January 7, 2020 8:44 am
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) – A 6.4-magnitude earthquake struck Puerto Rico before dawn on Tuesday, killing one man, injuring at least eight other people and collapsing buildings. The quake was followed by a series of strong aftershocks, part of a 10-day series of temblors spawned by the grinding of tectonic plates along three faults beneath southern Puerto Rico. Seismologists say it’s impossible to predict when the quakes will stop or whether they will get stronger.
January 7, 2020 5:46 am
TEHRAN, Iran (AP) – Iranian state television says 35 people have been killed and 48 others injured in a stampede that erupted at a funeral procession for a general slain in a U.S. airstrike. The TV says the stampede erupted in Kerman, the hometown of Gen. Qassem Soleimani where the procession was underway on Tuesday. A procession in Tehran on Monday drew over 1 million people in the Iranian capital. Also on Tuesday, the U.S. warned ships across Mideast waterways crucial to global energy supplies there’s the “possibility of Iranian action against U.S. maritime interests” in the region. The U.S. Maritime Administration cited rising threats after an American drone strike in Baghdad killed Soleimani.
January 7, 2020 5:43 am
Roughly two dozen North Strabane Residents attended a conditional use hearing regarding the proposed Guyton Well Pad on Rt. 519. The meeting considering conditional use for the well pad on a 172 acre site lasted more than 90 minutes. The meeting included presentations by Range Resources and audience comments. Only 3 people offered comments. Heaven Sensky, a community activist for the Center For Coalfield Justice asked supervisors to continue to ask the hard questions to best represent residents and challenge companies to provide answers to those questions and not merely say that the obligations of the ordinance has been met. One resident who asked not to be identified asked that sound baffling be installed around the site. John Kitchen, a resident who lives right across the street from the proposed well site entrance asked that the entrance be moved from in front of his house. His request was not out of his own selfishness, he is concerned about safety. He testified to how he has witnessed 10 accidents in the 16 years that he has lived in his home. Those accidents included one fatality. Supervisors did not vote on the measure. They have 45 days to make their conditional use decision.
January 7, 2020 4:21 am
BALMORAL, Australia (AP) – Exhausted firefighters are racing to shore up defenses against Australia’s wildfires before scorching temperatures return in a few days. Cooler weather was giving a reprieve as firefighters worked on containment lines and military personnel worked to evacuate and aid residents in burned or at-risk areas. But after Australia’s hottest and driest year on record, the rain wasn’t enough to dampen fire risks. The first hints of the financial toll from the disaster are emerging, with the Insurance Council of Australia saying the estimated damage bill had reached 700 million Australian dollars ($485 million).
January 7, 2020 4:20 am
NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) – A Kenyan government official says four people are dead after a raid by suspected al-Shabab extremists in eastern Garissa County. The deputy county commissioner said Tuesday the gunmen targeted police officers at a roadblock. He says two of the suspected extremists were killed by police and the residents were killed by stray bullets during the fighting. The al-Qaida-linked al-Shabab has vowed retribution on Kenya for deploying its troops to fight the extremist group in neighboring Somalia. Since December the group has increased attacks inside Kenya including Sunday’s attack on a military base that killed three U.S. military personnel.
January 7, 2020 4:14 am
A new regime begins in North Franklin Township with several big changes coming in 2020. Bob Sabot was named the Chairperson for the North Franklin Township Board of Supervisors with Silvio Passalacqua as his vice-chairperson and the return of Mike Quinn. The changes come with the departure of Ron Junko at the end of 2019. Sabot talked about a few projects he is excited for this year, but the biggest is the Columbia Gas construction that will take place on multiple roadways in the township. The work will be done along Franklin Farms Road, Gabby Avenue and Park Avenue, and Sabot is hoping the job is completed by the fall of 2020. There are also major road projects coming to Holiday Hills. Work on the township building is another target for Sabot this year.
January 7, 2020 4:13 am
It was a night of reorganization for North Strabane Supervisors on Monday night. Supervisors welcomed a new face to the board. Emily Holmes was sworn in to take the place of Robert Balogh whom she defeated in the November general election. Holmes was subdued but honored by her election. One of the items Holmes hoped to fix was a resolution passed exactly one year ago. That resolution allowed Supervisors to participate in the Township Group Health Plan. No supervisor was able to take advantage of that resolution before 2020, and it was unanimously rescinded Monday night before anyone could apply. Supervisors appointed Neil Kelly Chairman and Marcus Staley Vice Chairman.
January 7, 2020 4:09 am
Authorities looking into the dead-of-night crash on a Pennsylvania interstate that killed five people say a loaded passenger bus passed a truck shortly before the wreck. A National Transportation Safety Board member said Monday an initial report about the incident should be out in about 10 days, and a more detailed analysis could take two years. Dozens were injured in the crash at about 3:30 a.m. Sunday on the Pennsylvania Turnpike in Mount Pleasant.
January 7, 2020 3:33 am
The new board of Washington County Commissioners held their first agenda meeting of the new year and voted in Republican Diana Irey Vaughn as the new chairman of the board. In addition, the board, which now includes Republican Nick Sherman who ousted incumbent Democrat Harlan Shober in the November General Election, named John Haynes as the new Chief of Staff. The position is a brand new one for the county and comes with a salary of ninety-five-thousand-dollars a year. The 45-year-old Haynes grew up in Wilmerding and most recently served as a managing director for a private equity firm in Pittsburgh. Commissioners are also expected to appoint Jana Grimm of Steptoe and Johnson in Southpointe, as the county’s new solicitor to replace Lynn DeHaven.
January 7, 2020 3:18 am
Washington City Council welcomed one new member and two familiar faces in their first meeting of the new year. Businessman Joe Pintola was sworn in as councilman, taking over for the departed Monda Williams. Pintola thinks his ownership of a business and real estate in the city will prove valuable to his position. Councilman Ken Westcott was sworn in again as was Mayor Scott Putnam. Putnam wants to continue his fight against blight. He also would like to see homeownership in the city increase. He is looking to sponsor homebuyer programs in an effort to bring a larger home owner base to the city. Currently, the city has a 57% landlord base of property owners. Also sworn into their positions on Monday were Nick Dubina as Controller and Anthony Nicolella as Treasurer.
