WJPA News

A major announcement Monday morning from both EQT Corporation and Range Resources.  Officials say they have entered into a definitive merger agreement under which EQT will acquire Range Resources in an all-stock transaction with a value of more than $50 billion. In a news release, EQT President and CEO Toby Z. Rice stated, “This transaction brings together two of the highest-quality, longest-duration asset bases in North America and creates a company uniquely positioned for the next era of natural gas”.  According to the release, terms of the agreement were approved by the Board of Directors of both companies.  The transaction is expected to close during the first-quarter of 2027 and is subject to regulatory approvals.  Officials say the combined company will keep its headquarters in Canonsburg.

Firefighters were called to an overnight fire in Claysville.  Washington County 911 says it broke out just after 12:30 a.m. along Brandenburg Lane.   No injuries were reported and there is no word on what may have sparked the fire.

A milestone in Washington County last week as state and local leaders met in Somerset Township to celebrate the plugging of the state’s 500^th orphaned or abandoned well during the Shapiro administration.    Officials say such wells often leak methane, threaten groundwater, and create safety hazards. The well in Somerset Township was actively leaking gas into the ground and atmosphere in a residential neighborhood. The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection has identified more than 27,000 abandoned wells across the state.

ALLEGHENY COUNTY, Pa. — The U.S. Department of Justice alerted the PA Department of State Secretary Al Schmidt that there will be election monitors in four Pennsylvania counties on November 3rd.  According to the DOJ letter to the PA DOS, election monitors will be in Philadelphia, Allegheny, Luzerne and Lehigh counties.  The DOJ says that these monitors only observe and take notes. They do not intrude or interfere in the voting process.  The PA DOS says that they expect everyone working in, voting in and observing polling places to follow all applicable state and federal laws.

WESTMORELAND COUNTY, Pa. — Over 150 duplicate ballots were sent out to voters in Westmoreland County by the county’s election bureau.  According to the Department of State, they initially learned about the issue on Thursday and that this is not a systematic issue.  DOS and the county have since resolved the problem.  The statewide voter registration system has safeguards in place that will not allow more than one vote to be counted for a single voter, even if a voter sent back both ballots. Only one ballot will be counted.  Westmoreland County Commissioner Doug Chew says that said voters with the double ballots were contacted.  Chew also shared that the duplicate ballots have the exact same identification numbers and that will stop them from being counted more than once.  “Whichever ballot comes in first, the next ballot can never, ever be recorded,” Chew said.  The Department of State says that they are not aware of this happening in any other county in the state.

PORT HURON, Mich. (AP) — President Donald Trump is intensifying his anti-Muslim rhetoric against Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed. He portrayed him during a Sunday rally in Port Huron as a threat to national security and questioned his loyalty to the United States. The remarks drew a sharp rebuke from a former top Arab American ally. Bishara Bahbah, a founder of Arab Americans for Trump, said the president’s comments were racist. El-Sayed, who could become the nation’s first Muslim senator, faces Republican Mike Rogers in one of the races that will help determine control of the U.S. Senate in this year’s midterms.

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — Brazilian voters have denied Latin America’s resurgent right its ultimate prize. Leftist President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva defeated Flávio Bolsonaro with 51.8% of the vote in Sunday’s runoff election. Lula’s reelection limits U.S. President Donald Trump’s influence in the region and cements Brazil as a counterweight to Washington. Analysts say Lula’s victory complicates Trump’s campaign to enlist Brazil in a military coalition against cartels. Both sides see reasons to cooperate, with Washington seeking access to Brazil’s rare earths and Lula wanting foreign investment. Lula’s pragmatic approach may lead to cooperation despite political differences.

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Nobel laureate María Corina Machado has reappeared in Venezuela for the first time since December. She announced her return on social media, saying, “I am here. With you.” Opposition leader Edmundo Gonzalez confirmed her arrival and expressed support. He emphasized the importance of her return for Venezuelans. Machado’s homecoming comes amid growing concerns about Venezuela’s democratic future. Since the U.S. military deposed Nicolás Maduro, acting President Delcy Rodríguez has led the country. Rodríguez, a Maduro ally, has exceeded her authorized term, and no election is scheduled.

(AP) – Six Flags says it will install seat belts on the Georgia roller coaster from which a rider fell to his death earlier this month. The theme park company made the announcement less than two weeks after a 42-year-old Atlanta man died after being ejected from his seat on the Goliath coaster at Six Flags Over Georgia. Six Flags Entertainment President and CEO John Reilly said in a statement Friday that other coasters with a similar restraint system to Goliath’s will also get seat belts. The company currently has eight additional coasters with similar restraints shut down at five parks in the U.S. and Canada. Reilly did not say when they might reopen.

JALUD, West Bank (AP) — Tuesday’s elections could end Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s political career. But his legacy in the occupied West Bank will likely endure. Over the last four years, his government has massively expanded Israeli settlements, displaced tens of thousands of Palestinians and empowered extremist settlers. His opponents promise to dismantle the most contentious settler outposts and rein in the violence. But they largely support Israel’s broader settlement enterprise and are opposed to the establishment of a Palestinian state in territories occupied by Israel in the 1967 Mideast war.