April 9, 2021 4:10 am
Authorities in Fayette County say two forest fires that were burning in Ohiopyle State Park Thursday night are now under control. Officials with the state’s Forestry Bureau say firefighters battled the fires, which were burning at opposite ends of the park, for over 12 hours. They say the larger of the two fires is about 80% contained and the smaller fire was contained around midnight. Authorities say the first fire was discovered around 5 o’clock Thursday afternoon, near Dunbar Road. The second, larger fire, was reported near Victoria Flats and Rock Spring Road and was estimated to cover more than two-hundred acres. Officials say no one was hurt, and no homes were threatened because the fires were in a remote area of the park. (Photo: Frogs To Flowers Photography/WPXI)
April 9, 2021 4:03 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – After a year of frustration over long waits for benefits, jammed phone lines and confusing filing procedures, Pennsylvania’s Department of Labor and Industry is promising a much quicker and easier unemployment compensation claims filing system. The new system scheduled to launch June 8 is based on what the department said Thursday is modern software to replace an “obsolete 40-year-old mainframe legacy system.” It arrives after a series of bungled efforts to replace the system began in 2006. Pandemic-related shutdowns starting last spring stressed the system like never before, as claims shot to record levels and swamped a barebones staff forced to work remotely.
April 9, 2021 3:37 am
(WPXI) – He started working as an usher, escorting Pittsburgh Pirates fans to their seats, during the Great Depression. For more than eight decades and 14 presidential administrations, Phil Coyne was a staple of games at Forbes Field, then Three Rivers Stadium and finally PNC Park, before retiring in 2018 at the age of 99. Coyne, 102, died Friday morning, according to family members. He started ushering in 1936, the same year the Baseball Hall of Fame inducted player Babe Ruth. Coyne was well-known inside and outside the ballpark, and many affectionately referred to him as “Philly.” When he retired, after his 81st season, the City Council honored him by naming Aug. 29 “Phil Coyne Day” in Pittsburgh. When Coyne retired, Pirates management said he never missed a day of work. “Phil was and always will be a true Pirates legend. He was a hard-working, passionate family man who proudly served our country as a member of the United States Army during World War II,” said Pirates Chairman Bob Nutting. “Phil was so much more than an usher to us and our fans. As a testament to his life of service to the game of baseball, his Pirates uniform and identification badge remain on permanent display at the National Baseball Hall-of-Fame.”
April 8, 2021 5:39 pm
CINCINNATI (AP) – Police in Cincinnati are on the lookout for monkeys, some last seen swinging in trees in a cemetery. Police say there are as many as five monkeys on the loose, suspected to be from a private owner. Officers responded Wednesday night to the Saint Joseph’s Cemetery in a west-side neighborhood after residents reported monkey sightings. WXIX-TV reports police plan to resume searching Thursday and have reached out to the Cincinnati Zoo for help.
April 8, 2021 10:22 am
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) – The gunman who killed five people including a prominent doctor in South Carolina was former NFL pro Phillip Adams, who killed himself early Thursday, according to a source who was briefed on the investigation. The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to speak publicly, said Adams’ parents live near the doctor’s home in Rock Hill, and that he had been treated by the doctor. The source said Phillips killed himself after midnight with a .45 caliber weapon. The victims included Dr. Robert Lesslie, his wife Barbara, their grandchildren Adah and Noah, and a man working outside, James Lewis.
April 8, 2021 9:35 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits rose last week to 744,000, signaling that many employers are still cutting jobs even as more people are vaccinated against COVID-19, consumers gain confidence and the government distributes aid throughout the economy. The Labor Department said Thursday that applications increased by 16,000 from 728,000 a week earlier. Jobless claims have declined sharply since the virus slammed into the economy in March of last year. But they remain high by historical standards: Before the pandemic erupted, weekly applications typically remained below 220,000 a week.
April 8, 2021 4:15 am
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) – Virginia has become the first Southern state to legalize marijuana. Lawmakers voted Wednesday to approve Gov. Ralph Northam’s proposed changes to a bill to allow adults in Virginia to possess and cultivate small amounts starting in July. Northam sent the bill back to lawmakers substantially changed from the version they sent him in February. The amendments lawmakers agreed to Wednesday would accelerate the timeline of legalization by about three years. It will be years before legal retail sales follow legalized possession. The legislation lays out a complex process of creating a new state agency to oversee the marijuana marketplace, with sales beginning in 2024.
April 8, 2021 4:12 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – President Joe Biden appears ready to let lapse a May 1 deadline for completing a withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan. Orderly withdrawals take time, and Biden is running out of it. Biden has inched so close to the deadline that his indecision amounts almost to a decision to put off a pullout of the remaining 2,500 troops and to continue supporting the Afghan military. Biden suggested in late March it would be difficult logistically to remove all troops in the next three weeks – along with the coalition partners who can’t function separately.
April 8, 2021 4:11 am
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – A use-of-force expert says Derek Chauvin had his knee on George Floyd’s neck area the entire time that he was handcuffed behind his back and lying facedown. Jody Stiger is a Los Angeles Police Department sergeant serving as a prosecution witness. He testified Wednesday that his review of video evidence found that Chauvin’s weight was on Floyd from the time officers put Floyd on the ground until paramedics arrived – about 9 1/2 minutes, by prosecutors’ reckoning. Stiger also says bystanders didn’t appear to be a threat to police. Chauvin’s attorney has suggested officers were distracted by angry onlookers.
April 8, 2021 4:08 am
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) – Transgender females in West Virginia would be banned from competing in female sports in middle and high schools and colleges under a bill that narrowly won state Senate approval Thursday. After 90 minutes of passionate debate, the Senate passed the bill on an 18-15 vote. It now heads back to the House of Delegates to address Senate changes with only a few days left in the regular legislative session. Senate Education Committee chairwoman Patricia Rucker says the Senate bill is intended for the safety and protection of biological female athletes. Opponents have labeled it discriminatory and another reason for young people to leave the state.
