Chester County Very Wet The Past 3 Months

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Chester County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Unofficially, summer 2013 will go down as perhaps the wettest on record in the Philadelphia region, borne out by rainfall totals from Chester County.

From June 1 to Aug. 31, the National Weather Service at Mount Holly, N.J., recorded 22.18 inches of rainfall, according to Jim Bunker, an observation program leader at the facility.  It rained 10.56 inches in June, a stunning 13.24 inches in July and 5.91 inches in August, he said in an interview Friday.

That is in stark contrast to the normal amount of precipitation in those three months of 11.28 inches in Philadelphia, Bunker said.  Although he indicated that the rainfall was the most recorded in the city, he could not find the previous maximum figure.

The region has experienced 36.55 inches of rain in 2013, significantly above the normal amount of 28.76 inches, Bunker said.

Read more: http://www.dailylocal.com/article/20130901/NEWS01/130909965/chesco-very-wet-the-past-3-months#full_story

Six Killed In Allegheny National Forest Collision

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting McKean County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

State police in Kane, PA are trying to determine what caused a woman driving an SUV to cross the center line, striking a car head-on and killing six people, including two children.

Kathy Douglas, 36, of Kane was driving south on State Route 219 in the Allegheny National Forest about 4:30 p.m. Saturday when she struck a Pontiac Bonneville carrying four people, state police said on Sunday.  The Pontiac was torn apart and Ms. Douglas’ car spun clockwise until it stopped along the road.

Ms. Douglas’ 12-year-old daughter, Olivia Douglas, and 6-year-old nephew, Jarrett Costanzo, died at the scene.  Ms. Douglas and her 10-year-old son, whose name has not been released, were flown to local trauma centers.

All four occupants of the car died at the scene as well.  They were identified as Gary Beimel, 62; his wife, Elaine Beimel, 55; Ms. Beimel’s brother, David Cuneo, 54, and their aunt Florence Donachy, 81.  All four were from St. Marys, Pa.

Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/local/region/six-killed-in-crash-in-kane-701643/#ixzz2dl6chHz1

Wheeling Jesuit College Student Dies Of Beating Injuries

English: Wheeling Jesuit University campus (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

What started off as an assault investigation changed to a homicide investigation when a Wheeling Jesuit University student who was beaten early Saturday morning died in a Pittsburgh hospital Sunday.

Kevin Figaniak, 21, of Perkasie, Pa., near Philadelphia, was pronounced dead at UPMC Presbyterian at 3:05 a.m. Sunday, according to the Allegheny County medical examiner’s office.  A man who was with him during the beating sustained mild cuts and refused medical treatment.

Wheeling police said they were called to Locust Avenue and National Road, about a mile from the center of the Wheeling Jesuit campus about 1:45 a.m. Saturday to investigate an assault.  When they arrived, they found Mr. Figaniak lying unresponsive on the ground with “significant head trauma” and rushed him to Wheeling Hospital, according to a statement from Chief Shawn Schwertfeger.

Mr. Figaniak was transported Saturday evening to UPMC Presbyterian, where school officials said friends and family members surrounded him.

Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/local/region/college-student-dies-of-beating-injuries-701640/#ixzz2dl3QnzXt

Russia May Send Lawmakers To US To Discuss Syria

MOSCOW (AP) — President Vladimir Putin hopes to send a delegation of Russian lawmakers to the United States to discuss the situation in Syria with members of Congress, the Interfax news agency reported Monday.

Russian legislators Valentina Matvienko and Sergei Naryshkin proposed that to Putin, saying polls have shown little support among Americans for armed intervention in Syria to punish its regime for an alleged chemical weapons attack.

The lawmakers said maybe U.S. legislators can be persuaded to take a “balanced stance” on the issue. Putin supported the initiative, which would require formal approval by the Foreign Ministry.

Russia has sent legislators to the U.S. before to try to persuade Congress about pending legislation.  But sending a delegation to Washington to discuss Syria’s civil war could be seen as a publicity stunt, given the strong positions Moscow already has taken as a key ally of Syrian President Bashar Assad‘s regime.  The U.S. has accused Russia of providing military support to Assad that has allowed Assad to cling to power during Syria’s civil war.

Read more: http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/E/EU_RUSSIA_SYRIA?SITE=PAPIT&SECTION=NATIONAL&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

Labor Day Traffic Jams Could Be Daily Occurrence By The 2020s, Study Says

The traffic jams we can anticipate on highways like Route 22 this holiday weekend will plague American highways routinely by as soon as 2020 without increases in traffic capacity or other solutions, according to a travel-industry study.

In a report released Thursday, the U.S. Travel Association joins a growing list of engineers, contractors and other business interests, as well as federal and state agencies and officials, urging Congress and state governments to add new lanes and new highways. Long lead times for planning, design, environmental and other permitting before construction begins emphasize the need for early project starts.

“At current rates of highway-traffic growth, unless additional capacity … is created through expansion of existing infrastructure, new facilities or innovative techniques, the typical day will approach Labor Day peaks” of frustrating traffic jams, concludes the study by consultant Cambridge Systems Inc.

Though none of the interstates in the Lehigh Valley region are among the 16 segments used in the examination, the roads’ geographical diversity suggests that “together, they provide a reliable snapshot of the growing congestion on America’s highways” generally, according to U.S. Travel.

Read more: http://www.mcall.com/news/local/mc-road-congestion-labor-day-20130901,0,4247270.story#ixzz2dkwrwOsz
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