WJPA News

 One person is dead, and two others are injured after a wrong-way crash in Washington County on Tuesday morning.  The two-vehicle crash happened around 4:30 a.m. on Pennsylvania Turnpike 43, also known as the Mon/Fayette Expressway, in Fallowfield Township.  Washington County Coroner Tim Warco identified the man killed as Jacob Matthew Huber, 24, of Ruffs Dale.  Warco said that Huber was traveling southbound when another vehicle was traveling the wrong way and collided with Huber’s vehicle.  Warco added that Huber was wearing a seatbelt at the time of the crash. He was the sole occupant of that vehicle.  Dispatchers said two other people were flown to a hospital from the scene. Their conditions are currently unknown.  The southbound lanes were closed for a few hours while Pennsylvania State Police investigated

Canonsburg Borough Council will allow the Borough Manager and the Mayor to temporarily close parking lots that are Borough-owned or Borough-controlled when it is necessary for public safety or property protection. Council specifically mentioned cases of severe weather, structural hazards, and law enforcement operations that would make it necessary to close parking lots or portions of the lots. These closures will be limited to the minimum time necessary to address the concern, and closures will not last more than 72 hours without Council approval. Reasonable notice of these closures and posted signage will be provided. Prior to this vote, Council approval was needed for all closures. Council President Eric Chandler says that Council trusts both the Borough Manager and the Mayor to make these decisions. Canonsburg Mayor David Rhome says that having this authorization will make it easier to keep the public safe.

Recently, Bob Simmons of Simmons Farm has been asking Peters Township Council to help him maintain his ability to farm his land. Residential development has been a challenge because the township has been lax in the enforcement of planted buffer zones between his farm and neighboring houses. Because of this, Simmons says that he is losing the ability to plant multiple acres of crops. Department of Agriculture regulations are dictating this problem. The township is acting in two ways. Council unanimously approved a policy that states that all new developments adjacent to farming activities have included in their deeds, a notice that two Pennsylvania State Laws exist that protect the rights of farmers and limit nuisance lawsuits and prohibit municipalities from restricting normal agricultural activities. The second item council approved is a public hearing to gather comments on an ordinance that would demand a 100 foot setback between any home and a neighboring farm. Currently a 25 foot planted buffer zone is required. The proposed ordinance would take that planted buffer zone away. Simmons, on the other hand would like to see both the 100 foot setback with the planted buffer zone within that setback. He says that it would protect residents from any dust, noise and odors that are a part of farming operations. A public hearing is set for August 31.

Gas prices are down 13-cents here in Western Pennsylvania this week.  AAA says the average now stands at $4.01 per gallon.  Here in Washington, our average is nearly 17 cents higher at $4.18. The national average, however increased 8-cents to $3.87 after steadily dropping since late May.  The situation between the U.S. and Iran remains uncertain and that led crude oil prices to rise to over $70 per barrel as volatility lingers about the Strait of Hormuz.  Prices are still lower than they were in the spring when the national average peaked at $4.56 on May 21.  Today’s national average is 21 cents less than one month ago but 72 cents higher than one-year ago.

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. inflation cooled last month as the cost of gas, clothes, and used cars fell, providing some relief to consumers, though much of the progress could be reversed if the Iran war keeps worsening. Prices dropped 0.4% in June from May, the largest monthly drop in four years, the Labor Department said Tuesday. On a yearly basis, inflation declined to 3.5%, down from a year-over-year gain of 4.2% in May and lower than many economists expected. Yet oil prices jumped Monday as the United States renewed attacks on Iran. And many Americans have soured on the economy after five years of elevated inflation, posing a risk to Trump and Republicans in the upcoming midterm elections.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The U.S. has launched more strikes on Iran after President Donald Trump said Washington is “reinstating” a blockade on Iran in the Strait of Hormuz. Trump separately suggested the United States will charge other ships for safe passage, upending hundreds of years of American policy supporting freedom of navigation across the globe. Iran responded with attacks targeting Bahrain, Jordan and two tankers associated with the United Arab Emirates traveling through the strait, killing one mariner and wounding eight others. The Emirates threatened to retaliate against Iran, potentially drawing the nation home to Abu Dhabi and Dubai back into fighting with Tehran. The attacks come as Iran and the U.S. both vie for control of the strait.

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iranian state television says two members of the Islamic State group have been executed after they were convicted of armed rebellion against the Islamic Republic. The report Tuesday identified the men as Mohieddin Abdollahi and Hossein Palani. It said they belonged to an Islamic State cell that formed after the group’s territorial defeat in Iraq and Syria and had planned attacks inside Iran.

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster has named Darline Graham Nordone as her late brother Lindsey Graham’s temporary replacement in the U.S. Senate. Graham died at age 71 over the weekend. Nordone will serve the remaining months of his term, which ends in January. Senate Majority Leader John Thune says she will be sworn in Tuesday afternoon. A special election next month will determine the new Republican nominee for Graham’s seat. The open seat has sparked interest among South Carolina’s conservatives. A special primary election is scheduled for August 11, with a runoff on August 25 if needed. The general election will take place on November 3.

BIDDEFORD, Maine (AP) — Sen. Angus King says the motorist killed by ICE officers in a Maine shooting was not the target of the warrant the officers were executing. King said Monday that that information came from Homeland Security Secretary Mullin. It’s the second time in a week that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents have used deadly force and at least the ninth death since President Donald Trump began his immigration crackdown. Immigrant rights groups identified the man who was killed as a 26-year-old native of Colombia. DHS says “the vehicle attempted to flee the scene and, fearing for public safety, an officer discharged his weapon.”

WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal judge says President Donald Trump’s lawsuit against the IRS over his leaked tax returns was filed for an “improper purpose” as she referred one of his attorneys for possible disciplinary action. The ruling from U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams on Monday amounts to a stinging rebuke of the Republican president’s lawsuit, characterizing it as an exercise in self-dealing in which he sued an entity that is effectively under his control. The suit concluded in May with a settlement agreement that created a since-abandoned $1.776 billion fund meant to compensate allies of the president, as well as immunity from tax audits.