WEATHER FORECAST FOR WEDNESDAY, OCT. 30TH, 2019

 

TODAY – CLOUDY THIS MORNING WITH OFF AND ON RAIN
SHOWERS FOR THE AFTERNOON. HIGH – 67.

TONIGHT – CONSIDERABLE CLOUDINESS WITH
OCCASIONAL RAIN SHOWERS. LOW NEAR 60.

HALLOWEEN – PERIODS OF RAIN. HIGH – 66.

Street with sinkhole that snagged bus to be closed 8 weeks
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Officials say it will take about eight weeks to complete repairs on a downtown Pittsburgh street where a sinkhole opened up, partially swallowing a city bus.
The city said Tuesday that a contractor was removing concrete and debris from the hole that opened Monday, and utilities will work on securing fiberoptic lines there. The city’s water and sewer authority will then check for damage to water, sewer and storm lines. There are also electric, gas and other lines below ground.
After repairs are made, the sinkhole will be partially filled, a concrete layer poured, and sidewalks and curbs repaired.
The bus was lifted from the hole late Monday night. The driver was uninjured in the Monday morning rush hour incident; the lone passenger was treated at a hospital.

Election reform bill speeds toward approval in Pennsylvania
By MARC LEVY Associated Press
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Legislation speeding toward approval in Pennsylvania would deliver the biggest changes to state election laws in decades while approving much of the money it’ll cost counties to buy new voting machines ahead of next year’s presidential election.
The Republican-controlled House passed it Tuesday, 138-61, and a Senate vote was possible later. Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf negotiated its terms with top Republican lawmakers and his office says he’ll sign it.
It lets any voter mail in a ballot, moves voter-registration deadlines closer to elections and authorizes $90 million in borrowing for voting machines that Wolf wanted counties to buy to bolster election security.
It also eliminates the ballot option for straight party-ticket voting. Republicans pushed for that provision, amid worries that down-ballot Republican candidates will suffer from a suburban voter backlash against President Donald Trump next year.

The Latest: Text of resolution on impeachment is released
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on President Donald Trump and the House impeachment inquiry (all times local):
3:25 p.m.
Democrats have released text of a resolution that authorizes the next phase of the impeachment inquiry against President Donald Trump.
The eight-page resolution released Tuesday calls for open hearings and requires the House Intelligence Committee to submit a report outlining its findings and recommendations.
House Rules Committee Chairman James McGovern of Massachusetts says the resolution will “provide a clear path forward” as the House begins a public phase of the impeachment inquiry.
The House is expected to vote on the resolution on Thursday as Democrats aim to nullify complaints from Trump and his Republicans allies that the impeachment process is illegitimate and unfair.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says he and other GOP lawmakers will review the House language to see if it passes a “smell test” of fairness to Trump.
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12:35 p.m.
An Army officer at the National Security Council who twice raised concerns over the Trump administration’s push to have Ukraine investigate Democrats is testifying behind closed doors in the impeachment inquiry.
An advance copy of Army Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman’s Tuesday testimony shows he planned to tell House investigators he listened to President Donald Trump’s July 25 call with Ukraine’s new leader and reported his concerns to the NSC’s lead counsel.
Vindman’s arrival in military blue, with medals, created a striking image as he entered the Capitol and made his way to the secure briefing room.
Trump questions why people he’s “never even heard of” are testifying in the House Democrats’ impeachment probe. Trump has denied doing anything wrong and has said the call with Ukraine’s leader was “perfect.”
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9:35 a.m.
A White House national security official who is prepared to testify that he was concerned about a call between President Donald Trump and the Ukrainian president has arrived for a closed-door deposition on Capitol Hill.
Army Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman arrived in full military uniform on Tuesday for his interview with House impeachment investigators.
According to prepared testimony obtained by The Associated Press, Vindman raised concerns over the Trump administration’s push to have Ukraine investigate Democrats and Joe Biden.
Trump questions why people he’s “never even heard of” are testifying in the House Democrats’ impeachment probe. Trump has denied doing anything wrong.
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7:50 a.m.
President Donald Trump is wondering why people he’s “never even heard of” are testifying in the House Democrats’ impeachment probe.
Trump tweeted Tuesday as Army Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman is set to testify on Capitol Hill. Vindman will be the first current White House official and the first person to listen to Trump’s July 25 call with the president of Ukraine to come before Congress.
Vindman in prepared testimony says he twice raised concerns over the Trump administration’s push to have Ukraine investigate Democrats and Joe Biden.
Trump is claiming that the impeachment probe is a “sham” and says if people read the record of the call his White House released the investigation would be “OVER!” He tweeted: Why are people that I never even heard of testifying about the call. Just READ THE CALL TRANSCRIPT AND THE IMPEACHMENT HOAX IS OVER!”
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12:35 a.m.
An Army officer at the National Security Council says he raised concerns twice over the Trump administration’s effort to have Ukraine investigate Democrats.
Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman is set to appear Tuesday before House investigators in the impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump’s actions.
In prepared testimony, Vindman says he first reported his concerns after a July 10 meeting in which a U.S. ambassador, Gordon Sondland, stressed the importance of having Ukraine investigate the 2016 election as well as a company linked to the family of 2020 Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden.
Vindman says he and others listened in the Situation Room as Trump spoke with Ukraine’s president on July 25 and pushed for investigations. In his prepared testimony, Vindman says he reported his concerns to the NSC’s lead counsel.

