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  • Where else can you get your dinosaur fix in the Philly area?

    Where else can you get your dinosaur fix in the Philly area?

    The announcement Tuesday that Philadelphia’s Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University would be closing its museum doors later this month figures to leave a dino-sized hole in the city’s cultural landscape.

    For years, the two-century-old museum has been a dinosaur enthusiast’s dream. In all, more than 30 species are highlighted in the heralded Dinosaur Hall — many in full skeletal representations. The permanent exhibit boasts a Torosaurus skull, dinosaur eggs, and a touchable T. rex bone fragment.

    There’s still time to visit: The last day open to the public with regular business hours will be Sept. 27. There’s also a “Dinos After Dark” event slated for Sept. 18, complete with a beer garden and pay-as-you-wish pricing.

    For those hoping to get their fossil fix in the future, meanwhile, rest easy: There remain other places in and around Philly with plenty of dinosaur-related programming.

    Life-size depictions of creatures that roamed the area 66 million years ago in the “Dinosaur Coast” prehistoric life dioramas produced by Gary Staab at the Edelman Fossil Park & Museum of Rowan University during a media preview March 5, 2025.Tom Gralish / Staff Photographer

    Edelman Fossil Park & Museum

    Located just across the Delaware River in New Jersey — less than 20 miles from downtown Philadelphia — is Rowan University’s Edelman Fossil Park & Museum.

    Opened a year and a half ago, the museum boasts a lineup heavy with dinosaurs and other extinct creatures: There’s fossil teeth from the Cretolamna, an ancient shark that inhabited the state; a hadrosaur egg fossil; and full-scale renderings of dinosaurs from up and down the East Coast.

    “We really feature the dinosaurs and other extinct creatures from New Jersey and Pennsylvania,” said Kenneth Lacovara, paleontologist and EFM’s founding executive director.

    For an additional cost, patrons can also join a fossil hunt at the museum’s 45-foot-deep quarry in Mantua, which over the past century has turned up more than 100,000 fossils.

    🕒 Open daily from 10 a.m.-5 p.m., 💵 $29 for ages 13+, $24 for ages 3-12, free for ages 2 and under, 📍 66 Million Mosasaur Way,
Mantua, N.J. 08080, 🌐 efm.org

    North Museum of Nature and Science

    The Lancaster museum’s “Dinosaur Discovery Hall” exhibit seeks to get visitors up close and personal with “the fossils, minerals, and plant species in prehistoric life,” according to the venue website.

    There’s a focus on the T. rex, and in the Paleontology Gallery, you can handle real bones and fossils.

    🕒 Wednesday and Thursday, 10 a.m.-3 p.m., Friday through Sunday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. 💵 $13 for general admission, 📍 400 College Ave., Lancaster, Pa. 17603, 🌐 northmuseum.org

    New Jersey State Museum

    The museum’s ongoing “Written in the Rocks: Fossil Tales of New Jersey” takes visitors more than 3.5 billion years into the past.

    The star of the show might be the Dryptosaurus — reconstructed in life-size form for the first time — but there’s also a life-size cast of a Hadrosaurus foulkii and a Mosasaurus maximus, plus a look at Ice Age creatures.

    🕒 Tuesday through Sunday, 9 a.m.-4:45 p.m., 💵 Free, 📍 205 W. State St., Trenton, N.J., 08608, 🌐 nj.gov

    Wagner Free Institute of Science

    In 1891, the Wagner purchased a collection of Camarasaurus bones from the Colorado quarry of Edward Drinker Cope — which Cope’s assistant traveled to Philadelphia to help arrange. Today, the remains are still on display at the museum.

    🕒 Tuesdays through Fridays, 9:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m., and select Saturdays, noon to 4 p.m., 💵 Free, 📍 1700 W. Montgomery Ave., Philadelphia, Pa. 19121, 🌐 wagnerfreeinstitute.org

    Please Touch Museum

    Though Philly’s favorite hands-on museum isn’t currently hosting any fossil-related exhibits, the pint-sized dinosaur lovers in your life might enjoy the upcoming “Dino Day” later this month — a celebration of all things dino.

    Kids can handle fossils, dig for bones, and take part in dinosaur-themed arts and crafts during this one-day event.

