June 7, 2023 5:06 am
Canada is dealing with a series of intense wildfires that have spread from the western provinces to Quebec, with hundreds of forest fires burning. Wind has carried smoke from the fires southward, triggering air quality alerts throughout the United States. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Tuesday issued a poor air quality alert for New England, a day after parts of Illinois, Wisconsin and Minnesota received a similar advisory. Last week, U.S. officials as far south as Maryland, Baltimore, Virginia and Pennsylvania reported being impacted by the wildfires. Fine-particle pollution — known as “PM 2.5” — is what’s being measured. The tiny particles are small enough to get past airway defenses and cause breathing problems.
June 7, 2023 5:03 am
KHERSON, Ukraine (AP) — Floodwaters from a collapsed dam are still rising in southern Ukraine. Hundreds of people have been forced to flee their homes in a major emergency operation that has brought a dramatic new dimension to the war with Russia, now in its 16th month. Officials said the flood’s force was expected to slacken Wednesday following Tuesday’s breach of the Kakhovka hydroelectric dam and reservoir, which is one of the largest in the world. Even so, authorities said water levels were expected to rise by another meter (about 3 feet) over the following 20 hours. Some local residents spent the night on rooftops. Others, scrambling to flee the rising waters, were evacuated by buses and trains with the belongings they could carry.
June 7, 2023 5:01 am
ROME (AP) – Pope Francis underwent surgery to repair a hernia in his abdominal wall, the latest malady to befall the 86-year-old pontiff who had part of his colon removed two years ago. The Vatican said there were no complications after Wednesday’s three-hour surgery, which required Francis to be under general anesthesia. Soon after the procedure, the surgeon who performed the operation said the pope was awake and fine and that the hernia was fixed. The pontiff was expected to remain at Rome’s Gemelli hospital for several days. While hernia operations are rarely performed on an emergency basis, the procedure appeared somewhat urgent. It was scheduled just a day after Francis went to the hospital for tests.
June 7, 2023 2:30 am
Daniel Libert, 68, faces multiple charges after an incident at Peters Township Nursing and Rehabilitation Center last month. Libert attended his preliminary hearing on Tuesday where his charges were waived to court. The charges included several misdemeanors such as stalking, indecent assault, and indecent exposure. When the incident occurred, police were dispatched to the scene following a report from one of the nursing home’s employees. The report described that an elderly woman had been sexually assaulted by another male patient. According to police, an employee detailed that she saw Libert push the woman in her wheelchair to another area of the facility where he touched her without consent. When police spoke to the victim, she stated that Libert had exposed himself to her multiple times over the course of two weeks. She described that on one occasion, Libert attempted to force her hand upon himself. Libert will have a formal arraignment July 27 and is free on $25,000 bond.
June 7, 2023 2:12 am
A rally was held in front of Pennsylvania Representative Guy Reschenthaler’s Washington, PA satellite office on Tuesday to bring attention to the sudden halt in the decision making process by the department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) in agreeing to allow the Thomas Campbell Apartments (TCA) to apply for a loan to convert 20 efficiency units into 10 one bedroom units. They are looking to Reschenthaler to intervene on their behalf to make sure HUD does not go back on their commitment to the organization. TCA suffered significant damage from a fire on December 23, 2021. Two floors of one of the structures was wiped out. Since then the Board of Directors at TCA has rebuilt all of the fire damage. The board applied for a loan to complete safety upgrades and the lender required HUD approval for the loan to be closed. According to Board of Directors President Arthur Keys, those upgrades include sprinklers in all units, hard wired alarms and the conversion of those efficiency units among others. Keys signed the unit conversion agreement required by HUD in April and now HUD is looking to review once again the scope of work. According to Keys, TCA is losing $30,000 each month that they are not able to rent the apartments that are essentially ready to go. The improvements to the sprinkler system cannot be activated until the loan is in place. Not being able to secure the loan could force TCA into bankruptcy. Keys did meet with Reschenthaler’s staff and said that the Representative is aware of the issue and is working to have the impasse corrected. Keys said he would like to have the agreement in place by the end of this week. The Thomas Campbell Apartments is a Senior Living Facility. If qualified, residents can be subsidized for a portion of their rent.
June 7, 2023 2:04 am
Levi Areford, 20 of Canonsburg appeared at his preliminary hearing Tuesday morning on account of multiple charges including theft of services, fleeing or attempting to elude an officer, and driving under the influence. With Areford’s charges waived to court, he will face the judge August 22. Areford’s offenses started when he refused to pay money he owed at the Red Roof Inn May 7. The manager of the establishment reported the incident and officers were dispatched to the scene. According to police, when an officer approached Areford’s vehicle in the Denny’s parking lot, Areford drove through the red light at West Chestnut Street and Franklin Farms Road. He continued to flee police in his car before eventually pulling over. Areford refused to exit his vehicle after the chase and was found with marijuana on his person. Areford was taken into custody and when requested to submit a chemical blood test, he denied. Areford is free on a $75,000 bond.
June 7, 2023 1:48 am
Prosecution and defense attorneys have rested their cases in the jury trial of Michaela Hildreth, 27 of Ninevah, Greene County. She is accused of shooting the estranged wife of her boyfriend in Chartiers Township on July 20, 2022. Prosecutors put the victim Amy Mruk on the stand for her account the incident that found her being shot after instigating several arguments with her estranged husband John Mruk and Hildreth as well. Amy Mruk said that while she was walking back to a convenience store to meet the others, Hildreth drove up with John Mruk in an SUV. Amy Mruk admitted to assaulting Hildreth and after being pulled away she tried to return to the SUV with her hands in the air and that is when Hildreth shot her. The defense put Hildreth on the stand in her own defense. Her recollection is that Amy Mruk beat her head on the steering wheel causing profuse bleeding. This caused Hildreth to fear for her life and the life of the others in her SUV. When Amy Mruk approached her vehicle again she shot her. Hildreth’s testimony did not exactly line up with previous witness testimony. She blamed the chaos of the situation for the difference in recollections. Closing arguments are scheduled for Thursday. Jury deliberations will begin immediately after.
June 6, 2023 3:51 pm
One person is dead following a shooting in Uniontown on Tuesday. State police have identified the victim as 38-year-old Anthony Jones and also said they have identified a person of interest and he should be considered armed and dangerous. The shooting occurred around eleven-thirty a.m. in an area around Clark Street on the east side of the city. Police say they found Jones lying in the street when they arrived and rushed him to a local hospital where he died.
June 6, 2023 12:47 pm
(AP) – The most disruptive year in golf is coming to an end. The PGA Tour and European tour have agreed to a merger with Saudi Arabia’s golf interests. They’re creating a commercial operation designed to unify professional golf around the world. As part of the agreement, all sides are immediately dropping litigation involving LIV Golf. Still to be determined is how players who defected to LIV can return next year and what LIV Golf will look like going forward. The agreement combines the tours’ commercial business and rights with those of the Public Investment Fund. That includes LIV Golf.
June 6, 2023 5:16 am
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Officials are investigating whether Florida’s Gov. Ron DeSantis was behind a flight that picked up asylum-seekers on the Texas border and flew them — apparently without their knowledge — to California’s capital, even as faith-based groups scrambled to find housing and food for them. California Attorney General Rob Bonta says about 20 adults, mainly from Venezuela, were flown by private jet to Sacramento on Monday. Sixteen other migrants arrived Friday. They are the latest apparent instances of a Republican-led state transporting migrants to one controlled by Democrats. DeSantis and other Florida officials haven’t confirmed their involvement but last year they flew 49 Venezuelan migrants to Massachusetts from a Texas shelter.
