WJPA News

Officials at Hollywood Casino at the Meadows have announced that harness racing has been cancelled for today because of air quality.   In a statement posted on social media,  officials said “the health and safety of our horses, drivers, trainers and all racing personnel are our top priority.  The decision was made out of an abundance of caution to ensure the well-being of both the horses and human participants.”  Live racing is scheduled to resume Saturday at 12:45 p.m.

Harrisburg, PA –The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has declared a statewide Code Purple Air Quality Alert for particulate matter (PM2.5) for Friday, July 17the.  Wildfire smoke from Canada and Minnesota will blanket Pennsylvania on Friday, creating Code Purple concentrations of PM2.5.   Residents are strongly encouraged to check www.airnow.gov for current conditions in their area. Current local conditions could be more severe (Code Maroon) or less severe (Code Red or Code Orange) depending on your location at any given time. Residents should make informed decisions on their outdoor activity based on the conditions at the time.  During Code Purple Air Quality Alerts all residents should avoid long or intense outdoor activities, and sensitive groups such as children, elderly residents, and those with respiratory illnesses should avoid all outdoor activities. All residents are encouraged to move activities indoors.  (Photo of Washington)

Emergency Responders in Washington County will now have a resource to reach out to should on the job stress become overwhelming. Washington County Department of Public Safety Deputy Director Daniel Harvey is announcing the creation of the Responders First Initiative. It is a Critical Incident Stress Management team. Emergency responders respond to incidents regularly that involve critical injury and death. Often times, responders have no one to talk to about what they just witnessed. The program will help emergency responders work through mental and emotional stresses, both immediate and those built up over time, by offering them counseling with trained first responder peers and mental health professionals. The program was established through a $179,000 grant from the Staunton Farm Foundation and a partnership with Healing Bridges, who Harvey says, recognized the need for such services for emergency responders. Harvey says that the program is active right now, but if any emergency responder peers are interested in helping their fellow responders, training is available. Contact Daniel Harvey at the Department of Public Safety or Natalie Ross at Healing Bridges.

The Hanover Township Board of Supervisors held their monthly meeting on Thursday. Even though the agenda was short, the meeting lasted nearly two hours due to public comments about the proposed data center in the township. A public hearing on the Conditional Use Permit for the construction of a data center in Starpointe Business Park was held on June 18th and was to be continued on July 8th. However, that hearing was canceled and a new hearing will be held on August 5th at 6:00 PM. The location of this meeting is still being determined. Kerri Hageter, a resident, believes that there will be a huge turnout at the hearing, and she hopes that supervisors are understanding the concerns of those in the township. Another resident, Cody, does not believe there is any evidence on how a data center will benefit residents. Supervisors refused to comment after the meeting.

The Washington County Coroner’s office has been under fire for charging law enforcement agencies several hundreds of dollars in fees to access coroner reports for cases that need the coroner’s rulings on those deaths. Commissioners voted unanimously to waive all fees charged by the coroner to law enforcement agencies. Recently, Westmoreland County raided the coroner’s office for autopsy reports. Commissioner Larry Maggi said in his time with the Pennsylvania State Police, they never had to pay fees to a coroner. Commissioner Nick Sherman called the fees unnecessary and wanted to remove them in order for law enforcement to do their jobs and for families to obtain closure. WJPA reached out to Washington Coroner Tim Warco for comment. We have not received a comment as of yet.

Earlier in the week an agenda item was listed for Washington County Commissioners to extend an approval period for a proposed miniature golf course at Mingo Creek Park. That all changed in the course of two days. The agenda item voted on was to reject all proposals for a mini golf course and the motion was approved unanimously. According to Commissioner Nick Sherman, the item was tabled last spring, but was never officially put to rest. Nevertheless, another large public outcry emerged against the idea this week, and commissioners listened and killed the plan. Commissioners did unanimously approve a motion to advertise for bids for site design and engineering to add an ADA accessible dog park to Mingo Creek Park. All commissioners agreed that the dog park fits much better into the atmosphere of the park.

