Nurses at area hospital begin 2-day walkout

Nurses at a suburban Philadelphia hospital have begun a two-day walkout over staffing levels and other issues.

The Pennsylvania Association of Staff Nurses and Allied Professionals said the strike Sunday and Monday by 370 nurses and technical staff at Delaware County Memorial Hospital will be followed by a three-day lockout. Hospital officials say that’s because staffing agencies require five days of pay to get temporary replacements.

The union says the hospital has increased number of patients per nurse and there are shortages of basic equipment.

Crozer-Keystone Health System said “licensed, certified, experienced and well-trained nurses” will be providing care during the walkout. Officials said nurses have been offered competitive wages and benefits, and nursing staff levels are checked “four times a day, each and every day, to ensure appropriate staffing.”

Pickup crash kills driver minutes after hitting cruiser

WILKINSBURG, PA. » Authorities in western Pennsylvania say a man died after crashing his pickup truck minutes after running into the rear of a police cruiser and three other vehicles in suburban Pittsburgh.

Officials in Allegheny County said the initial crash happened shortly after 9:30 p.m. in Penn Hills, when the cruiser was behind other cars when a pickup truck crashed into it, causing heavy damage. An officer was treated at a hospital for injuries described as minor.

Police chief Howard Burton said the pickup went on to hit three other vehicles ahead of the cruiser.

County officials said the truck continued into Wilkinsburg, where the vehicle crashed into a tree, killing 33-year-old Derek Winstead of Pittsburgh. The accidents remain under investigation.

Sheriff: Woman killed in home had protection order

PALMER, PA. » Authorities say an eastern Pennsylvania woman found shot to death had a protection from abuse order against a man later found dead in his car in New Jersey.

Northampton County authorities said 47-year-old Lisa Menzo Santoro was found Friday afternoon in a vehicle in the garage of her Palmer Township home. Police were seeking 45-year-old Leonard Moser, but after his car was stopped in Phillipsburg, New Jersey, Warren County authorities said he apparently killed himself with a shotgun.

Northampton County Sheriff David Dalrymple said Menzo Santoro had obtained a protectionfrom-abuse order against Moser, which was served to him last Monday. Authorities said none of her four children were in the home when she was killed.

Friends of Menzo Santoro started collecting donations for her children Saturday.