. Mutual Aid paramedics deployed across the county Monday to take care of about 50 of them.
This kind of home delivery provides critical service for the person getting the shot, but does the same for the community.
Lance: To losing old friends. Spaghetti & Steakhouse dished up homemade sauce and fresh made noodles to eager customers in Murrysville for more than 50 years. The last plate was served on Saturday but no one knew it at the time. A fire started early Sunday, engulfing the Route 22 building by 3:38 a.m. It is now a blackened shell.
On Tuesday, Brian Paul Lucas, 43, of Murrysville, was arrested for a list of charges connected to the fire, which he confessed to starting.
Another area landmark is also closing down, but under less volatile circumstances.
The Carlton Restaurant in Downtown Pittsburgh has been a destination for milestone moments like anniversaries and engagements for decades. Closed down since the pandemic restrictions of March 2020 were enacted, it will not reopen. Owner Kevin Joyce on Wednesday announced the venue’s permanent closing (though with the creation of a catering company).
The fine dining restaurant was lauded by Wine Spectator and noted as a Distinguished Restaurant of North America.
Both restaurants are a loss after a year that has seen too many culinary establishments close down.
Laurel: To a smart stand. There are often battles between using the best product for the job and the best for people or the environment. O’Hara is navigating that road.
The township council isn’t banning use of coal tar in the municipality. It did, however, pass a resolution supporting use of alternatives.
Coal tar has health and environmental risks, not the least of which being stomach and bladder cancer. It is a commonly used sealant for paving projects like driveways and courts.
In the last year, Hampton, Fox Chapel, Aspinwall, Millvale and Sharpsburg have taken a stand on its use. Mt. Lebanon, Blawnox and Pine are also considering action.