Cyclosporiasis is a food borne illness that has been found in 34 states so far including Pennsylvania. Nearly 30 cases of the disease have been confirmed in the state with 11 cases right here in southwestern Pennsylvania. Dr. Atif Saeed is an infectious disease physician with UPMC Medicine. He says the parasite typically is found in raw foods like vegetables and fruits. Salads and unpeeled fruits seem to be the biggest culprits in spreading the disease. Those infected might have symptoms of nausea, vomiting and profuse diarrhea. Symptoms could last up to a week or ten days. In cases of immunocompromised people, the disease could last several weeks. Incubation periods could run from a few days to several weeks. Hydration is a concern. Saeed says to stay hydrated and consider drinks that have electrolytes in them such as Gatorade, Powerade and other energy drinks. Saeed says there is no 100 percent method of preventing the disease, especially with raw food. He says the best way to avoid it is to cook all foods. If not, wash all raw foods carefully. In severe cases, intervention from a medical professional may be necessary.

In a letter to parents and guardians, Charleroi District Superintendent Ed Zelich announced that starting on August 26th, the day students return from school, the district will begin a bell-to-bell to bell cell phone restriction.  He says that from the time student enter the building each morning until dismissal, cell phones and other personal devices will be stored and powered off in an individual NuKase that will stay with the student throughout the day.  Zelich encouraged parents and guardians to use a fact sheet they put together to find out details, such as, how the NuKase system works, exceptions for medical needs, how to reach a student during the day and what happens in an emergency.  Essentially, Zelich says the move was made based on research showing that when students are not distracted by cell phones, their focus increases.

Harrisburg, PA – Governor Josh Shapiro has announced that his administration is investing $134,436,640 in 100 projects across Southwest Pennsylvania through the Commonwealth’s Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program (RACP). He says this investment reflects his commitment to strengthening Pennsylvania communities and driving regional economic development through key cultural, civic, recreational, and historical improvement projects.  The investments are part of a broader statewide commitment of nearly $445 million supporting 356 projects across Pennsylvania aimed at creating jobs, improving infrastructure, strengthening public safety, and driving long-term economic growth in communities across the Commonwealth.  RACP, administered by the Governor’s Office of the Budget, is a reimbursement grant program that supports essential design, acquisition, and construction projects across the Commonwealth. The program funds projects with regional or multi-jurisdictional impact, promoting economic growth, creating jobs, increasing tax revenue, and contributing to vibrant, resilient communities.  Included in the program, several Washington County businesses and non-profits.  Among those receiving funding:  Attollo Medical Development: $2 million to support construction and renovation of the Attollo Medical Institute at 1001 Corporate Drive, creating a new medical facility with updated clinical and patient care spaces.  Blueprints Community Welcome Center: $727,114 will fund demolition, site preparation, and construction of an expanded welcome center with offices, seating, kitchenette, restrooms, and improved programming space.  Lemoyne Center Expansion: $408,242 will add a new classroom, entryway, administrative offices, and restrooms to expand youth programming capacity and improve safety and access control.  WJC Lazear Hall: $1.25 million will convert Lazear Hall at Washington & Jefferson College into a modern nursing education facility.

ATLANTA (AP) — Federal health officials have identified lettuce from Mexico served by Taco Bell locations across five U.S. states as a source of the widespread outbreak of diarrhea-causing parasite cyclospora. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention late Thursday confirmed the source and warned consumers not to eat shredded iceberg lettuce from Taco Bell restaurants in Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and West Virginia. Officials have identified a single supplier of the lettuce. The federal warnings to consumers did not identify the company, but a federal official who was briefed on the investigation and not authorized to discuss it told The Associated Press it was Taylor Farms of Salinas, California. Taylor Farms didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The United States has expanded its airstrike campaign against Iran by hitting more bridges and collapsing a tower at a key Iranian port. The latest strikes early Friday are part of U.S. President Donald Trump’s threats to start striking infrastructure to pressure Tehran to ease its chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz. Iran also launched new missile attacks against U.S.-allied nations in the Middle East, including Qatar, a key mediator in the war. The interim ceasefire agreed to last month has collapsed, and the region has endured days of back-and-forth attacks by the U.S. and Iran as they battle for control of the strait. Iran reported new casualties in Friday’s strikes.

