Tuesday, March 19, 2024

 

Local News

Peters Twp. School Board Discusses Calendar

Peters Township School Board Directors discussed several measures at length at their meeting Monday night. The item that brought deep discussion was a draft version of the school calendar for two years from today. Two versions of 2025-2026 calendar were presented with the only difference between them was the length of Spring Break around the Easter holiday. One version had a ten day break for students, the second only five days. Approved by a 6-3 vote was the calendar with the longer break. That calendar will be presented to the public for their comment in the near future. As far as the calendar for the 2024-2025 school year, that was approved in January. The first day of school will be August 21, 2024. Christmas break will begin December 21 and students will return on January 2, 2025. The last day of school will be June 5, 2025.  A second topic that drew discussion was the planned upgrades to computer devices that are issued to students for their classroom use. A $182,000 annual lease for a combined 1048 laptops and chromebooks was approved unanimously after detailed discussion was held regarding whether computers should be district owned or privately owned. The item is part of a three year upgrade program to replace computers that have been worn out through student use.

One Injured In Rostraver Twp Crash

ROSTRAVER TOWNSHIP, Pa. — A dump truck slammed in an SUV in Rostaver Township early Monday morning. The crash happened on Route 51 and Fellsburg Road at around 6:51 a.m., Westmoreland County 911 said. Rostraver Central Fire Department on Facebook said one person was trapped in the car and crews had to use the HURST Jaws of Life to get them out. They were taken to the hospital and there’s no word on their current condition. Officials said Route 51 was restricted for around an hour due to the crash.

 

Family Devastated After Fatal I-70 Crash

ALLENPORT, Pa. — (WPXI) – A Washington County family is devastated over the loss of their loved one who was killed in a crash over the weekend. Kayla Demo said her little sister Tori Demo, 25, was everything to her. “She was such a bright, lovely girl,” Kayla said. “She was so full of life. Her smile, she was just beautiful inside and out. Heart full of gold. She’d give you her last dollar.” Kayla said she feels alone and destroyed without her sister. The 25-year-old was killed in a horrific car crash Saturday morning when she driving to Petsmart as part of her job with a cleaning business. Tori was on I-70 in Rostraver Township in Westmoreland County when State Police said a driver in a pickup truck rear ended her. The car then caught fire. State Police are still investigating the crash. It’s unclear if the driver of the truck will face any charges. (PHOTO; WPXI)

Powerball Jackpot Climbs To $687 Million

The Powerball jackpot stood at the edge of becoming a top-10 prize in the promotion after there was no grand prize winner on Monday night. The jackpot now stands at $687 million and has a chance of moving past the 10th-largest grand prize of $699.8 million if nobody wins on Wednesday. Numbers drawn Monday night for a prize worth $645 million were 10-17-20-39-44 and the Powerball was 16. The Power Play was 3X.

 

Pa. Lottery Upgrading Computer System

Pennsylvania Lottery officials say they will be upgrading their computer system this week, and as a result, your ability to buy certain tickets and cash some winning tickets, will be impacted.  They say the upgrade will start after midnight and will continue through late day Tuesday.  During that time, officials say drawings will still occur, but you won’t be able to buy any Fast Play tickets or Draw Game tickets at lottery retail  locations or online.  Draw Games include Powerball, Mega Millions, Treasure Hunt, Cash 5 with Quick Cash, Match 6 Lotto, Cash4Life and the PICK family of games.  (Photo:  AP)

World News

Netanyahu Agrees To Send Israeli Officials To Washington

WASHINGTON (AP) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has agreed to send a team of Israeli officials to Washington to discuss with Biden administration officials a prospective Rafah operation, according to White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan. Sullivan says each party is “making clear to the other its perspective.” The White House has been skeptical of Netanyahu’s plan to carry out an operation in the southern city of Rafah, where about 1.5 million displaced Palestinians are sheltering, as Israel looks to eliminate Hamas following its deadly Oct. 7 attack. Biden and Netanyahu spoke on Monday for the first time in more than a month.

Trump; Jews Who Vote Democrat “Hate Israel”

NEW YORK (AP) — Former President Donald Trump on Monday charged that Jews who vote for Democrats “hate Israel” and hate “their religion,” igniting a firestorm of criticism from the White House and Jewish leaders. Trump, in an interview, had been asked about Democrats’ growing criticism of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over his handling of the war in Gaza as the civilian death toll continues to mount. He responded, “I actually think they hate Israel.” He went on to say that: “Any Jewish person that votes for Democrats hates their religion. They hate everything about Israel and they should be ashamed of themselves because Israel will be destroyed.”

Trump Makes Jan. 6 Attack Cornerstone Of Campaign

WASHINGTON (AP) — Donald Trump is making the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol a cornerstone of his bid to return to the White House. Trump opened his first rally as the presumed Republican Party presidential nominee standing in salute with a recorded chorus of Jan. 6 prisoners singing the national anthem. It’s not just rewriting the violent siege of the Capitol and the effort to overturn the 2020 election. It’s an attempt to normalize their behavior — and his — as the indicted Trump faces charges stemming from Jan. 6. Those who study authoritarian regimes say voters should pay attention as Trump vows to pardon Jan. 6 offenders.

Supreme Court Extends Block On Texas Law

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court has extended its block, for now, on a Texas law that would give police broad powers to arrest migrants suspected of illegally entering the U.S. while the legal battle it sparked over immigration authority plays out. Opponents have called the law, known as Senate Bill 4, the most dramatic attempt by a state to police immigration since an Arizona law more than a decade ago, portions of which were struck down by the Supreme Court. The Texas Attorney General has said the state’s law mirrored federal law and “was adopted to address the ongoing crisis at the southern border, which hurts Texans more than anyone else.”

6 Former Mississippi Law Officers Sentenced

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Six former Mississippi law enforcement officers who pleaded guilty to a long list of state and federal charges for torturing two Black men will be sentenced by a federal judge starting Tuesday. U.S. District Judge Tom Lee will sentence two defendants each day on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Each faces the potential of decades behind bars. The former law officers have admitted to subjecting Michael Corey Jenkins and Eddie Terrell Parker to numerous acts of racially motivated torture. In a January 2023 episode, the group of six burst into a Rankin County home without a warrant and assaulted the men with stun guns, a sex toy and other objects.

Famine Said To Be Imminent In Northern Gaza

RAFAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — A new report says famine is imminent in northern Gaza, where 70% of the remaining population is experiencing catastrophic hunger. It says a further escalation of the war could push around half of Gaza’s total population to the brink of starvation. The report came from the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, an initiative set up by U.N. agencies, aid groups and others to determine the severity of food insecurity. Israel faces mounting pressure from even its closest allies to streamline the entry of aid into the Gaza Strip and to open more crossings. Israeli forces, meanwhile, launched another raid on the Gaza Strip’s largest hospital, saying it killed a Hamas commander who was hiding there.