June 9, 2020 3:57 pm
Cedar Fair, the owners of Kings Island and Cedar Point amusement parks, announced the reopening dates and safety plans amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Kings Island, located in Mason, will reopen to season pass holders only July 2 through 11. Starting July 12, the park will be open to both season pass holders and daily ticketholders, the amusement park announced in a media release Tuesday morning. Cedar Point, in Sandusky, will follow a similar reopening plan, with the park opening up for only for pass holders, including the season, gold and platinum levels, July 9 and 10. Starting July 11, the park will be open for Cedar Point Resort guests, as well as the pass holders. In an effort to maintain a limited capacity, both parks are requiring guests to schedule a reservation through an app prior to their visit. A guest will also be required to submit to a health screening through the app 24 hours prior to visiting either park. Touchless temperature checks will be conducted for both guests and employees before they enter the park. Face coverings will be required at all times at both parks for guests, employees, and vendors.
June 9, 2020 1:47 pm
WASHINGTON (AP) – President Donald Trump is pressing his “law and order” message and siding with police over protesters by advancing an unfounded conspiracy theory about a 75-year-old protester in New York who was pushed down by officers. He’s tweeting without evidence that the confrontation may have been a “set up.” Trump is attempting to cast doubt on video showing Buffalo police shoving the man, Martin Gugino, who fell backward and hit his head on the sidewalk. Two Buffalo police officers have been charged with assault for the incident and have pleaded not guilty.
June 9, 2020 4:29 am
As Western Pennsylvania entered the green phase of reopening last week, Peters Township took steps to get its residents the recreational activities they have been missing for nearly three months. Township Manager Paul Lauer alerted Peters Twp. Council that all parks, playgrounds and athletic fields are now open and girls softball and boys baseball leagues are now back to playing games. The library is taking its reopening in phases. Books are being recycled using curbside pickup and delivery currently but beginning next week the library will be opening the building section by section so that in about four weeks the library will be in full operation once again. Lauer credited Parks and Recreation Director Michele Harmel for researching methods to be able to keep the popular Concert In The Park and Movies In The Park series for the year. Dedicated circles will be applied to the ground to allow families to gather together and still maintain the social distancing guidelines suggested by the CDC and Pennsylvania Department of Health. Lauer also stated that the Community Recreation Center will reopen on June 15.
June 9, 2020 4:01 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – The U.S. economy entered a recession in February, a group of economists declared Monday, ending more than a decade of steady if slow growth. The economists said employment peaked in February and fell sharply afterward, marking the beginning of the downturn. A committee within the National Bureau of Economic Research, a trade group, determines when recessions begin and end. It defines a recession as “a decline in economic activity that lasts more than a few months.” The committee acknowledged, however, that in this case the depth of the economic downturn so far also played a role in its decision.
June 9, 2020 4:00 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – Democrats in Congress are proposing a far-reaching overhaul of America’s police procedures and accountability. It is a sweeping legislative response to the mass protests denouncing the deaths of black Americans in the hands of law enforcement. However, the political outlook is deeply uncertain in this polarized election year. The “Justice in Policing Act” would overhaul legal protections for police, create a national database of excessive-force episodes and set new standards for police training. President Donald Trump is conflating it with outside efforts to “abolish the police” and says the Democrats have “gone crazy.” At the Capitol, Democrats read the names of George Floyd and others who died in police hands and then knelt for 8 minutes and 46 seconds.
June 9, 2020 3:58 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – Key Democrats, including presumptive presidential nominee Joe Biden, are rejecting liberal calls to “defund the police” as President Donald Trump and his allies point to the movement as a dangerous example of Democratic overreach. The Republican president is struggling under the weight of mounting national crises that threaten his reelection. Supporters of the “defund the police” push say it’s a symbolic commitment to end systemic racism and shift policing priorities rather than an actual plan to eliminate law enforcement agencies. But confusion over the proposal has created a badly needed opportunity for Trump, who has struggled to navigate the delicate debate over racial justice.
June 9, 2020 3:57 am
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) – U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham is taking on three little-known GOP challengers in the next step of a race already on pace to become the most expensive in South Carolina history. Tuesday’s primary election is the last marker ahead of an expected general election face-off with Democrat Jaime Harrison. Graham faces fellow Republicans Duke Buckner, Michael Lapierre and Joe Reynolds. Buckner is an attorney and former Walterboro city councilman. Lapierre is a retired corporate executive from Pickens. Both have argued that Graham isn’t conservative enough. Reynolds is a Merchant Marine engineer from Charleston. He has said new leadership is needed in Washington. Graham is seeking his fourth term.
June 9, 2020 3:54 am
HOUSTON (AP) – Hundreds of mourners packed a Houston church Tuesday for the funeral of George Floyd, he black man whose death has inspired a worldwide reckoning over racial injustice. His body will be carried in a horse-drawn carriage and will be laid to rest next to his mother. Floyd was 46 when he was killed May 25 as a white Minneapolis officer pressed a knee on Floyd’s neck as the dying man cried out for his mother. Floyd’s death sparked international protests and drew new attention to police treatment of African Americans in the U.S. Some 6,000 people attended a public memorial service Monday.
June 9, 2020 3:51 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – The administration of Gov. Tom Wolf is backing off its demand that nursing homes test all residents and staff for the new coronavirus weekly. It instead ordered them Monday to complete a single baseline test. Last month, Wolf had vowed that weekly testing would start June 1. He said his administration had a plan in place to accomplish it. Health experts were skeptical and cited logistical, operational and financial hurdles. The state health secretary also ordered nursing homes and other facilities that care for older adults to test all residents and staff “at least once” by July 24.
June 8, 2020 5:41 pm
(WPXI) – A church collapsed and sent debris out into the street in Brighton Heights on Monday. Neighbors described that it sounded like an explosion inside the church on McClure Avenue, and there were pieces of the church and shattered glass all over the property. Church member Curtis Ramey was cutting the grass and cleaning up the inside of Christian Fellowship Center Church of God in Christ in preparation for this Sunday’s service. “I decided I was going to leave and go home. I got home and was home for 40 minutes and I got a phone call that the roof caved in,” Ramey said. It would have been the first time the congregation met met since the pandemic started. Pastor Frank Tillman Jr. told Channel 11 they were expecting close to fifty people. The church has been there for over a century. Church officials say insurance will cover some of the damage but not all of it.
