December 12, 2024 2:46 am
Authorities are investigating a barn fire Thursday afternoon at the Critter Country Animal Farm on Route 981 in Smithton. in Westmoreland County. According to their website, Critter Country has more than 55 different kinds of animals, including monkeys, lemurs, an Asiatic water buffalo, a leopard, a kangaroo and many more. There were no reported human injuries, but officials did not comment on the fate of the animals. (Photo: Critter Country Website)
December 11, 2024 3:27 pm
WASHINGTON (AP) — FBI Director Christopher Wray says he plans to resign at the end of President Joe Biden’s term in January. The announcement Wednesday comes a week and a half after President-elect Donald Trump announced his intention to nominate loyalist Kash Patel for the position. At a town hall meeting with the bureau workforce, Wray said he would be stepping down “after weeks of careful thought.” Wray had previously been named by Trump and began the 10-year term. a length meant to insulate the agency from the political influence of changing administrations — in 2017, after Trump fired then-FBI Director, James Comey. (Photo: AP)
December 11, 2024 2:15 pm
ALTOONA, Pa. (AP) — New York’s police commissioner says the The gun found on the suspect in the killing of UnitedHealthcare’s CEO matches shell casings found at the crime scene. Commissioner Jessica Tisch also said Wednesday that lab results matched suspect Luigi Mangione’s prints to a water bottle and snack wrapper found near the scene of the killing. Mangione is jailed in Pennsylvania on weapon and forgery charges, but he also has been charged with murder in Brian Thompson’s death. Mangione shouted about “insult to the intelligence of the American people” on his way into a Pennsylvania court Tuesday. (Photo: AP)
December 11, 2024 9:50 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — Fueled by pricier used cars, hotel rooms and groceries, inflation in the United States moved slightly higher last month in the latest sign that some price pressures remain elevated. Consumer prices rose 2.7% in November from a year earlier, up from a yearly figure of 2.6% in October. Excluding volatile food and energy costs, so-called core prices increased 3.3%. Measured month to month, prices climbed 0.3% from October to November, the biggest such increase since April. Wednesday’s inflation figures are the final major piece of data Federal Reserve officials will consider before they meet next week to decide on interest rates. The November increase won’t likely be enough to discourage the officials from cutting their key rate by a quarter-point.
December 11, 2024 7:50 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – Only about 2 in 10 Americans approve of President Joe Biden’s decision to pardon his son Hunter after earlier promising he’d do no such thing. That’s according to a poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. The survey found that only a small share of Americans “strongly” or “somewhat” approve of the president’s decision. About half “strongly” or “somewhat” disapprove of it, and about one-quarter said they neither approve nor disapprove. Nevertheless, about 4 in 10 Americans said they approve of the way Biden is handling his job as president. That’s roughly where his approval rating has stood in AP-NORC polling since 2022.
December 11, 2024 5:17 am
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Humanitarian aid to northern Gaza, where Israel launched a ground offensive on Oct. 6, has largely been blocked for the past 66 days. That’s according to the United Nations on Tuesday, which says between 65,000 and 75,000 Palestinians have been left without access to food, water, electricity or health care. In the north, Israel has continued its siege on Beit Lahiya, Beit Hanoun and Jabaliya with Palestinians living there largely denied aid, the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, known as OCHA, said. Recently, it said, about 5,500 people were forcibly displaced from three schools in Beit Lahiya to Gaza City.
December 11, 2024 5:16 am
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Palestinian medical officials say Israeli strikes on the Gaza Strip have killed at least 29 people. One of the strikes hit a home where displaced people were sheltering in the isolated north, killing 19. That strike occurred in the northern town of Beit Lahiya near the border with Israel, according to the nearby Kamal Adwan Hospital, which received the bodies early Wednesday. Another strike in a decades-old, built-up refugee camp in central Gaza killed at least seven people, according to the Awda Hospital. There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military.
December 11, 2024 5:13 am
PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — The East Coast is experiencing the early stages of what could be a whiplash-inducing stretch of winter weather. That’s due in part to an atmospheric river and developing bomb cyclone. The storm is expected to bring heavy rain and fierce winds to many areas until Wednesday night, and flooding is possible in some locales. Utilities are also gearing up for potential power outages from damage caused by winds that may exceed 60 mph in some areas. Forecasters say one of the key factors driving the weather is an atmospheric river, which is a long band of water vapor that can transport moisture from the tropics to more northern areas.
December 11, 2024 5:06 am
A Fayette County mother charged with abusing her 6-year-old daughter has been sentenced. Fayette County District Attorney Mike Aubele announced Tuesday that Mimi Frost, 24, was sentenced to 35 to 70 years. She previously pleaded guilty to multiple charges, including false imprisonment, aggravated assault and strangulation. Frost and her husband Jacob Weight were accused of locking their 6-year-old daughter naked in a dog cage, beating her and denying her food. Aubele previously told Channel 11 the girl was a heartbeat away from death when first responders were called to the Brownsville home for a report of an unresponsive child in January. A nephew living at the home testified against Frost and Weight in February, explaining he was instructed to lock the girl in the cage and forced to physically harm her. Weight is still awaiting trial for his alleged role in the abuse.
December 11, 2024 2:57 am
Mariah Carey’s Pittsburgh concert scheduled for Wednesday night was canceled because the singer has the flu. Ticketmaster’s website says the event organizer canceled the event, which was scheduled to be at PPG Paints Arena at 7:30 p.m. Refunds will be issued automatically, Ticketmaster’s website said. If you bought a ticket, the refund should be in your account within two to three weeks. No further information was released. Carey posted a message on her social media site: “Pittsburgh, I am sorry to say, I’ve come down with the flu. It breaks my heart that I unfortunately have to cancel tonight’s show. I love you all so much.” (Photo: AP)