To air or not to air? The nation’s TV networks and their news operations spent the hours leading up to President Donald Trump’s address Thursday night debating how to cover it. They were struggling to balance delivering the news with handing over their airwaves to potential falsehoods about the 2020 elections. The dilemma took place against a backdrop of deep tension between the media and a president working to exert control over it by whatever means he can. Even in his speech itself, Trump excoriated networks that chose not to carry it live. He said “NBC and ABC fake news” avoided it and threatened consequences, using the presidential pulpit to suggest they should be sanctioned for their editorial decisions.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. Treasury last year swelled with revenue from President Donald Trump’s double-digit taxes on imports from almost every country on earth. But the money dried up after the Supreme Court struck down the biggest and boldest of Trump’s tariffs in February. The question now is: Can the president’s trade team make good on its promise to replace the lost revenue? A July 24 deadline is approaching rapidly. But trade attorneys and analysts are confident the tariff-happy Trump administration will manage to beat the clock. “They’re going to raise the tariff wall again,’’ said one trade lawyer.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche has met with accusers of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein following the demand of a Republican senator whose support is crucial to his nomination to lead the Justice Department. Blanche met for about an hour Thursday with a group of Epstein’s accusers at Justice Department headquarters in Washington. After the meeting, he told reporters that he encouraged the accusers to come to the FBI with any information that could help investigators. “It wasn’t all cordial,” Blanche said. One accuser called it a “mere ‘check-the-box’ exercise intended to secure votes for his confirmation.”

ATLANTA (AP) — The White House says President Donald Trump’s teleprompter operator is on unpaid leave after reports that he used his inside knowledge to make bets about the president’s speeches on the online prediction market Kalshi. The firm’s enforcement chief said Kalshi contacted federal regulators about bets allegedly made about what Trump would say in speeches. ABC News first reported Thursday that Gabriel Perez used his inside knowledge to win more than $100,000 betting on what the president would say in addresses like the State of the Union speech earlier this year. Perez has been operating Trump’s teleprompter since 2016.

NEW YORK (AP) — President Donald Trump’s media company is planning to charge for special high-speed access to Truth Social posts, including possibly his own affecting national security and financial markets. The move announced Thursday would allow Wall Street trading firms and other institutions to get news from Truth Social contributors in milliseconds so they can make quick profits off moves in stocks, bonds and interest rates. Called Truth PSI, it would be similar to paid access at other platforms with the difference that the most popular poster is the president himself. The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment about whether this is profiting off his office.

SHANGHAI (AP) — Chinese President Xi Jinping has called for more global cooperation in the development and governance of artificial intelligence, while promising support for other countries. Speaking at a conference in Shanghai, he reiterated China’s objections to what he called the “overstretching” of national security concerns. Xi said AI should not be dominated by any single nation. American-led restrictions have blocked China from accessing some of the world’s most advanced technologies, intensifying the rivalry between the world’s two biggest economies. China plans to provide 5,000 AI training opportunities to developing countries over the next five years. Xi also announced the establishment of AI cooperation centers with various organizations in the developing world.

LONDON (AP) — Andy Burnham is about to become Britain’s 59th prime minister, following the sudden downfall of Labour Prime Minister Keir Starmer. Burnham has risen through a mix of patience and risk-taking. A decade ago, he left a 20-year climb up the Labour Party ladder to run for mayor of Greater Manchester. He returned to Parliament a month ago by winning a risky special election. Known for his “Manchesterism” approach, he promises to apply a “place before politics” strategy to running the country. Critics question his experience, but supporters highlight his persuasive storytelling, empathy and determination.