October 13, 2024 8:35 am
NEW YORK (AP) — Inflationary-weary shoppers still may wait until the first weather snap to get a basic sweater. But when it comes to seasonal items, a growing number of consumers are increasingly wanting to jump on scents and flavors from Halloween to Christmas earlier and earlier. Stores of all stripes, from food retailers like Whole Foods Market and local regional grocery player Stew Leonard’s to Bath and Body Works, are throwing the official retail calendar out the window as a result. They’re pushing Halloween costumes in July, instead of September, and featuring eggnog starting in early November instead of only December. (Photo: AP)
October 13, 2024 8:31 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — Barack Obama recently had some frank words for Black men who may consider sitting out the election. His comments have reignited a debate about the reasons why some among the consistently Democratic voting group appear unsettled about the idea of Kamala Harris as president. Obama suggested misogyny was at play. The remarks by America’s first Black president have set off a wave of handwringing among liberals over how intensely Black men will back Harris and whether the focus on Black men belies Democrats’ deeper troubles with the broader electorate.
October 13, 2024 8:31 am
COACHELLA, Calif. (AP) — The White House election is expected to come down to battlegrounds such as Wisconsin and Pennsylvania. So why did Donald Trump venture into California on Saturday, just weeks before Election Day? California is one of the most solidly Democratic states, and it’s one he’s almost certain to lose to Kamala Harris. And that’s something that won’t change after his stop in Coachella, a desert city east of Los Angeles that’s best known for the annual music festival bearing its name. Still, there are practical reasons for him to visit the state, including a get-out-the-vote push to help congressional candidates.
October 13, 2024 8:29 am
BAKERSVILLE, N.C. (AP) — Nearly two weeks after Hurricane Helene downed power lines and washed out roads all over North Carolina’s mountains, the roar of gas-powered generators is both unpleasant and essential. More than 43,000 of the 1.5 million customers who lost power in the region still lacked electricity on Friday. Without it, they can’t keep medicines cold, pump well water, recharge their phones or apply for federal disaster aid. Crews from all over are helping Duke Energy make repairs, but it’s slow going in the dense mountain forests. One nonprofit that is helping is the Footprint Project, which is scaling up to supply solar-powered mobile infrastructure, from batteries and small generators to solar grids. (Photo: AP)
October 13, 2024 8:25 am
(WPXI) – A barn at the Westmoreland Equestrian Center in Hempfield Township was destroyed in a fire Saturday. Westmoreland County 911 said crews were called to 1265 Business Route 66 at 3:07 p.m. for a fully engulfed barn on fire. A dispatcher said they don’t believe anyone was injured in the fire. At least eight horses escaped the blaze. There’s been no word on a cause of the blaze.
October 13, 2024 7:33 am
Federal authorities are reportedly investigating a Charleroi company that supplies immigrant workers for a meat packing plant. The small community in Washington county has become a national flashpoint after former president Trump referred to legal Haitian Immigrants as having “invaded” the community. According to reports from WTAE in Pittsburgh, Fourth Street Foods employs approximately 700 immigrants from over 40 countries, many of them Haitian. The company makes prepared meals sold in grocery stores. The workers are mostly employed by a contractor, Prosperity Services. Court records claim Prosperity knowingly “transported and housed undocumented non-citizens for employment purposes”. Owners at Fourth Street deny knowing anything about the claims and contend all employees working for them are legal immigrants with all the necessary work permits. The local town has been in the national spotlight ever since Donald Trump mentioned Charleroi’s Haitian immigration population during a rally and implied it was an issue in the small community. Council members and the community say there are no issues.
October 13, 2024 7:00 am
It appears that efforts to keep the Charleroi glass plant open have failed. According to reports, a letter sent to Charleroi’s mayor details the timeline for closing the Corelle Brands plant. The letter says the plant has begun closing procedures and the first round of employee terminations will begin on December 9th and will continue through February 17, 2025. The Correlle plant will then be permanently closed and all 325 employees there will be left without work. The plant’s operations are being moved to Lancaster, Ohio. The glass plant closing comes shortly after the announcement that another big business in the borough, Quality Pasta, would also be closing.
October 13, 2024 5:20 am
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — The devastation of Hurricanes Helene and Milton is still being tallied as a swath of Florida comes to terms with damage from the unusual dual strike of storms in just two weeks. Some longtime Floridians have grown accustomed to the annual cycle of storms that can shatter and upend lives in a state known mostly for its balmy weather, sunshine and beaches. Some say it’s the price of living in paradise. President Joe Biden arrived Sunday to tour the hurricane damage. Crews continued to reconnect electricity in storm-stricken communities. And lines for gasoline seemed considerably shorter as more stations opened.
October 13, 2024 5:15 am
TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — China is holding large-scale military exercises surrounding Taiwan, deploying an aircraft carrier along with warplanes, underscoring the tense situation in the Taiwan Strait. China’s Defense Ministry says the drills are a response to the Taiwanese president’s refusal to accept Beijing’s demand that self-governed Taiwan acknowledge itself as a part of the People’s Republic of China under the rule of the Communist Party. The drills began Monday after Taiwan last week celebrated its National Day. President Lai Ching-te said in a speech marking the holiday that China has no right to represent Taiwan and declared his commitment to “resist annexation or encroachment.”
October 12, 2024 10:24 am
(AP) – Florida residents who fled hundreds of miles to escape Hurricane Milton made slow trips home on crowded highways, weary from their long journeys and the cleanup work awaiting them but also grateful to be coming back alive. Milton made landfall Wednesday night as a powerful, Category 3 hurricane but officials say the toll could have been worse if not for the widespread evacuations. The still-fresh devastation wrought by Hurricane Helene just two weeks earlier probably helped compel many people to flee. Milton killed at least 10 people when it tore across central Florida, flooding barrier islands, ripping the roof off the Tampa Bay Rays ‘ baseball stadium and spawning deadly tornadoes.
