October 3, 2025 2:21 am
People are wondering when something might happen with the demolition of Courthouse Square. After the County Commissioner’s voting meeting, Commissioner Chairman Nick Sherman provided an update. Sherman says that there is a lot of activity on site. He points to EPA regulations that govern the demolition. He said that internal hand work is in the completion stage. Asbestos mitigation, precious metals removal and porcelain removal all should be completed in approximately one month. After that, a crew from Adamo Demolition Company of Detroit, Michigan will come in to tear down the building. Sherman says the process is a robotic process that will employ a robot pulling the demolition debris into the elevator shafts and using conveyor belts to take it to transport vehicles. He says that once the robots are in place, that process will take about a month. Once the demolition is complete, the county will begin construction on the new public safety building. It will be a three story structure that houses the 9-1-1 dispatch center, the sheriff’s office and a booking center.
October 3, 2025 12:52 am
Washington City Council worked on issues on polar opposite sides of daily business at their voting meeting. Council approved the final land development plan for the Washington County Public Safety Building. They also added 15 homes to the demolition list to be torn down in 2026. Councilman Joe Pintola announced that PennDot will be replacing and synchronizing traffic and crossing signals in the spring along Maiden Street and Jefferson Avenue. Councilman Andrew Callan is warning residents that the city is aware of a larger than usual amount of ticks at Washington Park. He says that they are currently working with an exterminator to effectively solve the problem. Councilman Joe DeThomas reports that if a resident finds a dead dear that was not hit by a car to report it to the Pennsylvania Game Commission. The commission is concerned with a deer disease called Epizootic Hemorrhagic Disease or EHD. He says that the disease is severely affecting and killing deer in southeastern Ohio and the game commission there is considering cancelling deer hunting season there. The Pennsylvania Game Commission is monitoring the disease closely. If you find a dead deer call the game commission at 1-833-PGC-Wild.
October 2, 2025 7:40 am
LONDON (AP) — Police have reported that two people were killed and three others were seriously injured in a synagogue attack in northern England. Greater Manchester Police believe the suspect is also dead. The incident occurred on Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar. Police bomb experts are investigating whether the attacker had an explosive device. The attack involved a car being driven at members of the public and a man being stabbed. Prime Minister Keir Starmer expressed his horror at the attack and announced additional police deployment at synagogues across the U.K.
October 2, 2025 5:02 am
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Florida has seen a significant increase in immigration, with thousands of migrants arriving under former President Joe Biden. Government data obtained by The Associated Press shows that no state was more affected by the immigrant surge under Biden. Florida had 1,271 migrants who arrived from May 2023 to January 2025 for every 100,000 residents, followed by New York, California, Texas and Illinois. Many immigrants have settled in areas like Orlando, drawn by the Latino community and job opportunities. The influx has boosted Florida’s economy, with immigrants contributing to various sectors. However, with President Donald Trump’s immigration policies, many now fear detention. Community organizations have expanded to support the growing immigrant population.
October 2, 2025 5:00 am
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Attorney General Pam Bondi and White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller have converged on Memphis, Tennessee, to meet with federal agents forming a crime fighting task force there. Bondi says via social media that the Memphis Safe Task Force made more than 50 arrests over a two-day period. The agents include personnel from immigration and drug enforcement. They have begun serving criminal arrest warrants while teaming with state agencies on traffic stops. Bondi says more than 200 officers have been deputized. The Tennessee National Guard is also supposed to begin working with Memphis Police, although it is unclear how soon that will happen.
October 2, 2025 4:59 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump has seized on the government shutdown as an opportunity to reshape the federal workforce and punish detractors. The administration is threatening mass firings of workers and suggesting “irreversible” cuts to programs and services important to Democrats. The aggressive approach coming from the Trump administration is on par with what certain lawmakers and budget observers feared if Congress failed to do its work and relinquished control to the White House. Thursday is day two of the shutdown, and Congress is at a standstill. Democrats are demanding any bill to reopen government save health care funds. Republicans say they’re willing to have talks about health care, but not now.
October 2, 2025 4:55 am
A former Democratic member of the U.S. Surface Transportation Board has filed a lawsuit challenging his dismissal by President Donald Trump. Robert Primus claims his firing on Aug. 27 was illegal and threatens the board’s independence. The White House has not responded to the lawsuit, which was filed Tuesday. Primus was dismissed just before the board was to consider Union Pacific’s proposed $85 billion acquisition of Norfolk Southern. Critics argue that Trump’s actions undermine the board’s independence. Primus, who served since 2001, was the only member to oppose a previous major railroad merger.
October 2, 2025 4:51 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Federal transportation officials want Philadelphia’s mass transit agency to shelve an electric railcar model that’s heavily used in its regional rail fleet until it figures out how to stop them from catching fire. The recommendation from the National Transportation Safety Board came this week after it investigated five fires this year involving aging Silverliner IV passenger railcars. The NTSB says the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority should fast-track replacement of the cars or retrofit them to meet modern safety standards. All five fires forced evacuations and a few minor injuries were reported. The transit agency also known as SEPTA didn’t immediately respond to questions about the recommendations.
October 2, 2025 4:47 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House is asking nine major universities to commit to President Donald Trump’s political priorities in exchange for more favorable access to federal money. A document sent to the universities encourages them to adopt the White House’s vision for America’s campuses. Schools are asked to accept the government’s priorities on admissions, women’s sports, free speech, student discipline and college affordability, among other topics. The schools are Vanderbilt, the University of Pennsylvania, Dartmouth College, the University of Southern California, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the University of Texas, the University of Arizona, Brown University and the University of Virginia. It’s not clear how or why they were selected.
October 2, 2025 4:47 am
A Warrant has been issued for the arrest of a Clairton man charged with assaulting and threatening a woman. Peters Township Police they were called to the 200 block of Settlers Court Monday evening. Jennifer Schlata claims 28 year old Ryan Williams was gathering his personal belongings when he dumped bleach on her, pulled the back of her shirt, making it difficult for her to breath and grabbed a kitchen knife threatening her life. Williams is also accused of destroying a laptop, furniture and a watch. He is charged with felony counts of aggravated assault, strangulation and criminal mischief. He also faces other misdemeanor charges.
