State & Regional News

West Reading's police chief announced two additional fatalities on Sunday evening, ending the search for two missing individuals. The search and rescue operation followed a chocolate factory explosion Friday night.

Reporter Julian Abraham spent the weekend covering the explosion that occurred Friday at a chocolate factory in West Reading.

As part of a yearlong investigation, The Associated Press obtained the data points underpinning several algorithms deployed by child welfare agencies to understand how they predict which children could be at risk of harm.

A chemical spill of a latex product late Friday in Bristol Township released contaminants into a Delaware River tributary, according to OEM officials.

Three people died and four remain missing in the explosion at the R.M. Palmer Co. chocolate-making plant in West Reading. The grim announcement Saturday night came after a day of hope spurred by a victim found alive in the wreckage early in the day.

Pennsylvania will again operate a water assistance program for low-income households behind in their water or wastewater bills, state officials announced last week.

While the report indicates positive trends, community advocates and leaders raised concerns about high rates of gun violence and educational outcomes. They called for more hyper-localized data to identify trends and correlations between issues impacting Black communities.

Thursday's March For Our Lives rally marks its fifth anniversary since its inception after a 2018 mass shooting at a Florida high school. Hundreds are expected at Thursday's rally in Harrisburg, which coincides with rallies this week in Florida, Michigan, California and Texas.

Gov. Josh Shapiro said he's long admired the Lehigh Valley's unique ability to build partnerships. It's a skillset he said he hopes to bring to other communities across the state to promote economic growth. Shapiro was keynote speaker at the Lehigh Valley Economic Development Corp. annual meeting in Bethlehem.

A six-month investigation found the state’s “competency” review system is so broken it often extends incarceration, which can exacerbate mental health issues.

The latest Franklin & Marshall College poll shows Pennsylvanians, including those who say they’re politically conservative, still hold an overwhelmingly negative view of the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.

Mental health Therapist Susan Grubb of Elizabethtown, Dauphin County, is the only woman from Pennsylvania featured in “Women Who Shine” by Kate Butler.

Newly released numbers from the Pennsylvania Department of Labor, show the state’s unemployment rate dropped to 6.6% in July.

The rapid fall of Afghanistan to the Taliban surprised a lot of Americans and has led some to seek ways they can help support the Afghan community.

As the delta variant sweeps through, Pennsylvania reported more than 3,400 new coronavirus cases on Thursday, an increase of nearly 50% in one day and the biggest spike since May.

The acting head of the state’s Department of Human Services, Meg Snead, visited Bethlehem Wednesday to detail a billion-dollar federal program to help renters in counties with substantial or high levels of transmission of COVID-19, like Northampton County.

The U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee is hearing from former Justice Department leaders who knew about an effort by former President Donald Trump to use the DOJ to overturn Georgia's 2020 election results.

Pennsylvania’s shortage of at-home nurses for children with complex medical needs has left parents to fend for themselves.

Gov. Tom Wolf’s administration is trying a two-pronged approach to keep K-12 school environments safe from a recent surge in COVID-19 cases.

Pennsylvania’s environmental regulator is levying an $85,666 penalty against Sunoco for issues with its Mariner East project in four counties last year.

The U.S. is preparing for Afghan refugee arrivals after the Taliban took over the country’s government. Some refugee resettlement organizations in Central Pennsylvania are also mobilizing.

If you’re planning a visit to a national park, you’ll need to pack a mask even if you’ve been vaccinated against COVID-19.