July 13, 2024 3:49 am
HOUSTON (AP) — In the wake of Hurricane Beryl, fresh food and cool air are coming from Houston community groups that have honed their disaster services in a city frequently battered by extreme weather. Nonprofits and mutual aid organizations are bringing relief for some of the millions without power after the Category 1 storm knocked electricity out across the major American city. But some find their resources drained by the repeat extreme weather. And it is only the beginning of what experts say will be a busy hurricane season. The Center for Disaster Philanthropy’s Sally Ray says climate change requires donors to proactively help build the capacity of emergency services.
July 13, 2024 3:46 am
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The United Nations chief is appealing for funding for the beleaguered U.N. agency helping Palestinian refugees in Gaza and elsewhere in the Middle East. He’s also accusing Israel of issuing evacuation orders in the war-torn territory forcing Palestinians “to move like human pinballs across a landscape of destruction and death.” Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told a donor’s conference Friday that the agency, known as UNRWA, faces “a profound funding gap.” UNRWA’s Commissioner General Philippe Lazzarini said at the start of the conference that the agency only had funds to operate through August. At the end, he told reporters the total amount in pledges won’t be known until next week. But he is confident there will be enough new money to keep the agency running through September.
July 13, 2024 2:46 am
Day three of testimony is in the books in the murder trial for Scott Edmonds, the North Strabane physical therapist accused of killing his wife, 49 year old Louise Weis-Edmonds in March of 2014. The prosecution brought 2 witnesses to the stand. The first was a toxicologist to indicate that the victim was too intoxicated at the time of her death to be able to hold a gun in the position used in the killing to commit suicide. A police detective testified that he had been called to a previous domestic incident at the Edmonds’ home where both were intoxicated. The prosecution then rested and the defense called their own toxicologist to try and refute the prosecution’s toxicology experts. The trial will resume on Monday at 9:30 AM
July 12, 2024 3:40 am
NEW YORK (AP) — Donald Trump will have one last chance Saturday to dramatically unveil his vice presidential pick on a rally stage before the Republican National Convention kicks off next week. Trump’s rally in western Pennsylvania, at the Butler Farm Show just outside Pittsburgh, comes as the former reality TV star and tabloid hound continues to tease his pick for maximum attention. But Trump has made clear in recent days that his preference is to dramatically reveal his pick live at the convention — something the ratings-obsessed former president has said would make the proceedings more “interesting” and “exciting.”
July 13, 2024 2:49 am
A structure fire in Bentleyville has been extinguished. The Bentleyville Tavern at 843 Main street caught fire. Washington County 9-1-1 officials state that the fire started in the kitchen at about 2:06 PM. Apartments upstairs suffered smoke damage. No injuries were reported. The state fire marshal has been contacted. Fire companies from Bentleyville, Ellsworth, Cokeburg, Fallowfield Twp., North Strabane, Charleroi and Donora all responded to assist in the event.
July 12, 2024 4:48 am
A motion to approve the sale of the Crossroads parking garage passed during Washington city’s monthly council meeting Thursday night. The step clears the next hurdle in the possible sale of the structure to the County. The city is looking to off-load the 17 year old garage as a cost saving measure. The garage has been losing money since it opened in 2007. The county commissioners would like to purchase the property for county employees to use since they will be forced out of Courthouse Square once plans to build a new public safety complex are complete. The motion passed pursuant to negotiations and a review by the city solicitor. The Washington School District will also need to sign off on the deal since they have a minority stake in the garage. Details of the sale have not been finalized.
July 12, 2024 4:45 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Pennsylvania lawmakers have passed a budget deal that took nearly two weeks into the new fiscal year to reach. The $47.6 billion plan approved Thursday represents a 6% increase. Most of the new money is going toward public schools and human services to boost pay for direct care workers. The votes in the Republican-controlled Senate and Democratic-controlled House came within hours of rank-and-file lawmakers getting their first look at hundreds of pages of budget-related legislation. Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro signed the main spending bill late Thursday night. The plan doesn’t increase sales or income tax rates and requires $3 billion in surplus cash to balance. Shapiro had initially sought a 7% increase.
July 12, 2024 4:49 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Pennsylvania lawmakers have approving legislation aimed at helping the nation’s No. 2 natural gas-producing state attract carbon capture projects and enable federally-funded hydrogen hubs. The Republican-penned bill passed Thursday authorizes the Department of Environmental Protection to write regulations to oversee underground wells that store carbon dioxide. It’s a critical component of carbon capture technology that supporters envision as a way to slow climate change. The bill passed the House and Senate and was sent to Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro’s desk. Skeptics say carbon capture has been oversold as a climate change solution and merely will spawn pipelines and extend the life of a fossil fuel industry that burns oil, coal and natural gas.
July 11, 2024 2:37 pm
Day two of testimony in the murder trial of North Strabane Township physical therapist Scott Edmonds continued much the same way as day one. The prosecution called 4 expert witnesses and a police officer to testify. Blood evidence, fingerprint and toxicology experts began the day. The afternoon began with a North Strabane Township police detective testifying to his findings and preliminary interview with Scott Edmonds when he arrived at the scene. The prosecution ended the day with the testimony of a forensic pathologist that reviewed autopsy results and other forensic evidence indicating that suicide was highly unlikely and that from the path traveled by the fatal bullet from the back of Weis-Edmonds head to where the bullet lodged in the front of her head, homicide was the true manner of death. Testimony will continue at 9:30 AM on Friday.
July 12, 2024 4:56 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — Joe Biden faced a test Thursday that he had avoided so far this year — a solo news conference with questions from the White House press corps. He made at least two notable flubs, referring at an event beforehand to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as “President Putin” and then calling Kamala Harris “Vice President Trump” when asked about her by a reporter. But he also gave detailed responses about his work to preserve NATO and his plans for a second term. And he insisted he’s not leaving the race even as a growing number of Democratic lawmakers ask him to step aside.
