September 4, 2024 4:45 am
For more than 70 years, Cecil Township has been served by three distinct volunteer fire departments. On Monday, a steering committee formed in February announced to Cecil Township Supervisors that a memorandum of understanding has been signed that will combine the Lawrence #1, Muse #2 and Cecil #3 Volunteer Fire Departments into a singular organization. Votes taken at each fire department were unanimous for proceeding with the merger. According to newly appointed Fire Chief Ted Wolford, the organization will now operate with “one mission, one vision, one set of by laws and standard operating guidelines” that will best serve the residents of Cecil Township. The reason for the merger is that volunteer staff is low. This will be the best way to use current paid staff and volunteer staff to cover emergencies 24 hours a day. The department is already working with a consultant from the Pennsylvania Department of Economic Development to finalize the merger. No firm date is in place to complete the merger. The steering committee feels that about 25% of the work is done.
September 3, 2024 2:56 am
Charleroi Fire Chief Bobby Whiten tells WJPA News that a house fire early Tuesday morning has been ruled arson. Whiten says the fire broke out around three o’clock in an abandoned house in the one-thousand block of Oakland Avenue. Whiten says the home has been abandoned for years. Firefighters say they were able to keep the fire from spreading to other nearby homes. Although the fire has been ruled as arson, investigators have not yet determined how the blaze started. There were no injuries. (Photo: Courtesy of Charleroi Fire Department)
September 4, 2024 4:49 am
National politics took a local stage Tuesday evening in Washington County. About 400 people gathered at the Doubletree Hotel on Racetrack Road to listen to Georgia Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene speak in support of Donald Trump in the upcoming presidential race. The first term politician shook hands and snapped photos with those who bought tickets for the Washington County Republican fundraiser. Greene discussed immigration, inflation and even the proposed sale of US Steel to Japanese based Nippon Steel, to which she is opposed. The congresswoman said it was important to travel to the area to get the word out about differences between the two presidential candidates.
September 4, 2024 4:53 am
PITTSBURGH — (WPXI) – Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz is stopping in Pittsburgh during a series of campaign events in Pennsylvania this week. Walz is coming to Pittsburgh on Wednesday afternoon to “join a political engagement” in the city. Vice President Kamala Harris campaigned with President Joe Biden in Pittsburgh on Labor Day, where in front of IBEW union members she opposed the sale of U.S. Steel to Japan’s Nippon Steel. Harris will be back in Pittsburgh on Thursday, but no details for her 10th visit to the city have been released yet. Former President Donald Trump says he plans to return to Butler in October, but no details for that event have been released.
September 4, 2024 5:05 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — Donald Trump is betting that Americans crave trillions of dollars in tax cuts — and that growth will be so fantastic that it’s not worth worrying about budget deficits. Vice President Kamala Harris believes that big corporations and the ultra wealthy should pay more in taxes — and wants to use those revenues to help spur the construction of 3 million homes and offer tax breaks for parents. The two presidential nominees are using the week before their debate to sharpen their economic messages about who could do more for the middle class.
September 4, 2024 5:03 am
NEW YORK (AP) — A federal judge has rejected Donald Trump’s request to intervene in his New York hush money criminal case, thwarting the former president’s latest bid to overturn his felony conviction and delay his sentencing. U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein ruled Tuesday that Trump had not satisfied the burden of proof required for a federal court to take control of the case from the state court where it was tried. Hellerstein’s ruling came hours after Manhattan prosecutors raised objections to Trump’s effort to delay post-trial decisions in the case while he sought to have the federal court step in. Trump’s lawyers filed a notice late Tuesday appealing the decision to the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
September 4, 2024 5:01 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department has announced criminal charges against Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar and other militants in connection with the Oct. 7 rampage in Israel. The criminal complaint filed in federal court in New York City includes charges of conspiring to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization, resulting in death. Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a video statement Tuesday that the charges “are just one part of our effort to target every aspect of Hamas’ operations.” He said “these actions will not be our last.” The impact of the case may be mostly symbolic given that Sinwar is believed to be hiding out in tunnels.
September 4, 2024 5:00 am
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — An official says Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba has resigned. Speaker of parliament Ruslan Stefanchuk said on his Facebook page that Kuleba’s resignation request on Wednesday will be discussed by lawmakers at their next plenary meeting. The foreign minister’s resignation came as at least seven people were killed and 35 injured in an overnight strike on Lviv. Mayor Andrii Sadovyi says a child and a medical worker were among the dead and others are in critical condition.
September 4, 2024 5:04 am
HONG KONG (AP) — Asian stocks are tumbling after Wall Street had its worst day since early August, as a week full of economic updates got off to a weak start. Japan’s benchmark Nikkei lost over 4%. U.S. futures were lower. Rising oil supply was driving down prices, as Libya moved closer to resolving a conflict over control of the country’s oil revenue that meant its oil production may soon increase. The S&P 500’s heaviest weight, Nvidia, fell 9.5% and led to a decline in global semiconductor-related stocks on Wednesday. The S&P 500 slumped 2.1% Tuesday after a report showed U.S. manufacturing shrank again in August, weighed down by high interest rates. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 1.5%. The Nasdaq composite fell 3.3%.
September 3, 2024 5:44 pm
NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks tumbled to their worst day since an early August sell-off after another report raised worries about the economy’s health. The S&P 500 slumped 2.1% Tuesday after a report showed U.S. manufacturing shrank again in August, weighed down by high interest rates. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 1.5% from its record set before Monday’s Labor Day holiday. The Nasdaq composite fell 3.3% as Nvidia and other Big Tech stocks led the way lower. Treasury yields also sank in the bond market. The worse-than-expected manufacturing data raised worries about the slowing U.S. economy and upped the stakes for the all-important jobs report looming on Friday.
