WJPA News

Travelers may have been exposed to measles at a Pennsylvania Turnpike service plaza in Westmoreland County.  The Pennsylvania Department of Health says someone who doesn’t live in the state tested positive for measles and may have exposed others to the virus at the New Stanton Service Plaza on the westbound Pennsylvania Turnpike in Westmoreland County on Aug. 17.  Exposure areas inside the service plaza include the Burger King, Starbucks, Sunoco, 7-11, restrooms and dining area.  Anyone at the plaza on Aug. 17 is urged to check their vaccination status and monitor for symptoms. Officials say those who are unvaccinated are most at-risk for infection.  Measles is a highly contagious virus that can spread through breaths, coughs or sneezes. Symptoms include fever, cough, runny nose and irritated eyes, followed by a rash that starts on the head and spreads downward. Symptoms typically appear seven to 21 days after exposure.  Measles can cause severe health complications, including pneumonia and brain swelling, with nearly 20% of infected individuals requiring hospitalization.  State health officials emphasized that receiving two doses of the MMR vaccine provides 97% lifetime protection against the virus.  Anyone experiencing symptoms or suspecting a measles exposure should contact a health care provider or call the Department of Health toll-free hotline at 877-PA-HEALTH (877-724-3258).

Harrisburg, PA – The Pennsylvania Department of Health (DOH) announced that 540 measles cases have been confirmed across 36 counties in Pennsylvania so far in 2026, as the Department continues its response to the ongoing measles outbreak and provides Pennsylvanians with updated information on cases, hospitalizations, and deaths.  DOH is providing statewide data to help Pennsylvanians and health care providers understand measles activity and community transmission across the Commonwealth.   While daily numbers fluctuate, tracking these trends provides Pennsylvanians and health care providers with visibility into community transmission across the Commonwealth and helps inform the Department’s ongoing response.  Key updates include forty-three new positive cases since August 31st, in thirty-six-counties; five-hundred and forty total cumulative cases, ninety-one hospitalizations and two deaths.  (Photo:  AP)

The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission says the bodies of all three missing boaters from a crash on the Monongahela River Sunday night have now been recovered, bringing the death toll to four.  The incident occurred when a boat and a barge collided near Rices Landing in Greene County.  On the night of the crash, two people (a man and a woman) were pulled from the river by barge crew members.  The woman later died at a hospital in Morgantown, West Virginia, while the male remains hospitalized.  He was listed in critical condition earlier this week, but there have been no further updates.  Authorities have not yet released their identities.  The Greene County Coroner though, has released the identities of those who were pulled from the river over the past two days.  They are 57-year-old Brian Selvoski of Bentleyville, 56-year-old Racquelle Rockwell of Scenery Hill and 58-year-old Erick Rockwell, also of Scenery Hill.  On Wednesday morning, the commission said someone called 911 from Rices Landing after seeing something floating in the river. Emergency crews responded, and the third body, a male, was recovered.

Pennsylvania American Water Company officials have issued a Code Red for an emergency valve replacement in South Franklin Township.  The Code Red was issued around four o’clock Wednesday afternoon and repairs were expected to take several hours.  Residents are encouraged to get water, if needed, at the South Franklin Fire Department at 101 Jolly School Road, where a water buffalo has been made available.  If you live in the affected area, officials say you may experience discolored or cloudy water, low water pressure or no water.  When work is completed, you may experience temporary changes in your water. For discoloration, run cold water at the lowest level of your house. For cloudy water, run water at the highest level of your house. The condition should clear after three to five minutes of running water.

PA American Water says crews are dealing with two smaller water main breaks one day after a 24-inch main ruptured and left nearly 100 customers in the City of Washington without water.  Officials say the breaks occurred Wednesday morning at Morgan and North Wade Avenues in East Washington.  Some 34 customers are impacted by that break.  There is also a break at Woodland and Summerlea Avenues in the City.  27 customers are affected by that break.  The company says they expect repairs to take two-to-three hours.  Crews were still working to make repairs to the roadway along North College Street following Tuesday’s break.  At last report, that road was still closed in that area.

