February 19, 2024 5:00 am
PITTSBURGH — (WPXI) – Pittsburgh Regional Transit reduced service on over 20 bus routes and the ‘T’ Sunday. According to a release PRT issued in January announcing the service adjustments, the reductions are meant to improve service reliability and on-time performance by ensuring the number of drivers needed doesn’t exceed the number of drivers available. PRT said the reduction represents about 1.5% of services. In total, 16 bus routes will see reductions. Most of the routes will be minor trip time adjustments and some frequency changes. In addition, a few midday Blue Line trips were moved to the evening to better align with rider demand. After about 5:20 p.m. on weekdays, the Silver Line now operates only between Washington Junction and Library Station. Riders traveling farther north can connect to the Blue Line at Washington Junction. A complete list of changes is available on the PRT service adjustments web page.
February 19, 2024 4:56 am
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) — Hundreds of Penn State students have raised more than $16.9 million for pediatric cancer patients in the annual 46-hour dance marathon known as Thon. The total was announced Sunday afternoon at the conclusion of the Penn State Interfraternity Council/Panhellenic Dance Marathon. It topped last year’s total of just over $15 million. Money raised benefits pediatric cancer patients and their families at the Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center. Child cancer survivors and their families also participate along with the dancers, who are helped by thousands of other students in support roles. Officials say the dance marathon has helped more than 4,800 families over more than five decades.
February 19, 2024 1:54 am
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) — West Virginia University suspended a fraternity Tuesday over reported hazing incidents, the school said. The interim suspension of Pi Kappa Phi fraternity prevents it from all recruitment activities along with participating or attending social functions, WVU said in a news release. The suspension will remain in place while an investigation and review process continue. WVU did not provide details of the alleged hazing incidents in the statement. “We take every report of possible misconduct seriously, and many times investigations provide a chance for us to help students make better choices in the future,” said Jill Gibson, director of the WVU Office of Student Rights and Responsibilities.
February 18, 2024 7:21 am
NEW YORK (AP) — Former U.S. Rep. George Santos is suing late-night host Jimmy Kimmel. Santos says Kimmel deceived him into making videos on the Cameo app that were used to ridicule the disgraced New York Republican on air. The lawsuit alleges that Kimmel misrepresented himself to induce Santos to create personalized videos capitalizing on and ridiculing Santos’ “gregarious personality.” The videos were used on Kimmel’s show for a segment called “Will Santos Say It?” A Disney representative listed as a media contact Kimmel’s show didn’t immediately respond to an email seeking comment Saturday. Santos was expelled from the House of Representatives last year. He has pleaded not guilty to numerous criminal charges. (Photo: AP)
February 18, 2024 7:20 am
ATLANTA (AP) — Since Jimmy Carter entered hospice care at his home in south Georgia one year ago, the former U.S. president has celebrated his 99th birthday, enjoyed tributes to his legacy and lost his wife of 77 years. Rosalynn Carter died in November, about six months after the Carter family disclosed her dementia diagnosis. She lived only a few days under hospice supervision, with her frail husband at her bedside. Experts on end-of-life care say the Carters’ different paths show the range of an oft-misunderstood service. Those advocates commend the Carter family for demonstrating the realities of aging, dementia and death.
February 18, 2024 7:19 am
HOUSTON (AP) — A Houston megachurch is set to have a special service a week after a woman opened fire in one of its hallways before being gunned down by security officers. Lakewood Church, run by celebrity pastor Joel Osteen, has not had services since the Feb. 11 shooting that sent worshippers scrambling for safety. Osteen said Sunday’s service was being held to celebrate a “time of healing and restoration.” Police say Genesse Moreno entered the church with her 7-year-old son and opened fire. Two people were injured, including her son, who was shot in the head. The boy remains hospitalized. Questions about the shooting remained unanswered, including Moreno’s motive.
February 18, 2024 7:18 am
RAFAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israeli strikes across Gaza have killed at least 18 people as the United States says it would veto another draft U.N. cease-fire resolution. The U.S., Israel’s top ally, instead hopes to broker a cease-fire agreement and hostage release with Hamas and envisions a wider resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has pushed back, calling Hamas’ demands “delusional” and rejecting U.S. and international calls for Palestinian statehood. He has vowed to continue the offensive until “total victory” over Hamas and to expand it to Gaza’s southernmost town of Rafah, where more than half the population of 2.3 million Palestinians has sought refuge.
February 18, 2024 7:16 am
BETHLEHEM, Pa. (AP) — Just blocks from the shuttered Bethlehem Steel plant, the Hispanic Center Lehigh Valley was bustling on a recent day with scores of older people eating lunch. Downstairs, out of sight, a constant stream of visitors was shopping in its massive food pantry. Over the past seven months, the number visitors to the pantry has risen by more than a third. The center’s executive director, Raymond Santiago, sees that as a stark sign of something he has felt over the past couple years: Many in the area’s Latino community are struggling to meet their basic needs. Northampton County, which includes Bethlehem, is a traditional bellwether for Pennsylvania, one of the most important presidential swing states, and Latinos are a key part of the coalition that President Joe Biden is trying rebuild as he embarks on his campaign for a second term. In doing so, the Democrat might have challenges selling a crucial part of his reelection strategy. One of the messages he has delivered in previous visits to Pennsylvania is that former President Donald Trump, the front-runner for the GOP nomination, is a danger to American democracy. Biden is hoping that message energizes the same voters who turned out four years ago, when Northampton County narrowly flipped to him after supporting Trump by a thin margin in 2016. Based on his interactions with visitors to the Hispanic center, Santiago isn’t so sure. It’s the price of groceries and lack of affordable housing that dominate conversations there.
February 18, 2024 7:10 am
(WPXI) – The Pittsburgh St. Patrick Day Parade Committee said the 2024 celebration will be held on March 16th. The parade will run down Grant Street in Downtown Pittsburgh and begin at 10 a.m. The committee also announced Robert Tierney as this year’s grand marshal. Tierney was born in Lucan County, Dublin and moved to Pittsburgh in 1997. He has worked with the Ireland Institute of Pittsburgh and the Gaelic Athletic Association. He has helped young Irish people and helped them find work and internships The parade will feature Irish step dancers, marching bands, military members, community organizations and Punxsutawney Phil.
February 18, 2024 7:07 am
(WPXI) – A person was hurt in an early morning fire Saturday in Fayette County. Authorities say the fire broke out at a home on Vance Street in Uniontown after 3 a.m. “The fire was on the first floor, and it was spreading pretty quick to the second floor, spread up through the stairwell and concealed spaces – so it made it challenging to fight,” said Chief Scott Conn of the Uniontown Fire Department. But that wasn’t the only obstacle. Firefighters encountered icy conditions surrounding the house, which sits on a slope. “The snow – it was already starting to subside, but it had already laid down a couple inches. Of course, with that slope, it makes it challenging,” Conn said. Chief Conn said one person escaped through a window. Another ran through the flames and out the front door. He was checked out at the scene after getting burned but did not go to the hospital. Firefighters were able to stop the flames from spreading to neighboring houses. The cause is still being investigated, but Conn does not believe it to be suspicious.