    🕒 Sept. 12, 💵 $24 for general admission (discounts available), 📍 4231 Avenue of the Republic, Philadelphia, Pa. 19131, 🌐 pleasetouchmuseum.org

    Montour Preserve Fossil Pit

    There are worse places to go fossil hunting than this roughly 400-million-year-old one-acre site of exposed shale located three hours northwest of Philly.

    Once upon a time, the site was covered by water, and while you probably shouldn’t expect to come away with any velociraptor bones — the most common finds at the site are the fossils of small sea creatures — the site is free to the public, and visitors are welcome to keep any fossils they find.

    🕒 Open daily from dawn to dark, 💵 Free admission, 📍 374 Preserve Road, Danville, Pa. 17821, 🌐 montourpreserve.org

  • Police identify the victim of the Times Square fatal stabbing as a 32-year-old Penn grad

    Police identify the victim of the Times Square fatal stabbing as a 32-year-old Penn grad

    Police have identified the victim killed in a knife-wielding spree in Times Square as a 32-year-old from Chester, N.J.

    Erin Piacenti was a vice president of business at Bank of America based out of Manhattan with a background in law, according to her LinkedIn profile. But before that, she was a singer at Penn.

    As a young girl, Piacenti, whose given name was Guiltinan, attended the private Catholic girls’ school in Morristown, N.J., Villa Walsh Academy. She went on to enroll in the University of Pennsylvania, graduating in 2016, and, later, Fordham University for law school in 2021.

    She had deep roots in New Jersey and made lifelong friends through her involvement in the New Jersey Youth Chorus and later, Penn’s Dischord A Cappella group. A spokesperson for the New Jersey Youth Chorus confirmed Piacenti’s involvement but declined to comment further, citing sensitivity and privacy.

    In Dischord, Piacenti was a frequent soloist with an explosive alto range, taking on renditions of big pop and R&B divas, from Ariana Grande to Tina Turner with confidence. Even when she wasn’t soloing, Piacenti often worked on Dischord’s song arrangements, according to credits from past performances.

    Piacenti recently celebrated her second wedding anniversary. The couple — who both attended Fordham law school — married in Manahawkin, N.J., in 2024. Piacenti’s husband could not immediately be reached for comment.

    “We are shocked and deeply saddened by the tragic loss of our colleague,” Bank of America told The Inquirer in an emailed statement. “She was ​a valued teammate who will ​be greatly missed. Our hearts go out ⁠to her family and all of ​her loved ones.”

    Piacenti was fatally stabbed by Pamela Cisneros of Queens, who reportedly had a documented history of mental health concerns, but no criminal history, NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said at a news conference.

    Cisneros, 49, was caught on a string of now-viral videos waving around two large knives. Police fatally shot her Monday in the middle of Times Square after they said she injured two people at random: a 68-year-old man exiting the subway and, about 20 seconds later, Piacenti.

    Piacenti was rushed to the hospital with a puncture to her abdomen and was pronounced dead, according to Tisch. The male victim, who has not been publicly named, was separately hospitalized and is recovering, according to police.

    Tisch said that police attempted to negotiate with Cisneros, who held the knives toward officers for “four minutes,” but that she remained hostile and threatened to kill them instead. Responding officers deployed Tasers, but she advanced anyway, police said. Two officers opened fire at Cisneros, who was taken to the hospital where she died.

    Tom Harris, the president of the Times Square Alliance, which represents the area’s businesses, said the stabbings were a “tragedy.”

    “Our hearts go out to the victims and their families at this time,” Harris told the New York Times. “We are thankful that once again the NYPD was swift to act and put themselves in harm’s way to stop the perpetrator before more were injured.”

  • Los Angeles Angels to be sold to Rams, Arsenal owner Stan Kroenke

    Los Angeles Angels to be sold to Rams, Arsenal owner Stan Kroenke

    ANAHEIM, Calif. — Kroenke Sports and Entertainment says it has reached a deal to purchase the Los Angeles Angels from Arte Moreno.

    The company led by Stan Kroenke made the surprising announcement Tuesday, saying it expects to close the transaction in early 2027.

