An obstetrics clinic was shut down Wednesday after fire damaged an examination room at Allegheny General Hospital on the North Side.
The fire was reported shortly before 6 a.m. on the sixth floor of the hospital's south tower, hospital spokesman Dan Laurent said. No one was there at the time and no one was injured.
"It was nothing significant," Laurent said. "We expect to be back to normal operations very soon."
Authorities said the fire was caused by malfunctioning equipment — a special bed used for obstetrics patients that has a built-in heater. Pittsburgh Fire Chief Peter J. Micheli Jr. estimated the damage at $100,000.
Laurent said a pediatrics clinic located on the same floor was temporarily relocated while crews did cleanup work.
Man dies when motorcycle hits truck
A Washington County man was killed Wednesday morning when the motorcycle he was operating crashed into the rear of a dump truck, Washington County Coroner S. Timothy Warco said.
Jason P. Elliott, 25, of Ross Road, Canonsburg, was traveling west on Linden Creek Road in North Strabane Township around 8:15 a.m., when he crashed into the truck which had just pulled out from Vista Hill Road, Warco said.
Elliott was pronounced dead at the scene of multiple injuries. Warco ruled the death an accident.
Suit alleges handicap ramps are hazardous
Several handicapped residents have filed a federal lawsuit against the city of Erie, saying city sidewalk ramps are hazardous.
Four residents said the ramps are too steep, not flush with the street and that they can eject people from wheelchairs.
Mayor Rick Filippi said the cost of redesigning hundreds of city curb ramps would be substantial.
Filippi said he was disappointed to learn of the lawsuits after workers spent nearly 10 years installing them. He said he met with disabled residents in April.
The city has been installing the curb ramps since 1992, shortly after Congress passed the Americans with Disabilities Act.
