Fire Destroys House
Meadville – Nobody was injured in a house fire that destroyed a home in Crawford County Monday afternoon. Five fire departments were unable to prevent the roof of a large house on Cervone Drive in Vernon Township from collapsing because of the damage caused by the flames, but the only two occupants of the house at the time, two cats, were able to be rescued by firefighters. Monday afternoon’s strong winds made fighting the fire even more difficult and extinguishing the blaze took several hours.

Natural Gas Price Hikes Coming for NWPA
King of Prussia – Natural Gas Supplier UGI has announced a rate hike for customers in Pennsylvania. Citing increased supply cost, the company has announced a 7.1% increase in its monthly rate. They say it will raise the average cost of service by about $7.36 a month starting in March.  UGI says the average gas bill will be $111.73 and supplies natural gas in Venango, Clarion, and Forest Counties. National Fuel, the area’s largest natural gas supplier, is expecting an 18.46% increase in August, saying that it will raise the average fuel bill by $13.49 a month to a total of $86.59.