Lehigh County News

South Whitehall Township's board of commissioners voted Wednesday to purchase upgraded radios for first responders in the township through a five-year payment plan provided by Lehigh County.

Nearly a year after the Biden administration designated xylazine as an "emerging threat" to the United States, Gov. Josh Shapiro classified it as a schedule III drug, making unauthorized possession a crime in Pennsylvania. Experts say the move has partly served to clear the way for new illicit substances to enter the drug market.

Allentown's Redevelopment Authority is applying for up to $2.5 million that could be used to rehab 10 single-family homes for low-income residents.

Despite not being approved for human consumption, veterinary tranquilizers are infiltrating the illicit drug supply in Pennsylvania. Harm reduction specialists and health care professionals say these overdoses can't be approached solely with naloxone, the opioid overdose reversal drug.

Newhard Farms Corn Shed opened Tuesday for sweet corn sales. While it opened a few days later than in recent years, there's expected to be a good supply this season.

The bill would limit the manufacture, sale, distribution and use of firefighting foam containing PFAS, also known as forever chemicals, beginning in 2026.

Xylazine, an animal-grade tranquilizer that's not approved for human use, has taken Pennsylvania's illicit drug supply by storm. Known on the streets as "tranq," it accounted for almost 1 in 4 overdose deaths in Pennsylvania by 2023. Last year in Lehigh County, it was a contributing cause of death in 20 of the 112 deadly overdoses, or 17.9 percent of cases.

The funding comes from the commonwealth’s Resilient Food Systems Infrastructure program, a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Known as "tranq" on the streets, an animal tranquilizer named xylazine infiltrated drug supplies throughout Pennsylvania since 2019. Its presence in the Lehigh Valley has grown, with deadly consequences.

WLVR's Brad Klein talks with Bethlehem's Backyard Astronomy Guy, Marty McGuire about planetary viewing in this week's Watching the Skies. Leading into the first week of July, viewers can snag a better view of the planet Mercury just after sunset.

Lehigh County recently received $1 million in state funding to help fight opioid addiction.

Diners, those brightly lit destinations for coffee, conversation and comfort food that won’t break the bank, are expanding their regional reach with two new iterations set to open in the coming weeks.

Lehigh Valley Planning Commission and PennDOT will study how to make passenger rail a reality in the region.

U.S. families with school children plan to spend an average of $864 on back-to-school items in 2022.

The event will bring LGBTQ+ artists and performers, arts and crafts, yard games, and food and drink to the Jewish Community Center of the Lehigh Valley in Allentown.

Best friends behind the PA Rye Co are veterans of the Allentown hospitality scene.

But the land won't be available for two years -- and it's an hour's drive from the city.

The team is asking for $1.5 million for stadium upgrades - one of several American Rescue Plan requests.

“I believe we have overstepped our bounds as a council,” Daryl Hendricks said.

It's one of the first times British cars have been part of the festival.

Clients, community members invited to participate in creating KidsPeace building mural.

Heat index values up to 101 degrees are expected.