>>New Positive COVID-19 Cases Rise In Pennsylvania
(Harrisburg, PA) -- New positive COVID-19 cases are rising in Pennsylvania. The state's Department of Health announced more than 3,300 cases yesterday. 94 more people also passed away due to complications of the coronavirus.
There are currently 2,124 people in Pennsylvania hospitals linked to coronavirus.
>>Middletown Food Bank Offering Help To Texas
(Middletown, PA) -- A food bank that works in Middletown is offering help to those affected by the winter storm in Texas. The Midwest Food Bank announced yesterday that it will be sending disaster relief packages to Texas soon. Bank officials say they plan to send over four-thousand food boxes to help those who are affected by winter weather in Texas.
>>Dauphin County Bridge To Add Toll Renovations
(Harrisburg, PA) -- Travelers in Dauphin County are going to be affected by a new toll for a bridge by PennDOT. PennDOT proposed yesterday a new bill that would add a new toll cost for nine different bridges in the state. One of those bridges is the I-83 John Harris Memorial South Bridge that connects Harrisburg to Cumberland County. The new toll project is expected to cost the state about $500-to-$650-million.
>>Harrisburg Resident Announces Bid For City Council
(Harrisburg, Pa) -- Another resident in Harrisburg is announcing their bid for city council. Sarah Gethers announced yesterday that she will be running for Harrisburg City Council this year. Gethers is a Duquesne University graduate and served as vice president of its NAACP chapter. She says she is focusing her campaign on empowering the community with an economic relief bill, providing financial literacy classes for adults and children, as well as many other endeavors.
>>Hbg Drug Charges
(Harrisburg, PA) -- A 40-year-old man from Harrisburg is indicted on drug and weapons charges. Gorge Jones’s charges are connected to cocaine and marijuana and being caught with a firearm as a felon between July and September 2020. The investigation was part of Project Safe Neighborhoods, which uses a team approach including law enforcement to reduce crime and keep neighborhoods safe.
>>Carlisle School District’s Return To Class Plan Expected By Month’s End
(Carlisle, PA) -- It won’t be long until the Carlisle School District releases its plan to get some of its students back into the classroom fulltime. Superintendent Christina Spielbauer said last week they will have a timeline for the school board within the next two weeks. Over 500 parents in the district have signed a petition asking for their children to be allowed back in the classroom fulltime.
>>Hershey Company Going Organic With Two Confections
(Hershey, PA) -- The Hershey Company is going organic with two of their confections. They’ll start selling organic Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups and Hershey bars this month. They’ll come in milk and dark chocolate and will not contain any genetically modified organisms.
>>Hershey Bears Back Home Tomorrow
(Hershey, PA) -- The Hershey Bears will play at home tomorrow in front of a small crowd at Giant Center. The Bears will host Wilkes-Barre Scranton Saturday afternoon for their third home game of the season. They are allowing in just shy of 400 fans due to the ongoing pandemic.
>>Fire Damages Western Berks Ambulance Station
(Spring Township, PA) -- Authorities are investigating the cause of a fire that damaged an ambulance station in Berks County. The fire happened yesterday evening at the Western Berks Ambulance Station located at 25-hundred Belmont Avenue. No serious injuries have been reported from the scene. Officials say ambulance service in the area is not expected to be affected.
>>Police Searching For Suspects Involved In Robbery In Cumru Township
(Cumru Township, PA) -- Police are currently searching for three suspects who are being accused of robbing a Cumru Township store. The incident happened last night at a Sunoco A-Plus station located at 15-47 Lancaster Avenue. Police say two men held the store clerk up with a knife while one watched the front door as they robbed the cash register. No injuries have been reported from the scene, but anyone with information on the robbery is being asked to contact the Cumru Township Police Department.
>>Reading Fightin Phils To Begin Season In May
(Reading, PA) -- The COVID-19 pandemic is not going to stop the Reading Fightin Phils from playing this season. The team announced yesterday that it is preparing to open the 2021 season against the Erie SeaWolves on May 4th this year. The last game on the Phils' schedule is against the Rumble Ponies on September 19th. Those who will be attending the games this season are being encouraged to wear face masks and maintain social distancing.
>>New York Man Arrested For Sex Acts With Lancaster County Teenager
(East Lampeter Township, PA) -- A New York man is now behind bars for having sexual acts with a teenager from Lancaster County. Mirza Ahmed from College Point is being accused of recording and sharing sexually explicit digital images with a child in East Lampeter Township. He is facing several charges including statutory sexual assault, involuntary deviate sexual intercourse with a person under 16-years old and unlawful contact with a minor. Ahmed is currently being held in Lancaster County Prison on a one-million-dollar bail.
>>Peters Township Council Approves New Aquatic Center
(Peters Township, PA) -- A new aquatic center in Peters Township is taking another step to being completed. The Peters Township Council voted six-to-one at a meeting last week to authorize the build of a new aquatic center project at Rolling Hills Park. If fully developed, the aquatic center will feature a spray park as well as a children's pool and main pool and water slide.
>>Weather Causing Shipping Delays For COVID-19 Vaccines
(Harrisburg, PA) -- State officials are reporting shipping delays for COVID-19 vaccine doses due to the winter storms hitting Pennsylvania and many other states in the region. Officials say Moderna didn't ship any doses on Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday of this week due to the weather. Pfizer was able to send out limited supplies on Tuesday and Wednesday, but they didn't ship any on Monday either. Officials say they are still assessing the situation to determine how the delay will impact counties in the state. This comes as the state reported a shortage of Moderna vaccines, which could impact over 100-thousand vaccination appointments.
>>People Calling For Resignation Of Scranton Teachers Union President
(Scranton, PA) -- People are calling for the president of the Scranton Federation of Teachers to resign over her comments during school board meetings earlier this month. President Rosemary Boland made comments during those school board meetings regarding reopening schools and communities of color. Boland said there is no certainty that there will be no transmission of COVID-19 in schools as Scranton has children and families who are underserved, and they are not going home to Donna Reed homes. Parents and some Scranton School Board members say her comments are racist and perpetuate stereotypes against people of color. They added that these comments set the stage for people to blame students of color if there is an outbreak in schools when they reopen. There is no word if Boland will resign, but she issued an apology for her comments yesterday.
>>Man Dead After Being Shot During Altercation With Bail Bondsman
(Nanticoke, PA) -- A wanted man who was shot during an altercation with a bail bondsman trying to serve a warrant yesterday is dead. Police say the bondsman was at Thomas Painter's house on Fairview Drive in Nanticoke yesterday afternoon with a warrant for his arrest. The bondsman entered Painter's home, and that's when he allegedly pulled a weapon on the bondsman when he tried to take him into custody. The bondsman responded by opening fire on Painter, shooting him in the mid-section. Painter later died from his injuries. Officials say the bondsman is cooperating with authorities, and the investigation into the shooting is ongoing.