(File Photo of a Police Siren Light)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Beaver, PA) A crash happened this morning near Heritage Valley Beaver. It backed up traffic in the area. There were at least two people affected by the crash. That is all the information that we have at this time.

(Photo Provided with Release Courtesy of People’s Natural Gas)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Pittsburgh, PA) Today is National Energy Assistance Day, and Peoples Natural Gas urges its customers to explore assistance programs that are available now that can help manage monthly bills. According to a release in Pittsburgh today from People’s Natural Gas, several programs to help customers keep their homes warm and manage their monthly bills can vbe found below:

• Customer Assistance Program (CAP): Click here to find out more – This Peoples program offers payment plans for customers based on household income or budget, rather than gas usage.

• Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) Click here to find out more – A federally funded, state-run grant program that makes payments directly to Peoples on a customer’s behalf. Customers experiencing a heating crisis, such as broken heating equipment or a utility shut-off notice, may be eligible for additional funds through LIHEAP. Applications are open through April 10, 2026 or until funds are exhausted. 

• Dollar Energy Fund (DEF) Grants Click here to find out more – Peoples customers can access grants of up to $500 through DEF, available on a first-come, first-served basis while funding is available.   

• Usage Reduction Program Click here to find out more – A Peoples-funded program that helps eligible customers repair broken heating equipment or gas lines. 

 

• Customers can check eligibility for various programs using the income guidelines chart below:
• (Photo Below Provided with Release Courtesy of People’s Natural Gas)

 

 

 

You can learn more about these programs and apply by either calling 1-800-400-WARM (9276)  by visiting peoples-gas.com/help by clicking here.

 

(File Photo of Police Siren Lights)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Center Township, PA) Pennsylvania State Police in Beaver reported via release today that twenty-year-old Joseph Verbeck of Imperial, Pennsylvania was charged after a single-vehicle crash in Center Township yesterday morning. At 7:24 a.m., Verbeck was driving too fast on I-376 East for a left-hand curve and lost control of his vehicle. Verbeck eventually hit a snow bank after leaving the right of the roadway and hit a guard rail, but he was not injured as a result of this crash.

(Photo Courtesy of Gavin Thunberg)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Midland, PA) Midland Volunteer Fire Department Station 95 and their automatic aid were toned for an automatic fire alarm at around 6:15 p.m. yesterday evening at Lincoln Early Learning Center in Midland, which is located on 13th Street. A key holder arrived at the scene and a walkthrough of the school building was initiated. The result of the walkthrough was that there was no fire found and departments returned to service after this incident occurred.

(Photo Courtesy of Gavin Thunberg)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(West Mayfield, PA) The City of Beaver Falls Fire Department and their first alarm responded just after 11:15 p.m. yesterday evening because of a structure fire in West Mayfield on West 10th Avenue. A caller reported an odor of something burning inside the apartment. After an investigation was held by firefighters, the incident was held to the personnel on scene and companies returned soon after it was handled.

(File Photo of Handcuffs)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Lawrence County, PA) Pennsylvania State Police in New Castle reported via release today that fifty-one-year-old Brandon Falen of Ellwood City was apprehended on Saturday evening for making terroristic threats that evening in Lawrence County. This happened at 10:08 p.m. at a residence along Laurel Avenue in Wayne Township and Falen made threats of killing everyone in the residence, cutting off the head of his wife and killing all of the law enforcement that was responding to the incident. Falen was taken into Pennsylvania State Police custody without incident even though he tried to resist arrest and he is in Lawrence County Jail. Falen had charges of disorderly conduct, harassment of physical contact, resisting arrest and terroristic threats filed against him. The victims of this incident were an unidentified forty-five-year-old woman from Ellwood City and an unidentified twenty-two-year-old woman from Beaver Falls.

(Photo Courtesy of the Kamin Science Center)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Pittsburgh, PA) The Kamin Science Center in Pittsburgh is now in consideration for the best science museum in USA Today’s 10Best Awards. The museum on the North Shore of Pittsburgh was noted for its Robot Hall of Fame, its Buhl Planetarium, its BodyWorks exhibit and more. The link to vote for the Kamin Science Center for this recognition can be found by clicking here and it lasts until next Monday, February 9th, 2026. 

(File Photo of a Gavel)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Lancaster County, PA) A man from Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, was sentenced to two life sentences on Friday for killing his wife and his wife’s aunt and shooting his son during a fight over who would make dinner. According to the Lancaster County district attorney’s office, sixty-four-year-old Santiago Payano-Sanchez fatally shot his wife, 59-year-old Ana Gutierrez-Cedano, and her aunt, 74-year-old Dominga Cedano-Cedano, at a home on Oak Hollow Drive in West Hempfield Township on October 5th, 2025 and two children, ages 2 and 7, were also inside the home during the shooting, but were not injured. Payano-Sanchez also shot his 33-year-old son in the stomach and even though his son survived, Lancaster County Assistant District Attorney Jessica Collo told the court that the shootings happened after a “senseless” argument over who would make dinner that night. Officials stated that the adult son was shot after he tried to wrestle the gun away from his father. Judge Jeffrey Conrad sentenced Payano-Sanchez to two consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole, plus 20 to 40 years, in state prison. The Lancaster County Attorney’s Office also confirmed that Payano-Sanchez pleaded guilty to two counts of criminal homicide, one count each of attempted criminal homicide and related charges in connection with the fatal shootings.

(File Photo of a Top of a School Bus)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Westmoreland County, PA) A new bill in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives encourages schools to enact later start times by letting districts use grant money to make the change. The bill, which is sponsored by Westmoreland County Representative Jill Cooper, authorizes secondary schools to use money from the School Safety and Mental Health Grant program to implement later school start times. The recommendation is to start no earlier than 8:30 a.m. Studies show that 80% of teenagers in the U.S. are sleep deprived. If the bill becomes law, schools can access money to help with changing after-school programs, bus schedules, or other related changes.