Luzerne County

WILKES-BARRE, LUZERNE COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU)— The seventh annual Rockin' the River event had their last concert at The River Common in Wilkes-Barre.

The event stirred some controversy over one of the acts being canceled, but the show went on.

Even after some rumors of the entire event getting canceled, Rockin the River crews pulled together two tribute bands for rock 'n' roll fans to enjoy one more free concert of the summer.

Rock 'n' roll fans didn't mind a brief rain storm for Rockin' the River's final concert for this year's event along the Susquehanna River.

A man was sentenced to life behind bars after the murder of a worker at Craig's Food Mart in December 2020 in Hazleton.

HAZLETON, LUZERNE COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU) — A Luzerne County man was sentenced to life in prison Thursday in relation to the death of a store clerk.

This comes after a robbery in December 2020 in which a 50-year-old employee of Craig's Food Mart in Hazleton, Ashokkumar Patel, was fatally shot.

Burglar removes air conditioner to break into home

Security cameras at the store captured Jafet Rodriguez committing the crime. Patel was mopping when Rodriguez rushed into the store wearing a mask, shoved Patel into a closet and shot him.

Todd Tarselli was resentenced to at least 46 years behind bars for the murder of Mark Bunchalk.

Ricketts Glen State Park announced last week a swimming closure after water sample results showed 'unacceptable' levels of bacteria in the lake.

According to the Luzerne County Manager, Friday's Rockin' The River finale concert will continue.

WILKES-BARRE, LUZERNE COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU) — Despite popular rumor, the 2025 Rockin' The River concert series is still on for Friday, July 25.

Luzerne County Manager Romilda Crocamo released a statement saying that the final show for this year's event would go on as planned.

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Crocamo announced that Back In Black: A Tribute to AC/DC would replace the initial AC/DC cover band planned for the event, but otherwise the event would go unchanged.

SWOYERSVILLE, LUZERNE COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU) — A spicy and fried weekend festival will get your stomachs growling, while also raising money for local parks in one part of Luzerne County.

It’s the centuries-old question: what came first, the chicken or the egg? For those at Murphy’s Pub in Swoyersville, chicken is the priority, but the follow-up question is most important: drums or flat?

"I’m a flats girly," said Angeli Nause Mahovich, organizer of Swoyersville Chicken Wing Fling.

"Drums," said Matthew Centak, co-admin, NEPA Chicken Wing Bulletin.

WILKES-BARRE, LUZERNE COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU) — Police are investigating a burglary after a suspect removed the victim's AC to break into her home.

On July 22, around 12:30 p.m., officers responded to a reported burglary on Hickory Street in Wilkes-Barre.

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Police said the victim claimed that sometime overnight, a suspect had entered her residence by removing an air conditioner from the first-floor window.

KINGSTON TOWNSHIP, LUZERNE COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU) — Vacation Bible School is in full swing at a local church in the Back Mountain. Hundreds of kids are learning about faith in a fun and interactive way.

Vacation Bible School is one of the biggest events of the year at Cross Creek Community Church.

This year's theme is "True North, teaching children that Jesus is their unshakable friend forever."

The program is free and open to the entire community.

Church leaders say it's their largest outreach event, staffed with around 250 volunteers.