January 10, 2019 |
By Richard Finch Jr. | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News
Dale Mitchell, an EMT with UPMC, works with participants at a Stop the Bleed training seminar at Noah's Ark Community Center in McKeesport. (Photo by Richard Finch Jr., special to Tube City Almanac)
“Sometimes it’s hard to get people to step up and be interested in something until it hits home, thinking it’s never going to touch them,” said Rev. Earlene Coleman, pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church in McKeesport.
Even before last year’s synagogue shooting in Pittsburgh, an increasing number of law enforcement, emergency medical personnel and school district employees had signed up for Stop the Bleed, a training initiative to prepare people to assist victims in life-threatening situations until emergency medical personnel arrive at the scene.
UPMC, in partnership with Copeland Regional Trauma Council, is leading the nation's largest "Stop the Bleed" initiative. Developed in the aftermath of the Sandy Hook school shooting in 2012, the program's goal is to train bystanders and first responders to stop bleeding using dressings, compression and tourniquets.
On Saturday, Bethlehem hosted a 90-minute "Stop the Bleed" class at Noah’s Ark Community Center in McKeesport.
Read More
January 09, 2019 |
By Submitted Report | Posted in: Announcements, Sports
A charity basketball game on Saturday at Penn State's Wunderley Gymnasium in McKeesport will raise money to support scholarships for Hispanic students in the Pittsburgh area.
The game is being co-hosted by Penn State Greater Allegheny Campus and the Pittsburgh Metropolitan Area Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. It tips off at 2:30 p.m.
“We are so pleased to be teaming up with the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce for this event,” said Jacqueline Edmondson, chancellor and chief academic officer at Greater Allegheny. “The chamber has been a wonderful community partner and incredibly supportive of our students through their scholarship programs.”
Read More
January 09, 2019 |
By Staff Reports | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News
U.S. Steel's Clairton Plant in a 2010 photo by Patrick Cain. (Via Flickr, licensed under Creative Commons 2.0)
An accident three weeks ago that damaged two pieces of equipment at U.S. Steel's Clairton Plant has the potential to create unhealthy air conditions in the Mon Valley, Allegheny County officials said Wednesday.
The county Health Department is warning residents --- especially those with pre-existing heart or lung conditions --- to limit their outdoor activities until further notice.
The Clairton Plant produces coke, a fuel used in the steelmaking process, by baking coal at extremely high temperatures to remove impurities.
Jim Kelly, deputy director for environmental health at the Health Department, said a fire on Dec. 24 damaged two "gas dispatcher" stations, which help to remove pollutants.
Read More
January 07, 2019 |
By Submitted Report | Posted in: Announcements
Above: Kenneth Schroder and Mike Diehl work on pillars for a sign at Cindy's Memorial Bark Park, currently being completed in Port Vue. (Photo courtesy Cindy's Memorial Bark Park via Facebook.)
Volunteers will hold a "casino night" on March 2 to support operation of a dog park being constructed in Port Vue, a spokeswoman said.
"Wild, Wild Woof" will be held at the Glassport American Legion, 417 Monongahela Ave., said Holly Turkovic, one of the organizers. Doors open at 6 p.m.
Tickets cost $20 in advance or $25 at the door. The event will include card games, raffles, a silent auction, a buffet supper, beer, door prizes and music by "D.J. Dale."
Proceeds will benefit Cindy's Memorial Bark Park, which is nearing completion on 3.5 acres of land off of Portsmouth Drive in the borough.
Read More
January 07, 2019 |
By Submitted Report | Posted in: Announcements
Approximately 700 Mon Valley area seniors had a sweeter December after volunteers baked more than 6,300 holiday cookies --- 525 dozen --- to be distributed along with Meals on Wheels.
LifeSpan, a non-profit agency based in Homestead that serves seniors throughout the Mon Valley and South Hills, last week issued a "thank you" to everyone who baked or donated to its ninth-annual “Sweet Holiday Wishes” cookie campaign.
Each senior -- 709 total --- received a half-dozen cookies, a spokeswoman said.
Read More
January 04, 2019 |
By Jason Togyer | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News
A CSX train passes through Downtown McKeesport in 2016. Residents of lower 10th Ward say nighttime railroad operations are knocking things from walls and disturbing their sleep, but the railroad says nothing's changed. (D.A. Liscomb photo via Flickr, licensed under Creative Commons CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.)
The author of this story has a conflict of interest. See editor's note.
It sounds like "a pile of steel (being) dropped into an empty barge at two in the morning."
That's how Dwayne Yeager of lower 10th Ward described CSX Railroad's late-night and early-morning operations in his neighborhood.
Yeager, who is retired from factory work, has lived in his home since 1994, so he's used to the sound of trains passing through. He told McKeesport City Council on Wednesday that it's not the normal noise of train operations bothering him and his neighbors.
"That noise is nothing," Yeager said. "What they're doing is hooking and unhooking cars by camera, without a brakeman, at all hours of the day and night. They're shaking things off the walls and off of the windows."
Read More
January 03, 2019 |
By Staff Reports | Posted in: Crime and Police News
Few details have been released in connection with a shooting Monday night that left a Christy Park woman in critical condition.
Friends and family members have identified the victim as 46-year-old Stacey Stinson. A crowdfunding page has been set up at GoFundMe to raise money for her medical care.
McKeesport police referred questions to Allegheny County police.
Allegheny County police said in a prepared statement that the victim was shot once inside her home on 31st Avenue just before 7 p.m. Monday.
Read More
January 03, 2019 |
By Jason Togyer | Posted in: Crime and Police News, White Oak News
A White Oak man was hospitalized following a two-hour standoff with police and the Allegheny County SWAT team.
No charges have been filed but the investigation remains open, White Oak police Chief Mark Sargent said.
Police were dispatched to a home on State Street just before 4 a.m. Wednesday when callers reported a 20-year-old man living there was suicidal.
As officers entered the front door, Sargent said, they heard a shot from the second floor.
Read More
January 02, 2019 |
By Jason Togyer | Posted in: Crime and Police News, McKeesport and Region News
McKeesport's police chief will wrap up an almost 26-year career with the department on Feb. 1.
Bryan J. "B.J." Washowich, who has served as chief since 2010, has announced his retirement. His successor has not yet been named.
Washowich, 47, grew up in White Oak, where his father, the late Wayne Washowich, served as a police officer, planning and zoning director, and code enforcement officer.
Read More
January 02, 2019 |
By Jason Togyer | Posted in: Announcements
Above: 1724 Butler St., McKeesport, via Google Maps.
More than 140 additional houses and commercial structures in McKeesport are facing condemnation proceedings and possible demolition.
City officials have advertised and will hold hearings at 1 p.m. Jan. 9 and 11 on 147 properties, located in practically every section of McKeesport.
But the list particularly targets blighted neighborhoods along Versailles Avenue, including 15 houses on Butler Street, 14 on Soles Street and eight on Jersey Street.
Read More