    Kroenke’s company owns the NFL’s Los Angeles Rams, Arsenal of the English Premier League, the NBA’s Denver Nuggets, the NHL’s Colorado Avalanche, Major League Soccer’s Colorado Rapids and SoFi Stadium, along with the large Hollywood Park campus around the multibillion-dollar Inglewood arena. The company has now added the Angels, whose turbulent 23-year tenure under Moreno’s ownership will finally come to an end.

    “The Angels are a storied franchise anchored in a great market,” Kroenke said in a statement. ”We look forward to an exciting future with the Angels organization.”

    Moreno, an outdoor advertising magnate from Arizona, bought the Angels from the Walt Disney Company in 2003. While the club had steady success in its first years under Moreno with much of the roster that won the 2002 World Series, the Halos have entered a decline since winning their most recent playoff game in 2009.

    The Angels are currently headed to their 11th consecutive losing season and their 12th consecutive non-playoff season, both the longest active streaks in the majors.

    They’ve made the playoffs just once during the career of three-time AL MVP outfielder Mike Trout, who teamed with two-time AL MVP Shohei Ohtani for six straight seasons with no success.

    A significant portion of the Angels’ struggles can be attributed to the 80-year-old Moreno, who repeatedly inserted himself into personnel decisions. While he spent aggressively in his attempts to build a winner, his biggest moves usually backfired, with a series of high-profile acquisitions who produced a fraction of their anticipated impact.

    The Angels have also endured numerous troubles off the field during Moreno’s tenure, from the drug-related death of pitcher Tyler Skaggs to numerous smaller scandals.

    The Angels remained a healthy box office draw to their loyal Orange County fans during most of his tenure, but the fan base had lost patience in recent years. Angel Stadium’s slightly smaller crowds this season have regularly chanted “Sell the team!”

    The lack of success also began to wear on Moreno, whose children reportedly aren’t interested in carrying on in the baseball business. Moreno publicly explored a sale of the Angels in 2022, only to pull the team off the market in early 2023.

    “The Moreno family has been honored to steward the Angels for 23 years, and we believe with KSE’s experience and success, they are the best next owner for the franchise,” Moreno said in a statement. “The Angels organization looks forward to continuing its commitment to the fans, our employees, the players and our business partners.”

  • Russian finance minister, invited by Trump, draws objections at G20 meeting

    Russian finance minister, invited by Trump, draws objections at G20 meeting

    ASHEVILLE, N.C. — The appearance of Russia’s finance minister at a G20 meeting, his first in person since Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, sparked protests Monday from European participants.

    Anton Siluanov and leaders of the Russian central bank were invited to the meeting of the G20 finance ministers and central bankers by the Trump administration.

    Moscow targeted civilian infrastructure in Ukrainian cities with ballistic missiles and drones on Monday for the fifth day in a row. European governments, opposed to Russia’s attempt to redraw the continent’s borders by force, have given Kyiv more than $250 billion in financial and military support since the February 2022 invasion.

    “I find the signal sent ​by ​receiving the ⁠Russian finance minister here quite troubling,” German Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil ​told reporters in Asheville. “I ​would ⁠have wanted greater clarity from the American side that he ⁠should ​not be received ​here as a normal guest.”

    President Donald Trump defended the invitation Monday.

    “We’re going to see what happens, but we like getting along with everybody,” Trump said told reporters in the Oval Office. “One of the reasons that I’m so successful, I get along with everybody.”

    Erin Browne, the Treasury undersecretary for international affairs, said the delegation was invited because Russia is a member of the G20.

    “It’s important to have dialogue even during times of conflict,” she told the Washington Post. Asked about the Europeans’ concerns, she said: “We’ve had constructive dialogue around the table in the plenary session.”

    Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said he would reemphasize Trump’s peace plan for Ukraine during his meeting with Siluanov.

    Siluanov’s most recent previous appearance at a G20 meeting, by video link in April 2022, prompted several Western finance ministers to walk out in protest.

    Russia was expelled from the Group of Eight of most industrialized nations — subsequently, the G7 — after it illegally annexed Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula in 2014, but it remains a member of the G20.

    European officials demanded Monday that Siluanov be excluded from the family photo, the traditional group picture of the leaders. It was taken without him.

