March 26, 2023 8:01 am
WEST READING, Pa. (AP) — An explosion at a chocolate factory in Pennsylvania Friday killed three people and left four missing, but authorities say one person was found alive in the rubble. West Reading Borough officials say a number of people were injured by the explosion at the R.M. Palmer Co. plant just before 5 p.m. Police Chief Wayne Holben says the death toll rose on Saturday with the discovery of a third body in the community about 60 miles northwest of Philadelphia. Fire Chief Chad Moyer says four people remain missing as the search for victims continues and fire investigators work to determine a cause. The explosion destroyed one building and damaged a neighboring building with apartments. A spokesperson says eight people were taken to Reading Hospital Friday evening
March 26, 2023 7:58 am
PITTSBURGH (WPXI) — Thousands of people remain without power after strong winds tore through western Pennsylvania Saturday. Winds reached over 50 mph, knocked trees down and broke utility poles. As of 12:45 p.m. Sunday, Duquesne Light Company reports 5,547 of their customers are without power. Any Duquesne Light customer who is without power is asked to report their outage online or by calling 412-393-7000. West Penn Power continues to report thousands of outages.
A current look at West Penn Power outages:
- Allegheny – 2,666
- Beaver – 1,248
- Fayette – 147
- Greene – 2,359
- Washington – 1,297
- Westmoreland – 915
People are reminded to not approach downed power lines. Anyone experiencing an emergency during a power outage should contact 911 for help.
March 26, 2023 1:44 am
A fire broke out early Saturday morning in the borough of Burgettstown. The fire was at a home located at 1822 Main Street. First responders from Burgettstown and Slovan fire departments were dispatched at 4:05 am. The fire was extinguished quickly. The fire marshal was on the scene to determine the cause of the fire.
March 25, 2023 4:24 am
NEW YORK (AP) — After nearly two years and $1.4 million spent, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration released an external review of its overseas operations that barely mentions recent corruption scandals and offers a series of recommendations that critics dismissed as overly vague. Much of the report outlines the DEA’s 69-country “foreign footprint,” while lauding its efforts to plug gaping holes in the oversight of undercover money laundering operations. The probe followed reporting by The Associated Press on a disgraced former DEA agent who confessed to laundering money for Colombian drug cartels and skimming millions to fund an international joyride of parties and prostitutes.
March 25, 2023 4:22 am
FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — Shares in Deutsche Bank, Germany’s largest lender, have fallen sharply and dragged down major European banks as fears about the global financial system send fresh shudders through the market. Deutsche Bank closed down 8.5% on the German stock exchange Friday after falling as much as 14%. That followed a steep rise in the cost to insure bondholders against the bank defaulting on its debts, known as credit default swaps. The new turmoil in the global financial system comes after the collapse of two U.S. banks and a government-orchestrated takeover of Swiss lender Credit Suisse by rival UBS. Asked whether Deutsche Bank could be the next Credit Suisse, Scholz said, “There is no reason to worry.”
March 25, 2023 4:21 am
NEW YORK (AP) — A powdery substance was found Friday with a threatening letter in a mailroom at the offices of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg. It’s the latest security scare as the prosecutor weighs a potential historic indictment of former President Donald Trump. The letter said, “Alvin, I am going to kill you,” according to a person familiar with the matter. The person was not authorized to speak publicly about an ongoing investigation and did so on condition of anonymity. The discovery, in the same court building where a grand jury is expected to resume work Monday on the Trump case, came amid increasingly hostile rhetoric from the Republican.
March 25, 2023 4:16 am
WEST READING, Pa. (AP) — An explosion at a chocolate factory in Pennsylvania Friday killed two people and left nine people missing. West Reading Borough Police Department Chief of Police Wayne Holben says several other people were injured by the explosion at the R.M. Palmer Co. plant about 60 miles northwest of Philadelphia. The explosion just before 5 p.m. sent a plume of black smoke into the air, destroying one building at the facility and damaging a neighboring building with apartments. Holden says the cause of the explosion remains under investigation. A spokesperson says eight people were taken to Reading Hospital Friday evening.
March 25, 2023 3:46 am
The Washington County Chamber of Commerce hosted a Municipal Leaders Panel Discussion on Friday. Leaders from six communities related to members the challenges, successes and outlooks for each of their townships. Successes included ongoing recreational developments. Struggles described were with infrastructure funding and state regulatory bureaucracy. Outlooks, overall, were positive despite any difficulties that the communities faced. Darla Protch, Township Manager for Mt. Pleasant Township discussed her struggles trying to fund a $35 million sewerage project where they are financially qualified for a project one third that size due to their rural make up. Recreation projects were highlighted by Peters Township and North Franklin Township with regards to new parks in each township. Erin Dinch, Director of Planning and Development in North Franklin Township spoke of how their new Waterside Park will give the community the place to gain a sense of community and allow residents to meet the neighbors they otherwise may not meet. Outlooks overall were positive. Cecil Township Manager Don Gennuso says that supervisors there will be reviewing their comprehensive plan to make sure commercial and industrial development will be spurred along the recently opened Southern Beltway. South Strabane Township Manager Brandon Stanick spoke of their juggling act of planning for extensive residential and ongoing commercial development. The event was moderated by Chartiers Township Manager Jodi Noble.
March 25, 2023 3:46 am
(WPXI) – Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen Zappala Jr. said he believes Kennywood Park is unsafe following a shooting in September. He told our news partners at Channel 11 that his office compiled a list of security demands at the end of November and told the park to have them complete by opening day. According to Zappala, some things are not complete and the park is just one month from opening. Neither the park nor the DA would go into detail about what still needed to be done. Zappala said he hopes to work with the park in order to get safety measures in place before the opening in April. If the company does not comply, he says he is willing to go to court.
March 24, 2023 2:45 pm
Manifold Road is closed from Berry Road to Wellness way in South Strabane Township until at least 8 o’clock tonight (Friday) after a vehicle accident took down two poles with high tension power lines and other utilities. Police say residents in that area may experience disruption of power and telephone/cable service throughout this period. There’s been no word on whether there were any injuries.
