(File Photo of State Representative Rob Matzie)

Noah Haswelll, Beaver County Radio News

(Ambridge, PA) According to a release in Ambridge from State Representative Rob Matzie’s office, Matzie praised today the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission’s (PUC’s) decision to review its rail safety regulations, saying the commission will consider some of the same safety measures in his own rail safety bill that passed the House. The PUC’s action that occurred on Friday that granted a motion for proposed rulemaking, offered by PUC Commissioner Kathryn Zerfuss, mirrors the call of Matzie for stronger state regulation of rail safety, which is a move he says is needed in the absence of better federal oversight. Matzie explained: “I applaud Commissioner Zerfuss and the PUC for taking the reins on rail safety, and I’m glad the commission plans to focus on some of the same reporting, oversight and equipment issues I call for in my rail safety legislation. With thousands of miles of rail running through our region and federal regulations falling short, time is of the essence. We can’t afford to wait for another East Palestine.” Matzie also stated that the experts of the PUC will review rail safety regulations with respect to five areas, which includes the proper functioning of wayside detectors that are trackside sensors that warn when train cars are overheating because of problems that can cause derailment. That equipment is one focus of H.B. 1191 from Matzie, which was adopted by the House Consumer Protection, Technology and Utilities Committee by a large, bipartisan margin in December of 2025 and is awaiting a vote by the full House. Similar legislation that was sponsored by Matzie passed the House in 2023, but never received a vote in the Pennsylvania Senate.

(File Photo: Source for Photo: FILE – Rev. Jesse Jackson gestures to a friend in the balcony at the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Ala., Sept. 15, 2013. The church held a ceremony honoring the memory of the four young girls who were killed by a bomb placed outside the church 50 years ago by members of the Ku Klux Klan. At right is U.S. Rep. Terri Sewell, D-Ala. (AP Photo/Dave Martin, File)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Harrisburg, PA) According to a release in Harrisburg from Governor Josh Shapiro’s office, Shapiro ordered today that United States and Commonwealth flags on all Commonwealth facilities, public buildings, and grounds across the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania to fly at half-staff on Saturday, March 7th, 2026, in honor of Reverend Jesse Jackson who passed away on Tuesday. This tribute will coincide with the last day of memorial services scheduled for Reverend Jackson, who was a civil rights activist and Baptist minister who championed the civil rights movement. He made countless visits to Pennsylvania, advocating for labor rights and civil rights across the state, from Pittsburgh and Erie to Harrisburg and Philadelphia throughout his life of service. In October of 2024, on one of his last visits to the Commonwealth, Reverend Jackson was hosted by the Pennsylvania Legislative Black Caucus, and while in the Capitol, he was recognized by the General Assembly for founding the Rainbow PUSH Coalition, which advocates for civil rights, economic equality, social justice and voting rights.

Shapiro made a post on X on the day of Jackson’s passing on Tuesday and said:

“Rev. Jesse Jackson was a change maker, a boundary breaker, and a passionate and unrelenting crusader for civil rights, equality and opportunity. To be around him felt like you were experiencing history. It was an honor to share the pulpit with him back in September of 2016 at Sharon Baptist Church in West Philly. I hung on his every word and could feel how much his presence meant to the congregation. Lori and I are praying for his wife Jacqueline, his family, and everyone he inspired over the years. May the memory of Rev. Jesse Jackson be a blessing.”

All Pennsylvanians are invited to participate in this tribute to honor the late Reverend Jackson and the flags shall remain lowered until sunset on March 7th, 2026.

SCOTT TADY

BRADENTON — Sure, it’s super early, but the Pittsburgh Pirates are off to a fine start, winning their first three spring training games.

In Monday’s interview with Beaver County Radio, Pirates broadcaster Greg Brown talked about the team’s solid early going, the quest to fill out the starting rotation, and the legacy of the late-Bill Mazeroski.