    Siluanov’s appearance comes less than a week after CIA Director John Ratcliffe made a rare unannounced trip to Moscow. He warned Russia against ramping up its war against Ukraine, according to a person familiar with the matter.

    A Russian drone attack on a munitions depot in the Bucha district of Ukraine on Friday, three days after Ratcliffe’s visit to Moscow, triggered an explosion that killed 38 people.

    “People are dying every ​day,” Klingbeil said. “We have just seen another ​escalation in the attacks. … You cannot simply return to normality.”

    Russian drone incursions into neighboring European Union and NATO countries and sabotage attacks have rattled security on the continent. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Sunday his government was preparing a response to an attempted armed drone attack on Leipzig/Halle Airport this month that analysts and some governments say appears to have been the work of Russia.

    Former senior German security officials say the attack appeared to be part of a significant uptick in hybrid warfare by Moscow that has targeted weapons plants and other facilities in Europe supplying Ukraine as it seeks to sap Western support.

    Bessent planned to rally his foreign counterparts to focus on economic growth to beat back rising global debt and to encourage countries to sever economic ties with Iran as part of the administration’s Operation Economic Outcast.

    In sessions on Monday, participants discussed the global economic landscape, trade imbalances, and opportunities for growth, Browne told reporters. Several noted the risks to the global economy posed by Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a major chokepoint for the world’s oil supply, in response to U.S.-Israeli attacks.

    “It remains our ultimate objective to ensure that Iran never acquires a nuclear weapon,” she said. “Doing so will reduce long-term economic and market volatility.”

    The administration also invited several American CEOs, including Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon and JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon, to the meeting to connect public officials with private sector leaders.

  • Delaware County is about to get another tool to help manage intense flooding

    Delaware County is about to get another tool to help manage intense flooding

    A new tool may help Delco officials better understand flooding in the county.

    Delaware County recently acquired 70 AWARE flood gauges, which officials say will help track data, improve response to flooding events, and allow the county to better plan for the future as extreme weather events challenge the region’s aging infrastructure.

    Here’s a rundown of what flood gauges do and how they’ll fit into stormwater management in Delco.

    What are flood gauges?

    Flood gauges are tools placed in and around bodies of water that measure water levels — think giant measuring sticks.

    Delaware County’s flood gauges will be placed throughout the county and report data to a public access portal in real time, allowing municipalities and residents to track water levels online.

    Why is the county installing flood gauges?

    Flood risk is growing in Delaware County, Gina Burritt, the county’s planning director, said, as the region’s infrastructure contends with increasingly frequent and intense precipitation events.

    The county is seeing flooding in areas where it used to be rare, Burritt said, and water-proximate areas are becoming more vulnerable to serious storm damage. Flooding is of particular concern in Delco, where much of the land is low-lying and close to the Delaware River and its tributaries.

    “We always kind of say that we’re downstream of everywhere,” Burritt said. “All of the watersheds, they flow to the Delaware River, so we’re at the very bottom of that watershed.”

    Gauges will help the county understand where flood risk is the most acute, said Burritt, informing decision-making for county planners and emergency responders.

    The flood gauges may also eventually provide early warning detection, though Burritt noted that this capability is still being developed.

    Philadelphia installed a similar flood monitoring system earlier this year, with flood sensors and cameras put in nine locations, including Cobbs Creek, Darby Creek, and the Manayunk Canal. Residents can see flood monitoring data on a live portal.

    The creek at Rolling Green Park in Springfield. Delaware County is planning to install 70 flood gauges to measure levels in and around waterways. Tyger Williams / Staff Photographer

    Where will the gauges be installed?

    In drafting its Act 167 plan, a state-mandated stormwater management blueprint, the county and consultant Jacobs Engineering have identified 87 potential flood gauge locations.

    The first batch of flood gauges will be installed on county-owned sites like bridges and parks. Once the initial round of gauges are placed, Burritt said her department hopes to work with other landowners, like the state, PennDot, and local municipalities, to place gauges in other key sites.

    Potential locations outlined in the draft plan include Smedley Park, Catania County Park along Little Crum Creek, Sun Village Park, Clayton County Park, and numerous county-owned bridges, according to the county’s draft Act 167 plan.

