Latest news with #AlleghenyCounty
CBS News
a day ago
- CBS News
Families of Plum house explosion victims file lawsuits citing 4 companies for cause
Two years since the massive explosion that leveled homes in Plum's Rustic Ridge and killed six people, the cause of the tragedy has remained enveloped in mystery. The Allegheny County Fire Marshal's Office has yet to determine a cause of the blast on Aug. 12, 2023. But on Tuesday in Allegheny County Common Pleas Court, the families of those victims filed separate suits, alleging the explosion was the result of a build-up of methane escaping from a ruptured line nearby. The explosion leveled three homes and claimed the lives of Paul and Heather Oravitz, Casey and Keegan Clontz, Kevin Sebunia, and Michael Thomas. Their families now accuse four different companies — Penneco Oil and Gas, Peoples Natural Gas, the A.O. Smith Corporation and Grasinger Homes — of negligence for failing to foresee the likelihood of an explosion and failing to take action to prevent it. According to the court papers, pressure began building in a nearby gas line operated by Penneco in the weeks and months leading up to the explosion. The lawsuits allege the gas began escaping through a hole in the line and migrated into the basement of the Oravitz's home at 141 Rustic Ridge Drive. That day, Casey and Keegan Clontz went to check their water heater, which had been making noises, which the suit claims was the result of gas buildup in the basement. The gas ignited and the house exploded in a massive fireball. It killed the four people in the house and neighbors Sebunia and Thomas, who were nearby. The lawsuits say prior to the explosion, Penneco and Peoples knew of the excessive pressure in the line but did not vent it or replace a failing regulator. They fault the water heater manufacturer for not warning of the impact of outside gas, and cite Grasinger for building homes so close to gas lines. KDKA has reached out to Penneco, Peoples and Grasigner for comment on the lawsuits and has not received any response. The families are alleging negligence and seeking damages for pain and suffering. "There was a chain of events that occurred. At multiple different points along the way, steps could have been taken to have prevented this incident and prevented the deaths of these six people," said Benjamin Baer, who represents Cole and Taylor Oravitz, the son and daughter of Paul and Heather Oravitz. In reports at noon and 6 p.m., KDKA's Andy Sheehan speaks exclusively with Taylor Oravitz on her family's search for answers and attorneys who investigated the facts and filed this legal action this morning.
CBS News
2 days ago
- CBS News
Allegheny County Jail corrections officer suspended for racist video
Pittsburgh leaders are denouncing a video that shows an Allegheny County Jail corrections officer spewing racist and hateful comments. Brian Davis has been suspended after the video popped up on social media last week and went viral. The video features Davis holding a baseball bat wrapped in barbed wire that says "[N-word] beater." The video was not recorded at the jail, and it was not immediately clear who recorded it, when it was recorded, or if Davis was employed as a corrections officer at the time. At-large Allegheny County Council Member Bethany Hallam told KDKA on Monday that Davis has worked for the jail for five years and currently works in intake. She said she reached out to Warden Trevor Wingard on Sunday. "To know that this person was responsible for keeping them safe in that facility, and he had these horrible and disgusting views, it's disappointing to me," Hallam said. "I'm happy that it got out there, that we now know how he's been thinking this whole time." Wingard, who was appointed in January, is on vacation. A jail spokesperson said in a statement that an investigation is underway, but it does not "comment on personnel matters." "We can say the ACJ administration, from Warden Wingard down, expects professionalism from all jail employees," the spokesperson said. "The jail does not tolerate racist or abusive language or behavior. We are investigating the situation, and if the allegations are found to be true, it will be dealt with appropriately." Tanisha Long, a community organizer with the Abolitionist Law Center in Pittsburgh, said the guard should be fired. "He needs to go," Long said. "He needs to do some soul-searching and figure out what it is about Black people that he does not like. But I also think we need to talk to every single person in that jail who has had an encounter with him." "For someone who's just devoutly, openly and violently racist, it's scary, it's terrifying," she added. "The jail has to move fast." Brian Englert, president of the jail's corrections officers union, pointed to the jail's ethics code. "This is a troubling, straightforward charge that violates the county policy we must all abide by," Englert said in a statement to KDKA. "My understanding is he's currently suspended pending an HR investigation. ACPEIU membership is made up of a robust group of officers across gender, race, ethnicity and sexual orientation. We hold an obligation of fair representation to members despite the severity of charges until the HR investigation wraps up." KDKA went to Davis' home in West Mifflin on Monday, but nobody answered the door. "I have faith in the jail administration and their investigation of this," Hallam said. "I can tell they are taking it very seriously." KDKA reached out to the union for more information on Davis' suspension and whether he could be fired, but did not hear back on Monday night. Hallam said all jail employees are required to sign a code of ethics, and there is a zero-tolerance policy for violations.
