Pennsylvania
Over 140 Pennsylvania National Guard soldiers deploying to Middle East
HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHTM) – More than 140 Pennsylvania National Guard soldiers are deploying to the Middle East.
Soldiers with the Pennsylvania National Guard’s 3622nd Sustainment Maintenance Company participated in a deployment ceremony on Saturday morning in Harrisburg.
“We ship out tomorrow,” said U.S. Army 1st Lieutenant, Luke McCoy.
Those deploying will serve in the Middle East for one year supporting U.S. Central Command and partner forces with regional security objectives.
“We’re a maintenance company, so we’re going to be doing a lot of maintenance and a lot of electronic work, recovery operations, relations with other, with other allied nations and stuff,” McCoy explained. “So, there’s just a lot of maintenance, a lot of good stuff over there.”
Preparing for a mission like this, isn’t easy — to say the least.
“Between getting all the equipment ready that we’re sending over there and getting everyone medically and admin cleared, it’s been a work horse for us to get ready for this thing and the guys work their butts off and I can’t be more grateful now to be going over with these guys,” he added.
The hardest part about deployment for many soldiers though is getting ready to leave family, friends and loved ones.
“I’ve been in for nine years, so it’s my first one [deployment],” said Ashlee Ebling, U.S. Army Specialist. “I’m really excited to do something great, something to do a little hard with the family, leaving the daughter behind and my husband.”
There is one thing many of these soldiers will be taking advantage of while being so far away from home — technology.
“We can facetime, we can WhatsApp signal through those apps and stuff,” McCoy said. “There’s wi-fi over there so we’ll be able to talk just as like if you’re 20 feet over that way and I was facetiming you, we can do that from across the world. So, we’re lucky in that sense to our technology is going to be very great for us.”
The soldiers will fly from the Harrisburg International Airport Sunday and into Texas before they officially head overseas for their mission.
Last year Pennsylvania National Guard soldiers deployed around the world including nearly 700 to Africa, over 150 to Germany, and nearly 50 to the Middle East. In October hundreds of soldiers returned from deployments to Africa.
Founded in 1747 by Benjamin Franklin, the Pennsylvania National Guard is now one of the largest state National Guards in the United States. Since September 11, 2001, Pennsylvania National Guard Soldiers and Airmen have completed more than 43,000 individual deployments.
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania amusement park named best in the US by TripAdvisor
The U.S. has a new top amusement park – and it’s not Disney themed.
Little-known Knoebels Amusement Resort in Elysburg, Pennsylvania, took home the top prize for top amusement park in the recently released TripAdvisor “Best of the Best” list.
“Family-owned and operated since 1926, Knoebels Amusement Resort—located in Elysburg, Pennsylvania—is America’s largest free-admission amusement park. It’s got it all: roller coasters, kid-friendly rides (bumper cars, a haunted mansion), swimming, camping, a mining museum, and even a championship 18-hole golf course. The accommodating staff, clean facilities, and fun attractions make for a memorable family-friendly visit,” TripAdvisor noted.
The park, which is located in the middle of the state, received a 4.7 rating from nearly 3,000 reviewers on the website.
Dollywood, Disney World’s Magic Kingdom, Disney’s Hollywood Studios and Universal Island rounded out the top five on TripAdvisor’s list.


Knoebels celebrated taking the top spot with a social media post. Its fans were not surprised with the high ranking.
“We knew it all along,” the American Coaster Enthusiasts for Eastern Pennsylvania wrote in response.
“Been going since 1996,” one user wrote.
Knoebels opened in 1926 and is America’s largest free-admission park. Tickets for individual rides cost visitors a fee,, but entry remains free.
The resort offers more than 100 rides ranging from family to thrill coasters. The Impulse roller coaster is one of the park’s most popular and features upside-down twists and a 90-degree free fall. The Phoenix roller coaster is a classic wooden model that first opened in 1947 in Texas. In 1985 it was reborn at Knoebels.