    Officials have identified 230 “flood problem areas” across the county, 130 of which fall under the “high priority” category. Some of the highest priority flood risk areas in Delaware County include the intersection of 69th Street and Marshall Road in Upper Darby, Brookhaven Memorial Park, and the section of Baltimore Pike that crosses Brandywine Creek at the border of Chester County. The highest priority areas were identified by the frequency and severity of flooding that occurs there, as well as impacts to emergency services, roads, and structures.

    Delco’s Act 167 plan is in preliminary drafting stages, according to the county, and will be further refined, including with feedback from municipalities and the Commonwealth’s Department of Environmental Protection.

    How much did this cost?

    The 70 flood gauges were acquired with a $107,845 Community Development Block Grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and another $224,274 in Pennsylvania Local Share Account grants.

    Installation of the first batch of gauges will cost $95,000, an expenditure coming out of the county’s capital budget. Burritt said the county is in the request for proposal process and does not yet know exactly how many gauges will be installed in the first round.

    This suburban content is produced with support from the Leslie Miller and Richard Worley Foundation and The Lenfest Institute for Journalism. Editorial content is created independently of the project donors. Gifts to support The Inquirer’s high-impact journalism can be made at inquirer.com/donate. A list of Lenfest Institute donors can be found at lenfestinstitute.org/supporters.

  • Vance wades into caustic Michigan Senate race, calling candidate ‘evil’

    Vance wades into caustic Michigan Senate race, calling candidate ‘evil’

    Vice President JD Vance on Monday amplified the already caustic tone of Michigan’s close Senate race, calling Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed “a very, very evil” person who should “keep my wife’s name the hell out of your mouth.”

    Vance used a Republican rally in the suburbs of Detroit on Monday to respond to recent and months-old comments from El-Sayed about second lady Usha Vance, using El-Sayed’s biting jokes about the second couple as evidence the Democrat is “weird.”

    Standing before a “Protecting Americans” banner, Vance also painted the U.S.-born El-Sayed as more sympathetic to foreigners than Americans. And he described El-Sayed in dark terms that echoed anti-Islamic rhetoric conservatives have deployed against El-Sayed, who is Muslim.

    Michigan’s Senate race could determine which party holds power in the chamber, stakes that have drawn attention and huge amounts of campaign cash. And the swing state’s new status as an early presidential nominating state for Democrats intensified the partisan fervor.

    Against that heightened backdrop, the close race between El-Sayed and Republican nominee Mike Rogers has spawned unrepentant bipartisan vitriol.

    El-Sayed responded to Vance with a statement that said, “Michigan is better than being lectured to by sock puppets from Ohio.”

    “Evil is ripping healthcare away from working people in exchange for tax breaks for billionaires. Evil is making people pay more for groceries and gas while pushing for trade wars and actual war. Evil is dividing people for your own gain. Evil is selling out your morals for a little bit of power,” El-Sayed said.

    El-Sayed’s statement did not address anything he’s said about Usha Vance, who gave birth to the Vances’ fourth child in July. But earlier in the day, Rogers put out a campaign video calling El-Sayed “a conman” without further explanation, and resurfacing footage of El-Sayed discussing the awkward viral moment between Vance and his wife, when Vance greeted his spouse of 12 years with a pat on the knee.

    “What do you think is going through Usha’s head when he talks? She’s like, ‘Damn, I have to sleep with him,’” El-Sayed said in the clip from April.

    El-Sayed also brought up Usha Vance in a social media post last month, a response to Vance inaccurately saying El-Sayed advocated for sharia law. Vance said that if he went back in time his grandfather, an Appalachian Democrat whom he called Papaw, wouldn’t recognize the Democratic Party shaped by El-Sayed.

    El-Sayed shot back, “So do we think JD is taking Usha with him back in time to meet Papaw, or no …”

    Critics viewed the remark as bashing Usha Vance’s Indian heritage and insinuating she’d be rejected by Vance’s White ancestors, while El-Sayed said he was bashing Vance’s insinuation that you’re more American if you can trace your roots back generations.