There were two accidents in Fallowfield Township Wednesday morning.  The first occurred around five o’clock in the three-hundred block of Freemont Road when a vehicle hit a pole.  One person was flown to a Pittsburgh hospital.  There’s been no word on their identity or the nature of their injuries.  The other accident happened around seven o’clock in the four-hundred block of Coyle Curtain Road.  There were no injuries reported.

State Police are investigating a crash that killed a Canonsburg man early Tuesday morning along the Turnpike.  Troopers say 55 year old Christopher Ruane was traveling at a high rate of speed near mile marker 195.5 in Franklin County when his vehicle veered off the roadway, traveled down an embankment and struck a tree.   It happened just before 5:30 a.m.  He was pronounced dead at the scene.  Police are asking anyone with information about the crash to contact them.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iranian attacks targeted U.S. allies across the Gulf early Wednesday as renewed fighting with the United States ended a monthlong lull. An Iranian drone sparked a fire at a residential complex in Kuwait City without causing casualties, while Bahrain intercepted incoming drones. Other attacks targeted Jordan, the United Arab Emirates and Iraq’s Kurdish region. The escalation followed U.S. strikes on Iran, including one that Iranian officials say hit a wedding party, killing at least five people and wounding 68. The renewed conflict raises new questions about how to end a war that has led to a spike in oil prices, roiled the global economy and is posing increasing political problems for President Donald Trump’s Republican Party ahead of November midterm elections.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Oil giant Chevron is expected to soon announce it will expand operations in Venezuela, a U.S. official said. The official, who briefed reporters Tuesday on the expected announcement, said that the company’s officials and Energy Secretary Chris Wright are expected to visit Venezuela on Wednesday where the new investment will be formally unveiled. The official spoke under condition of anonymity under ground rules set by the White House for the call. Chevron is the second-largest U.S. oil company and the only one with a major presence in Venezuela. The official also defended the administration’s partnership with North American Blue Energy Partners in an agreement to tap Venezuela’s reserves, saying the company was vetted.

TORONTO (AP) — Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney says the Trump administration needs to “stop doing memes, stop throwing shade and stop trying to be tough.” He was pushing back against a fresh wave of attacks from Washington. Carney says Tuesday that U.S.-Canada trade talks could resume if Washington became serious about negotiations. But he also accused the United States of pursuing terms that could leave Canadian industries “gradually wound down in Canada and wiped out.” Carney commented after a new barrage of attacks from Washington since trade talks collapsed, including Trump’s move to rename Lake Ontario “Lake America” and his social media posts taunting Canada and U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s social media post mocking female Canadian cadets.

In a strategic retreat, the United Nations concedes that Earth has lost its chance to prevent some of the worst impacts of global warming. A report released Wednesday by the United Nations Environment Programme reveals that the planet will soon exceed the temperature threshold set by the 2015 Paris climate accord. Instead of giving up, scientists and U.N. officials recommend limiting excessive warming and then bringing temperatures back down. It’s called overshoot. This involves slashing fossil fuel use and finding ways to remove carbon dioxide from the air. In the meantime, the world will face decades of increased disasters, rising seas and extinctions.

PLYMOUTH, Mass. (AP) — Jurors in the Lindsay Clancy trial have gone home without a verdict after a fifth day of deliberations. They have twice said they can’t agree on whether the Massachusetts mother is criminally responsible for killing her three young children. The jury will return on Thursday. The judge told them to keep deliberating when they said for a second straight day that they were at an impasse. This raises the chance of a hung jury and the trial ending without a resolution. Clancy doesn’t deny strangling her three children in 2023. Her attorney argues postpartum psychosis led to her actions, while prosecutors say she knew what she was doing.

STUART, Fla. (AP) — Tiger Woods has pleaded no contest to a reckless driving charge in Florida. Woods was arrested in March following a rollover crash near his home on Jupiter Island and was initially charged with driving under the influence. The golf legend appeared Wednesday in court in Martin County to enter his plea on the lesser charge. Authorities say deputies found two pain pills in Woods’ pocket after the crash, and he showed signs of impairment. He did a Breathalyzer test, which came out negative, but refused to take a urine test. Woods said little during the hearing. He arrived at the courthouse with his girlfriend, Vanessa Trump, President Donald Trump’s former daughter-in-law.  (Photo:  AP)