Top Stories category, Page 24
Former Honduras President Juan Orlando Hernández freed after Trump pardon
TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras — Former Honduras President Juan Orlando Hernández, sentenced last year to 45 years in prison for his role in a drug trafficking operation that moved hundreds of tons of cocaine to the United States, was released from prison following a pardon from President Donald Trump, officials confirmed Tuesday....
1 year after sinkhole death, Unity residents live in fear of mine subsidence
One year after a deadly sinkhole swallowed a woman searching for her cat near Marguerite Road, fear remains palpable for residents in a small Unity neighborhood. They worry abandoned coal mines beneath their homes could collapse at any time. That anxiety is real on Libby Lane, a few hundred feet...
Westmoreland and Allegheny men among 1,000-plus killed in WWII ‘Little Pearl Harbor’
Five Western Pennsylvania men were among the more than 1,000 killed in a surprise World War II German attack on an Allied port in Italy that has become known as “The Little Pearl Harbor.” The Dec. 2, 1943, air raid on the Adriatic Sea port of Bari, Italy, came nearly...
Decline in alcohol consumption leads to rare sales drop at Pa. liquor stores
Pennsylvania’s wine and spirits sales dipped last fiscal year for only the second time in the past three decades. According to the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board, sales for the 2024-25 fiscal year totaled nearly $3.2 billion. That was down almost $21 million, or 0.6%, compared to the previous year. Net...
Man fatally shot by police on Parkway North was suspect in shooting of teen in Butler
A man who died after being shot by police on the Parkway North Saturday night was a suspect in a shooting in Butler Friday, according to Butler police Chief Bob O’Neill. In a statement released Monday, O’Neill identified the man as Devin Russell, 20, of Butler. According to O’Neill’s statement,...
Westmoreland hospital, former nurses sued over patient photos
A Greensburg hospital and two fired nurses have been named as defendants in a negligence lawsuit filed by the daughter of one of up to 10 former patients whose images were recorded and distributed without consent last year. The three-count lawsuit filed last month contends Independence Health System Westmoreland Hospital...
Shapiro calls $740M Esplanade a ‘game changer’ as Pittsburgh project breaks ground
One of the most expensive development projects in modern Pittsburgh history, the $740 million Esplanade on the North Side, took a definitive step forward Monday with a groundbreaking ceremony that drew Pennsylvania’s governor and generated accolades for its intent to revitalize a long-stagnant brownfield. Gov. Josh Shapiro called the ambitious...
White House says admiral ordered follow-on strike on alleged drug boat, insists attack was lawful
WASHINGTON — The White House said Monday that a Navy admiral acted “within his authority and the law” when he ordered a second, follow-up strike on an alleged drug boat in the Caribbean Sea in a September U.S. military operation that has come under bipartisan scrutiny. White House press secretary...
Federal review finds 44% of U.S. trucking schools don’t comply with government rules
Nearly 44% of the 16,000 truck driving schools in the United States may be forced to close after a review by the federal Transportation Department found they may not be complying with government requirements. The Transportation Department said Monday that it plans to revoke the accreditation of nearly 3,000 schools...
Westmoreland preps for 1st snowfall with reduced staff amid limited furlough savings
Furloughs will leave Westmoreland County with just half of its staff available Tuesday morning to maintain 52 miles of roads during the season’s first significant snowfall. Public Works Director Dante DeCario said all four remaining employees will begin salting and clearing county roads as early as 3 a.m. and will...
Shapiro visits Verona to tout $25M in funding for child care workers
Gov. Josh Shapiro visited a Verona day care Monday to tout $25 million in new state-funded bonuses for industry workers, which he says will help attract and retain staff. The initiative, part of the state budget passed last month after a lengthy legislative impasse, gives about $450 annually per employee...
Charlie Puth, Brandi Carlile, Coco Jones to perform at Super Bowl pregame
Super Bowl Sunday’s pregame entertainment lineup just dropped for February — including Charlie Puth singing the national anthem. Super Bowl LX will take place Feb. 8, 2026, at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif. — home of the San Francisco 49ers — and air live on NBC, Telemundo and Peacock....