    Rep. Lisa McClain (R., Mich.) told Republicans at the rally hosted by President Donald Trump’s $400 million super PAC, MAGA, Inc., that the Senate race has outsize importance: “I tell everybody this is a battle for the soul of this country.”

    Vance told the crowd he came with a message from Trump, Mike Rogers, and all Republicans: “We are running people who love and fight for and defend all Americans. We don’t care who you are, so long as you belong in this country, we’re going to fight for you.”

    The race’s tenor has often devolved into pettiness.

    Earlier this week, Rogers and El-Sayed traded barbs on X over which was voted football captain or seemed to peak in high school.

    El-Sayed on Monday continued to throw punches in his blistering critique of Republicans and Trump, who has put himself at the center of the midterm fight even as his approval ratings have sunk this year.

    At an event earlier in the day, El-Sayed characterized the Trump administration’s tariffs on Canada as an unnecessary war on affordability, pointing to data that shows Michigan is one of the states hit hardest by the president’s trade policy.

    “Canadians are like the only people in the world who are going to preemptively apologize for something they didn’t even do,” El-Sayed said. “So if you’re starting a trade war with Canada, it’s because you’re the a—.”

    And he took another off-color jab at Rogers campaigning with Vance, referencing the lewd and false internet story about the vice president being intimate with a couch cushion.

    “We don’t have more couches here than they have in Ohio, so I’m just trying to figure out why he would come and why you would bring him,” El-Sayed said.

    Republicans have framed El-Sayed’s populist Democratic policies as socialism, and placed a magnifying glass on both his views toward Israel and his political connection to provocative online streamer Hasan Piker, which has also drawn criticism from Democrats. El-Sayed calls the war in Gaza a genocide and called for an end to providing arms to foreign militaries, explicitly signaling out Israel and Egypt, the country from which his parents immigrated before he was born.

    Over the weekend, El-Sayed apologized to Jewish Democrats for comments he made earlier this year after an attack on Michigan synagogue. He condemned the attack, but many Jewish people saw his earlier comments as also explaining it away when he said “hurt people hurt people,” referring to the attacker.

    Republicans have used El-Sayed’s Muslim identity as a line of attack, and the Democrat has objected to Trump posting pictures of his wife, Sarah, in a hijab, calling it a dig to suggest the couple is un-American.

    Rogers, a former congressman who narrowly lost a Senate bid two years ago, cast the race as an imperative to “defend freedom” from progressive politics, saying, “Listen, Michigan, we have a state to save.”

    State Sen. Mallory McMorrow (D) — a former El-Sayed political rival who is working to unite Democrats behind him — also cast the contest as a high-stakes opportunity to hold Republicans and the Trump administration accountable for their policies.

    “So welcome to Michigan, JD Vance,” she said. “Don’t let the door hit you on the way out.”

  • ‘Obsolete’ 225-foot-long dam at Tyler State Park in Bucks County will be removed

    ‘Obsolete’ 225-foot-long dam at Tyler State Park in Bucks County will be removed

    A curved dam at Tyler State Park in Bucks County well known to anglers and hikers is coming down.

    Pennsylvania officials will begin removing the Spring Garden Mill Dam, which is 225 feet wide and 9 feet tall, on Sept. 8.

    It will be the second-largest dam ever removed in Pennsylvania. The largest, the Oakland Dam in Susquehanna County, was torn out in 2023.

    The Spring Garden Mill Dam, which spans Neshaminy Creek, no longer serves a purpose, impedes fish, and could present a danger because it can create a powerful current at its base, officials say.

    The Spring Garden Mill, once powered by the dam, still stands in the park near where Route 332 crosses Neshaminy Creek but now houses a community theater.

    The dam’s removal, which has been planned since at least 2023, is expected to take several weeks and is overseen by the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) and the Fish and Boat Commission (PFBC).

    The Neshaminy Weir Dam near the Boathouse and main parking lot at Tyler State Park will remain.

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    Mike Parker, a spokesperson for PFBC, said dams are being removed across the state to reduce impediments in rivers and to increase public safety.

    “In many cases there was once a function to a dam, whether it was used to impound water, power a mill for stone milling of grain,” Parker said. “But those functions became obsolete.”