CBS News
2 days ago
- Health
- CBS News
More mosquito samples test positive for West Nile Virus, Allegheny County Health Department says
The Allegheny County Health Department on Monday confirmed that additional mosquito samples have tested positive for West Nile Virus. The health department will treat areas for mosquitoes in the communities of Hazelwood, South Side Slopes, Arlington, Mount Oliver, Carrick, Knoxville, and Beltzhoover with the pesticide Zenivex E20. Zenivex E20 is classified by the EPA as a low-risk insecticide as it is not harmful to humans or pets. Crews will spray affected areas on Thursday, July 24, from 8 p.m. to 11 p.m. In the event of rain, spraying will take place the following Monday, July 28, during those same hours. West Nile Virus is the leading mosquito-borne disease in the U.S. and is spread to humans through bites from infected mosquitoes. Most cases of West Nile Virus occur during mosquito season, which begins in the spring and goes through the fall. The last reported human case of West Nile Virus in Allegheny County occurred in September 2024. "Generally, the species of mosquitoes that carry West Nile Virus are active from dusk to dawn," said Allegheny County Health Department Vector Control Specialist Nicholas Baldauf. "To deter mosquito bites, we encourage people to use insect repellent on exposed skin or to wear long sleeves and pants. Both methods are effective at reducing or eliminating the possibility of getting a mosquito bite." People who are infected with West Nile Virus usually do not feel sick, and only one in five infected will develop symptoms such as fever, headache, body aches, joint pain, vomiting, diarrhea, or rash. There are no vaccines to prevent or medications to treat West Nile Virus. Residents who believe they or someone they know might have contracted West Nile Virus should contact a health care professional for an official evaluation and diagnosis. "Allegheny County residents play an important role when it comes to reducing the area's mosquito population," said Baldauf. "Mosquitoes can breed in as little as a half-inch of stagnant water, so residents should pay close attention to potential breeding sites like stagnant water in tires, unused swimming pools, buckets, corrugated piping, and clogged gutters."
CBS News
2 days ago
- CBS News
At least one person killed in overnight garage fire in South Park Township
Allegheny County Police are investigating a deadly overnight garage fire in South Park Township. The fire broke out at a home along Mike Reed Drive just after 1 a.m. on Monday, dispatchers told KDKA. KDKA's news crew at the scene observed a massive response from first responders with police tape lining the entrance to the garage of the home. Detectives from the Allegheny County Police Department are now investigating the deadly fire. The Allegheny County Medical Examiner's Office has not released any information about the person or people killed. It's unclear what sparked the fire at this time.
CBS News
2 days ago
- Automotive
- CBS News
Andy Warhol Bridge undergoing inspection work for the next two weeks
Inspection work is going to be taking place on the Andy Warhol Bridge in Pittsburgh for the next two weeks. In a city that's so dependent on bridges, when one gets shut down, it gets everyone's attention. The Andy Warhol (Seventh Street) Bridge was recently closed for Picklesburgh, but this time, it's going to be closed for a structural checkup. "There is no problem," said Allegheny County Public Works director Stephen Shanley. "We're performing a routine national bridge inspection on the structure." Despite undergoing a major renovation that just wrapped up a few years ago, inspections are still required and the construction of Pittsburgh's "sister bridges" makes that process challenging because the inspection has to be done through hatch plates. "There's 439 of these hatch plates the have to remove," Shanley said. "They're all bolted down and they have to remove all these bolts." Each of the hatch plates have eight bolts, which makes for a total of 3,512 bolts that need removed to reveal the lower girders and then need put back into place. "What you see up top is what they're looking at down below, inside these hatches," Shanley said. Crews will be working all this week through Friday, reopen or the weekend, and then shut it all down again next week. Shanley says it's the safest way to get the inspection done and with the Roberto Clemente and Rachel Carson bridges right next door, the detour alternatives are easy. The Carson bridge was inspected earlier this summer, but the Clemente Bridge shutdown is yet to come. The good news is that since both bridges were just rehabilitated and they didn't find anything during the Carson Bridge inspection, they don't expect to find any problems on the Warhol or Clemente bridges, either.
