HARRISBURG – State Sen. Elder Vogel, Jr. (R-47) issued the following statement on the recent train derailment near the Ohio-Pennsylvania border:

“The accident that took place just over the border in Ohio has been the topic of much discussion in our area and now across the country. The immediate response and coordination from PEMA, Beaver County Emergency Services, Lawrence County Public Safety, and the brave first responders has been excellent. We want to thank all first responders for all they do and continue to do to keep us as safe as possible.

“With the safety of our residents the priority, efforts are ongoing by environmental, health, and safety officials from Pennsylvania, Ohio, and multiple federal agencies to continually monitor air quality in the region impacted by the train derailment. The data from the EPA was released to the public, showing that the air in the community is safe, but monitoring will continue. DEP will also be testing the water quality in the affected area along with the tests being conducted by Norfolk Southern. Conversations are continuing to be had, including the productive meeting with Governor Shapiro yesterday, about what we can do as a Commonwealth to help.

“The federally protected railroad must be held accountable for their liability in this accident. Discussions are already underway in what can be done to make sure Norfolk Southern understands what is expected of them while we try to plan for recovery of the affected area.

“We recommend those with questions or concerns contact your county emergency services or the DEP. We will continue to be transparent in an effort to keep the public aware of everything being done to help with this tragedy.”

Pittsburgh, PA – PennDOT District 11 is announcing gas line work on Route 65 (Ohio River Boulevard) in the City of Pittsburgh, Allegheny County will begin Monday, February 20 weather permitting.

A single-lane closure will occur on Route 65 in the southbound direction between the McKees Rocks Bridge and the Route 19/Marshall Avenue/Beaver Avenue off-ramp weekdays from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. through Friday, March 3. Crews from Peoples Natural Gas will conduct gas line replacement work.

Please use caution well traveling through the corridor.

Motorists can check conditions on more than 40,000 roadway miles, including color-coded winter conditions on 2,900 miles, by visiting www.511PA.com. 511PA, which is free and available 24 hours a day, provides traffic delay warnings, weather forecasts, traffic speed information, and access to more than 1,000 traffic cameras.

511PA is also available through a smartphone application for iPhone and Android devices, by calling 5-1-1, or by following regional twitter alerts accessible on the 511PA website.

Story by Sandy Giordano – Beaver County Radio. Published February 16, 2023 1:00 P.M.

(Aliquippa, PA) Congressman Chris Deluzio came to Aliquippa Elementary School earlier this week  because they were chosen to do a project supporting veterans. Deluzio worked with the fourth grade students in making valentines for those in homes or hospitals. The cards read “THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICES AND HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY MR. VETERAN!! and Thank you for keeping us safe! He was able to deliver them to the veterans after the event. Students were able  to ask questions  such as “What do you do  to help our community?

FILE – Josh Kail in the Beaver County Radio Studios

HARRISBURG— Following a hearing on emergency first responders in crisis within our Commonwealth, House Republican Leader Bryan Cutler (R-Lancaster) and House Republican Policy Committee Chairman Joshua D. Kail (R-Beaver/Washington) held a press conference to push House Speaker Mark Rozzi (D-Berks) and Democrat lawmakers to get back to work immediately so the chamber can pass legislation that eases the burdens on our local heroes.

“At a time when the Speaker of the House has refused to take the steps necessary to do the work of the people, Chairman Kail and his committee are refusing to take ‘no’ for an answer,” said Cutler. “The Policy committee continues to work diligently, in different parts of our Commonwealth to better understand what Pennsylvanians are truly experiencing. That is our job as elected leaders, and I hope the Speaker and House Democrats will learn from Chairman Kail’s example and finally allow our chamber to get back to work.”

Kail expressed that the chamber can create meaningful change, but it comes down to Democrats having a similar mindset as Republicans.

“Our emergency first responders go above and beyond to ensure our communities are safe, and we must act swiftly to alleviate the obstacles they face,” said Kail. “While the Democrats have played political mind games and wasted precious time, my colleagues and I have been proactive in learning how we can accomplish the people’s work.”

Story by Sandy Giordano – Beaver County Radio. Published February 16, 2023 9:45 A.M.

(Hopewell Township, PA) Hopewell School Board held their monthly work session Tuesday night and accepted Olivia Veights resignation as a paraprofessional at Independence Elementary School. The board approved the hiring of Nina Hodges  High school paraprofessional. Matt McClain resigned, and was replaced by Rachel Santamaria. Twelve teachers were approved for the After School Learning program which  begin son February 28 and ends on march 30,2023. Mia blakeslee was hired as a lifeguard for the high school swimming pool. The board meets in regular session on Tuesday, February 28, 2023. at 7 p.m.

Curtis Walsh – Beaver County Radio. Published February 16, 2023 9:18 A.M.

