September 7, 2021 4:18 am
The resurgence of COVID-19 this summer and the national debate over vaccine requirements have created a fraught situation for the nation’s first responders, who are dying in larger numbers but pushing back against mandates. It’s a stark contrast from the beginning of the vaccine rollout when first responders were prioritized for shots. The mandates affect tens of thousands of police officers, firefighters and others on the front lines across the country, many of whom are spurning the vaccine. That is happening despite consequences that range from weekly testing to suspension to termination. The virus is now the leading cause of U.S. law enforcement line-of-duty deaths.
September 7, 2021 4:09 am
OAK HILL, W.Va. (AP) – Health officials say anyone who attended the Oak Leaf Festival in West Virginia should get tested for the coronavirus. Oak Hill City Manager Bill Hannabass told news outlets that the weekend festival in Oak Hill started Saturday, but most events scheduled for Sunday were canceled after some workers and volunteers tested positive for COVID-19. Fayette County health officials said in a statement on Sunday that anyone who attended Saturday’s events should consider themselves exposed and get tested. Hannabass said the city has put any future festival events on public property on hold until further notice.
September 6, 2021 4:31 am
OTTAWA, Ontario (AP) – U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken says that “people are not bargaining chips” and adds that the U.S. stands with Canada in calling for the release of two Canadians detained in China for 1,000 days. In a statement issued Sunday, Blinken says that “the practice of arbitrarily detaining individuals to exercise leverage over foreign governments is completely unacceptable.” Canadians Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor were detained in China in 2018 in what critics label “hostage politics” after Canada arrested the chief financial officer of Chinese tech giant Huawei on a U.S. extradition request. The arrest of Meng Wanzhou infuriated Beijing, which sees her case as a political move designed to prevent China’s rise.
September 6, 2021 4:30 am
A Florida sheriff says a man wearing full body armor fatally shot four people, including a mother and the 3-month-old baby she was cradling, and engaged in a massive gunfight with police and deputies before getting wounded and surrendering. An 11-year-old girl who was shot seven times survived. Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said Sunday that even after 33-year-old Bryan Riley was arrested, he was so aggressive he tried to wrestle a gun from police as he lay on his hospital gurney. Judd said Riley was a former Marine who seemed to have targeted his victims at random and appeared to be suffering from mental health issues.
September 6, 2021 4:29 am
CAIRO (AP) – Libyan officials say they have released one of Muammar Gadhafi’s sons after more than seven years of detention in the capital of Tripoli. Al-Saadi Gadhafi walked free Sunday from Tripoli’s al-Hadaba prison, where many Gadhafi regime officials are being held pending trial, mostly in connection to the crackdown on the 2011 uprising that toppled the longtime ruler and led to his killing. The country’s interim prime minister announced his release early Monday, saying the move was taken to comply with a previous court order. Al-Saadi Gadhafi had been smuggled across the desert to Niger in 2011 just as his father’s regime was crumbling. He was extradited to Libya in March 2014.
September 6, 2021 4:27 am
The Taliban say they have taken control of Panjshir province north of Kabul, the Afghan capital. The province was the last holdout of anti-Taliban forces in the country and the only province the Taliban had not seized during their sweep of Afghanistan last month. Thousands of Taliban fighters overran eight districts of Panjshir overnight, according to witnesses from the area. The anti-Taliban fighters had been led by the former vice president and the son of the iconic anti-Taliban fighter Ahmad Shah Massoud who was killed by a suicide bomber just days before the 9/11 terrorist attacks in the United States.
September 6, 2021 4:24 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Police say a wrong-way driver collided head-on with another car in a western Pennsylvania tunnel, critically injuring the other driver. State police in Pittsburgh say the vehicle entered Interstate 376 traveling west in the eastbound lanes shortly before 3 a.m. Sunday. Police said the car entered the Fort Pitt tunnel under Mount Washington, still traveling in the wrong direction, and collided head-on with another car. The 36-year-old driver of the other car was taken to a local hospital and listed in critical condition with multiple injuries. The other 21-year-old driver was uninjured.
September 6, 2021 4:21 am
PETERS TOWNSHIP, Pa. — Multiple people were taken to Pittsburgh-area hospitals following a motor vehicle accident with entrapment in Peters Township Sunday afternoon. Peters Township Fire confirmed the crash took place just after 2:00 p.m. on Waterdam Road. Crews closed the road between Galley Road and Sherwood Drive to investigate and clean up the scene. Officials say the fire department worked with the Peters Township Police and Tri-Community South EMS to extricate the victims. Waterdam Road reopened just before 5:30 p.m. The initial cause of the accident or identities of those involved are not known at this time. The crash is still under investigation by Peters Township Police.
September 6, 2021 4:13 am
CHARLEROI, Pa. — Multiple crews were called to the scene of a structure fire Sunday night in Charleroi. Fire personnel confirmed the fire call came in around 10:00 p.m. on the 900 block of McKean Avenue. Crews reportedly tried to quickly control of the blaze, and as firefighters made it to the second floor, some of the roof came down which caused an evacuation of the building. Officials say a married couple living on the second floor of the old building got out safely. One firefighter was injured after hurting her knee, and she was taken to an area hospital for treatment according to reports. Charleroi Fire Department says crews were on scene for about three hours to get the fire under control. Assisting Charleroi on scene included Lock #4, Fallowfield Township, Stockdale, Monessen, Carroll Township, Roscoe and North Belle Vernon. Crews are still investigating the cause of the fire. (Photo: Charleroi Fire Dept. Facebook)
September 6, 2021 1:51 am
WASHINGTON, Pa. — A member of the Ellsworth Fire Department died Saturday after responding to an incident along State Route 136. The Washington County Coroner says Laron Holcomb, 73, was on the scene of a vehicle accident at the intersection of Route 136 and Morrison Lane just around 1:30 p.m. After leaving the scene, Holcomb returned home where he reportedly experienced shortness of breath. He was transported to the Washington Hospital, where he was pronounced dead just before 7:30 p.m. The cause of death is pending an autopsy, while the manner of death is still under investigation. Multiple area first responders took to social media to mourn the loss of Holcomb. (Photo: Ellsworth VFD)
