Hacker Launches Assault on Local Charity Drive
Meadville – The Crawford Heritage Community Foundation reported on Tuesday that its annual Crawford Gives fundraiser has been the victim of a cyber attack known as a distributed denial of service, or DDoS. A DDoS attack is designed to overwhelm a website with false visitors to strain its bandwidth; Tuesday’s attack managed to take the website offline for 26 minutes and caused delays for hundreds of donors throughout the day. DDoS attacks were still happening this morning.
Despite the issues, Crawford Gives had already raised more than $420,000 for 179 local charities and non-profits at press time. Crawford Gives runs until midnight on Friday, August 15th. You can donate at CrawfordGives.org, and a portion of each donation will be matched by a pool of the event’s sponsors. If you prefer to donate in person by cash or check, visit their office at 415 Chestnut Street in Meadville.
Man Hit by Own Tractor
Sugarcreek – A man was airlifted from the scene after he was run over by his own tractor in Venango County near the borough of Sugarcreek on Saturday afternoon. The farmer was working in a field located between Two-Mile Road and Shaffer Run Road when the accident happened. According to Sugarcreek Police Chief Bob Wenner, the man had parked his tractor and climbed out of it when it suddenly started to roll forward and hit him. He was flown to an undisclosed hospital by STAT MedEvac around 4:00 or 4:30 p.m.
Explosion Kills Two in Allegheny County
Clairton – Two employees of US Steel were killed and 10 were hospitalized after industrial explosions in Allegheny County. On Monday morning, multiple explosions occurred at the Clairton Cokeworks near oven batteries 13 and 14, according to US Steel; coke plants bake coal to remove the organic matter in it for use in steel production. Rescue operations at the plant ended at about 9:00 p.m. Monday night, and now authorities are investigating the cause of the explosions. Of the 10 people hospitalized, five were allowed to leave the hospital, and first responders say that numerous people were treated for minor injuries at the scene.
Suspect Killed in Police Standoff
West Middlesex – Police in Mercer County shot and killed a man during an incident at a hotel in West Middlesex on Thursday, August 7th. Tyrell Askernees of Farrel barricaded himself inside a room at the Park Hotel when sheriff’s deputies and the Shenango Township Police attempted to serve a warrant for failure to appear in court. According to authorities, Askernees was armed and threatening officers, and refused to speak with professionals from CIRT; roughly three hours after police arrived, gunshots were fired and Askernees was killed. The Pennsylvania State Police are investigating.
Fatal Motorcycle Crash
Oil City – In Venango County, an Ohio man died when his motorcycle crashed while he attempted to flee from police Friday night. Thomas Swearington of Masury, Ohio, led officers from the Oil City Police Department on a chase outside of town and into Cranberry Township. At about 9 p.m., the 59-year-old lost control of his motorcycle, left the road, and collided with several trees, causing fatal injuries. OCPD was initially attempting to stop Swearington for a minor vehicle code violation.