Here’s Brown’s interview from Feb. 23:

 

(File Photo of Road Work Ahead Sign)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Findlay Township, PA) PennDOT District 11 announced that a shoulder and lane restriction on I-376 in Findlay Township is underway today. From 8 A.M. to 3 P.M., a shoulder and single lane restriction will occur on I-376 in each direction between the Moon (Exit 50) and Airport (Exit 53) exits as needed as PennDOT crews will conduct guide rail repair work there.

(Credit for Photo: Photo Courtesy of KDKA Photojournalist Brian Smithmyer)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Allegheny County, PA) Allegheny County Police are investigating after a woman was found shot to death inside an apartment at the Broadmoor at Penn Center in Wilkins Township. According to police, county dispatchers were first notified that a woman was found shot in an apartment at the building along Penn Center Boulevard shortly after 3 a.m. today. Police stated that when officers responded to the scene, they found the woman who had been shot was unresponsive. The woman, who has not been identified, was later pronounced dead at the scene. Detectives from the Allegheny County Police Homicide Unit are now investigating what led up to the deadly shooting and anyone with information about it is asked to call the County Police Tip Line at 1-833-ALL-TIPS. 

(File Photo of Handcuffs)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Pittsburgh, PA) Authorities announced on Friday that a teenager from Detroit, Michigan who is wanted for shoplifting nearly 100 times at Walmart stores across the country was arrested in the Pittsburgh area. According to the Westmoreland County District Attorney’s Office, eighteen-year-old Andrew Reed was arrested in the parking lot of the Walmart in North Huntingdon, Pennsylvania, on Thursday after police were called to the Walmart on Mills Drive for a theft in progress that day. Investigators note that they believe he’s responsible for a cross-country retail theft spree that spanned multiple states. North Huntingdon Police confirm that an employee saw a man trying to make a fraudulent purchase at a self-checkout. Employees intercepted Reed, and he left the store without the merchandise, which police state was worth more than $2,100. The Westmoreland County District Attorney’s office expressed that police identified Reed after they stopped him in the parking lot and Reed was responsible for 97 separate incidents in the loss prevention database of Walmart, totaling over $146,000 before he was arraigned on charges of retail theft, theft by deception, criminal use of a communication facility and trespassing. North Huntingdon police claimed they learned Reed had several active warrants across the United States and had been “trespassed indefinitely” from Walmart in Indiana, Florida and Arkansas. He was denied bail. 

(File Photo of Police Siren Lights)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Allegheny County, PA) The Allegheny County Police were called to investigate a deadly police shooting just outside of the City of Pittsburgh. According to county police, around 12 a.m. yesterday, 911 received a call from a man who claimed to be armed and was threatening to harm himself and others. They learned that the man was in the 1700 block of Washington Street in Heidelberg and he was wielding a knife. Once local police from Heidelberg and Scott Township arrived on the scene, officers ordered the man to drop the knife, but he refused and proceeded to charge toward the officers. One officer from the Heidelberg police deployed a taser but the man refused to stop. That was when a Scott Township officer shot the man multiple times. The man was taken to a nearby hospital, where he was pronounced dead. The Allegheny County Police Department’s Homicide Unit is investigating this incident. 

(File Photo: Source for Headline Photo and Photos Below: Photo Courtesy of the Moon Run Volunteer Fire Company, Posted on Facebook on February 22nd, 2026)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Moon Township, PA) Just after midnight yesterday morning, the Rescue of the Moon Run Volunteer Fire Company went to Moon Township for a two-alarm residential fire to extinguish it. A few hours later, the Rescue box of that fire company was dispatched for a tractor trailer rollover with entrapment. Units were able to lift a cab and extricate a driver from under the rig and Wally’s Auto Service and Collision Center helped to assist during this incident. 

(File Photo of an Open for Business Sign)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Pittsburgh, PA) QMNTY Pantry and Cafe in Pittsburgh is set to open to the public today. The food pantry that is located on East Ohio Street on the North Side is run by TransYOUniting and Proud Haven. People will be able to get free meals and groceries. The grand opening for LGBTQIA+ individuals was held on Thursday for this food pantry.