According to this week’s Triple-A East Central Gas Price report the average price of gasoline in Western Pennsylvania is down a penny this week to 3.85 a gallon. In New Castle and Sharon the average price is at 3.66 a gallon. While damage assessments are still being made in the wake of Hurricane Idalia, pump prices remained in neutral, with the national average for a gallon of gas falling by a penny since last week to $3.81. The national average is two cents less than a month ago but three cents more than a year ago.
Governor Josh Shapiro says agriculture officials have determined that the avian flu outbreaks in the state have been eliminated. He says HPAI-free status for the state has been recognized by the World Animal Health Organization. The designation marks a return to normal international trade conditions for the first time since April 2022, when nearly four-and-a-half-million domestic birds were lost. Poultry is a seven-billion-dollar annual industry in Pennsylvania.
State Police in Beaver County are releasing information concerning a recent DUI checkpoint that took place over the weekend. The checkpoint occurred on Big Beaver Boulevard in Homewood Borough. Six people were arrested for DUI, there were four traffic citations issued and one misdemeanor arrest and one misdemeanor drug arrest. Troopers also handed out six warnings.
Officials with the UPMC Health say they’re getting ready to transfer more than six million patient medical records to digital form. UPMC Chief Technology Officer Chris Carmody says the transfer will be seamless for patients. He also says it will help lower operating costs and give doctors more time to spend with their patients
A Slippery Rock man was taken to the hospital following a motorcycle accident last month in Butler County. State Police report 42 year old Joshua Eiler was traveling on route 38 in Oakland Township and lost control and crashed. Troopers report Eiler suffered serious injuries. No other details were released.
school districts across Western Pennsylvania are offering support for Karns City High School student-athlete Mason Martin. Students gathered for a community prayer session for Martin at the Union School District in Clarion County yesterday morning. Loved ones say the teen has showed some signs of improvement after collapsing on the field shortly after taking a hard hit last Friday. They said he was moving his legs and arms and had a breathing tube removed in an update posted on Monday.
A Sharon business was badly damaged in an early morning fire Monday. WFMJ-TV reports crews were dispatched to The Trap Boutique on Stambaugh Avenue around 4:00 a.m. Monday. Nobody was in the building at the time of the fire, so there were no injuries. The cause of the fire is currently under investigation.
The chairman of the state House Health Committee has announced plans for legislation that would give the state health department more oversight over medicinal marijuana testing. Democratic State Representative Dan Frankel of Allegheny is asking for co-sponsors for his measure. It would let the department verify the processes being used by testing labs and confirm their results. A previous rule called for marijuana to be tested by two separate labs before it could be sold in dispensaries. However, a number of marijuana businesses sued in state court to get the two-lab rule tossed out.
The state attorney general’s office is warning about an increase in student debt relief scams. They say the spike is because the period for student loan forgiveness has ended as of September and payments are coming due in October. Attorney General Michelle Henry says scammers look for new opportunities to catch consumers by surprise. She says you need to be wary of solicitation calls offering loan discharge, forgiveness, cancellation, or relief services for a fee. The A-G says the U.S. Department of Education, which services the federal student loan program, never charges fees for enrolling in repayment plans.