Masked gunmen attack protesters in Iraq holy city; 18 killed
BAGHDAD (AP) — Masked gunmen opened fire at Iraqi protesters in the Shiite holy city of Karbala on Tuesday, killing 18 people and wounding hundreds, security officials said, in one of the deadliest single attacks since anti-government demonstrations erupted earlier this month.
The overnight attack came as Iraqis took to the streets for a fifth straight day after a hiatus in the demonstrations that began earlier this month to protest government corruption, a lack of jobs and municipal services, and other grievances. The earlier protests also saw violence against protesters, and a total of 240 people have been killed since the unrest began.
But the bloodshed in Karbala could mark a turning point because of the high death toll and because the city is a major pilgrimage site where a revered Shiite figure was killed in a 7th century battle.
Similar anti-government protests are underway in Lebanon, where supporters of the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah stormed the main protest camp and Prime Minister Saad Hariri said he would resign after hitting a “dead end” in trying to resolve the crisis. The protests in both countries are directed at governments and armed political factions that are close to Iran, raising fears of a violent backlash.
There were differing accounts and death tolls from Karbala, and details were still emerging from the scene.
Protesters said they did not know whether the masked men were riot police, special forces or Iran-linked militias. The protesters said Iraqi soldiers had been stationed around the protest site but withdrew after the attackers began firing tear gas and live ammunition.
Amid a clampdown by security forces, it was difficult to piece together what exactly prompted the attack. Eyewitnesses told The Associated Press that masked gunmen opened fire on the camp.
Protesters said they did not know if the masked men were riot police, special forces or Iran-linked militias. The protesters said Iraqi soldiers had been stationed around the protest site but withdrew after the attackers began firing tear gas and live ammunition.
Provincial Gov. Nassif al-Khutabi denied that any protesters were killed but said there were some injuries among security forces.
He said videos posted online were fabricated and not from Karbala. The footage purported to show the aftermath of the attack, with fires and people running away to the sound of heavy gunfire. Al-Khutabi’s description contradicted those from people who were at the scene.
An AP video showed a nighttime fire and young protesters, some of them taking video with their cellphones, as gunfire echoes. An ambulance can be seen trying to drive amid the chaos, with Iraqi security forces arriving.
The leaderless and largely spontaneous protests across Iraq have been met with bullets and tear gas by security forces from the start.
At least 73 people — not including the latest fatalities in Karbala — have been killed since anti-government demonstrations resumed Friday, while 149 were killed during the earlier wave of protests this month.
Tuesday’s attack happened in Karbala’s Education Square, where protesters had set up tents for their sit-in.
One of the demonstrators said they were chanting slogans when an army unit arrived and that they gave the soldiers flowers and had friendly interactions. Then tear gas canisters came spiraling into the square, fired from the streets and alleys behind the soldiers, who then withdrew.
“We saw masked men dressed all in black and they fired live bullets toward the square,” the protester said. “People fell dead and wounded right next to me. We tried to escape but when we fled into the alleys we ran into moving checkpoints set up by these forces. They arrested people and searched their phones for video of what had happened.”
Another witness said hundreds of protesters were in the encampment when someone opened fire from a passing car. Then, masked gunmen in black plainclothes started shooting at the protesters, and the tents caught fire.
Both witnesses spoke on condition of anonymity because they feared reprisal. The death toll was confirmed by Iraqi security officials, also speaking anonymously, because they were not authorized to talk to reporters.
Amnesty international blamed Iraqi security forces and quoted witnesses as saying the attackers ran down demonstrators with their vehicles. It said several demonstrators were detained and beaten.
“Iraqi forces opened live fire on peaceful protesters and resorted to excessive and often lethal force to disperse them in a reckless and utterly unlawful manner,” said Lynn Maalouf, Amnesty’s Middle East research director. “These scenes are all the more shocking as they come despite assurances from Iraqi authorities that there would be no repeat of the extreme violence used against demonstrators during protests earlier this month.”
The anti-government protests in Karbala, Baghdad and cities across southern Iraq have often turned violent, with security forces opening fire and protesters torching government buildings and headquarters of Iran-backed militias.
The demonstrations have occurred in Shiite-majority areas and have been directed at the Shiite-dominated government and Shiite political parties and militias, many of which are supported by neighboring Iran.
In Tehran, the Foreign Ministry warned Iranians against traveling to Iraq and asked them to postpone their trips until further notice, according to the state-run IRNA news agency.
Karbala is one of the holiest places in Shiite Islam, where Hussein, the grandson of the Prophet Muhammad, was killed in battle in the year 680, a formative event in the schism between Shiite and Sunni Muslims. Hundreds of thousands of Shiites flock to the city every year to commemorate his martyrdom.
The overwhelming majority of the residents in Karbala and the city’s security forces are Shiite.
The demonstrations are fueled by anger at corruption, economic stagnation and poor public services. Despite its vast oil wealth, Iraq suffers from high unemployment and crumbling infrastructure, with frequent power outages that force many to rely on private generators.
The protests have grown and demonstrators are now calling for sweeping changes, not just the government’s resignation. Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi has promised a government reshuffle and reforms, which the demonstrators have already rejected.
Authorities on Monday imposed a midnight-to-6 a.m. curfew in Baghdad, as renewed protests raged there and across the south.
Students skipped classes at several universities and secondary schools in Baghdad and across southern Iraq to join the protests Monday, despite the government ordering the institutions to operate as normal. A senior security official estimated that 25,000 people protested in the capital that day.
Three people were killed, including a 22-year-old female medical student, the first woman to die since the protests began earlier this month. Seventeen students were among the wounded.
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Associated Press writers Zeina Karam and Joseph Krauss in Beirut and Amir Vahdat in Tehran, Iran, contributed..

