00:00I'm Paul Rasmussen. The countdown is on again this morning for the Commercial Street Bridge
00:05demolition. News Radio KDK's Tamira Rush has been keeping up with the latest for us and joins us in
00:10the newsroom. That's right, Paul. Pendot says the blast is expected within the next 30 minutes,
00:15which would be before 830 a.m. Residents can continue normal activities in and around their
00:21homes, but should expect a loud boom and dust afterward. The public is urged to watch safely
00:26through the live camera on the 511PA website. Pendot says crews ran out of daylight yesterday,
00:32forcing the demolition to be delayed. The blast is part of a $95 million project to replace the bridge
00:39and eventually slide the new structure into place on the Parkway East. The overall project is expected
00:44to be finished next summer. In the newsroom, Tamira Rush News Radio, KDKA. A code red air quality alert
00:50is in effect today and tomorrow with wildfire smoke from Canada and Minnesota passing over
00:56Pennsylvania through Friday. The Department of Environmental Protection is advising residents
01:00to consider limiting outdoor activities due to the unhealthy pollution levels. Dr. Sucharita
01:06Kerr with Tufts Medical Center on the body's response to wildfire smoke exposure. They might
01:11experience more cough, tightness in the chest. They might experience more wheezing, difficulty breathing.
01:18Water bombers and helicopters are now deploying to fight more than 180 wildfires in Canada.
01:23President Trump will deliver a primetime address to the nation tonight at 9 p.m.
01:28We'll carry the president's speech live on KDKA radio and with details about his message.
01:34Here's ABC's Karen Waugh. Sources tell Reuters the speech is expected to reveal intelligence
01:39claiming that China had the ability to interfere in the 2020 presidential election and that Beijing
01:45may have gained access to U.S. voter data. The White House overnight not commenting.
01:50A man was gunned down last night in Homestead. 911 notified of shots fired around 6 30 p.m. in
01:56the
01:561200 block of Sarah Street near McLean Playground. First responders say the man had multiple gunshot
02:02wounds and died at the scene. A man was in critical condition after a stabbing in Arlington. That
02:07happened around 8 30 p.m. in the 700 block of Bajo Street. Police say the victim was stabbed in
02:13the
02:13upper leg by a suspect who left in a vehicle and investigators are reviewing video now to identify him.
02:20With several social media platforms being sued for their addictive qualities, many school
02:26districts are trying to ban cell phones during the school day. News Radio KDKA's Paul Alexander
02:31reports a local district is a vote away from doing just that. Butler Area School District's
02:35Superintendent Dr. Brian White tells KDKA's Colin Dunlap that many of us have phone problems and
02:40they have become a very destructive distraction in the classroom. The plan at Butler would allow
02:44students to have their phones as long as they didn't use them. We're trying to balance parent wishes
02:49too and a lot of parents of school safety want to know where their kids are and a lot of
02:52parents
02:53track their kids on their cell phones and if something were ever to happen they want to be
02:57able to reconnect with their kids. So we don't want to take that away from them but we want the
03:01distractions to end. Dr. White also said schools that have already banned phones have reported a
03:05huge improvement in social interaction as well as an improved atmosphere. The ban is expected to
03:10be finalized at the school board meeting next month. Paul Alexander, News Radio KDKA.
03:16And Larry, just moments ago the bridge was imploded a little before we even expected it to happen.
03:22And I'm watching in the live stream they certainly didn't waste any time and all you can see is the
03:28dust cloud in that valley where the commercial street is and where the bridge was and you can still
03:36see the new construction of the bridge looks untouched at least from the surface from a top view
03:42but that valley is there's not much of a breeze so the dust cloud is just kind of lingering in
03:49that
03:49valley where commercial street crosses underneath. And we received just 14 minutes ago in fact
03:55a notification of the 30 minute window in which they were expecting to set off the explosives and
04:02so that did happen almost exactly in the middle of that time period right after eight o'clock I guess
04:07while we're still yapping in the news here. And I would imagine they'll have to wait till that dust
04:12clears so they can check and see if there was any damage A to the new bridge and B if
04:18it took down
04:19everything they wanted it to so they could begin the process of removing that debris and set up
04:25to send in the new bridge which would move about a foot an hour 102 feet. So that could take
04:33four and a quarter days just to move that in if they did it without stopping.
04:38I'll wrap up real quickly KDKA Sports brought to you by NASCO Roofing Pittsburgh's trusted and
04:44passionate roofer call NASCO at 412-373-2000. Now the British Open is underway first round at Royal
04:51Birkdale and the leaderboard shows right now three players at four under Sunjay M Daniel Brown and Ryan
04:56Girard. Also the Argentina rally to beat England 2-1 Wednesday they won the World Cup going rather to
05:03the World Cup final Sunday with Spain and the Bucs are off today. They open a three-game series with
05:09the Guardians on Friday night.
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