October 4, 2020 6:54 am
WASHINGTON, Pa. — The founder of a major Washington County business has passed away this week. According to reports, John Chapman, 97, died on Tuesday. Chapman was known for founding the Chapman Corporation, which is headquartered in Washington. In 1949, he started Chapman Wiring, Plumbing and Heating in Hackett, and expanded it in 1951-53 when he built a shop and an additional garage. In 1958, he moved the business to the corner of Hall and Jefferson avenues in Washington. Mr. Chapman established Baldwin Electric in 1959. During 1971, the business changed its name to Chapman Corporation and built a new building on East Beau Street. In 1983, Chapman Corporation purchased the old Brockway Glass Plant on South Main Street, which still houses Chapman Corporation. All funeral services for Chapman are private.
October 4, 2020 4:06 am
WASHINGTON, Pa. — Area crews were busy early Saturday morning with a commercial structure fire that broke out in the City of Washington. Reports say the call for heavy smoke came in just after midnight on the 300 block of East Maiden Street. Washington City Fire Department was the first on scene to see the smoke billowing and flames showing from Maiden Street Subs, which is in a plaza along with the Uni-Mart and other stores. Washington County 911 reportedly called in the Rapid Intervention Units from North Strabane and Peters Township, as well as South Strabane, Chartiers, North Franklin and Canton Township Fire Departments to assist with the incident. All city stations were on call as well as crews controlled the flames. According to authorities, it took about 45 minutes to get the fire under control. Washington County 911 reportedly called in the fire marshal to the scene. Crews cleared the whole plaza and finished cleanup around 3:30 a.m. In a post on social media, Maiden Street Subs says they will be closed until further notice due to the fire damage. The store will share updates on re-opening via Facebook when plans are in place.
October 3, 2020 4:20 am
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) – A space station cargo ship is chasing after the International Space Station with a special food delivery. Northrop Grumman launched the shipment Friday night from Virginia. Stashed aboard the Cygnus capsule are radish seeds for growing and a smorgasbord of fancy meats and cheeses for feasting. The delicacies include prosciutto, Genoa salami, Gouda and brie cheeses, and chocolate-covered cranberries in plenty of time for Thanksgiving. A new $23 million titanium toilet is also flying, along with a 360-degree virtual reality camera and tanks of air to help offset a small station leak. The delivery should arrive Monday.
October 3, 2020 4:19 am
LOS ANGELES (AP) – Prosecutors say Harvey Weinstein has been charged with the rapes of two more women in Los Angeles County. The district attorney’s office said Friday that Weinstein faces three new counts of rape and three new counts of forcible oral copulation involving two women. Authorities say the incidents occurred between 2004 and 2010 and took place at a hotel in Beverly Hills. The new charges mean Weinstein is now charged with 11 felony counts in California, involving five women. The 68-year-old ex-movie mogul is serving a 23-year prison sentence in New York. A Weinstein spokesman declined comment on the new charges.
October 3, 2020 4:17 am
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) – Expected powerful winds didn’t materialize, allowing fire crews a chance to make some gains against a blaze in California’s wine country. But fire officials say winds of up to 30 mph (48 kph) are forecast to push through the hills of Napa and Sonoma counties into Saturday. The Glass Fire, which exploded in size earlier in the week, is threatening more than 28,000 homes and other buildings. Officials also say the death toll increased to 31 people after a person burned in a fire sparked by lightning in mid-August died from their injuries.
October 3, 2020 4:17 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – Two Republican members of the Senate Judiciary Committee have tested positive for the coronavirus. The positive tests raise questions about upcoming Supreme Court confirmation hearings for Judge Amy Coney Barrett. North Carolina Sen. Thom Tillis and Utah Sen. Mike Lee both said Friday that they had tested positive for the virus. Both attended a ceremony for Barrett at the White House on Sept. 25 with President Donald Trump, who announced Friday that he had tested positive and was later hospitalized at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell vowed the confirmation process is going “full steam ahead” despite the outbreak.
October 3, 2020 4:15 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – President Donald Trump’s campaign manager, Bill Stepien, has tested positive for the coronavirus. Campaign spokesman Tim Murtaugh has confirmed the news, which was first reported by Politico. Politico said Stepien received his diagnosis Friday and is experiencing “mild flu-like symptoms.” Ronna McDaniel, the chairwoman of the Republican National Committee, also announced Friday that she had tested positive, joining Trump, the first lady, top Trump aide Hope Hicks and numerous others. Stepien, who joined Trump at Tuesday’s first presidential debate, plans to quarantine until he recovers.
October 3, 2020 4:14 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – Stricken by COVID-19, a feverish and fatigued President Donald Trump has been flown to a military hospital where he is being given Remdesivir therapy after being injected with an experimental drug combination in treatment at the White House. In a day of whipsaw events, the president had to rip up his reelection roadmap due to the virus that has killed more than 205,000 Americans, and others in his orbit tested positive as well. The White House said Trump’s expected stay of “a few days” at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center was precautionary and that he would continue to work from the hospital’s presidential suite, which is equipped to allow him to keep up his official duties. The experimental antibody drug given to President Donald Trump has been called one of the most promising approaches to preventing serious illness from a COVID-19 infection. Regeneron Pharmaceuticals said it gave a single dose of the drug under compassionate use provisions. Antibodies are proteins the body makes to help clear a virus. The drug is a concentrated version of two antibodies that worked best in lab tests. Trump was given the drug before he was take to a military hospital as a precaution.
October 3, 2020 4:08 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Gov. Tom Wolf is proposing a new government commission that would aim to slow the growth in health care spending and improve affordability by establishing an annual cost benchmark and holding large health providers and insurers accountable to it. The Health Value Commission would set a statewide target for the rate of growth in health spending, and require health care organizations that exceed the target to come up with a plan to bring costs under control. Officials say the commission would have the power to monitor compliance and levy fines. The proposal requires legislative approval. It’s unclear whether the Republican-controlled General Assembly will go along with it.
October 3, 2020 2:22 am
(AP) – A federal appeals court has temporarily restored Pennsylvania’s pandemic restrictions on indoor and outdoor gatherings, putting on hold a judge’s ruling that threw out statewide limits on crowd size. The 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Thursday said the administration of Gov. Tom Wolf may once again enforce size limits on gatherings while it appeals the lower court order. U.S. District Judge William Stickman IV in Pittsburgh, an appointee of President Donald Trump, had ruled against the state’s size limits on indoor and outdoor gatherings. Stickman’s Sept. 14 order prompted many Pennsylvania school districts to allow more fans in the stands at high school football games and other athletic contests.
