August 4, 2024 7:00 am
PITTSBURGH – Iconic rock band Aerosmith has announced their retirement from touring. The band formed in 1970 and began its farewell tour in 2023. Lead singer Steven Tyler, 76, suffered a vocal cord injury and the remaining dates were originally postponed to September 2024 so that he could recover. On Friday, the band announced that a full recovery is unlikely despite Tyler’s best efforts.” As you know, Steven’s voice is an instrument like no other. He has spent months tirelessly working on getting his voice to where it was before his injury. We’ve seen him struggling despite having the best medical team by his side. Sadly, it is clear, that a full recovery from his vocal injury is not possible. We have made a heartbreaking and difficult, but necessary, decision – as a band of brothers – to retire from the touring stage,” a Facebook post reads. The band was scheduled to perform in Pittsburgh on Sept. 20. Automatic refunds will be made through Ticketmaster. People who purchased on a third-party resale site should reach out to the point of purchase for more details. (Photo: AP)
August 2, 2024 2:45 pm
WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President Kamala Harris says she’s “honored” to be the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee. Democratic National Committee Chair Jaime Harrison said Friday that Harris had secured enough votes from delegates to become the party’s nominee. The online voting process doesn’t end until Monday, but the campaign marked the moment Friday when she crossed the threshold to have the majority of delegates’ votes. Harris is poised to be the first woman of color at the top of a major party’s ticket. The Democratic Party’s convention in Chicago begins Aug. 19. Harris was endorsed by President Joe Biden after he left the race, catapulting her to the forefront of the campaign to beat Republican Donald Trump.
August 2, 2024 8:43 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – U.S. hiring decelerated sharply last month in the face of high interest rates as employers added a weak 114,000 jobs. Friday’s Labor Department report showed a drop from the 179,000 jobs created in June. Forecasters had expected to see 175,000 jobs in July. The unemployment rate rose to 4.3%. The economy has proven unexpectedly sturdy in the face of the Federal Reserve’s campaign to tame inflation with high interest rates. The Fed raised its benchmark rate 11 times in 2022 and 2023, taking it to a 23-year high. But the higher borrowing costs appear to be taking a toll.
August 2, 2024 4:57 am
City council is coming up with some creative accounting to help ease the pension burden. Council approved a motion to dismiss the advertising for the “distressed pension act”. City Councilman Ken Westcott says the move is necessary to help offset the increasing expense of pensions and will allow the city to pay approximately 1.3 million in pension taxes as opposed to the original tax that would cost about 2.3 million. Also, earlier this year, the city refinanced bonds to help offset rising costs and give themselves enough money to cover pension debt for the next 3 years. There is new pavement on the way for the 7th ward playground. City council approved $76,482.00 dollars in improvements to the park located at 2nd and Donnan Aves. Upgrades will include paved basketball courts and playgrounds, and a walking trail. The project has been stalled for almost 2 years and they hope to complete most of the work by the end of 2024. Crews are gearing up to start working on some local roadways. Thanks to approval from city council for a new $245,639.00 dollar paving project, workers will begin laying new asphalt on city streets in the coming weeks. Currently, teams have been focusing on smaller roads as they await the return of their street sweeper which is being repaired. Once the sweeper is back, work will turn to paving larger roads, such as East Chestnut St. near Main St., McCarrell Ave., Allison Ave. and Grove Ave.
August 2, 2024 5:01 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — The United States and Russia have completed a 24-person prisoner swap, the largest in post-Soviet history, with Moscow releasing journalist Evan Gershkovich and fellow American Paul Whelan in a multinational deal that set some two dozen people free. Three freed Americans arrived at an Air Force Base outside Washington late at night to an emotional welcome from their families, President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris. Thursday’s exchange follows a December 2022 trade that brought WNBA star Brittney Griner back to the U.S. in exchange for notorious arms trafficker Viktor Bout. Russia meanwhile secured the freedom of its own nationals convicted of serious crimes in the West.
August 2, 2024 2:35 am
The Board of Directors of the Washington County Agricultural Fair held their annual Media Day to let the public know what is new coming to the event this year. The fair runs from August 10 – 17 from 9:00 AM to 11:00 PM daily. Board President Todd Richards says that the opening concert will be replaced by a rodeo this year. He said public opinion has consistently indicated that fairgoers would like to see the rodeo. This year there will be two Buckey Rodeo events scheduled for Sunday August 11 at 2:00 PM and 7:00 PM. There will still be concerts throughout the fair. Groups include A. C. and the Resistors, Good Karma, Scott Blasey from the Clarks, Ruff Creek and Joey Adams. Several renovations have gone on over the past year. Wayne Hunnell, Secretary of the Board says that Hall Three was completely gutted and renovated. The Historic Horse Barn and the 4-H Horse barn also saw extensive work. Volunteers always play an important part in fairground renovations. Aiden McMurray, a local Boy Scout, Eagle Scout replaced the fencing along the race track for his Eagle Scout project. Parking is also important. Scott Becker, Executive Director and CEO of the Pennsylvania Trolley Museum says that they will be transporting fair-goers from three different parking lots. The first is at the Eaton Facility on Main Street. The second is from the Welcome and Education Center at 1 Electric Way and finally from their West Campus parking lot at 1 Museum Road.
August 2, 2024 2:42 am
Washington County Register of Wills, James Roman, says that on Monday, August 5th, the Register of Wills office will be moved to the 4th floor of the Crossroads buildings in downtown Washington. The new address for the Register of Wills office will be 95 West Beau Street, Suite 425, Washington, PA 15301. Roman says the office will continue to be open from 8:30 a.m. until 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. He says they will continue working in the Courthouse Square building through Friday, August 2 at 4:30 p.m.
August 2, 2024 2:23 am
Washington County District Attorney Jason Walsh announced on Thursday that a North Strabane Township man, found guilty last month of murdering his wife, will spend the rest of his life behind bars. Jason Walsh says Scott Edmonds, a physical therapist who was charged and convicted of killing his 49-year-old wife, Louise Weis-Edmonds in March of 2014, was sentenced by Washington County Judge John DiSalle, to life without the possibility of parole on the first-degree murder conviction, plus one to two years in a state prison on the second charge. A jury deliberated just over an hour, before finding Edmonds guilty of first-degree murder and tampering with or fabricating physical evidence. Edmonds trial lasted for five days.
August 2, 2024 5:03 am
Few Americans have high confidence in the Secret Service’s ability to keep presidential candidates safe after last month’s attempt on Donald Trump’s life. That’s according to a new poll from the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. Only around three in 10 Americans are extremely or very confident that the Secret Service can keep the presidential candidates safe from violence before the election. The law enforcement agency tasked with protecting presidents for more than a century is under intense scrutiny after a gunman got within 150 yards of Trump and fired several bullets from an AR-style rifle.
August 2, 2024 5:07 am
SAN DIEGO (AP) — U.S. arrests for illegally crossing the border from Mexico during July have plummeted to a new low for Joe Biden’s presidency, raising prospects a temporary ban on asylum may be lifted soon. The Border Patrol is expected to arrest migrants 57,000 times during the month, down 30% from June and the lowest tally since September 2020, when the coronavirus pandemic slowed movement across borders. Two Customs and Border Protection officials provided numbers to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the numbers hadn’t been publicly disclosed. San Diego was the busiest corridor for illegal crossings in July.
