We are now less than one month from the May primary election and the final fundraising numbers are in in the 7th Congressional District race. Incumbent Republican Ryan Mackenzie is running unpposed next month and pulled in more than $900,000 in the first quarter, leaving him with nearly $2.5 million to spend between now and November. Ryan Croswell was the biggest Democrat fundraiser, bringing in more than $483,000, which gives him $715,000 in the bank. Bob Brooks has more than a half-million dollars to spend before the primary after raising $423,000 from January through March. Carol Obando-Derstine raised more than $86,000 in the first quarter, leaving her with $128,000 cash on hand. Lamont McClure continued to lag behind his opponents, raising just $20,000 in the first quarter. He does have $285,000 in the bank however, thanks to a $200,000 personal loan he made to his campaign.
Construction is set to begin today on Allentown's Center Square Realignment Project. The project at 7th and Hamilton streets is scheduled to be completed by November. No lane closures are expected and traffic will be controlled by flaggers. Phase one will run until May 21 on the northwest corner near the PPL Center.
A man who had been missing since Tuesday night was found over the weekend. Police in Emmaus announced Sunday that 37-year-old Michael Hart Jr. had been found. Details on where he was have not been released.
A mother and six of her children are dead after a reported explosion and fire in Clinton County. The fire happened around 8:30 Sunday morning in a home in Mill Hall. Christina Duck lives nearby and says she heard and then saw what happened. "We heard a boom and I could feel it. I got up and looked out the window and I could see the flames through the windows. I went outside and within a minute, the entire house was completely engulfed," Duck said. Troopers identified the victims as 34-year-old Sarah Stolzfus and six of her children. The four boys and two girls ranged in age from three to 11 years old. The cause of the fire remains under investigation, but troopers suspect that it may have started with a propane leak inside the home.
The Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources has a new program running that rewards residents for pitching in to maintain state parks and forestland. The Conservation Volunteer system launched this spring. Those who sign up can earn rewards like free camping and cabin stays for racking up hours improving trails, cleaning up natural areas, and maintaining recreational facilities. Additional details are posted on the DCNR webpage.
A new audit finds Pennsylvania's Motor Voter system is working as intended but needs improvements to prevent human error. The review looked at more than 200-thousand applications and found one case where a noncitizen was allowed to apply due to a staff mistake. Officials say the error was corrected before the person left the PennDOT location and the individual is not registered to vote. The auditor general is recommending changes to strengthen safeguards in the system.
This year's annual Jersey Shore Beach Sweeps netted tons of trash. The group known as Clean Ocean Action says there were more than four-thousand volunteers at 77 sites statewide this weekend. To date, volunteers have invested more than one-million hours in picking up nearly nine-million pieces of trash from Jersey Shore beaches.
The Phillies have now lost five straight after Sunday night's 4-2 loss to the Braves. Manager Rob Thomson admits it's not the happiest situation. "Everybody is frustrated. Nobody is complacent. Everybody is working their tails off. Nobody's happy," Thomson says. The Phillies visit the Cubs tonight.
The Celtics squashed the 76ers in game one of their playoff series Sunday afternoon. After the 123-91 loss, Sixers star Tyrese Maxey said his team made the game way too easy for Boston. "We gotta play better. They didn't feel like it was a playoff game. We did, but they didn't. They just had an easy game. We gotta make them more uncomfortable," Maxey said. Game two is Tuesday night in Boston.
A Philadelphia 76ers rookie has been named a finalist for a major NBA award. V.J. Edgecombe is up for Rookie of the Year after starting 75 games and averaging 16.0 points, 5.6 rebounds and 4.2 assists this season. He joins finalists Cooper Flagg and Kon Knueppel for the honor.