December 22, 2025 |
By Staff Reports | Posted in: Crime and Police News
A shooting Sunday night at the Steelview Manor apartments left a Wilmerding woman dead and another man in critical condition, Allegheny County police said.
Lisa Sharnell Epps, 50, died Sunday night in the emergency room of UPMC McKeesport hospital about an hour after the incident, the Allegheny County medical examiner’s office said.
Allegheny County police said callers reported a shooting to 9-1-1 dispatchers at 8:48 p.m. First responders found two victims — a woman, identified as Epps, and a man whose name has not yet been released.
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December 22, 2025 |
By Staff Reports | Posted in: Crime and Police News, White Oak News
White Oak and Allegheny County police are investigating the chain of events that took the life of a McKeesport woman in a one-car collision on Sunday.
The Allegheny County medical examiner’s office said Keisha Fortner, 45, was pronounced dead at AHN Forbes Regional Hospital in Monroeville following the collision on Route 48 near McClintock Road.
White Oak police Chief Jason Binder said Fortner was the driver of a Chevrolet SUV that was traveling north when the crash occurred just before 4 p.m. Sunday. A male passenger in the vehicle was taken to an area hospital where he was in critical condition, Binder said.
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December 18, 2025 |
By Farah Siddiqi - Public News Service | Posted in: State & Region
Pennsylvania health care advocates warn a pending vote in Congress could sharply raise insurance costs for hundreds of thousands of residents, as federal tax credits that help people afford coverage under the Affordable Care Act are set to expire at the end of the year.
At a press call this week, advocates said Pennsylvania could be among the states hardest hit if the credits are not extended, pointing to data from the state’s insurance marketplace showing steep premium increases ahead.
U.S. Rep. Brendan Boyle, a Philadelphia Democrat, said the impact would be immediate for families relying on the ACA.
“What they have said is that the average premium increase — average — will be 102 percent,” he said. “So a family that today is paying five hundred dollars a month overnight will be paying a thousand a month.
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December 16, 2025 |
By Danielle M. Smith - Public News Service | Posted in: State & Region
U.S. Steel’s Edgar Thomson Plant was founded by Andrew Carnegie in 1873 and forms the nucleus of what is now called the Mon Valley Works. (Mark Dixon photo via Flickr, licensed under Creative Commons)
According to a new analysis, the U.S. steel industry is falling behind as the global market shifts toward cleaner production.
Nippon Steel’s acquisition of U.S. Steel could help reverse it, with $6.5 billion planned for upgrades at Pennsylvania’s Mon Valley Works, Indiana’s Gary Works, and a new mill, potentially creating jobs and cutting emissions.
Justine Hackimer, industrial decarbonization program manager at the Ohio River Valley Institute, said the report updates their 2023 findings, showing without investment in clean steel, the Mon Valley’s legacy operations could fall further behind, but a shift to green steel — made in electric furnaces, not coke- or gas-fired blast furnaces — could boost the region’s economy.
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December 16, 2025 |
By Jason Togyer | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News
(Submitted photo courtesy City of McKeesport/Jennifer R. Vertullo)
McKeesport’s fire chief left work Monday for the last time with some sadness, but no regrets.
“It was an honor serving the city for the last 21 years,” said Jeff Tomovcsik, who retired this week. “I know the city gets a bad rap, but I loved it and I wouldn’t change anything. There were tough days, there were good days, but there was never a day when I didn’t want to come to work.”
Tomovcsik and his wife, Rebecca, will be relocating next year to eastern Michigan, where he has taken a new job as deputy chief of the Midland Fire Department. The city of 42,000 is home to the headquarters of Dow Chemical Co. and Northwood University.
Despite the move, Tomovcsik said, he has no intention of rooting for the Detroit Lions and Red Wings instead of the Steelers and Penguins.
“... maybe the (Detroit) Tigers,” he joked, in reference to the Pirates’ perpetual baseball struggles.
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December 16, 2025 |
By Adam Reinherz | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News
McKeesport Area High School alumnus and Tigers football standout Khaleke Hudson addresses the school board. (Screenshot from McKeesport Area School District feed via YouTube.)