(East Palestine, Ohio) A massive crowd showed up at the town hall meeting at the East Palestine high school gym last night, with a line forming going as far as the eye could see. Beaver County Radio spoke to residents waiting in line to find out what their concerns were, and audio of their answers can be heard below. As the meeting got underway, East Palestine Mayor Trent Conaway announced that a group of people within the evacuation zone, forced to leave their homes will receive $1000 checks as a start of the recovery process. Some residents did not seem happy with this response, and the mayor said that there will be more aside from this. It was not clearly stated who was issuing these checks. Mayor Conaway and experts stressed that according to their tests, the water and air is safe for resident. Wells will be installed to monitor any currently undetected contamination that could arise. The mayor was questioned about Norfolk Southern absence from the meeting, and he went on to explain that even though, they reorganized the meeting to better fit their preferences, they called and said they felt unsafe to attend. The mayor assured that there would be more meetings in the near future.
Public concerns audio:

Video:

East Palestine Mayor, Trent Conaway, speaking to media during the event

 

Story by Curtis Walsh – Beaver County Radio Mews Director. Published February 15, 2023 4:40 P.M.

(Monaca, PA) Monaca based Steve & Benny’s Chicken Shack Mobile Unit was ordered to close on February 8th. The Allegheny County Health Department issued the closure following an inspection revealing that the food truck was operating without a valid health permit or license issued by the ACHD or PA Department of Agriculture. They also state the truck had an inoperable water supply, and lacked a thermometer to monitor food temperature.

(Matt Drzik/Beaver County Radio)

The Beaver County Commissioners gathered on Wednesday for their regular weekly work session, amidst circumstances that were not so regular.

Less than 24 hours earlier, the Commissioners met with Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro and several other local leaders and representatives to discuss the ongoing matter in East Palestine, Ohio following the Norfolk Southern train derailment that took place on February 3. At the work session, the Commissioners thanked Shapiro for meeting and cooperating with Beaver County during the last two weeks, ensuring that the environment will be continued to be monitored by the DEP and EPA, and that the air quality is safe for outdoor activities.

Treasurer Sandie Egley spoke about the soon-to-be released 2022 Treasurer’s Report, happily announcing that the taxes collected for 2022 was 95% in Beaver County, marking a record-tying number set in 2021. Parks & Recreation director Tony Caltury announced that the outdoor Dek hockey facility would have its contractors in with the weather breaking for the next few days.

The majority of the meeting was focused on the works of TRAILS Ministries in Beaver Falls, who presented their latest progress and plans for the Reclaim Project. The project is designed to employ once-convicted felons to help deconstruct properties throughout Beaver County, with a plan to reduce recidivism and create newer and better housing in the county. TRAILS also announced their plans to continue past their pilot initiative to provide assistance to other boroughs, including Rochester Borough.

However, commissioner chairman Dan Camp displayed his concerns over the amount of money being allotted to the project, feeling that while the aim of the project and its accomplishments weren’t bad, that the county could be saving significant money by “spreading the wealth” and spending less on demolition costs per house through their own agencies as opposed to the Reclaim Project.

“That Act 152 dollars is to tear down blighted property, and to serve as many communities as we can,” Camp stated, “and we are not doing that as a board.”

The representatives from the Reclaim Project claimed that they would be able to attract more local business investments, because they felt that their plan to incorporate recidivism and use reclaimed resources would be more attractive to them. Camp challenged that notion, saying that a bid with the same amount of money could “double” the amount of blight removal in Beaver County.

Commissioners Jack Manning and Tony Amadio showed their support for what the Reclaim Project was doing–in contrast with Camp–with this addendum from Amadio: “Once the pilot’s over, we’re going back to basics. You’re going to have to worry about your funding coming from somewhere once the pilot’s over.”

The next commissioner’s work session is scheduled for February 22 at 10:00 AM.

(Beaver, Pa.) The Beaver County Commissioners sent out a press release to the media on Wednesday afternoon with an update concerning the train derailment in East Palestine Ohio that occurred on February  3, 2023. You can read the release below:

The Beaver County Board of Commissioners had a meeting with Governor Josh Shapiro, along with PEMA Director Randy Padfield and Acting Secretary of the DEP Richard Negrin yesterday at the County’s 911 Center regarding the train derailment in East Palestine. Assurances were made at the meeting that data obtained associated with air monitoring readings have been at safe levels since the monitoring after the derailment began and this data will be released to the public. Moving forward, the State will continue to run tests on the water in the area and will provide those results as they become available. Since that meeting, the Governor has reached out to Norfolk Southern expressing concerns with the company’s management of the train derailment, and the Commissioners support his continued efforts in this regard.

We want to emphasize to the citizens of Beaver County, there has been nothing to date to indicate air, water, or soil in Beaver County has been compromised as a result of this train derailment. Be assured the State and Federal agencies will continue to monitor the scene and will let us know if that were to change.

If you have been immediately impacted, displaced, or asked to relocate and still have questions or concerns, please call the Family Assistance Center Hot Line at 1-800-230-7049, or Beaver County Emergency Services at 724-773-6767.

The Pittsburgh Police Crime Scene Investigation unit works the scene outside Westinghouse Academy where Pittsburgh Public Safety and school officials said four students were shot as school was dismissed, Tuesday, Feb. 14, 2023, in the Homewood neighborhood of Pittsburgh. No life-threatening injuries have been reported, police said. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Police say four students were shot outside a Pittsburgh high school, but no life-threatening injuries have been reported. Pittsburgh Public Safety officials said Tuesday afternoon that the shooting occurred outside Westinghouse Academy 6-12 in the Homewood neighborhood. Police said three male students and a female student appeared to have wounds to their hands and other extremities. Three were taken to a hospital by paramedics and the fourth was transported by a family member, police said. All were in stable condition. No arrests were immediately reported.