(Pittsburgh, Pa.) Giant Eagle has issued a voluntary recall of its Market District Gourmet Pretzel platters and Gourmet Pretzel bags.

The products included in the recall have “sell by” dates through 04/03/21 and can be identified by price lookup (PLU) numbers 25206 and 45505, located in the upper right corner of the item’s scale tag.

The recalled products were sold at the Sweet Shoppe department in the Township of Pine Market District and the Setttler’s Ridge Market District in Robinson and could contain an undeclared pecan allergen.

In a statement Giant Eagle said a guest who bought the product informed them about the issue. Giant Eagle stated that they learned the issue was caused by an error in the packaging at the store.

No one has reported an illness associated with the recalled product.

(Philadelphia, Pa.) A Philadelphia Democrat Pa State Representative said Thursday that he is running for Pennsylvania’s open U.S. Senate seat in next year’s election.

Thirty-Year-old Malcolm Kenyatta is in his second term in the Pa. State House of Representatives.

The grandson of the late civil rights activist Muhammad I. Kenyatta.

Kenyatta is jumping in a race that Lt. Gov. John Fetterman has also declared for on the Democratic ticket. On the Republican side Jeff Bartos, the GOP’s unsuccessful candidate for lieutenant governor in 2018, has filed paperwork to run. There are numerous first-time candidates running on both parties tickets.

The seat up for grabs is Senator Pat Toomey’s who announced in October that he would not be seeking a third term.

Beaver County Radio has expanded its local news coverage! Tune in to Beaver County Radio and find out what is happening in your local community, municipality, and local school board meetings. Beaver County Radio has expanded our local coverage and now has two news reporters covering your town. Check out the news coverage with Sandy Giordano, and our newest news reporter Curtis Walsh. Plus, regular monthly coverage from the county’s commissioner meetings at the Beaver County Court House with Matt Drzik.

 

Story by Beaver County Radio Staffer Frank Sparks

(New Wilmington, Pa.) Pa State Police in New Castle via press release say they responded to a call on South New Castle Street in Wilmington Borough Thursday morning to assist New Wilmington Police Department in an Officer involved shooting.

Upon preliminary investigation Troopers determined that a 24-year-old transgender female was assaulted by a male with a blunt instrument. When the New Wilmington Police arrived, the man was seen assaulting the victim with the blunt instrument. The suspect was given a command to stop by the officer and the suspect ignored him and continued the assault. The officer then fired hos weapon at the suspect killing him. The transgender female was transported to St. Elizabeth Hospital in Youngstown where she later died from her injuries.

Neither the suspect or the victim’s names have been released and the officer is on administrative leave as police continue to investigate.

Keystone State News Connection

February 19, 2021

Andrea Sears

HARRISBURG, Pa. – Environmental groups say actions in Washington and Harrisburg to curb methane emissions are major steps forward, but they see a big loophole in regulations that still needs to be closed.

In his first week in office, President Joe Biden directed the Environmental Protection Agency to have a proposal by September to address methane leaks from existing oil and gas facilities. Pennsylvania already regulates emissions from new facilities, and the Department of Environmental Protection is working on the rule-making for existing sources.

But Dan Grossman, senior director of regulatory and legislative affairs for the Environmental Defense Fund, said the DEP proposal needs to be strengthened to include existing wells that produce only small amounts of gas.

“If Pennsylvania exempts low-producing wells, as they do in their proposal, it’ll leave that gaping loophole in its regime,” said Grossman. “The signal that it sends to Washington is that it’s okay to leave these off the table.”

Pennsylvania has nearly 10,000 oil and gas wells in the lowest-producing category. Experts say many of those are releasing more methane into the air than is being captured for sale.

Reducing methane emissions is critical to slowing the climate change that’s already having major impacts. Michael Kovach, vice president of the Pennsylvania Farmers’ Union, pointed out that includes agricultural production.

“Annual precipitation’s coming in heavier events,” said Kovach. “Pest populations that affect both crops and livestock are exploding, and our ability to produce the foods that feed our Commonwealth and our nation is being challenged like never before.”

He said the national Farmers’ Union was the first major agricultural membership group to acknowledge that human activity is a major contributor to climate change.

Grossman praised Gov. Tom Wolf as a leader in promoting policies to bring methane emissions under control. But until leaks from abandoned and low-producing wells are addressed, he said the job will not be done.

“We simply won’t be able to meet our climate goals unless we address methane in a wholistic fashion and get as much of those emissions under regulation as we can,” said Grossman.

(Stowe Twp., Pa.) Allegheny County police said 60-year-old Timothy Gumm is being charged with homicide in the death of his 55 year old brother Christopher and his brother’s 47 year old girlfriend, Sally Sines after the two were found dead in a Stowe Township home on Thursday.

Police responded to the home in the 900 block of Liberty Street for a welfare check on Thursday morning and when they arrived, they found Sines and Christopher Gumm dead and there bodies in a state of decomposing. Police were able to determine the victims were shot but were not able to verify their cause of death.
Gumm was also charged with tampering with evidence and a firearms violation. He was taken to the county jail to await arraignment.