WJPA News

A dangerous heat wave is expected to continue to blanket the area at least through Friday, with temperatures reaching into the mid to upper 90’s and the ‘feel-like’ temperatures into the low 100’s.  Heat-related illnesses can increase significantly in the extreme heat. Health officials say to make sure to be prepared and find ways to keep you and your family cool. Stay out of the sun, stay in air-conditioning, keep hydrated, and keep pets out of the heat.  Due to the extreme heat, cooling centers were opened around the county and Washington County’s Public Safety Office has released locations. which will be be updated as changes occur.  For the complete list, click on this link: Click Here.

The Main Street Farmer’s Market has been cancelled for Thursday, July 2nd because of the current heat wave that is baking much of the United States, including Washington County.  Tracie  Liberatore, the markets administrator, says they really had no choice.  She says they’ve been keeping an eye on the weather forecast and Thursday is expected to be the hottest day this week, with actual temperatures in the upper 90’s and the heat index heading into triple digits.  She says many of the markets customers are older and could be at risk if they spend too much time outdoors.  In addition, she says a few vendors had already cancelled because they were concerned that their products could not have survived the heat and that sales, because of the heat, would not be up to par.  Liberatore says this is the first time she can remember, since her involvement with the market, that it has been cancelled because of the weather.  Brighter days are ahead though.  Liberatore says they are excited for the next market, on July 9th.  She says that will be the official kick-off for the Whiskey Rebellion Festival, and this year will be extra special because of the America250 Celebration.  She says she and all of the volunteers that make the festival happen are super excited to showcase the history of Washington.

Charleroi Borough officials say the extreme heat is forcing them to change their schedule this week.  A council agenda meeting that was scheduled for Wednesday at four o’clock has been cancelled.  Additionally, officials say borough staff will only work until noon on Wednesday and then  borough offices will be closed for the remainder of the week and will re-open on Monday, July 6th.

PennDOT announced on Tuesday that the Sugar Run Road Intersection Project in Franklin Township in Greene County will be getting underway on Monday, July 6th, at seven a.m.  These are major road closures and they will be in effect through the end of October.  They include Porter Street at the intersection of Champion Drive.  The detour will be Route 19/Route 21, East Green Street or East High Street.  Sugar Run Road at the intersection of Johnson Lane.  The detour will be White Barn Road and Patterson Run Road.  Sugar Run Road at the intersection of Route 19/Route 21.  Access from Route 19/Route 21, East High Street.  Local traffic will be maintained.  Orchard Road at the intersection of Route 19 and Mount Morris Road.  Access will be from Route 19  (Mount Morris Road).  Local traffic will be maintained.  This work is part of the Sugar Run Road Intersection Project, which will construct a single-lane roundabout at Route 2003 (Sugar Run Road/Porter Street), Route 2028 (Sugar Run Road), and T-579 (Orchard Road) intersection. The project will also include the replacement of the existing bridge that carries Route 2028 (Sugar Run Road) over Sugar Run with a pre-cast reinforced concrete box culvert. Plum Contracting, Inc., is the prime contractor -$4.24 million infrastructure investment.  All work is weather dependent.

