April 2, 2025 4:57 am
Several animals including pigs and chickens died in an early morning fire in East Finley Townhip. Washington County 911 says the fire broke out just after 2 a.m. at a barn in the 100-block of Dunham Road. Dispatchers say the building housed equipment and some animals. No injuries were reported. There is no word on the cause of the fire.
April 2, 2025 4:44 am
PITTSBURGH — You will need back up plans for any outdoor activities over the next several days. Rain will be ongoing for much of the area much of the morning with some stronger storms possible. Gusty winds and hail will be possible with the strongest storms Thursday morning. There will be some dry hours before the next wave of rain moves in late in the day and Thursday night. The heaviest rain Thursday night will be south of Pittsburgh. Rain will taper off Friday morning giving us several dry hours Friday afternoon. The next wave of rain moves in Friday night with on and off showers and storms Saturday. Many areas this weekend will pick up an additional one to two inches of rain.
April 2, 2025 2:51 am
The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation partnered with the Highway Safety Network and State Farm to announce on Tuesday that Bentworth High School is the winner of the 2025 “No Excuses” Distracted Driving Billboard Design Contest. The State Farm sponsored contest was open to all high school students in Washington, Westmoreland, Fayette, and Greene counties. Students from seven local schools submitted 13 designs for judging. The first-place winner is from Bentworth High School (Washington County) and will receive $1,000; Bentworth High School will also receive $1,000. The second-place winner is from Greater Latrobe Senior High School (Westmoreland County) and will receive $500; Greater Latrobe Senior High School will also receive $500. The third-place winner is from Northern Westmoreland Career and Technology Center (Westmoreland County) and will receive $250; Northern Westmoreland Career and Technology Center will also receive $250. The winning design will be viewed by motorists on a billboard near Bentworth High School throughout the month of April. The second and third place winners will also be presented their prizes in April. April is National Distracted Driving Awareness Month. According to PennDOT data, there were 11,225 crashes in Pennsylvania involving a distracted driver in 2023, resulting in 65 deaths.
April 2, 2025 2:40 am
A coroner’s inquest into the death of an Avella man has been put on hold. The inquest concerns the death of Mark Michael Miller, 45 who died after he crashed his vehicle during a police pursuit in Mt. Pleasant Township a year ago. The hearing was delayed for a half hour while the solicitor for the coroner and attorneys for Mt. Pleasant Township and its police officers were in front of Judge Gary Gilman, trying to have paperwork related to the accident released by Mt. Pleasant Township police. Officers and that paperwork had been subpoenaed several times prior to the hearing and police have yet to release the paperwork. The officers involved in the pursuit were present to testify. The continued non compliance to the subpoena for the paperwork caused the inquest to be postponed. A hearing concerning the subpoenaed paperwork will be held in front of Judge Gilman on Friday at 9:00 am.
April 2, 2025 2:39 am
Washington County Commissioners will meet Thursday and take action on several issues that have been on the minds of residents. One item is the money spent on the recent Real Estate Expo held last month that included a $30,000 payment to TV personality Hilary Farr. Commissioners will set up a custodial account that will be audited quarterly by the controller’s office. Controller Heather Sheatler had requested information regarding the monies spent surrounding the event. During the meeting it was announced that the equipment that was purchased by the county for the previous emergency radio system has now been released to the county. According to Purchasing Director Randy Vankirk, the $4.8 million in equipment may now be used on the current system and any other unused items will be sold to other organizations in need of that equipment. Vankirk says that except for a possible 10% restocking fee, all monies will be recouped by the county.
April 1, 2025 5:52 pm
(AP) – Hooters is going bust. The U.S. restaurant chain, known for chicken wings and its skimpy “Hooters Girls” wait-staff outfits, has filed for bankruptcy protection. HOA Restaurant Group filed the motion for Chapter 11 protection Monday. Under the bankruptcy plan, Hooters will sell its 100 company-owned U.S. restaurants to a group of Hooters franchisees. Hooters is the latest legacy chain to run into financial trouble amid high food and labor price, growing competition and changing customer tastes. Last year, Red Lobster and TGI Fridays both filed for bankruptcy, and the Tex-Mex chain On the Border filed for bankruptcy last month.
April 1, 2025 5:51 pm
MAPLE VALLEY, Calif. (AP) — Former NFL player Richard Sherman is the latest sports figure whose home has been burglarized. The Super Bowl champion posted pictures and a video on social media asking if anyone recognized three armed intruders that broke into his house last weekend. Sherman was a three-time All-Pro and five-time Pro Bowl defensive back from 2011 to 2021 with Seattle, San Francisco and Tampa Bay. He helped the Seahawks win the Super Bowl in 2014. The FBI has warned sports leagues about crime organizations targeting professional athletes following a string of burglaries at the homes of prominent players.
April 1, 2025 5:50 pm
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump says his tariff announcements slated for Wednesday will amount to a “Liberation Day” for the United States. But American businesses and financial markets are unlikely to be freed from the uncertainty generated by his often stop-and-go trade policy. Some big questions will be resolved when Trump announces what are expected to be reciprocal tariffs that involve raising U.S. import duties to be equal to the levies that other countries impose on U.S. goods. Economists say questions will swirl around trade and tariffs for months to come.
April 1, 2025 5:12 am
Employees across the massive U.S. Department of Health and Human Services have begun receiving notices of dismissal in a major overhaul expected to ultimately lay off up to 10,000 people. The notices came Tuesday just days after President Donald Trump moved to strip workers of their collective bargaining rights at HHS and other agencies throughout the government. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s announced a plan last week to remake HHS, which, through its agencies, is responsible for tracking health trends and disease outbreaks, conducting and funding medical research, monitoring the safety of food and medicine, and administering health insurance programs for nearly half of the country.
April 1, 2025 5:11 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — Harvard University has become the latest target in the Trump administration’s approach to fight campus antisemitism. The federal government said Monday it is reviewing billions of dollars in grants and contracts with the Ivy League college, saying it will ensure the school is following civil rights laws. A federal antisemitism task force is reviewing more than $255 million in contracts and $8.7 billion in grant commitments. The same task force cut $400 million from Columbia University and threatened to slash billions more if it refused a list of demands from President Donald Trump’s administration. Columbia agreed to many of the changes this month.
