December 26, 2022 4:12 am
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) – South Korea’s military has fired warning shots and scrambled aircraft after North Korean drones entered the South’s airspace. South Korea’s Defense Ministry says several North Korean drones crossed the inter-Korean border and were detected in the South’s territory on Monday morning. The military broadcast warnings and fired warning shots before it launched fighter jets and attack helicopters to shoot down the drones. It isn’t immediately known if the drones were shot down. It’s the first time for North Korean drones to enter South Korean airspace since 2017, when a suspected North Korean drone was found crashed in South Korea. South Korean military officials said at the time that the drone photographed a U.S. missile defense system in South Korea.
December 26, 2022 4:12 am
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) – The Russian military reported on Monday that it shot down a Ukrainian drone approaching an airbase deep inside Russia, the second time the airbase has been targeted this month. Even though the drone was shot down, it raises questions about the effectiveness of Russia’s air defenses if drones can fly that far into the country. Russia’s Defense Ministry said three servicemen were killed by debris at the Engels airbase that houses nuclear-capable strategic bombers that have been involved in launching strikes on Ukraine. It is located more than 370 miles east of the border with Ukraine. No damage was inflicted on the aircraft, the ministry said.
December 26, 2022 4:11 am
BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) – The deep freeze from a deadly winter storm that walloped much of the United States will continue into the week as people in western New York deal with massive snow drifts that snarled emergency vehicles and travelers across the country see cancelled flights and dangerous roads. The massive storm has killed at least 34 people across the U.S. and is expected to claim more lives after trapping some residents inside houses and knocking out power to tens of thousands of homes and businesses. The extreme weather stretched from the Great Lakes near Canada to the Rio Grande along the border with Mexico. Temperatures plummeted drastically below normal from east of the Rocky Mountains to the Appalachians.
December 26, 2022 4:07 am
DERRY TOWNSHIP, Pa. — (WPXI) – It was a tragic scene in Derry Township on Christmas Eve after an elderly woman died in a house fire. “It plays on your mind. It’s supposed to be a time for happiness, and you see what happens now,” said Chief Mark Piantine of the Derry Township Volunteer Fire Department. Several Westmoreland County fire departments were dispatched to Pizza Barn Road in Derry Township on Saturday evening after reports of a person trapped inside the home. They got through the front door and pulled the person out of the house,” Piantine said. nvestigators have not released the name of the woman who died. Piantine told our news partners at Channel 11 her husband was able to escape from the house. First responders battled the elements and circumstances in single-digit temperatures and less-than-ideal conditions. The weather conditions were the worst. It delayed our response because the roads were nothing but a sheet of ice. As you can see, we’re in the process of picking up hose. We put 1,000 feet of hose down to get our water supply. We’re trying to get it picked up before it freezes,” Piantine said. The Pennsylvania State Police Fire Marshal is investigating what caused the fire. Piantine said the marshal’s efforts are focused on the kitchen area.
December 26, 2022 4:04 am
PITTSBURGH, Pa. — (WPXI) – Authorities are investigating a crash Saturday night in Sewickley Heights that left two women hospitalized, one critically. Emergency responders were notified at 10:14 p.m. December 24th of a single-vehicle rollover crash in the 500 block of Fern Hollow Road. Authorities said the driver of the car, an 18-year-old man, was not injured in the crash. Two female passengers, an 18-year-old and a 20-year-old, were taken to area hospitals for undisclosed injuries. Police said the 20-year-old was said to be in critical condition. The 18-year-old is in stable condition. The Allegheny County Police Department’s Homicide and Collision Reconstruction Unit was called to assist with the investigation.
December 26, 2022 3:59 am
NORTH VERSAILLES, Pa. — (WPXI) – Tenants of a 72-unit apartment building will not be able to stay in their rooms after a water main break. Allegheny County dispatchers say emergency crews were called to the 500 block of Della Street in North Versailles at around 3:56 p.m. Firefighters say the water main break occurred in an electrical unit in the building. They had to turn off both the water and the electricity. People who had to leave the building but did not have a place to stay are able to stay at the North Versailles Community Center on Greensburg Avenue. Firefighters said food would be provided for them but they can only stay until 9:00 a.m. Pittsburgh Regional Transit sent buses to help transport people to the community center, emergency crews say. The owner of the complex originally told firefighters they would not be paying for overnight hotels to help the displaced residents. They have since come forward and said they will be providing help, but have not yet specified how they will be helping. Our news partners at Channel 11 reached out to Brandywine, who owns the apartment complex to see what, specifically, is being done and has not heard back. Members of the West Wilmerding Volunteer Fire Department are asking the public to help. Anyone willing to provide donations or to help the displaced residents is asked to reach out to the West Wilmerding Volunteer Fire Department. Their phone number is 412-583-6535.
December 25, 2022 9:08 am
VATICAN CITY (AP) — In the splendor of St. Peter’s Basilica, Pope Francis was presiding over Christmas Eve Mass. During his homily Saturday evening, the pontiff hailed Jesus’ birth in a stable and admonished people against being “ravenous” for power and wealth. He decried war, poverty, injustice and greedy consumerism. Francis encouraged people not to let Christmas pass without doing something good. The pope said there was a “danger” that people forget the real meaning of the holiday. Some 7,000 Romans, tourists and pilgrims attended the Mass. On Sunday, Francis was set to deliver a Christmas blessing and read a message traditionally about the world’s trouble spots from the basilica’s balcony overlooking St. Peter’s Square.
December 25, 2022 9:07 am
BETHLEHEM, West Bank (AP) — The biblical town of Bethlehem is marking what is shaping up to be a merry Christmas. Thousands of visitors have descended upon the traditional birthplace of Jesus as it rebounds from the coronavirus pandemic. Tourism is the economic lifeblood of this town in the occupied West Bank, and for the past two years, the pandemic kept international visitors away. This year, visitors are back, hotels are full and local shopkeepers have reported a brisk business in the runup to the holiday. The Palestinian tourism minister, Rula Maayah, says this year will be “very much different” than last year. She says pilgrims “from all over the world” are joining the celebrations.
December 25, 2022 9:07 am
BLOOMINGTON, Minn. (AP) — Police say five people have been arrested in a fatal shooting at Minnesota’s Mall of America that sent the sprawling commercial center into lockdown on one of the final days of the holiday shopping season. The Minneapolis Star Tribune reports that Bloomington Police Chief Booker Hodges announced the arrests at a Saturday evening news conference. He said those arrested are two 18-year-olds and three 17-year-olds, all male. They will all face murder charges. The newspaper says police believe one of the 18-year-olds was the shooter, though another suspect may have also fired a weapon. A sixth suspect is still being sought.
December 25, 2022 9:06 am
BEIJING (AP) — Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has defended what he says is his country’s position of impartiality on the war in Ukraine and signaled that China would deepen ties with Russia in the coming year. Wang on Sunday also blamed America for the deterioration in relations between the world’s two largest economies, saying that China has “firmly rejected the United States’ erroneous China policy.” China’s refusal to condemn the invasion of Ukraine and join others in imposing sanctions on Russia has further frayed ties and fueled an emerging divide with much of Europe. Wang said that China would “deepen strategic mutual trust and mutually beneficial cooperation” with Russia. Warships from the two countries held joint naval drills in the East China Sea last week.
