August 25, 2022 4:25 am
(AP) – COVID-19 vaccines tweaked to better match today’s omicron threat are expected to roll out in a few weeks but how much will they help? Also up in the air is who should get one — and how soon. Pfizer and rival Moderna both asked U.S. regulators this week to authorize modified versions of their vaccine to use as fall boosters. The shot is half the original recipe and half protection against the latest two versions of omicron. The Food and Drug Administration ordered that recipe at the end of June, and now has to decide if this combination is ready.
August 25, 2022 4:24 am
UVALDE, Texas (AP) – The Uvalde school district’s embattled police chief has been fired following allegations that he made several critical mistakes during a mass shooting that left 19 students and two teachers dead. The district’s board of trustees said Wednesday day that it voted to dismiss Chief Pete Arredondo, who has faced criticism since the May 24 massacre at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. Officers armed with rifles waited in a school hallway for more than an hour while the gunman carried out the shooting. Arredondo has tried to defend his actions, telling a Texas House committee he did not consider himself the incident commander on the scene.
August 25, 2022 4:21 am
NIKOPOL, Ukraine (AP) – The Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in the middle of the fighting in Ukraine was temporarily cut off from the electrical grid because of fire damage. That caused a blackout in the region and heightened fears of a catastrophe in a country haunted by the Chernobyl disaster. The plant has been occupied by Russian forces since the early days of the war. The government in Kyiv alleges Russia is essentially holding the plant hostage, storing weapons there and launching attacks from around it. Moscow accuses Ukraine of recklessly firing on it. On Thursday, Ukraine’s nuclear power operator said the plant was cut off from the grid after fires damaged a transmission line. The damaged line apparently carried outgoing electricity – and a Russian official said the region briefly lost power.
August 25, 2022 4:21 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – More than 40 million Americans could see their student loan debt reduced – and in many cases eliminated – under President Joe Biden’s long-awaited forgiveness plan. Biden’s announcement Wednesday was a historic but politically divisive move in the run-up to the midterm elections. Fulfilling a campaign promise, Biden is moving to erase $10,000 in federal student loan debt for those with incomes below $125,000 a year, or households that earn less than $250,000. He’s canceling an additional $10,000 for those who received federal Pell Grants to attend college. It’s seen as an unprecedented attempt to stem the tide of America’s rapidly rising student debt. But it also faces nearly certain legal challenges.
August 25, 2022 4:17 am
LAWRENCE COUNTY, Pa. — (WPXI) – A hazing investigation has led to severe consequences for the Mohawk Warriors football team. All practices, games and events for both the varsity and junior varsity teams are “inactive” and on hold until at least Aug. 28 while the Lawrence County District Attorney’s Office investigates the hazing allegations. That means Friday’s first home game against Union is also canceled. Mohawk parents say they’re angry, disgusted and deserve to know the truth about what happened on the football team as the district attorney’s office looks into possible “unlawful activity.” The Lawrence County District Attorney’s Office has not commented. Head football coach Tim McCutcheon told our news partners at Channel-11 , “There are so many rumors right now. I have no plans to step down from coaching the football team.” Parents say many kids who did nothing wrong and have worked hard all summer, now might have to sit out a season.
August 25, 2022 4:11 am
MIDDLETOWN, Pa. (AP) — A Pennsylvania school district has announced it’s canceling its high school’s football season after obtaining a video that allegedly showed hazing among team members. The Middletown Area School District earlier this month had announced an investigation into what it called a “disturbing and upsetting” Aug. 11 cellphone video showing hazing. The head football coach resigned within days of the video surfacing. Superintendent Chelton Hunter said Wednesday in a letter to parents that additional video surfaced and indicated “this hazing was much more widespread, and involved many more students” than was previously known. “In light of this, we have made the decision to cancel the 2022 football season,” Hunter said, adding that he knew the decision would affect many students and families and “will be met with many different opinions and emotions. School officials would work to find other opportunities in the fall for cheerleaders and the marching band, and alternative plans would be made for homecoming, “which is typically scheduled around a football game,” he said.
August 25, 2022 4:05 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. — A push last week to recruit new Pennsylvania poll workers produced more than 1,100 applicants, including at least one in 58 of 67 counties. State elections officials said Wednesday the push brought in the most applicants in some of the populous suburbs of Philadelphia. Poll workers are paid to help run elections in some 9,000 polling places across the state. It’s been a challenge to recruit and train sufficient numbers during the pandemic, in part because their work can require 14- or 16-hour days.
August 24, 2022 4:46 pm
(AP) – Heavy rain and flash floods drenched Mississippi, prompting rescue operations, closures and evacuations Wednesday including dozens of residents at a nursing home in the central part of the state. Rain has pummeled the central and southern parts of the state for the last three days. The National Weather Service says flash flood warnings are in effect for several areas from Jackson, the state capital, to Meridian and southern parts of the state. First responders say they’re working to rescue people from their homes amid the downpour.
August 24, 2022 4:19 am
PRESTONSBURG, Ky. (AP) – Nearly a month after torrential rainfall brought devastating floods to eastern Kentucky, many victims remain in shelters. Some people housed at Jenny Wiley State Resort Park vow to rebuild on land they still call home. Others plan to leave, and there are some who still haven’t decided. Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear said 455 people were still being housed in Kentucky state parks, churches, schools and community centers late last week. Many are waiting on decisions from the federal government about what kind of help they might get before they know whether they can rebuild. The catastrophic flooding caused at least 39 deaths in eastern Kentucky.
August 24, 2022 4:18 am
NEW YORK (AP) – U.S. Rep. Jerry Nadler has defeated U.S. Rep. Carolyn Maloney in a Democratic primary after a court forced the two veteran lawmakers into the same New York City congressional district. As the chair of the House Judiciary Committee, Nadler twice led fights to impeach former President Donald Trump. His victory ends a 30-year run in Congress for Maloney, who fought to get government aid for people sickened by clouds of toxic soot after the Sept. 11 attacks. The unusual battle between incumbents resulted from a redistricting process that lumped Nadler’s home base on the west side of Manhattan together with Maloney’s on the east side.