If thrill seeking isn’t on your bucket list, the park offers plenty of gentler rides. The antique cars attractions let people drive a Model-T replica through the woods and under the Phoenix roller coaster. The park’s Grand Carousel also offers a throwback ride to users and a game on each ride where the winner gets a free turn.

Dolly Parton’s Dollywood in Tennessee took the second spot on the list.
“Dollywood is the brainchild of singer Dolly Parton, who grew up in the surrounding Smoky Mountains of Tennessee,” TripAdvisor noted. “The park has a downhome feel with singalongs and a museum dedicated to Parton’s life, plus high-velocity roller coasters and thrill rides. Watch artisans showcase glass blowing and pottery skills. Stay at the park’s two resorts for loads of perks.”
While a pair of Disney parks in Florida took the next two spots on the list.
“Known as The Most Magical Place On Earth, the Magic Kingdom Park needs no introduction. This theme park is located at the Walt Disney World Resort in Florida and features some of Disney’s best-known attractions (Space Mountain, Jungle Cruise, Cinderella Castle). There’s also a nightly fireworks show, musical parades, and meet and greets with your favorite Disney Characters,” TripAdvisor said of Magic Kingdom.
Here is the full top 10 list:
- Knoebels Amusement Resort (Elysburg, Pennsylvania)
- Dollywood (Pigeon Forge, Tennessee)
- Magic Kingdom Park (Bay Lake, Florida)
- Disney’s Hollywood Studios (Bay Lake, Florida)
- Universal Islands of Adventure (Orlando, Florida)
- Epcot (Bay Lake, Florida)
- Legoland California (Carlsbad, California)
- Universal Studios Florida (Orlando, Florida)
- Disneyland Park (Anaheim, California)
- Silver Dollar City (Branson, Missouri)
Pennsylvania
Update: Freeze warning for part of Pennsylvania until Sunday morning – temperatures to drop to 28
Pennsylvania
Could a gas tax holiday be imposed in Pennsylvania as prices at the pump continue to rise?
PENNSYLVANIA (WJAC) — Discussion continues about potentially suspending the Pennsylvania gas tax, one of the highest state gas taxes in the country, as prices at the pump continue to jump.
Lawmakers in both chambers are considering a gas tax holiday that would remove Pennsylvania’s gas tax for a limited period. The Senate proposal would last 60 days, while the House version would run for six months. Supporters say the move would provide needed help for people across the state, while opponents argue it is not sustainable.
The proposals would save drivers about 57 cents per gallon on gasoline and about 75 cents per gallon on diesel from the state gas tax.
Representatives of the Democratic senator Lisa Boscola, who proposed the Senate bill and is from the Lehigh area, said they will continue pushing the measure they believe is needed by families around the state and are optimistic it will pass.
In the House, the effort is mostly being pushed by Republicans, though local Republican Rep. Jim Rigby said he does not support it because it is “not a real solution.”
Democratic Rep. Paul Takac agrees, saying state police and PennDOT road work are funded through the gas tax, and that suspending it would essentially defund both, and they would have to find money to fill those voids. Takac added that he has not heard any serious intention to move the bill forward.
Democratic Rep. Frank Burns said he believes that if the proposal came to a vote, a gas tax holiday would pass with bipartisan support and would provide at least a small break to struggling families.
The debate continues as gas prices continue rising, with another jump in the last week.
Chief economist Gbenga Ajilore of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities says prices are unlikely to fall soon.
“It seems like gas prices are going to go up, and even if there’s some sort of resolution in say the next couple weeks, it’s going to be difficult to see prices go down anytime soon,” Ajilore said.
The Senate is back in session on Monday and for the next few days after that, but not again until June. If the gas tax holiday is going to move forward anytime soon, that is when it would likely happen.
In the House, the proposal would need to clear the Democratic-led Transportation Committee before it could go to a vote.
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