Uniontown, PA – PennDOT has announced scheduled restrictions and closure of a portion of (South Main Street between Route 18 (Park Avenue) and East/West Prospect Avenue in the City of Washington.  Monday, July 6 through Friday, July 10 – there will be daily single-lane restrictions in place from 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.  Traffic will be controlled by flaggers.  Monday, July 13 through the end of September – Route 2001 will close to traffic beginning at 6:00 a.m.  The detour will be:  Route 2001 (South Main Street and South Main Street Extension)/Route 19 (Waynesburg Road)/Route 40/19 (East Maiden Street)/Route 18 (South Main Street).  During the restrictions, crews from Allison Park Contractors, Inc. will perform saw cutting and preparation work for the closure of Route 2001 (South Main Street). During the closure, crews will demolish the existing concrete box culvert under Route 2001 (South Main Street) and replace it with a new cast-in-place concrete box culvert. Additional work to be performed includes drainage repairs/replacement, new inlets, and new asphalt roadway pavement.  This $2.25 million investment will replace the existing box culvert underneath Route 18 with a new pre-cast box culvert. This work includes excavation of the existing concrete box culvert, installing a new pre-cast concrete box culvert, full-depth asphalt road replacement and concrete curb, gutter, and sidewalk replacement. This work is part of the Route 2001/Route 18 Over Catfish Creek Bridge Replacement Project.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court has upheld a broad conception of birthright citizenship, rejecting President Donald Trump’s executive order declaring that children born to people in the United States illegally or temporarily are not American citizens. The justices in their decision in a New Hampshire case Tuesday relied on a long-settled understanding of the 14th Amendment, adopted after the Civil War, and more recent federal laws in ruling anyone born in the country is a citizen, with limited exceptions. The Republican president’s restrictions had been blocked by several lower courts and had not taken effect. The outcome is another major defeat at the high court for Trump, who saw his global tariffs blocked in February.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court is upholding state laws barring transgender girls and women from playing on school athletic teams, in another setback for transgender people. The court’s conservative majority has repeatedly ruled against transgender Americans in the past year. It rules Tuesday that state bans in Idaho and West Virginia don’t violate the Constitution or the federal law known as Title IX, which prohibits sex discrimination in education. More than two dozen other Republican-led states have adopted bans on female transgender athletes. Left unresolved by the outcome are lawsuits challenging state laws and regulations in Connecticut, California and elsewhere that permit transgender athletes to compete consistent with their gender identity.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The United States and Iran have separately announced they are sending delegations to Qatar this week, though Tehran insists it has not agreed to meet with the U.S. “at any level.” The announcements Monday came after weekend attacks in the Persian Gulf challenged efforts to negotiate an end to the war. U.S. President Donald Trump has tried to preserve a fragile interim deal as hostilities mounted in recent days in the Strait of Hormuz. After four days of trading strikes, both sides appeared to pause their attacks Monday. A spokesman for Iran’s Foreign Ministry says its delegation traveling to Qatar plans to discuss terms of the deal without U.S. involvement.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court is rejecting a Republican-led attack on state laws that allow the counting of late-arriving mail ballots, a target of President Donald Trump. Monday’s 5-4 decision leaves in place laws in more than half the states and the District of Columbia that permit mailed ballots to arrive and be counted days after an election, provided they’re postmarked by Election Day. The outcome spares officials the headache of changing ballot rules just months before the 2026 midterm congressional elections. The legal challenge was part of the Republican president’s broader attack on most mail balloting, which he says breeds fraud despite strong evidence to the contrary and years of experience in numerous states.

ATLANTA (AP) — President Donald Trump has tried many ways to tighten his grip on U.S. elections, from signing executive orders to pushing restrictive legislation in Congress. Monday’s Supreme Court ruling siding with states that accept late-arriving mail ballots was the latest example showing the limits of his reach. It followed a series of other setbacks for the Republican president. Still, Trump’s efforts have not been entirely fruitless. He successfully pushed Republican-run states to redraw congressional districts and the Supreme Court has essentially gutted the Voting Rights Act. He also has been directing his Department of Justice to investigate voting and election operations, which Democrats see as a possible prelude to their involvement in November.

LA GUAIRA, Venezuela (AP) — With the window for finding survivors shrinking fast, Venezuelans combed through more ruins of buildings toppled by last week’s devastating back-to-back earthquakes. Attention also turned to the country’s humanitarian crisis that could persist for years. Relief organizations say the first 72 hours after a natural disaster is the most crucial time period for rescues, though survival can be extended if people have access to food and water. Five days after the twin quakes, questions loomed about whether the cash-strapped government will be able to coordinate the effort needed to care for thousands of people who have been left homeless. The death toll stood at more than 1,700 people.