    Parker said the budget for the dam’s removal is $1.3 million and is being funded by $750,000 from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and $550,000 from the DCNR.

    Officials say that the park, including the popular Fisherman’s parking lot, will remain open during the removal. But a section of trail along Tyler Park Drive near the dam will be temporarily closed.

    PFBC will temporarily remove and relocate red‑bellied turtles, which are classified as a threatened and endangered species, from the work zone.

    Parker said the dam’s removal will increase safety.

    He said that the low-head dam can create a dangerous condition for paddlers and anglers by creating a “boil” at its base. Boils can cause powerful churning currents sometimes referred to as the “washing machine effect” that traps people under water.

    The removal will also aid fish moving through Neshaminy Creek, Parker said.

    The creek is popular with anglers, but the state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) issued an advisory in 2021 against eating fish from it because of PFAS contamination. As a result, it is no longer stocked.

    Further, officials say the dam does not provide any flood control.

    Tyler State Park spans 1,711 acres with its main entrance in Newtown, about 33 miles north of Center City. Its steep grade is known for its trails and a covered bridge. It is divided by Neshaminy Creek.

    On Memorial Day weekend in May 2025, Alec Campbell, a 38-year-old park resource ranger, was trying to place a buoy in the water when his kayak flipped near the Weir Dam at the park following powerful rains. His body was recovered after several days of search.

  • Naomi Osaka honors fashion ‘trailblazer’ Allen Iverson with U.S. Open outfit

    Naomi Osaka honors fashion ‘trailblazer’ Allen Iverson with U.S. Open outfit

    All of Nike’s tennis kits for the U.S. Open are basketball-inspired, after the New York Knicks’ NBA championship earlier this year. Carlos Alcaraz is wearing a jersey-style top, and the women’s kits prominently feature mesh similar to netting.

    Naomi Osaka paid homage to Sixers icon Allen Iverson with her walk-on outfit for her first-round match at the U.S. Open.

    Osaka, known for taking big swings with her on-court fashion, walked out in a gray dress, covered in news headlines written about her, before taking the hood off to reveal a headband over her braids, her tribute to Iverson’s iconic look.

    “It’s my, I guess, my tribute to Iverson. I really like him a lot,” Osaka said following her first-round victory over Anastasia Zakharova. “I mean, Nike said basketball, so I said, ‘OK, you want basketball, I’ll give you basketball.’”

    In her post-match news conference, Osaka wore an Iverson T-shirt, and also posted the look on social media with the caption “The Answer.”

    The four-time Grand Slam champion and current world No. 14 praised Iverson for being a “trailblazer” in NBA fashion. Iverson’s street style famously was a driving reason then-NBA commissioner David Stern instituted a dress code, mandating players to wear business casual to the arena.

    “I think he’s also someone that I look up to a lot, because he’s … done a lot in fashion, whether it’s on purpose or not, but he’s shifted the way that NBA players dress,” Osaka said. “I also think the whole conversation around clothes in sports and also just expressing yourself through style, I feel like he’s someone that I look up to in that regard.”

    Osaka said she and Iverson had “zero” communication before she put the look together, but she hoped he would see it. Iverson reposted her tribute on his Instagram with the caption: “Wow what an honor! Big fan, can’t wait to meet you!”

    Osaka’s next match is Wednesday against Kateřina Siniaková.

  • Philly’s school bus drivers, cleaners and maintenance workers have a new contract

    Philly’s school bus drivers, cleaners and maintenance workers have a new contract

    The people who drive Philadelphia School District buses and clean and maintain its buildings have a tentative contract.

    The district and negotiating team from 32BJ SEIU District 1201, which represents 2,000 workers, reached a deal right at the wire: 32BJ’s old contract was set to expired Monday at 11:59 p.m.

    Officials declined to disclose the terms of the deal, but 32BJ was making no secret of its asks. The big one was more money for its workers, who are among the lowest paid in the district.

    Members’ current pay scale ranges from bus attendants, who are paid $30,762 annually under the existing contract, to building engineers, whose pay rate starts at $51,155 and tops out at $77,832. The union’s best-paid employees are building construction workers, whose salary maxes out at $77,832.

