Look back on the Butler Eagle’s most popular stories of 2024
The Butler Eagle tracks what stories readers click on. That data reveals what people find important — what they like, what they spend time with, what sparks their curiosity.
Below are the most popular news stories of 2024 in the Butler Eagle, as determined by what drew the most readers. Some of those stores include the crash at Lernerville, an accident on Route 422, the noted tenor at the Trump rally and much more.
On Sunday, Oct. 13, during the Geibel Fest Day of Destruction at Lernerville Speedway, driver Shane Nolan, a native of Chicora, crashed while racing car No. 61 in the 100-lap Enduro. His vehicle collided with a wall, flipped over and landed on its roof, leading to his transport by STAT Medevac to UPMC Presbyterian.
Nolan was declared dead by the Allegheny County Coroner's office on Oct. 14, making him the third driver to die in a racing accident at Lernerville Speedway since its opening in 1967.
On Saturday, Oct. 5, at the Butler Farm Show grounds, Trump supporters were treated to a performance by acclaimed tenor Christopher Macchio, who sang medleys of patriotic tunes. He also sang “Ave Maria” after the moment of silence in honoring Corey Comperatore, the man killed at the July 13 Trump rally.
Pennsylvania’s Department of Education will no longer require school districts to follow the Culturally Relevant and Sustaining Education (CR-SE) guidelines from late 2022.
This change follows a lawsuit settlement involving three school districts, including Mars Area School District, reached on Oct. 22 and announced by state Rep. Stephenie Scialabba on Nov. 14. All types of schools, including public and charter, will not have a legal obligation to follow the CR-SE Program Framework Guidelines.
The Butler County Tourism & Convention Bureau reports that more than 2 million visitors come to Moraine State Park each year. However, an unwelcome guest, algae, tends to thrive in Lake Arthur this time of year. Algae blooms can cause the water to become discolored and murky, resembling spilled paint, with colors ranging from blue-green to red.
These blooms can pose risks to humans and animals due to harmful cyanotoxins, which may lead to symptoms like nausea, vomiting and stomach pain. Fortunately, Pennsylvania's dashboard tracking harmful algal blooms shows no activity detected at Moraine State Park in the past year or throughout the 2020s.
One motorist died after a collision between a car and a motorcycle on Sunday, June 16, at Route 422 and Geibel Road. The accident was reported at 1:20 p.m., with the motorcycle found on top of the car. One passenger from the incident was injured and transported to a Kittanning hospital.
State troopers, Herman Volunteer Fire Company, and East Butler Ambulance Service responded to the scene, blocking eastbound traffic on Route 422 and diverting it onto Heist Road.
A man died on Sunday, April 28, in a motorcycle accident along Route 422 in Butler Township, shortly after 3 p.m. The rider collided with a guiderail, with no other vehicles or individuals involved. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Emergency responders included the Butler Township Volunteer Fire Department, VA Butler Fire Department, Butler Ambulance Service, Butler Township Police and the state police accident reconstruction unit. The incident caused major slowdowns on Route 422, and eastbound traffic was reduced to one lane for several hours.
On the night of March 5, a woman was attacked by a bear outside her home in Butler Township and was transported to Butler Memorial Hospital with lacerations to her head and arms. The attack, which involved a mother bear and her three cubs, occurred around 8:45 p.m. and seemed to involve an interaction with the woman's dogs.
The mother bear was euthanized around 9 p.m., and neighbors reported hearing a loud noise. Game wardens remained on the scene to monitor the cubs in a tree, with multiple emergency services responding to the incident.
A 21-year-old Butler man, Bradey Duncan, died Sunday afternoon, Oct. 20, after being ejected from his vehicle in Clearfield Township. He was driving north on Clearfield Road and made an evasive maneuver, exiting the road and striking an embankment.
The vehicle became airborne, rolled twice, and Duncan suffered fatal injuries. His vehicle was towed by Malinski’s Towing, and emergency responders, including East Butler Fire Company and East Butler Ambulance, closed the road for over two hours while handling the crash.
Two Butler residents and a Chicora resident died in a crash around 8 p.m. on June 8 in Athens Township, Crawford County. Ronald J. Parisi, 21, of Chicora, Joshua R. Boettner, 19, and a 17-year-old boy from Butler were in a vehicle that crashed into a tree. Parisi was driving the 2008 Scion TC on Centerville Road when the vehicle left the road.
Both front passengers died inside the vehicle, while the 17-year-old was ejected and also found dead at the scene. No safety equipment was used by any of the occupants.
The new owner of Clearview Mall in Center Township as of Jan. 1 is 4th Dimension Properties, which plans to fill vacancies, especially the former JCPenney location. Principal Felix Reznick, whose Florida-based company owns 15 malls nationwide, is in talks with a potential tenant for the JCPenney space and aims to finalize a deal within a couple of months.
The mall, which includes Dunham’s Sports, Boscov’s, and Texas Roadhouse, will benefit from friendly leasing terms and new events, enhancing its appeal to attract more businesses.
