Patrick Varine stories, Page 39
Philips will pay $1.1 billion to resolve U.S. lawsuits over breathing machines that expel debris
Medical device maker Philips, one of Westmoreland County’s largest employers, said Monday it will pay $1.1 billion to settle hundreds of personal injury lawsuits in the United States over its defective sleep apnea machines, which have been subject to a massive global recall. The Dutch manufacturer did not admit any...
9 area men were killed in rarely discussed Exercise Tiger drill for D-Day invasion
Les Mlakar knew his uncle Albert was killed during World War II. But when his other uncles discussed it — which was rare, if ever — they only did so in Slovenian. For quite a long time, most Americans did not know the truth of what happened April 27 and...
17-year-old suspect in McKees Rocks homicide arrested in Florida
A teenager charged with a fatal April 20 shooting in McKees Rocks was arrested in Florida on Friday afternoon, Allegheny County Police said. Fifteen-year-old Ahsan Edwards was found shot multiple times on April 20 in the borough’s Third Street Park. Edward later died at a hospital. Through witness interviews and...
Motorcyclist killed in Harmar crash
Allegheny County Police detectives are investigating a fatal crash that took place Friday in Harmar. Police said a Harmar officer came upon a crash involving a vehicle and motorcycle at the intersection of Freeport Road and Alpha Drive just before 4:30 p.m. Friday. The man driving the motorcycle was pronounced...
Truck driver injured in crash into Murrysville collision center
Derek Severns was not interested in the irony of a truck colliding with the collision center he manages. Severns was more concerned with making sure his employees were all right. “Amazingly, no one inside was injured,” said Severns, manager at Bowser Collision Center on Route 22 in Murrysville, where a...
Washington Township stable owner avoids animal cruelty charges
A Washington Township stable owner agreed to take part in Westmoreland County’s Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition program to avoid animal cruelty charges filed a little less than a year ago. Sandra A. Hobbs, 67, owner of Victory Stables on Camp Nancy Road, initially was charged with animal cruelty and neglect, the...
East Suburban Sports Medicine Center helped Olympic wrestler Spencer Lee, countless others over 4 decades
When Franklin Regional’s Spencer Lee was pursuing his fourth state wrestling title, he tore the anterior cruciate ligament, or ACL, in his right knee, and his doctor said there simply wasn’t time to try and repair it before the state championships got underway. During the championships, Lee’s ACL popped again....
Monroeville area: Farmers market, Scottish Heritage Sunday, more
Email news briefs to pvarine@triblive.com or bpoole@triblive.com. Farmers market begins The Monroeville Farmers Market will kick off its 2024 season from 9 a.m. to noon May 11 at the Monroeville Mall between Dick’s and Best Buy, 501 Mall Circle Drive. It will take place weekly through mid-November on Saturdays. For...
Wesley Family Services opens Autism Center for Growth in Monroeville
Staff at Wesley Family Services said research has shown that early intervention services for autistic children between the ages of 1 and 7 years have led to improvements in development and skill-building. “The brain is able to learn a lot more quickly at that age,” said Carrie Winner, Wesley’s program...
Manor singer-songwriter set to release 1st single from debut album
During his day, Matt Pitschman of Manor tries to take note of any interesting or catchy phrases he hears, tucking them away in case they might develop into a new song someday. Pitschman, 36, is getting ready to release the first song from his debut record, “Long Road to Heaven,”...
Murrysville homeowners’ association wants dredged sediment cleared away
One of the main reasons homeowners associations exist is to ensure the neighborhoods they govern remain clean and tidy. It’s little wonder, then, that members of the Lyons Run Estates Homeowners Association are not pleased they’ve had several tons of dredged sediment sitting on their property for nearly two years....
Police: Copper wire theft suspects left identifying documents, receipt for tools at crime scene
Three Fayette County men were arrested after police said they stole more than 400 feet of telephone line and left behind a court custody notice identifying one of them, along with a receipt for tools that may have been used to remove the lines. State police in Belle Vernon were...
