March 21, 2025 5:07 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal judge has temporarily blocked Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency from Social Security Administration systems that hold personally identifiable data on millions of Americans. The decision from U.S. District Judge Ellen Hollander also requires the team to delete any identifiable data they may have. It comes after labor unions and retirees asked for an emergency order limiting DOGE access to the agency and its vast troves of personal data. The administration has said DOGE’s work at the agency is aimed at reducing waste and fraud in the federal government.
March 21, 2025 5:06 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump says war plans should not be shared with his adviser Elon Musk because of his business interests. It’s a rare suggestion the billionaire entrepreneur’s expansive role in the Trump administration will face limits. The Republican president made the comments Friday during an Oval Office meeting on developing a new fighter jet, rejecting reports Musk would be briefed on how the U.S. would fight a hypothetical war with China. Trump says Musk has businesses in China and “would be susceptible, perhaps, to that.” Musk’s businesses include Tesla, an electric-vehicle manufacturer trying to expand in China. Trump says Musk visited the Pentagon earlier to discuss reducing costs.
March 21, 2025 5:04 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump has signed an executive order calling for the dismantling of the Education Department. The Republican president announced his plan Thursday. Trump has derided the Education Department as wasteful and polluted by liberal ideology. However, completing its dismantling is most likely impossible without an act of Congress, which created the department in 1979. And the White House says the department will not close completely right now. It is to retain certain critical functions, like managing Pell grants and money for children with disabilities.
March 21, 2025 5:02 am
DEIR-AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israeli strikes have killed at least 85 Palestinians across the Gaza Strip overnight and into Thursday. Hours later, Hamas fired three rockets at Israel without causing casualties, in the first such attack since Israel broke their ceasefire. Israel resumed heavy strikes across Gaza on Tuesday, shattering the truce that had facilitated the release of more than two dozen hostages and brought relative calm since late January. Israeli bombardments in the past three days have killed at least 592 people. Early Friday, Israel’s Cabinet approved Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s request to fire the head of the country’s Shin Bet internal security service.
March 21, 2025 5:00 am
LONDON (AP) — A fire at an electrical substation knocked out power to Heathrow Airport for most of Friday, forcing Europe’s busiest hub to shut down for roughly 18 hours, causing widespread cancellations and rerouting headaches, and stranding roughly 200,000 passengers. The blaze started just before midnight on Thursday at a substation about 2 miles from the airport and took firefighters around seven hours to bring under control. Authorities say they found no evidence that it was suspicious. The fire affected at least 1,350 flights to and from the airport and the impact is expected to last days. After power was restored, arrivals resumed at the airport. Departures are expected to resume later Friday.
March 21, 2025 4:58 am
CONNELLSVILLE, Pa. — (WPXI) – A train derailed in Fayette County on Thursday. A CSX official said the crash happened near Crawford Street in Connellsville at 8:59 p.m. Three empty intermodal cars derailed and downed power lines. Nine homes lost power as a result. No injuries have been reported. CSX said there were no leaks or spills. Investigators are working to learn what caused the derailment.
March 21, 2025 4:54 am
The Canon-McMillan School Board has authorized the sale of the former Canonsburg Middle School at 25 East College Street. The Canonsburg Educational and Cultural Institute will buy the property on March 21 and transform the structure into a cultural center. The board also voted to include three new student-operated clubs into Canon-McMillan High School, to begin for the 2025-2026 school year. The Corn Hole Club will be based on the outdoor sport, giving students an active method of acquainting themselves with one another while creating teamwork and healthy competition. The Public Debate Club will target critical thinking, public speaking, and communication skills, the club will allow students to engage in debating social, political, as well as ethical issues, motivating them to build strong argumentative skills. The Public and Community Service Liaison Club will focus on awareness of the community and civic duty, this club will give students the option of developing public service projects and serving as a liaison between school and community organizations. As a part of the agreement, each of the clubs will be run by a volunteer sponsor for the 2025-2026 school year. If the clubs are successful in their campaign, the administration will fund a paid sponsor for each club in the following year, as envisioned by the Canon-McMillan Educational Association (CMEA) contract.
March 21, 2025 2:22 am
(AP) – A man who had voluntarily agreed to be taken to a psychiatric hospital by Philadelphia police grabbed an officer’s gun outside of the facility and wounded him before being fatally shot by another officer. The city police commissioner says the wounded officer’s bulletproof vest spared him from serious injury. The shooting occurred shortly before 1 p.m. Thursday at Friends Hospital. Commissioner Kevin Bethel says the two city officers had encountered the man earlier Thursday after he was seen walking in traffic, and he agreed to go to the hospital for a mental health evaluation. The man was driven to the hospital in a police van but was not handcuffed because he had agreed to go voluntarily.
March 21, 2025 2:04 am
Last week at the Washington County Real Estate Expo, Washington County Commissioners highlighted the construction of a new Public Safety Building as a project to watch in 2025. Commissioners unanimously approved a contract to take that first step in construction. Adamo Demolition Co. from Detroit, Michigan was awarded a $1,555,700 contract to demolish the Courthouse Square building. According to Commissioner Chairman Nick Sherman, this company will use robotic technologies to demolish the building. Those technologies allowed a taxpayer savings of more than half of the $4 million budgeted for demolition. Sherman said that several local companies did bid the project, but those bids ran from $3.8 million to $4.2 million. Currently a radio antenna is being moved from Courthouse Square to the Crossroads Building and cabling is also being run. Once that project is finished, Sherman says that demolition could begin within a month.
March 20, 2025 9:21 am
MONESSEN, Pa. — A family safely escaped a house fire in Monessen early Thursday morning. Emergency crews were called to the 1500 block of Jones Street just before 3 a.m. Fire officials said the fire started on the porch and then quickly spread throughout the house. Initial reports indicated that two houses were on fire, but only because firefighters could barely see through the smoke when they arrived. The Monessen fire chief told Channel 11 that wind was a massive issue for crews. Everyone, including a young girl, and her parents and grandfather, made it out safely. The Red Cross has been called in to help the family. The State Police fire marshal is investigating
