WJPA News

Nearly every chair was filled when the Building and Grounds Committee of the Peters Township School Board met to review their Five Year Capital Plan. Budget estimates are for $19 million to be spent on a wide range of items from transportation, to security and building maintenance. Alex O’Neill is the President of the school board and the chairman of the Building and Grounds Committee. After the plan was presented, several directors spoke up about timing of certain building maintenance issues. Spending scheduled for next year is $4.6 million dollars. Discussion had the committee consider advancing repairs to the HVAC at Bower Hill Elementary School bringing the new total for 2026-2027 to a new estimate of $6.3 million dollars. The fluidity of the discussion kept moving throughout the night. Paving and drainage work for the middle school parking lot and the Bower Hill parking lot along with HVAC repairs in several buildings are the biggest ticket items for the next five years. Improvements to the football stadium are also on tap. Bleacher replacement, track resurfacing and press box renovations are a few of the items in the project. The football stadium was a big topic of discussion. Several residents called the current stadium and facilities inadequate and overcrowded. School Director Rolf Briegel suggested the idea of building a field house to alleviate locker room overcrowding and possibly add practice space. Directors are considering financing options. They will be updated on their borrowing status during their voting meeting next Monday.

Washington, PA – Pennsylvania State Police, Troop B, has announced the arrest of seven individuals following a five-month investigation into numerous thefts of communication wire, specifically Verizon telephone lines, occurring from January 2026 to present throughout Washington County. The investigation resulted in the identification and arrest of the following individuals, who have been charged in connection with these thefts:  Ryan Michael Scott, 37, of Avella; Dennis John Kinkela, 49, of Burgettstown; Michael Douglas Hancher, 45, of Washington; Lawrence Angelo Bogo, Jr., 56, of Avella; Allen Cecil Jackson, 28, of Wellsburg, West Virginia; Justin Lee Fusarelli, 43, of Avella and Donald Edward Martin III, 36, of Bulger.  On August 8th, police say an arrest warrant sweep was conducted in Washington County, resulting in the apprehension of all of the suspects with the exception of Fusarelli and Martin, who remain at large.  Police are asking anyone with information regarding their whereabouts to call them at 724-223-5200.  The State Police were assisted throughout both the investigation and subsequent apprehension by the Washington County District Attorney’s Office, the Washington County Sheriff’s Department, the Jefferson Township Police Department, the Smith Township Police Department, the Hanover Township Police Department, and the Donegal Township Police Department.

A federal safety agency has issued its final report into a 2025 blast at a U.S. Steel plant near Pittsburgh that left two workers dead. The blast at the Clairton Coke Works plant occurred after a gas valve being flushed with pressurized water ruptured. The report by the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board recommends that U.S. Steel develop a written procedure for washing valves with pressurized water in order to minimize the operation’s hazards. The report says the valve that failed was more than 70 years old and made from brittle cast iron. U.S. Steel previously was fined more than $118,000 by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

The Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry has been named the 2026 State Chamber of the Year by the National Association of State Chambers (NASC), the national organization representing state chambers of commerce across the country.  The award is the highest national recognition for a state chamber of commerce and recognizes organizations that distinguish themselves through exceptional member services, innovative leadership, public policy advocacy, and outstanding results.  “This is a tremendous honor for our team and the more than 13,000 member businesses across the Commonwealth who power our mission,” PA Chamber President & CEO Luke Bernstein said. “We are incredibly proud to be recognized on the national stage, and grateful to our dedicated members, partners, and leaders across the Commonwealth who have helped make this work possible.  The award is presented annually by NASC to recognize excellence and identify best practices among state chambers, honoring organizations and leaders that deliver exceptional services and outstanding results for their members.

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. inflation slowed last month and a measure of underlying price pressures also cooled, suggesting higher oil and gas prices from the Iran war are only having a limited impact on broader costs in the economy. Consumer prices rose 3.4% in July from a year ago, down slightly from 3.5% in June, the Labor Department said Wednesday. But inflation is still higher than before the Iran war began in February, when it was 2.4%. On a monthly basis, prices rose just 0.1% from June to July.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump says he slipped away from Air Force One after a trip last month in Turkey because the Secret Service and military wanted him on a “different plane” due to a threat. Trump on Tuesday downplayed the extraordinary nature of the subterfuge involved in his flight, which saw him stow away in an airport catering container to sneak onto another plane while Air Force One was sent into the sky, essentially as a decoy. He also downplayed the risk to the people — White House officials, security and support staff, and reporters — he left on the plane.

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Moderate Democrat David Crowley has won the Wisconsin primary for governor. He defeated democratic socialist Francesca Hong. Crowley is vying to become Wisconsin’s first Black governor. He pitched himself as the candidate best positioned to win in November against Republican U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany, who is endorsed by President Donald Trump. Supporters of Hong and others in the four-person field faulted Crowley for getting back in the race after he had quit in early July. Crowley locked up the backing of more mainstream Democrats, overcoming Hong’s insurgent campaign. Crowley didn’t address supporters Tuesday night but was expected at an event later Wednesday.

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan won the Minnesota Democratic Senate primary in the latest victory for an insurgent progressive over the party’s establishment. Flanagan on Tuesday defeated centrist U.S. Rep. Angie Craig with a pledge to fight the influence of corporations and confront Republican President Donald Trump. She was backed by popular progressives including Sens. Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren, who rallied with her in the campaign’s final weeks. In the governor’s race, House Speaker Lisa Demuth won the Republican primary for governor. Among the candidates she defeated was Mike Lindell, the Trump-endorsed pillow purveyor, who has been among the most persistent advocates of the lie that Trump’s 2020 loss to Joe Biden was fraudulent.

Doctors worry that President Donald Trump’s new executive order on vaccines will stoke fear and confusion among parents at a time when measles is raging, immunization rates are falling and children are heading back to school. The order advocates separating the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine into three different single-disease shots and giving all childhood immunizations at separate appointments when possible. It also includes several changes to the childhood vaccine schedule already attempted by Trump’s health department, which have been blocked by a federal judge. Doctors say the recommendations are not based on science and worry they will worsen vaccine hesitancy and endanger kids.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers may soon be outfitted with gloves that can deliver painful electric shocks that are intended to gain compliance from combative individuals. A notice published Monday by the Department of Homeland Security says ICE plans to spend up to $20 million to purchase thousands of “conductive distraction and de-escalation devices” for officers and agents by March. The devices are known as the G.L.O.V. E. That stands for Generated Low Output Voltage Emitter. They’re made by Compliant Technologies LLC of Lexington, Kentucky. They have been used in recent years by some jails and police departments.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Sales of previously occupied U.S. homes slowed again in July as record prices and the highest mortgage rates in more than a year prove to be an insurmountable hurdle for many prospective homebuyers. The National Association of Realtors said Tuesday that existing home sales fell 1.7% last month from June to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.06 million units. July sales, however, were up 0.7% compared with last year. Home prices continued to rise, hitting unprecedented levels for July. The U.S. median sales price increased 2% from a year earlier, to $434,100.