June 19, 2025 5:11 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Federal Reserve kept its key rate unchanged Wednesday as it waits for additional information on how tariffs and other potential disruptions will affect the economy this year. The Fed’s policymakers signaled they still expect to cut rates twice this year, even as they also project that President Donald Trump’s import duties will push inflation higher. They also expect growth to slow and unemployment to edge up, according to their latest quarterly projections. Fed policymakers had cut their rate three times late last year but have since have been on hold.
June 19, 2025 5:09 am
PUERTO ESCONDIDO, Mexico (AP) — Hurricane Erick has made landfall in western Oaxaca state in Mexico. Earlier, forecasters upgraded Erick to an “extremely dangerous” Category 4 hurricane before lowering it to a Category 3. Early Thursday, the hurricane’s center was located about 20 miles east of Punta Maldonado. Its maximum sustained winds were clocked at 125 mph (205 kph). It was moving northwest at 9 mph,
June 19, 2025 5:08 am
A SpaceX rocket being tested in Texas has exploded, sending a dramatic fireball high into the sky. The company says the Starship “experienced a major anomaly” at about 11 p.m. Wednesday while on the test stand at Starbase, SpaceX’s launch site at the southern tip of Texas. The company says in a statement on X that “all personnel are safe and accounted for.” SpaceX says there are no hazards to nearby communities. It has asked people not to try to approach the site.
June 19, 2025 5:05 am
An Iranian missile hit the main hospital in southern Israel early Thursday, wounding people and causing “extensive damage” but no serious injuries, the medical facility said. Other missiles hit a high-rise apartment building in Tel Aviv and other sites in central Israel. At least 240 people were wounded by the Iranian missiles, four of them seriously, according to Israel’s Health Ministry. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz blamed Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and said he “should not continue to exist.” Israel, meanwhile, carried out strikes on Iran’s Arak heavy water reactor, its latest attack on Iran’s sprawling nuclear program. Iranian state TV said the facility had been evacuated before the attack.
June 19, 2025 4:55 am
UNIONTOWN, Pa. — (WPXI) – Four people are now facing charges after police say an arrow filled with cocaine was fired at the Fayette County Jail in June. Police said that arrow was fired from the opposite side of Route 21, or McClellandtown Road, toward the jail in Uniontown. They said it was being aimed toward a window, but ended up hitting the building and not reaching the intended target — two inmates who were already in the jail. Staff found the arrow on the ground on June 6. Police checked surveillance video and saw the arrow hit the jail just after 8 p.m. on June 2. Police used bolt cutters to cut the arrow open and found something odd – tips that were cut off of the fingers of a rubber glove. Inside those glove tips? “A significant amount of cocaine,” District Attorney Mike Aubele said. Now, several people are charged with trying to smuggle cocaine into the jail. Charles Smith, Alfonso Pugh, Amanda Frey, and Seth Stepich — who is not yet in custody. Smith and Pugh were already in the jail on other charges, and police say Smith and Frey are in a relationship.
June 19, 2025 2:10 am
Many area businesses and organizations are stepping up to the plate this week to help those who were devastated by the flooding in the Wheeling area on Saturday, including the Canonsburg Fire Department. Fire Chief Tim Solobay and Assistant Fire Chief Dave Rhome say they are now collecting much needed supplies that will be delivered to Ohio County over the weekend. They say they are seeking cleaning supplies right now – no furniture, clothing or appliances at the moment. Donations are being accepted this week from nine a.m. until nine p.m. at the fire hall on 1 Greenside Avenue.
June 18, 2025 4:43 pm
DEDHAM, Mass. (AP) — A jury has found Karen Read not guilty of second-degree murder in death of her Boston police officer boyfriend but guilty of a lesser charge of drunken driving. The jury handed down its decision Wednesday after deliberating for at least 22 hours since June 13. The verdict comes nearly a year after a separate jury deadlocked over whether Read killed John O’Keefe in 2022. Along with the second-degree murder charge, Read also faced charges of manslaughter and leaving the scene for allegedly striking O’Keefe with her SUV during a blizzard and leaving him to die in the snow. The case attracted international attention, with many people siding with the defense argument that Read was framed by police. (Photo: AP)
June 18, 2025 10:19 am
It’s official. Japan’s Nippon Steel has finalized its $14.9 billion takeover of U.S. Steel. The companies making the announcement Wednesday morning. In addition, the companies have entered into a national security agreement with the federal government to mitigate concerns about a Japanese company having control over a domestic steelmaker. Nippon has committed to investing some $11 billion in U.S. Steel facilities by 2028 and keeping its headquarters in Pittsburgh. The federal government will have a so-called “golden share” in the company giving the president veto power over some matters, including reductions in capital investments, relocating its headquarters, transferring jobs outside the country and closing existing facilities.
June 18, 2025 8:53 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits dipped to 245,000 last week amid uncertainty over President Donald Trump’s trade policies. U.S. jobless claims ticked down from 250,000 the week before. Economists had forecast 250,000. The four-week average of claims, which smooths out week-to-week volatility, rose to 245,500, the highest since August 2023. The number of Americans collecting unemployment benefits the week of June 7 slid to 1.95 million.
June 18, 2025 5:15 am
Eight people are now confirmed dead from flooding in Ohio County, West Virginia on Saturday. At least one person is still listed as missing and officials are warning residents to pay close attention to rain that may come in the next twenty-four hours. Other victims include Lisa McMasters, 59, Michael Bokanovich, 73; Kyleigh Minch Shotton, 26, her daughter, Parker Shotton, 3, and Travis Creighton, 19, all of Triadelphia.
