December 27, 2019 4:06 am
WEST MIFFLIN, Pa. — (WPXI) – A water main break caused major issues at Kennywood during its annual “Holiday Lights” festivities Thursday night. Food stands, the Penny Arcade train display, & Thomas Town gift shop were all closed. Officials said the park did open as scheduled Thursday at 5 p.m. – hours after the water main break – but there was a delay in restoring service.
December 27, 2019 3:33 am
(AP)-An Associated Press review finds that Pennsylvania’s Roman Catholic dioceses have paid nearly $84 million to 564 victims of sexual abuse. Seven of the state’s eight dioceses launched victim compensation funds in the wake of a landmark grand jury report on sexual abuse by Catholic clergy. The funds were open to claims for a limited time this year. The tally is sure to grow in 2020 as compensation fund administrators work through a backlog of claims. One survivor says the money won’t make him rich, but he hopes it will make his life a little better and help him to put the abuse behind him.
December 26, 2019 8:46 am
MANILA, Philippines (AP) – A strong typhoon that barreled through the central Philippines has left at least 20 people dead and forced thousands to flee their homes, devastating Christmas celebrations in the predominantly Catholic country. Typhoon Phanfone stranded many people in sea and airports at the peak of holiday travel, set off landslides, flooded low-lying villages, destroyed houses, downed trees and electrical poles and knocked out power in entire provinces. A disaster response officer described one coastal area as a “ghost town” on Christmas Day. The storm weakened slightly on Thursday as it blew into the South China Sea. Most of the 20 deaths were due to drowning, falling trees and accidental electrocution.
December 26, 2019 8:44 am
The flu continues to hit the region hard. State Department of Health officials say they are concerned with the growing number of confirmed cases, especially in Allegheny County. Lab confirmed cases jumped 53 percent in the seven county Pittsburgh region which includes Washington County. Allegheny County continues to lead the state with more than three-thousand cases and a 51-percent increase in one week. They account for 27 percent of all state cases. As a whole, the western Pennsylvania region accounts for about half of the state’s more-than eleven thousand cases. The State total increased 61 percent in one week.
December 26, 2019 6:14 am
A Washington County fire chief is back home after being arrested in Thailand. Hanover volunteer fire chief Michael Morra was arrested last month after a bullet was found in his luggage at the Bangkok airport. He spent nearly five weeks in the country, unable to leave. According to his son’s Facebook page, Morra returned home on Christmas Eve. He thanks everyone for their support. Morra was in Thailand doing work for his employer, General Electric.
December 26, 2019 5:48 am
PENN HILLS, Pa. — (WPXI) – A woman was shot outside a bar in Penn Hills early Thursday morning and has died at a local hospital. Allegheny County Police are now taking over the investigation after someone called for help just before 3 a.m. from Flinn’s Pub on Frankstown Road. The woman who was killed has been identified as 18 year old Leona Dailey. There is still no information in regards to suspect or motive.
December 26, 2019 4:19 am
BOSTON (AP) – A woman and two children have died after being found unconscious on a sidewalk near a Boston parking garage. The identities of the victims, as well as the relationship of the woman to the children, has not yet been determined. Boston Police Commissioner William Gross said the children appeared to be under age 5. News video showed police looking at an SUV, with several doors wide open, parked on the top level of the parking garage, which is adjacent to the Ruggles MBTA rail station. Gross said there were two child car seats in the vehicle.
December 26, 2019 4:18 am
ANKARA, Turkey (AP) – A boat carrying migrants has capsized in a lake in eastern Turkey, killing seven people on board, At least 64 other migrants were rescued. The boat sank in Lake Van on Thursday as it approached a town in Bitlis province, according to a statement by the provincial governor’s office. The boat was carrying migrants from Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh. Five of them were found dead in the lake while two others died in a hospital. Turkey is a main crossing point for migrants trying to reach Europe.
December 26, 2019 4:16 am
DOVER, Del. (AP) – The remains of a 33-year-old American soldier killed in combat in Afghanistan have been returned to the United States, arriving at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware. Sgt. 1st Class Michael Goble of Washington Township, New Jersey, was killed Monday in a roadside bombing in northern Kunduz province. Multiple U.S. officials attended on Wednesday what the military calls a dignified transfer in which the cases containing the remains are transferred to a vehicle from the aircraft that ferried them to the United States.
December 26, 2019 4:16 am
KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) – Afghanistan’s defense ministry says that a powerful suicide car bombing has targeted an army compound in the country’s north, killing six Afghan soldiers. The ministry statement is blaming the Taliban for the attack though there was no immediate claim of responsibility by the insurgents. Shortly after the bomber detonated the car laden with explosives, a group of insurgents stormed into the compound, setting of a shootout with Afghan forces. The ministry also said that three Afghan soldiers were wounded in the explosion and the ensuing “terrorist attack.” The provincial governor’s spokesman, Munir Farhad, said fighting inside the compound continued for hours before the attackers were repelled.
