Breaking News

COVID-19

AASD to discuss learning plan

The Altoona Area School Board on Tuesday scheduled a special meeting for 6 p.m. Jan. 26 to revisit a return to school plan. That meeting will be a working session where a new motion is anticipated regarding whether to send students back. On Thursday, the board voted 5-4 to remain on a virtual learning model until two weeks after the first round of staff and teacher vaccinations. It remains unclear when these vaccinations will take place, and in the meantime, some parents are upset by the prospect of their children continuing to miss out on the opportunity to learn in-person. ...

Residents want vaccination

HOLLIDAYSBURG — A week ago after federal leaders recommended adding those 65 and older to the top priority group for COVID-19 vaccinations, Blair County Director of Public Safety Mark Taylor’s said his office phones started ringing. “We’ve been fielding calls ever since, particularly from the elderly looking for when and where to get vaccinated,” Taylor said Tuesday when addressing county commissioners. “Unfortunately, it’s going to take some time for the state to get their plans in place for this to happen.” Based on a conference call held last week with state leaders, ...

Recalled to duty

On a typical week, the VFW Blair County Veterans Honor Guard conducts five military funeral services, honoring the fallen with the playing of taps as well as the traditional folding and presentation of the American flag to the next of kin, and the firing of arms salute. When the COVID-19 ...

Schools get $2.2B in virus aid

HARRISBURG — Gov. Tom Wolf is dedicating $2.2 billion in federal stimulus funds to K-12 school districts and charter schools affected by the COVID-19 pandemic to support food programs, technological improvements and other education services. “All schools have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, and I commend school communities for rising to the challenge to combat the toll it has taken,” Wolf said. “This extra funding is critical to help schools meet the unique needs of educating students at this time while keeping school buildings safe when students return to the ...

Area outbreak easing slowly

Both of the key metrics listed in the state’s early warning COVID-19 dashboard for all six local counties remain well above the thresholds of concern this week, although all but two of the 12 numbers have improved from three weeks ago. Clearfield County’s incidence rate — the number of new cases per 100,000 residents in the past week — was highest among local counties at 343, nearly seven times the concern threshold of 50. Huntingdon County’s test positivity rate for the most recent week was highest among the local counties at 18.1%, 3.6 times higher than the threshold of ...

Jailed judge loses bid for pandemic release

WILKES-BARRE (AP) — A disgraced Pennsylvania judge who locked up thousands of juvenile offenders while he was taking kickbacks from the owner and builder of for-profit detention centers has lost his bid to be released from prison because of COVID-19. Mark Ciavarella, a former Luzerne County juvenile court judge, had requested compassionate release from a federal lockup in Kentucky. The 70-year-old cited his age, his underlying medical conditions that put him at heightened risk of serious illness from COVID-19, and the virus outbreaks that have swept through the prison. U.S. ...