For the second straight week, McKeesport Area School District directors listened to community members debate the future of McKeesport’s high school football team.
But school directors are so far declining to take any public action, Board President Dave Seropian said following Thursday’s board meeting.
“People are passionate about our football team, and there are people on both sides of the issue,” he said. “They both have differences of opinion about what should happen.”
Since 2016, Matt Miller, who also teaches social studies at the high school, has coached McKeesport’s team. Weeks ago, the Tigers were defeated in the WPIAL Class 4A championship game by Aliquippa. In 2024, McKeesport also fell one win short of clinching the title. Under Miller’s leadership, according to MaxPreps, the team has gone 89-31.
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December 16, 2025 |
By Leslie Savisky | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News
(Submitted photos)
A new regional collaboration underway in Mon Valley and Turtle Creek could be a great opportunity for those who’ve ever dreamed of becoming their own boss but just didn’t know how to get started.
Along with Penn State Greater Allegheny, Mission: Agape and a new group called Allegheny Development Solutions are introducing a new initiative called LaunchSWPA, which will focus on providing entrepreneurial opportunities in the Mon-Yough area and building clear paths to economic self-sufficiency.
The LaunchSWPA rollout community event will be held from 5 to 7 p.m. Jan. 22 at Penn State Greater Allegheny in McKeesport. Small business startups, entrepreneurs, community foundations and regional stakeholders are all welcome to attend.
“This partnership is about meeting people where they are – connecting wellness, opportunity and innovation in a way that lifts the whole community,” said Kelly Doyle, co-founder of Mission: Agape.
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December 15, 2025 |
By Danielle M. Smith - Public News Service | Posted in: State & Region
A bumble bee is shown gathering pollen from a rosemallow. Bumble bees are natural pollinators and are considered a threatened insect. (File photo by Vickie Babyak for Tube City Almanac)
Pennsylvania lawmakers are considering several bills to protect insects and promote native plants, amid growing concerns over declining species. The state is home to 77 threatened insects, including the monarch butterfly and American bumble bee.
Nate Reagle, clean energy program advocate with the Sierra Club Pennsylvania, said pollinators are crucial to agriculture, and many insects provide food for wildlife, control pests and help cycle nutrients. He said the proposals would boost farm productivity and environmental health — and noted Pennsylvania currently has no way to list a native land-dwelling insect as threatened or endangered.
“There is no state agency that has authority over the native insects,” he said. “House Bill 441 would grant that authority to the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, and thankfully, they’ve already been doing a lot of great work when it comes to insect conservation, so it would be a great fit for them.”
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December 15, 2025 |
By Tom Leturgey | Posted in: Duquesne News
Some 130 hams were given away Saturday afternoon. (Tom Leturgey photo for Tube City Almanac)
With gray skies, snow looming, a slight breeze and the temperature feeling chillier than the official 34 degrees, more than 100 people patiently stood in line Saturday for the 6th annual Katie Cares Ham Giveaway in Duquesne.
“Each year we have added additional things,” said Denise Brownfield of Katie Cares, a neighborhood childcare facility, and a member of Duquesne City Council. “This year we’ve had more produce and food trucks.”
This is a family affair for Brownfield. Each of the 20 or so vendor tables were manned by at least one family member, including T.J. Banks, who stood behind a folding table filled with dozens of cartons of eggs. About 10 boxes, some empty, some still filled to the rim with pink Styrofoam egg cartons.
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December 12, 2025 |
By Jason Togyer | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News
McKeesport will mostly hold the line on spending in 2026 and draw down less from a reserve fund than in the previous two years, according to a new budget approved this month by city council.
The $25.9 million spending plan accepted unanimously by council represents a slight increase from the 2025 budget of $25.7 million. Property taxes remain the same at 11.26 mills on buildings and 20.5 mills on land. McKeesport is one of three municipalities in Allegheny County that levies separate property taxes on vacant land and buildings.
Each mill represents $1 in tax on every $1,000 of property value, so a millage of 11.26 equals property tax of $11.26 on each $1,000 of a building’s value as assessed by Allegheny County. Earned income tax and the local services tax remain the same as 2025.
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