Overnight snow and ice meant PennDOT put vehicle driving restrictions in place due to winter weather conditions. That meant speed limits were lowered to 45 miles-per-hour on many area roads and highways until the dangerous conditions pass. Those include the Pennsylvania Turnpike, I-78 in Berks, Lehigh and Northampton counties, I-80 in Carbon and Monroe counties, I-380 in Monroe County, the entire length of Route 22, Route 209 in Carbon, Monroe and Schuylkill counties and Route 33 in Northampton and Monroe counties.
The Bucks County coroner said two people died after a small plane crashed in Hilltown Township Thursday afternoon. The crash happened in the area of Brittany and Victoria lanes just before 5pm. "It's horrible for the families of whomever was involved in that," says one woman who lives in the neighborhood. The coroner said both people killed were on the plane. Their identities have not been released. The plane narrowly missed several homes and there were no injuries to people on the ground. The Beechcraft BE35 had departed from Doylestown Airport and was en route to Perkasie when it crashed. The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board will investigate the crash.
A 48-year-old Allentown man has been arrested after police say he shot and killed another man early Thursday morning. Loron Irving is charged with killing Anthony Rodgers, of Allentown, just after 2:30 Thursday morning outside Big Woody's on Hanover Avenue. Investigators say video surveillance shows Irving and Rodgers involved in a dispute and Irving pulling out a handgun and shooting Rodgers, before running away from the scene.
A local state senator wants to suspend Pennsylvania's six percent sales tax for two months. Sen. Lisa Boscola says she will be introducing a measure to cut out the state sales tax for purchases made in June and July. She says residents' buying power is being cramped by soaring inflation and believes the tax holiday will provide some temporary relief. Boscola says she proposes the sales tax holiday to coincide with end of the current fiscal year and the beginning of the next fiscal year, which starts July 1.
Sen. Pat Toomey says when Russian leader Vladimir Putin got away with taking Crimea, he learned there was nothing really stopping him from another invasion. He says this time the U.S. and its allies should double down on economic sanctions. "I think the appropriate response for the United States is absolutely crippling sanctions. I don't think there's a military response that's appropriate, but I think we have the ability to bring the Russian economy to its knees and we should do that," Toomey says. Democratic Sen. Bob Casey says in a statement, "This invasion is a clear violation of international law and it's never been more important for democratic leaders to stand together in the face of Putin's aggression."
Analysts expect gasoline prices to shoot up now that Russia has invaded Ukraine. Prices at the pump have been rising in recent weeks as more Americans return to daily driving habits but they're expected to surge by the end of the weekend. One analyst expects prices to jump by fifteen cents by Sunday.
State health officials say New Jersey recorded another 35 fatalities due to COVID-19 yesterday, while the number of confirmed cases fell. The state's confirmed seven-day average of coronavirus cases dropped to 1176, which is down by more than 80 percent from a month ago. Numbers of COVID-19 cases have now fallen to their lowest levels since before the omicron variant started in early December.
James Harden is coming back from an injury and will reportedly make his debut for the Philadelphia 76ers tonight. Harden will play with the team for the first time since he was moved in a blockbuster deal between the Brooklyn Nets and 76ers. The 10-time all-star waited to make his Philly debut after being was sidelined due to a hamstring injury. The 76ers and Harden take on the Minnesota Timberwolves in Minneapolis.