Pennsylvania loses hundreds of pharmacies after a law promised help
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan, and nonprofit newsroom producing investigative and public-service journalism that holds power to account and drives positive change in Pennsylvania. Sign up for our free newsletters. HARRISBURG — As pharmacy closures have continued across the state, a bipartisan group of lawmakers has questioned how the...
Pittsburgh to host Riverhounds championship rally Downtown
Downtown Pittsburgh will host a celebration Thursday afternoon of the Pittsburgh Riverhounds’ championship title. Part of Grant Street will be closed to traffic from noon to 2 p.m. A rally will go from noon to 1 p.m., followed by a receiving line to meet the team and take photos with...
U.S. air travelers without REAL IDs will be charged a $45 fee
Air travelers in the U.S. without a REAL ID will be charged a $45 fee beginning in February, the Transportation Security Administration announced Monday. The updated ID has been required since May, but passengers without it have so far been allowed to clear security with additional screening and a warning....
Mark Madden: The Steelers are broken, and it falls on Mike Tomlin
When Aaron Rodgers is hopped up on ayahuasca, or whatever truth serum he’s taking that enables him to play (not very well) with three fractures in his left wrist, it would be fun to ask him if the situation in Pittsburgh is what he’d hoped for. Here’s betting it’s not....
Alleged burglary in Freeport ends in ICE taking 3 men into custody
Three men were taken into custody by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Monday morning after they were caught in a vacant apartment in Freeport, police said. Chris Fabec, chief of Southern Armstrong Regional Police Department, said police were called about 4:30 a.m. to a Lane Court townhouse in the...
Season’s 1st major snowfall to pound Western Pa. during morning rush hour
Western Pennsylvania’s first major snowfall of the season will hit Tuesday morning during rush hour and is expected to dump up to 5 inches in spots. Bill Modzelewski, meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Moon, said precipitation will likely begin around 1 or 2 a.m. The heaviest snow is...
Tinsmill group can’t agree over proposed monument to local WWII veterans
The tiny coal-patch village of Tinsmill, in Bell Township, made an outsized contribution to World War II, sending a great many of its sons abroad to fight. Nearly all of them came back, including relatives of Salem resident Ray Machulsky. In 2023, Machulsky approached a local nonprofit, the Tinsmill Citizen...
Steelers vs. Bills: What they’re saying in Buffalo after win
For the first time on Pittsburgh home turf, the Steelers’ defense gave up 249 rushing yards against the Bills — resulting in a definitive 26-7 win for Buffalo. It was the most rushing yards gained by an opposing team at Pittsburgh since the Bills rushed for 310 yards on Sept....
Luigi Mangione fights to exclude evidence from his trial in the killing of UnitedHealthcare’s CEO
NEW YORK — Luigi Mangione watched stoically in court Monday as prosecutors played surveillance videos showing the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson on a New York City sidewalk last year and Mangione’s arrest five days later at a McDonald’s in Pennsylvania. The videos, including footage from the restaurant previously...
Madden Monday: There’s no nice way to put it — the Steelers are ‘gutless’
I’ll admit it. This is an oversimplification of how to critique the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 26-7 dud of an effort against Buffalo on Sunday, but I’m most disappointed in how the players played on defense, and I’m most disappointed in how the players were coached on offense. Sure, there is some...
Consultant’s report finds no evidence of Penneco liability in Plum house explosion
A private consulting firm’s report for a Delmont energy company being sued over a 2023 fatal house explosion in Plum has determined Penneco Oil Co. was not responsible — a conclusion sure to be challenged in court. Penneco and Peoples Gas were among those sued for negligence and wrongful death...
Airing of Grievances: 3rd quarter catastrophe, run defense debacle lead to humiliating Steelers loss
Watching the Steelers on Sunday against the Buffalo Bills made me wonder if they all ate some Thanksgiving leftovers that had gone bad in the refrigerator. Because the entire team threw up all over itself during a 26-7 loss to fall to 6-6. The offense was bad. The defense was...
Rodgers’ return doesn’t help as Bills send Steelers to 5th loss in past 7 games
Aaron Rodgers’ return from a left wrist injury didn’t provide the jolt the Pittsburgh Steelers were seeking Sunday. Instead, it was a jolt to Rodgers that awakened the Buffalo Bills and sent the Steelers to another loss. Rodgers lost a fumble after being sacked from behind on the first play...
