June 25, 2024 4:12 pm
EAST PALESTINE, Ohio (AP) — The National Transportation Safety Board says Norfolk Southern and its contractors botched the decision to blow open five vinyl chloride tank cars after last year’s disastrous derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, and track-side detectors that might have prevented the crash failed to accurately detect the temperature of a burning wheel bearing 20 miles beforehand, according to the National Transportation Safety Board’s investigation. Investigators said the railroad and its contractors ignored data about the tank cars and failed to accurately present information to decision-makers from the chemical manufacturer. The NTSB also recommended that federal standards be established for the track-side detectors that are supposed to catch mechanical problems that cause derailments.
June 25, 2024 8:22 am
East Washington police arrested a man Sunday night after he allegedly tried to set his home on fire with a woman and a 4-year-old child inside. Thirty seven year old Donald Lee Kosek, of East Washington, faces felony charges of arson and terroristic threats. The criminal complaint states that Kosek tried to light a pair of boxer shorts on fire in front of his door. He also tried to pull a plastic pool from the trash and set it on fire. Kosek is in the Washington County Jail on $100,000 bond.
June 25, 2024 4:58 am
A shooting occurred Monday night in the City of Washington. According to Washington County 9-1-1, the incident happened at 555 Broad Street at 11:15 PM. One person was injured and taken to the hospital. No one has been apprehended for the shooting. No further details are available.
June 25, 2024 4:37 am
EAST PALESTINE, Ohio (AP) — National Transportation Safety Board Chair Jennifer Homendy says Norfolk Southern repeatedly tried to interfere with the investigation into the East Palestine, Ohio, derailment and shape its conclusions about what the agency called a flawed decision to blow open five tank cars and burn the vinyl chloride inside. The NTSB also confirmed at Tuesday’s hearing that a flaming wheel bearing caused the February 2023 derailment in East Palestine. The agency approved more than two dozen recommendations to prevent similar disasters. Investigators say the railroad and its contractors ignored data about the tank cars and failed to accurately present information to decision-makers from the chemical manufacturer.
June 25, 2024 4:27 am
DENVER (AP) — U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert of Colorado has won the Republican primary in a House race she jumped into last year after switching districts. Boebert’s victory comes despite a scandal over a video of her at a Denver theater and accusations of carpetbagging. Her resounding win showcases her political cachet among Republicans and positions her for a likely easy win in the November general election. It is also a victory for the far-right flank of the House GOP, a group that takes no prisoners, makes no concessions and stays on the attack. In two other closely watched GOP state primaries, attorney Jeff Hurd and political consultant and talk radio host Jeff Crank also notched wins Tuesday.
June 25, 2024 4:25 am
YEKATERINBURG, Russia (AP) — Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, arrested in Russia on espionage charges, appeared in a court in Yekaterinburg for the start of his trial. The 32-year-old journalist appeared in the court in a glass defendants’ cage, with his head shaved and wearing a black-and-blue plaid shirt. Gershkovich was detained while on a reporting trip to the Ural Mountains city in March 2023. Russian authorities alleged he was “gathering secret information” on orders from the CIA about Uralvagonzavod, a facility that produces and repairs military equipment, but authorities have not publicly disclosed any evidence to back up the accusations. Gershkovich, his employer and the U.S. government vehemently deny the charges. He faces a sentence of up to 20 years.
June 25, 2024 4:13 am
SAIPAN, Northern Mariana Islands (AP) — WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has arrived in Saipan ahead of an expected guilty plea in a deal with the U.S. Justice Department that will set him free to return home to Australia. The plane carrying the eccentric computer expert and internet publisher touched down more than two hours before the scheduled start of a plea hearing. He is set to admit to a felony for publishing U.S. military secrets under a deal that spares him prison time in America after years spent jailed in the United Kingdom while fighting extradition to America.
June 25, 2024 4:10 am
NEW YORK (AP) — A judge has modified Donald Trump’s gag order, freeing the former president to comment about witnesses and jurors in his New York hush money criminal trial but keeping court and prosecution staff off limits. Judge Juan M. Merchan issued his decision on Tuesday. Trump’s lawyers had wanted the gag order fully lifted. They argued there was nothing to justify continued restrictions on Trump’s First Amendment rights after the trial ended May 30 in his conviction for falsifying records to cover up a potential sex scandal. Prosecutors had urged Merchan to keep most of the gag order in place at least until Trump is sentenced on July 11, but said they’d be OK with modifying it.
June 25, 2024 4:07 am
TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — U.S. citizens jailed in Russia include a Wall Street Journal reporter, a vacationing corporate security executive and a dual national visiting her family in Tatarstan. Arrests of Americans in Russia have become common recently, as relations between Moscow and Washington sink to Cold War lows. The U.S. accuses the government of President Vladimir Putin of targeting Americans for political reasons and using them as bargaining chips, but Russian officials insist they all have broken the law. Some have been exchanged for Russians held in the U.S., but for others, the prospects of being released in a swap are less clear.
June 25, 2024 3:56 am
PennDot has announced plans to close Mingo Church Road (Route 1061) between Keeney Road and Route 88 (Finleyville Rd) beginning July 1. They plan to replace the bridge that carries Mingo Church Road over Froman Run. Aside from the bridge replacement, the approaches to the bridge will be widened and repaved. There is a 6.3 mile detour that will be used as follows.
*Route 1061 Mingo Church Rd
*Route 1059 Sugar Run Rd
*Route 1006 Venetia Rd, Rankintown Rd, Washington Ave
*Route 88 Washington Ave, Brownsville Rd, Finleyville Rd
The $600,000 infrastructure improvement is expected to last through early October.
