June 30, 2026 2:29 am
A heat wave will blast the eastern United States, including Washington County this week. The National Weather Service says temperatures rising ahead of the July Fourth holiday will feel hotter because of the high humidity that’s arriving with it. The weather service says several days of high temperatures will settle in across the lower Great Lakes, the mid-Atlantic and the Mississippi and Ohio River valleys. That’s expected to last into next weekend across the Great Plains, Southeast and mid-Atlantic. Temperatures will reach well into the 90s and low 100 degrees F. Some cities could see their highest temperatures of the year so far as they host World Cup matches and celebrations for America’s 250th anniversary.
June 30, 2026 2:39 am
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.
June 30, 2026 2:53 am
Gas prices are 10 cents lower in Western Pennsylvania this week at $4.231 per gallon, according to AAA East Central’s Gas Price Report. Motorists are continuing to see relief at the pump as the national gas price average declines for the fifth consecutive week. Today’s national average is six cents less than last week at $3.86 per gallon. Crude oil prices have also continued to fall as the U.S. and Iran work toward a long-term deal. Despite lower prices, demand could rise as a record number of Americans prepare to travel for Independence Day weekend, with 85% planning to drive to their destinations. The current national average is 53 cents less than a month ago, but 58 cents more than a year ago. According to new data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA), gasoline demand decreased last week from 9.21 million barrels per day to 8.77 million. Total domestic gasoline supply increased from 214.2 million barrels to 216.3 million. Gasoline production decreased last week, averaging 9.5 million barrels per day.
June 30, 2026 4:52 am
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.
June 30, 2026 4:52 am
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.
June 30, 2026 4:50 am
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.
June 30, 2026 4:48 am
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.
June 29, 2026 5:49 pm
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. (Photo: AP)
June 29, 2026 5:03 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court says Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook can remain in her job for now, a rebuke to President Donald Trump’s bid to wrest control of the nation’s central bank. At the same time, the justices on Monday dramatically expanded presidential power, upholding the Republican president’s firings of the heads of other independent federal agencies. The court rejected a Trump administration plea to immediately remove Cook from the Fed based on allegations she committed mortgage fraud, which she denies. Cook was nominated to the Fed’s Board of Governors by then-President Joe Biden, a Democrat.
June 29, 2026 5:01 am
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — President Donald Trump says on social media that Iran had requested a meeting with U.S. counterparts, though Iranian officials said no such meeting was scheduled. The U.S. president has tried to preserve an increasingly fragile interim deal as hostilities have mounted in recent days in the Strait of Hormuz, a vital waterway for energy supplies. Monday marked the first time both sides appeared to pause after four days of trading attacks. Iran’s president says $6 billion in frozen Iranian assets would be released by Qatar, remarks apparently aimed at selling the Iranian public on the interim deal. So far, U.S. officials say no frozen Iranian assets have been released.