WASHINGTON (AP) — An Army officer at the National Security Council who twice raised concerns over the Trump administration’s push to have Ukraine investigate Democrats is testifying behind closed doors in the impeachment inquiry. An advance copy of Army Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman’s Tuesday testimony shows he planned to tell House investigators he listened to President Donald Trump’s July 25 call with Ukraine’s new leader and reported his concerns to the NSC’s lead counsel. Trump says the call was “perfect.”

PITTSBURGH (AP) — A veteran Pittsburgh police officer who lied to the FBI about a bank robbery committed by his girlfriend’s son will not serve any time in federal prison. Antoine Cain pleaded guilty to lying to FBI agents investigating an armed robbery in January 2018. He twice denied knowing who the robber was when he did know because the robber Brent Richards had confessed to him. Cain was sentenced Monday to a year of probation. He apologized, saying he “meant no disrespect” to the FBI.

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Pennsylvania will provide millions of dollars in grants to protect houses of worship and other potentially targeted community organizations from hate crimes, a program inspired by the deadly mass shooting at Pittsburgh’s Tree of Life synagogue a year ago. Gov. Tom Wolf’s office said Tuesday that the Democrat will sign the bill, now that it’s passed the Legislature. The bill creates a five-year, $5 million grant program to be administered by the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency.

PITTSBURGH (AP) — A bus that was partially swallowed when a sinkhole opened during morning rush hour in downtown Pittsburgh has been removed from the hole. Authorities said earlier Monday that two cranes arrived to remove the city bus. The city’s official Twitter account later posted a video of the removal. The Port Authority of Allegheny County says the driver and a 56-year-old female passenger were aboard when the bus plunged into the hole Monday morning. The passenger was treated at a hospital and released.

(Pictures taken by Sandy Giordano)

A Hopewell Township police officer was recognized at last night’s Hopewell Commissioners’ meeting. Beaver County Radio News Correspondent Sandy Giordano was there. Click on ‘play’ to hear Sandy’s report…