    Tradespeople — bricklayers, HVAC mechanics, electrical mechanics, plumbers, and roofers — are paid $62,899 at the top of the pay scale.

    “We went into this looking for an agreement that reflects the hard work, dedication, and importance of our 2000 members covered under this agreement, and we believe this deal does that,” Tim Finucan, 32BJ SEIU state director, said in a statement. “We appreciate the strong relationship we have with the Philadelphia School District, and our shared commitment to providing family-sustaining wages, healthcare, and a ladder of opportunity within the district.”

    Union officials said membership will meet in the next two weeks to learn about and vote on the deal.

    In addition to higher pay, 32BJ was asking for a clearer path to job advancement, and ways to work with the school system to fill vacant jobs. The district often struggles to find qualified engineers and trades workers.

    Superintendent Tony B. Watlington Sr. said in a statement that he was “pleased to have reached a tentative agreement with our 32BJ SEIU Philadelphia school workers that recognizes the essential contributions of these dedicated professionals. Every day, our staff helps to safely transport our students and create the safe, welcoming, and supportive environments our students need to learn and thrive.”

  • Man and woman charged with murder in shooting on I-95 that killed a 21-year-old bystander

    Man and woman charged with murder in shooting on I-95 that killed a 21-year-old bystander

    Aiden Zeallor was only trying to get home the night he was struck and killed by gunfire while driving on I-95 near Port Richmond last year.

    Zeallor, 21, was a bystander, in the wrong place at the wrong time when at least 50 rounds were fired at a nearby vehicle in what investigators said was an attempted targeted killing of another person.

    Now, nearly 18 months after the Levittown native’s death, police have arrested a man and woman they say are responsible.

    Alondra M. Lopez, 28, and Joseph G. Toledo-Gonzalez, 27, face charges of murder, attempted murder, and related crimes in connection with the 2025 shooting.

    Lopez is being held in the Philadelphia Industrial Correctional Center and Toledo-Gonzalez is being held in the Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility. Both were denied bail.

    Zeallor’s mother, Denise Donahue, said the arrests have given her some semblance of closure, even if no development in the case will bring back her son.

    “He was a loving boy that should still be here,” Donahue said. “His life was stolen from him.”

    The curly-haired young man was an avid fisherman and outdoor enthusiast who worked as a technician for his family’s HVAC company and was always surrounded by friends, Donahue said.

    He was also devoted to his family, she said. Not long before Zeallor’s death, he had moved into his grandmother’s house in Northeast Philadelphia to take care of her and so she did not have to live alone.

    Donahue, meanwhile, continues to grieve the loss of her son. She had already experienced the death of Zeallor’s father, in 2009.

    Her life was again forever altered the evening of March 29, 2025, when she learned her son had been shot in the head and torso and was put on life support.

    A photo of Aiden Zeallor.Denise Donahue

    She rushed to the hospital from her home in Wildwood. Zeallor was declared brain-dead and died later that morning.

    Donahue said her son had been out dancing with a friend that evening at a nightclub in Philadelphia.

    The two were heading back to Zeallor’s grandmother’s house and were in the northbound lane of I-95 around 2:30 a.m. in Zeallor’s Ford Mustang when bullets fired from a semiautomatic rifle riddled a nearby Acura, the intended target of the shooting.

    Two stray bullets pierced Zeallor’s windshield as he drove, striking his right eye and under his right arm.

    The driver of the Acura was shot in the leg and was treated at a nearby hospital.

    Court documents offered few details about Lopez and Toledo-Gonzalez’s role in the shooting and do not describe the motive.

    A spokesperson for the Pennsylvania State Police, which is handling the investigation, did not immediately return a request for comment.

    A preliminary hearing for both defendants is scheduled for Sept. 14 in Municipal Court.

    Donahue said she and relatives plan to attend every court proceeding as they seek justice for Zeallor.

    They are also urging lawmakers to pass “Aiden’s Law,” which would require the installation of surveillance cameras on certain Pennsylvania highways to help investigators identify suspects in violent crimes.

    Meanwhile, the family is comforted knowing that Zeallor helped save four lives through organ donation.

    “We changed other people’s lives that day,” Donahue said. “That makes me proud, as Aiden’s mom.”