October 7, 2022 12:38 pm
NEW YORK (AP) – President Joe Biden says the risk of nuclear “Armageddon” is at the highest level since the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis. Biden’s words come as Russian officials speak of possibly using tactical nuclear weapons after massive setbacks in their invasion of Ukraine. Biden’s ominous words were at a fundraiser for the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. He said Russian President Vladimir Putin is “a guy I know fairly well” and that Putin was “not joking when he talks about the use of tactical nuclear weapons or biological or chemical weapons.” For months now, U.S. officials have warned that Russia could use weapons of mass destruction in Ukraine to counter strategic setbacks on the battlefield. However Biden’s remarks are the starkest warnings yet issued by the U.S. government about the use of nukes.
October 7, 2022 8:57 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – America’s employers slowed their hiring in September but still added a solid 263,000 jobs – a dose of encouraging news that may mean the Federal Reserve’s drive to cool the job market and ease inflation is starting to make progress. Friday’s government report showed that last month’s job growth was down from 315,000 in August and that the unemployment rate fell to 3.5%. September’s more moderate pace of hiring may be welcomed by the Fed, which is trying to restrain the economy enough to tame the worst inflation in four decades without causing a recession. Slower job growth would mean less pressure on employers to raise pay and pass those costs on to their customers.
October 7, 2022 4:19 am
Washington City Council worked through an agenda full of bill payments and contract approvals on Thursday night. They approved a resolution appointing Michael Namie as the County’s nomination to the Washington Parking Authority Board for a five year term. Council also announced several events that will be occurring throughout the month. The 7th Ward Playground Fall Festival will take place on October 13th from 4:30 pm to 6:30 pm and the Dark in the Park will be held October 28th and 29th at the Washington Park. The Washington Senior Center will hold their Spud Night Fundraiser on October 15 from 3:00 pm to 7:00 pm at the American Legion. The City Police and County Sheriff will hold a Drug Take Back Program on October 29th from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm at the Washington Pavilion, and Trick or Treat is scheduled for Monday October 31st from 5:30 pm until 7:00 pm.
October 7, 2022 4:15 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – A North Carolina man has pleaded guilty to plotting with other members of the far-right Proud Boys extremist group to violently stop the transfer of presidential power after the 2020 election. Jeremy Joseph Bertino is the first Proud Boys member to plead guilty to a seditious conspiracy charge. Bertino also pleaded guilty on Thursday to a charge of unlawfully possessing firearms. Bertino has agreed to cooperate with the Justice Department’s investigation of the role that Proud Boys leaders played in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. Former Proud Boys national chairman Henry “Ënrique” Tarrio and four other group members also have been charged with seditious conspiracy.
October 7, 2022 4:14 am
SANIBEL ISLAND, Fla. (AP) – Hurricane Ian’s death toll has climbed into the triple digits. The number of recorded storm-related deaths rose Thursday to at least 101 in the eight days since the storm made landfall in southwest Florida. Of the total deaths, 92 were in Florida, according to reports from the Florida Medical Examiners Commission. Other storm deaths include five in North Carolina, three in Cuba and one in Virginia. Ian is the second-deadliest storm to hit the mainland United States in the 21st century behind Hurricane Katrina, which left more than 1,800 people dead in 2005. The deadliest hurricane to ever hit the U.S. was the Great Galveston Hurricane in 1900 that killed as many as 8,000 people.
October 7, 2022 4:11 am
A judge has delayed a looming trial between Twitter and Elon Musk. The move gives the Tesla CEO more time to close his $44 billion deal to buy the social media company after months spent fighting to get out of it. Chancellor Kathaleen St. Jude McCormick, head of the Delaware Chancery Court, said Thursday that Musk and Twitter have until Oct. 28 to close the deal. She said that a trial set for Oct. 17 will happen in November if they don’t. Musk renewed his offer Monday and asked to halt the trial to get the financing in order. Twitter objected because he’d already backed out once.
October 7, 2022 4:09 am
UTHAI SAWAN, Thailand (AP) – Relatives grieving staggering loss laid flowers at a day care center in rural northeastern Thailand. A day earlier, a fired police officer slaughtered dozens of people, including children as young as 2 who were napping. The entire country reeled in the wake of Thursday’s grisly attack in a small town in one of the nation’s poorest regions. At least 24 of the 36 people killed in the assault were children. It was Thailand’s deadliest mass shooting. Royal and government representatives in white military uniforms laid wreaths at ceremonial tables in front of the center’s main door. They were followed by weeping family members, who gathered their hands in prayer before placing white flowers on the wooden floor.
October 7, 2022 4:05 am
BURGETTSTOWN, Pa. — (WPXI) – An off-duty Pittsburgh police officer is accused of punching a woman in the face at the Five Finger Death Punch concert at Star Lake amphitheater in September. According to the criminal complaint obtained by our news partners at WPXI, Chas Kulow became aggressive towards and uncooperative with EMS as they were treating his girlfriend. Police say Kulow appeared under the influence and very agitated. He then left the staging area, but later returned. The complaint says when the victims attempted to calm Kulow down, he punched the female victim in the right cheek area. She was bleeding from the mouth. Police say Kulow then complained of chest pains and was transported by ambulance to Weirton Hospital, where police say he became belligerent and uncooperative with hospital staff and officers. In Weirton, West Virginia, he was charged with disorderly conduct. He’s accused of simple assault, disorderly conduct, harassment and public drunkenness for the incident at Star Lake. Pittsburgh police tell Channel-11 that Kulow has been on paid administrative leave since the incident, and they are now reviewing the charges and will take appropriate action.
October 7, 2022 2:47 am
((WPXI) – Authorities in Allegheny County announced an arrest of a teen in the Kennywood shooting Thursday morning. Darryl Pirl, 15, will be charged as an adult and is facing two charges of aggravated assault, firearms not to be carried without a license, possession of a firearm by a minor and recklessly endangering another person. Pirl is one of the three people who was injured in the shooting and was taken to a hospital by private means that night, according to the criminal complaint. Police said that physical evidence links Pirl to the shooting. Police said two different guns were fired during the incident and that they are looking for a second shooter, who they say is likely a juvenile. During a press conference, police said they believe the Kennywood shooting was in relation to an ongoing feud between two groups of teens in the Mon Valley, including in Duquesne and Homestead. On Sept. 24, three people were shot inside the park in the “Lost Kennywood” section by the “Musik Express” ride, including Pirl who was grazed by a bullet. Kennywood unveiled new security measures last week before opening for the first time since the shooting this past Friday.
October 7, 2022 2:44 am
After a summer of single monthly meetings, Washington County Commissioners returned to their two meeting a month schedule. Thursday’s meeting was largely procedural, paying bills and authorizing contracts. One agenda item stood out. Commissioners approved a $42,260 payment to ES&S for technical support on voting equipment for the upcoming general election. Washington County Director of Elections Melanie Ostrander says that this is a procedure that takes place before every election. According to Ostrander, the Logic and Accuracy Testing of Voting Equipment is required by the state. It will last 17 days and every machine will be tested for voting accuracy, from the selection of vote, to the registration of the vote, the paper printout and scanner accuracy. The contract also calls for two technicians to be on standby for election day support.