Franklin Regional approves summer artificial intelligence program
Franklin Regional school board members ultimately approved a summer program focused on artificial intelligence after members of its curriculum committee spoke with program organizers about their concerns. Inspirit AI is an eight-session summer program developed and taught by graduates of Stanford University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. “Students will...
Monroeville car cruise benefits new charity each month
Car cruises are a staple of summertime in Southwestern Pennsylvania. From antique roadsters to ’60s muscle cars to giant lifted trucks, it’s not odd to pass a field with several hundred freshly washed rides on display. At Papa Rocks Pizza Pub in Monroeville, the cruises have been going for more...
Most farmers don’t mind record-setting April rain
It’s been a soggy April. And it’s about to be the soggiest, according to the National Weather Service. “Prior to today, we’re 0.27 inches away from tying the wettest April on record,” said weather service Meteorologist Fred McMullen on Friday. What that means to local farms is highly dependent on...
Celebrate the ‘stinky rose’ for National Garlic Day on April 19
It stinks so good. There are few culinary scents as unmistakable as garlic. In its raw form, it can have enough bite to rival low-level chili peppers. Roasted, it spreads smooth as butter on a thin slice of toasted baguette. You can even make dessert with it if you have...
Monroeville area: Farmers market, aromatherapy workshop, senior resource fair, more
Email news briefs to pvarine@triblive.com or bpoole@triblive.com. Farmers market begins May 11 The Monroeville Farmers Market will kick off its 2024 season from 9 a.m. to noon May 11 at the Monroeville Mall between Dick’s and Best Buy at 501 Mall Circle Drive. It will take place weekly through mid-November...
Irwin veteran finds balance through martial arts, wants to help other vetsVideo
After nine years as a member of the Marine Corps infantry, Jeric Fry of Irwin felt he was fully prepared to enter civilian life when his oldest son was born. “I got out in 2014, and I kind of assumed I’d be in a good place,” said Fry, 37. “I...
Murrysville area: History talk, plant sale and more
Email news briefs and event listings to pvarine@triblive.com. Please send events more than a week in advance if possible; the Star goes to deadline Thursday for the issue which will be mailed out the following Thursday. History, art expert at ESAL The East Suburban Artists League will welcome local history...
Delmont Stormwater Authority will discuss mandated improvements
The Delmont Stormwater Authority will meet at 6:30 p.m. May 1 in the borough building at 77 Greensburg Street. State-mandated improvements to the borough’s stormwater infrastructure are outside the borough’s annual budget, and the authority is in the process of initiating a stormwater utility to provide funding for those expenses...
‘Apis’ tells environmental story with a cast of mostly puppets
The last creature on Earth travels through time in order to try and change history in “Apis,” the final production in the New Hazlett Theater’s 11th season of Community Supported Art productions. And who is that last creature? He’s a little blue bee named Bob. And he’s one of several...
Lyons Run acid mine drainage project in Murrysville hits home for Blairsville contractor
Cleaning the acid mine drainage in Murrysville’s Lyons Run is a personal endeavor for Matt Curry, president of Blairsville construction contractor Curry & Kepple. “I grew up on School Road South. I rode my bike back there all the time, and my elementary and middle school buses ran right past,”...
Police: Skeletal remains found in Fayette County
Suspected human remains were found Tuesday in Fayette County, state police said. Authorities said they received information on a missing person and were led to an area near Washington Avenue and Hogsett Lane in North Union, where they discovered the remains. Police said a forensic anthropologist was called to the...
After 70 years, Ferri’s Supermarket in Murrysville to close
Dan Ferri can remember hitchhiking during the early 1960s from his Turtle Creek home to his family’s grocery store in Murrysville, where he and his brother Bill would stock cans at night. “My cousin had a grocery store in Wilkinsburg, and I remember some nights when we’d drive out there,...
Tax Day was just the beginning as some say getting help from IRS is ‘almost impossible’
Don’t tell accountant Mary Jo Armstrong that tax deadline day has passed. She’s still got months of work ahead of her. “We’ve probably had five people who’ve brought things in today,” Armstrong, owner at MJ Cares in Harrison, said Monday morning. In addition to some typical last-minute filings, understaffing at...
