Latest news with #Havranek
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Crowds continue to grow at U.S. Open as fans make their way in from across the country
You could tell Tuesday afternoon, the second day of the U.S. Open practice rounds, the crowd at Oakmont Country Club was getting bigger. With the increase in crowds, that means there were more lines for things like the concession stand, and just more people making their way through security, around the course and other public areas. Advertisement Despite that, fans praised the work of the security and staff. 'They're ready for it! They're ready for it,' said Rick Peluso of McCandless. 'Whoever's in charge, kudos to them, because they've done it well.' As more golf fans descend on Oakmont, Channel 11 is starting to see more and more people from outside the Pittsburgh area. Channel 11's Andrew Havranek spoke with one family visiting from Venice, Florida, which is a little south of Tampa. Chasie and Rick Haupt drove 17 hours with their twin daughters — Zoe and Pippa — who both play golf — up to Oakmont for the U.S. Open, and to visit family they have in the Pittsburgh area. It's not their first professional golf tournament. The family said they went to Scotland for the British Open last year. Advertisement Havranek asked them what it means to them to have this family time, and asked the twins what they've liked the most so far. 'It is a gorgeous golf course. It's great to be able to show them what's out there and what you can do if you really work at it someday,' Rick Haupt said. 'What's been sort of the most exciting for you this week?' Havranek asked the twins. 'Just watching them play and see how they do their strategies and stuff,' Pippa Haupt said. 'Yeah, I really like them hitting out of the rough and not making it!' Zoe Haupt added. Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW
Yahoo
15-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Users express frustrations with local tax collection company's website on Tax Day
According to the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development, nearly a third of all tax districts in the state use Keystone Collections Group for local taxes. On Tuesday, Tax Day, their website has a message reading, 'An unrecoverable error has occurred.' It then directs the user to go back to the homepage. Channel 11′s Andrew Havranek called Keystone and got that same message over the phone. 'Keystone is currently experiencing higher than usual website traffic. If you encounter filing or payment issues you may remit by mail to ensure timely filing,' said an automated message. The office for Keystone Collections in Westmoreland County is closed to the public. Havranek spoke with a man off-camera who said he works there, and that the website had a temporary issue but was working. But emails to Channel 11 and posts online say otherwise. One email from a viewer just after 3 p.m. Tuesday said, 'As the deadline for local tax filings approaches, the site has become nearly unusable—locking out users, crashing, and failing to process filings properly. Keystone Collections needs to be held accountable for this failure, and more importantly, they need to publicly clarify whether affected taxpayers will receive a courtesy extension due to their system's outages.' Posts on X, formerly Twitter, show frustrations. One person responded to Pennsylvania Treasurer saying 'How much money have you wasted on that piece of garbage platform?' Another person said the Keystone Collections Group should be shut down. Havranek called several other numbers for Keystone Collections, but those calls did not go through, saying 'User Busy.' Channel 11 is continuing to work to get more information from Keystone on what this could mean for you if you're unable to file or pay on Tuesday. If you're mailing your taxes, they have to be postmarked by the end of Tuesday unless you file for an extension. Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW
Yahoo
30-01-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
'Thank God they got it out' Fire at abandoned mine in Fayette County extinguished
A fire in an abandoned mine in Fairchance, Fayette County has been extinguished, and the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection said crews should be finished with their restoration work by the end of the week. 'Thank God. Thank God they got it out,' one neighbor told Channel 11′s Andrew Havranek. Neighbors were worried the fire was going to continue to grow and burn out of control, eventually going under North Morgantown Road toward the old Kyle Mine. 'That's where it would have went,' that neighbor told Havranek. 'Could there have been a big problem?' Havranek asked. 'Yes. Big time. Big time problem,' the neighbor responded. The DEP told Channel 11 they found out about the fire burning in an abandoned mine in Fairchance on January 6. But, they believe the fire had been burning since September and had gone unreported. On January 17, they awarded an emergency contract to put out the fire. The mayor tells Channel 11 crews dug somewhere between 15 to 25 feet down into the ground to put it out. 'When they dug it up, they took all the coal, there was a lot of coal in there,' Mayor Thomas Tanner said. 'They dug it out and it was on fire. Smoking, more or less.' The DEP said the effort to dig, put the fire out, back fill the abandoned mine, and then plant grass and cover the ground with straw cost just less than $27,000. That money comes from the state's Abandoned Mine Reclamation Program, which gets some of its funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law that was passed during the Biden Administration. Those who live near that fire, and the mayor, are glad it was put out as quickly as it was. 'They did a good job, man,' a neighbor said. 'I'm proud of them.' 'They did a fantastic job,' Tanner added. 'The inspector did a good job inspecting it, and filled everything back in, they did a good job.' The DEP urges Pennsylvanians to report any mine subsidence, fires, or any environmental issues to the department by calling 866-255-5158, or by going to Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW
