September 4, 2019 4:17 am
FREEPORT, Bahamas (AP) – Hurricane Dorian has strengthened a little as it tracks up the Southeast seaboard off Georgia. The U.S. National Hurricane Center says Dorian’s top sustained winds are back up to 110 mph. Dorian is a Category 2 hurricane with its eye located about 150 miles south of Charleston, South Carolina. The storm is moving to the north-northwest at 8 mph. Forecasters say a tropical storm warning has been issued from North Carolina and the Virginia border to Chincoteague, Virginia, and for Chesapeake Bay from Smith Point southward. Dorian slammed into the northern Bahamas earlier this week as a Category 5 storm, the strongest hurricane on record ever to hit the islands. At least seven deaths in the Bahamas have been reported by authorities, but they leave little doubt the toll will rise further amid scenes of wide devastation on some of the islands.
September 4, 2019 4:16 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – A total of 127 military construction projects are being sidelined by a Pentagon decision to shift $3.6 billion to build part of President Donald Trump’s border wall. Defense Secretary Mark Esper approved the transfer of funds on Tuesday. Officials say details about the projects losing their funding will be released after Congress is notified. The Pentagon comptroller says the projects are being “deferred” and not cancelled, though there is no guarantee the funding will be restored by Congress. The money is to be used to build 175 miles of wall along the U.S.-Mexico border. Congress approved $1.375 billion for wall construction in this year’s budget, same as the previous year but far less than the $5.7 billion that the White House sought.
September 4, 2019 4:14 am
LONDON (AP) – Defiant British lawmakers are moving to bar a weakened Prime Minister Boris Johnson from pursuing a “no-deal” departure from the European Union. In retaliation, the new leader plans to call an early general election that would put his own future, and that of his Conservative Party, on the line in a bid for a new Parliament that would back his Brexit policy. Johnson enjoyed a brief honeymoon after taking power in July. That came to an abrupt end Tuesday night as rebellious lawmakers voted 328 to 301 to seize control of the Brexit agenda. But the course ahead remains unpredictable and there is still great uncertainty about how – or even if – Britain will ultimately leave the prosperous EU bloc.
September 4, 2019 4:13 am
FREEPORT, Bahamas (AP) – Bahamians are rescuing victims of Hurricane Dorian with jet skis and a bulldozer as the U.S. Coast Guard, Britain’s Royal Navy and a handful of aid groups try to get food and medicine to survivors. Airports are flooded and roads impassable after the most powerful storm to hit the Bahamas in recorded history parked over Abaco and Grand Bahama islands and pounded them with winds up to 185 mph (295 kph) and torrential rain before finally moving into open waters on a course toward Florida. People on the U.S. coast are making final preparations for a storm with winds at a still-dangerous 110 mph (175 kph). At least seven deaths have been reported in the Bahamas, with the full scope of the disaster still unknown.
September 4, 2019 4:11 am
WHITEHALL, Pa. (AP) – Authorities say a 2-year-old boy was hospitalized after accidentally shooting himself in eastern Pennsylvania, but the wound isn’t considered life-threatening. Whitehall Township police say officers were dispatched shortly after 11 a.m. Monday on a report of a child who was the victim of an accidental shooting. The boy was reported in stable condition. Chief Michael Marks says the investigation is in the early stages and police can’t “confirm ownership of the gun at this time.” Detectives are also investigating how many people were in the Whitehall Township home at the time. Marks didn’t specify what type of gun was involved. He said authorities haven’t determined whether any charges will be filed.
September 4, 2019 4:08 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – A man has been convicted of first-degree murder in the shooting death of a western Pennsylvania motel owner more than three years ago. Jurors in Allegheny County deliberated for just over two hours before convicting 63-year-old Derrick Gallaway, who now faces a mandatory life prison term without possibility of parole. Seventy-eight-year-old Dehnad Taiedi was shot to death in May 2016 as he worked behind the front desk of the Jefferson Hills Motel, where Gallaway had stayed repeatedly. Authorities said the victim was killed during a robbery and blood found on a wall matched the defendant’s DNA. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports that defense attorney Elbert Gray Jr. said his client bled walking into the crime scene – not walking out.
September 4, 2019 3:07 am
BLAIRSVILLE, Pa. – (WPXI)- State police and the FBI discovered the body of abducted toddler Nalani Johnson during a search in Blairsville. Nalani was abducted Saturday night, and investigators spent the past few days searching from Penn Hills to Blairsville. After investigators cleared the scene from Pine Ridge Park, all that was left was a makeshift growing memorial and candles left. One little girl who came with her mother to the memorial said she brought a teddy bear because it looked like an angel. “It’s really sad. How can you do that to an innocent little baby,” Stacey Lubitc said. Police said Nalani, her father, and a friend of the father were in a vehicle driven by Sharena Nancy Saturday night. During that ride, Nalani’s father and Nancy had an argument, at which time police said he got out of the vehicle with his friend, but she drove off before he could get his daughter. Nancy was charged with kidnapping and concealing the whereabouts of a child. While being interviewed, she allegedly told police Nalani was being sold by her father for $10,000. According to investigators there is no evidence to support Nancy’s version of events. Indiana County District Attorney Patrick Dougherty indicated that there may be additional arrests. “Make no mistake, we are working very hard to ensure the individuals involved are brought to justice,” he said. Dougherty said there is not believed to be any on-going threat to the public.
September 3, 2019 3:43 pm
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) – West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin says he’s staying put in the U.S. Senate and won’t run for governor. The 72-year-old Manchin announced his decision on Tuesday after months of reflection. It means Manchin will steer clear of a potential showdown with incumbent Republican Gov. Jim Justice, who already has announced he’s seeking re-election. Earlier this year, Manchin became the top Democrat on the Senate Energy Committee, giving the coal-state lawmaker a prominent position to shape policy. But Manchin says he has become frustrated with a lack of Senate productivity and bipartisanship. Manchin also has sparred with Justice, who was elected governor as a Democrat in 2016, then switched to the Republican Party less than a year later. Manchin had endorsed Justice for governor.
September 3, 2019 3:15 pm
NEW YORK (AP) – Walmart says it will discontinue the sale of handgun and short-barrel rifle ammunition and also publicly request that customers refrain from openly carrying firearms in stores even where states laws allow it. The announcement comes just days after a mass shooting claimed seven lives in Odessa, Texas and follows two other back-to-back shootings last month, one of them at a Walmart store.
September 3, 2019 9:50 am
Washington City Police are investigating after the body of a woman was found inside a portable toilet near a construction site on the campus of Washington & Jefferson College Monday morning. The Washington County Coroner’s office tells WJPA news the woman has been identified as 30-year-old Margaret Esther Tinglum of Hermitage, Pa. City Police and officers from the campus were called to 207 East Beau Street just before 7 a.m. when Tinglum’s body was found. The coroner’s office says they are investigating the death as a suspected drug overdose. Officials with Washington & Jefferson say she was not affiliated with the school.
