State Police in Mercer County have filed child endangerment charges against a Mercer couple after their six year child was found in an Ace hardware store by himself. Police were called after the child was found shoeless and by himself Friday morning at Ace Hardware on North Perry Highway in Coolspring Township. According to police, the boy walked four-tenths of a mile from his home. Police say this isn’t the first time something similar has happened involving the same child. The parents, 40-year-old Roy Trump, and 28-year-old Dee Shollenberger, both of Mercer, were arrested for child endangering. Both were released after posting bond.
Three people were taken to the hospital following a one vehicle accident in Findley Township yesterday afternoon. State Police in Mercer County report 28 year old Amber Aur of Erie was northbound on Interstate 79 when she lost control of her vehicle and struck a guard rail. Aur along with two passengers were taken to the Allegheny Health Network in Grover County for treatment.
The investigation continues into a deadly weekend explosion in Plum. Four adults and one teenagers were killed when a home near Rustic Ridge and Brookside Drives blew up Saturday morning. Three others were injured in the blast and officials say that 57 firefighters who responded to the scene were treated for minor issues. Steve Imbarlina of Allegheny County Emergency Services says an investigation into the cause of the blast could take months if not years.
A state Senate committee is hearing testimony about the effectiveness of Children’s Advocacy Centers, which were created by a state law ten years ago. The hearing last week before the Aging and Youth Committee could lead to possible legislation to strengthen child sexual abuse and child abuse cases. The senators heard about the need to expand the network of C-A-Cs to cover the state. The centers support not only children who are abuse victims but also parents, caregivers and adult abuse survivors. Currently, 41 county-based centers operate in Pennsylvania.
Authorities are confirming that Washington County did experience a tornado touchdown on Saturday night. The National Weather Service says an EF-1 tornado touched down in South Franklin Township at around 8:13 p.m. and remained on the ground for about two minutes. The weather service says maximum winds from the tornado reached as high as 105-miles-per-hour. No injuries were reported.
State Police in Butler County report a one vehicle accident in Worth Township. Police report 25 year old Tyler Leek of Alliance Oho lost control of his vehicle on Interstate 79 when he lost control and struck a guard rail. Police said Leek suffered suspected serious injuries and was transported to a hospital for treatment. The investigation into the accident is ongoing.
Federal funds that are intended to help Pennsylvania’s small businesses are starting to come into state coffers. Nearly 268 million dollars is being issued from a federal program call the State Small Business Credit Initiative. Officials with the Pennsyvania Department of Economic and Community Development Board have already begun distributing money to the small companies and businesses.
– UPMC and the University of Pittsburgh are testing a new approach to preventing the development of breast cancer. Researchers are planning to conduct clinical trials of a vaccine in patients who are diagnosed with the pre-cancer condition ductal carcinoma. UPMC Immunologist Olivera Finn says the hope is the treatment will prevent additional carcinoma from occurring or keep it from progressing to cancer. The trial is expected to take three to four years.
New state legislation could be coming to help struggling emergency medical service providers. Heather Sharar with the Ambulance Association of PA says many companies are experiencing financial difficulties. officials have introduced a measure that would reimburse EMS operators at four dollars per mile through Medicaid for complete trips, as opposed to only those over 20 miles. Also, new rules are being discussed that would allow county leaders to create public safety authorities. That could lead to the establishment of regional ambulance providers, according to industry officials.
The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission is developing policy rates for charging electric vehicles. The regulatory agency has kicked off a process that will eventually end in a statement on setting rates. Suggestions include setting prices so that people will charge their cars’ electric batteries during non-peak hours. Agency officials say they hope to stay ahead of an expected surge in electric-vehicle use, which they think will certainly affect the power grid.