May 14, 2024 5:13 am
BALTIMORE (AP) — Crews have set off a chain of explosives to break down the largest remaining span of the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge. The demolition Monday marks a major step in freeing the grounded Dali container ship. The span landed on the ship’s bow after the Dali lost power and crashed into one of the bridge’s support columns shortly after leaving Baltimore on March 26. Since then, the ship has been stuck amid the wreckage and Baltimore’s busy port has been closed to most maritime traffic. The controlled demolition will allow the Dali to be refloated and restore traffic through the port.
May 14, 2024 5:04 am
PUNXSUTAWNEY, Pa. (AP) — Punxsutawney Phil’s offspring have names that just might help the famed weather-forecasting groundhog to predict when spring will begin. Phil’s human handlers chose Mother’s Day to announce that the two kits born this spring to Phil and his partner, Phyllis, are named Sunny and Shadow. Sunny is a female, Shadow a male. Each spring, Phil makes a prediction about the length of the remaining winter. According to tradition, if he sees his shadow there will be six more weeks of cold. The club received hundreds of suggested names for the marmot babies. The groundhog family lives in a climate-controlled burrow at the local library.
May 13, 2024 4:19 pm
NEW YORK (AP) — Donald Trump’s fixer-turned-foe, Michael Cohen, is directly implicating the former president in a hush money scheme. He told jurors during highly anticipated testimony Monday that his celebrity client approved hefty payouts to stifle stories about sex that he feared could be harmful to his 2016 White House campaign. Cohen quoted Trump as telling him to “handle it” after learning that a doorman had come forward with a claim that he had fathered a child out-of-wedlock. The Trump Tower doorman was paid $30,000 to keep the story “off the market” even though the claim was ultimately deemed unfounded. A similar episode occurred after Cohen alerted Trump that a Playboy model alleged that she and Trump had had an extramarital affair. (Photo: AP)
May 13, 2024 4:25 pm
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. airlines are trying to kill a new rule requiring them to disclose fees more quickly when consumers shop for flights. The airlines asked a federal appeals court to block the rule, which the Transportation Department issued last month. The rule requires better disclosure of fees on baggage and changing or canceling a reservation. The airlines say the new rule will confuse consumers by giving them too much information during the ticket-buying process. The Transportation Department said Monday it will defend the rule to crack down on what it calls “hidden junk fees.”
May 13, 2024 5:28 pm
BALTIMORE (AP) — Crews have conducted a controlled demolition to break down the largest remaining span of the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge. The demolition Monday marks a major step in freeing the grounded Dali container ship. The span landed on the ship’s bow after the Dali lost power and crashed into one of the bridge’s support columns shortly after leaving Baltimore on March 26. Since then, the ship has been stuck amid the wreckage and Baltimore’s busy port has been closed to most maritime traffic. The controlled demolition will allow the Dali to be refloated and restore traffic through the port.
May 13, 2024 8:20 am
UNIONTOWN, Pa. — (WPXI) – One person was killed and two others injured in a late-night shooting Sunday in Uniontown, following what police said was an argument that quickly escalated. The shooting took place around 10 p.m. at the Something Different restaurant along Austin Street, according to police documents. “The information that we gathered was there was an argument that started inside the restaurant,” Lt. Tom Kolencik of the Uniontown Police Department told Channel 11. “The owner told them to leave. It was three people. Witness accounts say once outside, Andrew Howard brandished a firearm and fired multiple shots.” First responders found a woman with a gunshot wound to her torso. She was taken to a local hospital, where she was pronounced dead a short time later. Police later identified her as Shaquisa Sims. Another woman and Howard arrived at a local hospital with gunshot wounds. Howard was taken to Ruby Memorial Hospital in Morgantown for further treatment, police said. The condition of the other woman was not immediately known. He is charged with criminal homicide, aggravated assault, simple assault, reckless endangerment and gun violations.
May 13, 2024 5:02 am
UNION TOWNSHIP, Pa. — National Weather Service surveyors are working to learn more about the storm that spurred a tornado Saturday night in Washington County. According to NWS, surveyors have now found damage that is “consistent with an EF2 tornado.” Peak winds are said to have been around 118 mph. That is a preliminary report. The NWS confirmed Saturday night that a tornado passed through Union Township from 6:05 p.m. until 6:15 p.m. Officials say the tornado did not go through downtown Finleyville. The survey is ongoing, and NWS will determine a definitive rating for the tornado at a later time. While the tornado was on the ground, it hit a church while about 100 people, including babies, were inside. According to reports, the roof was torn off an office building connected to the church. Two minor injuries were reported.
May 13, 2024 5:06 am
McCLELLANDTOWN, Pa. — (WPXI) – The National Weather Service has confirmed that two tornadoes touched down in Fayette County during Saturday’s storms. The National Weather Service said the first tornado started in Lambert at 7:06 p.m. It traveled a path of 0.2 miles and reached a peak wind speed of 65 m.p.h. making it an EF-0. The second tornado reportedly touched down in East Glades and traveled into Preston County, West Virginia. The National Weather Service said the tornado reached speeds of 90 m.p.h., making it an EF-1. The NWS said it’s already been an active tornado season and it’s not even over yet. “This will be our 13th documented tornado in our forecast area so far in 2024, and we average six a year, so we’re already double that, and we are just getting into the peak of tornado season,” said Fred McMullen, a meteorologist with NWS Pittsburgh
May 13, 2024 5:08 am
FAYETTE COUNTY, Pa. — (WPXI)- A Fayette County EMS worker was attacked while rending aid at a Dollar General on May 4. According to the Pennsylvania State Police, PSP Uniontown responded to National Pike for a report of an unresponsive male at the location. When troopers arrived on scene all parties involved were spoken to on scene. The investigation determined that a man passed out in the break room of the Dollar General while under the influence of a controlled substance. That man then physically assaulted a paramedic from Fayette County who was called to render aid. Eric Parker, 24, was taken into custody and charged. Both Parker and the paramedic went to the hospital for treatment.
May 12, 2024 5:11 am
NEW YORK (AP) — The star prosecution witness in Donald Trump’s hush money trial is set to take the stand with testimony that could help shape the outcome of the first criminal case against an American president. Michael Cohen, Trump’s former lawyer and personal fixer, is by far the most important witness in the case. And his expected appearance in court on Monday signals that the trial is entering its final stretch. Prosecutors say they may wrap up their presentation of evidence by the end of the week. Defense lawyers have teed up a bruising cross-examination of Cohen, telling jurors during opening statements that he is an “admitted liar” with an “obsession to get President Trump.”
