June 17, 2024 5:15 am
AVONMORE, Pa. — (WPXI) – Firefighters battled a massive fire at a building in Westmoreland County for hours on Saturday. Westmoreland County dispatchers say firefighters were called to the 400 block of Indiana Avenue in Avonmore at around 4:33 p.m. The building consists of three floors. The first floor is a bar and the other two floors are apartment buildings. Firefighters say the fire started in the kitchen of the bar and quickly spread to the back of the building and then to the other two floors. Investigators say the roof collapsed and all three floors were destroyed. The building is expected to be torn down after the fire marshal conducts an investigation. Everyone was out of the building when emergency crews got to the scene. Firefighters had to be rotated over the course of the hours-long fight because of Saturday’s hot temperatures. There are no reported injuries at this time.
June 17, 2024 5:11 am
ROSTRAVER TOWNSHIP, Pa. — (WPXI) – One person was injured after a crash on I-70 in Westmoreland County. Westmoreland County dispatchers say emergency crews were called to the eastbound lanes of I-70 near exit 46A at 4:32 p.m. Firefighters from the Rostraver Central Fire Department said the crash involved a motorcycle. The injured person was life-flighted to a hospital from the scene. There is no word on the identity or condition of the person injured. (PHOTO; Rostraver Central Fire Department)
June 17, 2024 5:21 am
(AP) – More than 70 million people in the United States are under extreme heat alerts as a heat wave moves eastward. The mid-Atlantic and New England are likely to see highs in the 90s as the week progresses. Excessive humidity will make it feel even more oppressive. The U.S. last year saw the most heat waves, consisting of abnormally hot weather lasting more than two days, since 1936. Officials again are warning residents to take precautions. Much of the Midwest and Northeast are under heat warnings or watches. While much of the U.S. swelters, late-season snow was forecast for the northern Rockies.
June 17, 2024 5:18 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden’s reelection campaign is spending $50 million through the end of June targeting voters in key swing states. The spending includes boosting a new ad that highlights former President Donald Trump’s felony conviction. It signals that the Democratic incumbent is seeking harder than ever to make his opponent’s legal woes an issue. Announced Monday, such a costly advertising push is unusual with Election Day still more than four and a half months away. But Biden’s campaign says it wants to more clearly define the choice between the two candidates ahead of the first debate between them in Atlanta on June 27.
June 17, 2024 5:36 pm
JERUSALEM (AP) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu disbanded his war Cabinet, consolidating his influence over the Israel-Hamas war and likely diminishing the odds of a cease-fire in the Gaza Strip anytime soon. Netanyahu announced the step days after his chief political rival, Benny Gantz, withdrew from the three-member war Cabinet. Gantz, a retired general and member of parliament, was widely seen as a voice of moderation. Major wartime policies will now be solely decided by Netanyahu’s security Cabinet — a larger body that is dominated by hard-liners who oppose the U.S.-backed cease-fire proposal and want to press ahead with the war.
June 17, 2024 5:20 am
Text, photos, videos and audio created using artificial intelligence are increasingly making their way into campaigns for state and local office. AI deepfakes that misrepresent candidates often can do more damage in those races because campaigns have fewer staffers and less money to combat them, and because they typically draw less scrutiny. Yet some local candidates see AI as a force for good and an equalizer against more powerful or well-financed candidates. They can use it for the more mundane aspects of running a campaign, which frees them up to meet voters and participate in more community events.
June 17, 2024 5:21 am
ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — Maryland Gov. Wes Moore has signed an executive order to issue more than 175,000 pardons for misdemeanor marijuana convictions. The governor described the pardons Monday as the “most sweeping state-level pardon in any state in American history.” The pardons will not result in anyone being released from incarceration. And nor will they prompt past convictions to be automatically expunged from a person’s background check. But advocates praised the move as a way of removing barriers to housing, employment, or educational opportunities based on convictions for conduct that is no longer illegal.
June 17, 2024 5:38 pm
(AP) – The U.S. surgeon general has called on Congress to require warning labels on social media platforms similar to those now mandatory on cigarette boxes. In a Monday opinion piece for The New York Times, Dr. Vivek Murthy said that social media is a contributing factor in the mental health crisis among young people. Murthy said that the use of just a warning label wouldn’t make social media safe for young people, but would be a part of the steps needed. (Photo: AP)
June 17, 2024 5:22 am
NEW YORK (AP) — “The Outsiders” became the essence of a Broadway insider on Sunday as the gritty adaptation of the classic American young adult novel won the Tony Award for best new musical. Sunday night also saw theater history made for women as Broadway directors and score writers. Danya Taymor won a directing award for “The Outsiders.” Then Shaina Taub won for best score, for “Suffs.” “Stereophonic” took home best play, and “Appropriate” best play revival. The musical of “Merrily We Roll Along” also won big, nabbing the revival award as well as trophies for Daniel Radcliffe and Jonathan Groff. The night included surprise appearances from Jay-Z and Hillary Clinton.
June 16, 2024 7:00 am
(AP) – Much of the U.S. is bracing for extreme weather — especially high temperatures — this weekend and into next week. A heat wave is already affecting many southern states, while the Pacific Northwest will experience unseasonably cold weather and there is a potential for late-season snow in the Rocky Mountains on Monday. Forecasters are warning of the potential for severe thunderstorms developing in between hot and cold fronts. Meanwhile flood waters continue to recede in Florida after days of intense rainfall. A plume of tropical moisture will reach the central Gulf Coast in the next couple of days. (Photo: AP)
