A man found the body of his father inside a Southwest Philadelphia home Tuesday afternoon.

Investigators say a neighbor heard a struggle inside a home on the 6300 block of Theodore Street and called 911. When police initially responded they didn’t see any damage to the front entrance of the home and left.

The son of the 77-year-old man who lived there then checked the home after not hearing from his father in a few days. Investigators say the son noticed the back entrance was broken into. When he went inside he found his father unresponsive on the floor. He was pronounced dead by a medic at 2:30 p.m.

Investigators say the victim appeared to have had blunt force trauma to the head and suspect he had been killed Sunday night. They also believe two suspects had broken into the home and targeted him and say they may have stolen the victim’s van.

Police did not find a weapon and have not yet determined whether anything inside the home was stolen. They continue to investigate.

The older brother of a baby girl who was kissed by the Pope during his visit in Philadelphia received a huge honor Tuesday. Dominic Masciantonio, 5, was made an Honorary Deputy U.S. Marshal during an event at the James E. Byrne Courthouse in Philly. Dominic was recognized for his support of his 1-year-old sister Gianna and his love for the law enforcement community.

Gianna first drew national attention when she was kissed by Pope Francis during his historic trip in Philly last year. Yet it was what brought her to that very moment that was truly remarkable.

Only two months after she was born in 2014, Gianna was diagnosed with Juvenile xanthogranuloma, a rare form of histiocytosis, in her brain stem. The baby girl was not expected to survive.

“Gianna was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor,” said her father Joey Masciantonio.

Gianna underwent multiple brain surgeries and rounds of chemotherapy for the next several months. Then on September 26, 2015, just after Gianna celebrated her first birthday, the family received a phone call from a friend who happened to also be an FBI agent. The friend, who was among the hundreds of personnel guarding Pope Francis’ route during his trip to Philadelphia, told them to rush from their Doylestown home to downtown Philly as soon as they could. He was able to get them passes to see the Pope during his parade route down Market Street.

Two hours later, the family got a front row seat to see the pontiff near the James S. Byrne Courthouse after he made his address at Independence Hall. Masciantonio told NBC News he held Gianna up as high as he could and got the attention of police and FBI agents who waved for the Pope’s motorcade to come over. The pontiff’s security spotted Gianna, grabbed her and took her to him. Pope Francis then kissed Gianna on the head and granted his blessing.

“It was the luck of the draw,” Masciantonio told NBC News. “We believe it was definitely a divine moment.”

Pope Francis did not know of Gianna’s condition at the time. Two months later, a new MRI revealed that her tumor, which had previously resisted chemotherapy treatments, had almost completely dissipated and her condition had improved dramatically.

After Pope Francis learned about Gianna’s story he continued to receive updates about her health. He also signed a picture of him kissing Gianna. The framed photo was given to the family Tuesday.

Masciantonio reflected on the drastic change in his daughter’s health during the ceremony.

“We don’t think the Pope healed our daughter,” he said. “She’s still in chemo now. It gave us hope. It gave us strength. It gave other people strength. That kiss meant more to my family than anyone could ever imagine.”

A woman diagnosed with the Zika virus gave birth to a baby with microcephaly at a New Jersey hospital, the first apparent case of a baby being born in the tri-state with defects from the disease, officials say.

The mother, who was visiting the U.S., contracted the disease internationally, officials at Hackensack University Medical Center say. 

The hospital would not release any further details, saying only in a statement that the mother was receiving "exceptional care" and "we would appreciate everyone respecting the mother's privacy." 

The Record newspaper reports the woman is 31 and from Honduras, a nation ravaged by the Zika virus. She contracted the disease in Honduras after being bitten by a mosquito early in her pregnancy, her physician at the hospital told the newspaper. 

The baby was delivered by Cesarean section Tuesday after an ultrasound confirmed the birth defects: low birth weight and severe microcephaly. The mother was 35 weeks pregnant. 

The mother had been visiting relatives in the area when she went to the hospital Friday, and a blood test by the CDC in Atlanta confirmed her daughter had contracted Zika, The Record reports. The woman had a rash early in her pregnancy but no other symptoms. 

The Zika virus causes only a mild and brief illness, at worst, in most people. But in the last year, infections in pregnant women have been strongly linked to fetal deaths and to potentially devastating birth defects, mostly in Brazil.

U.S. health officials said in April there is no longer any doubt the Zika virus causes babies to be born with abnormally small heads and other severe brain defects.

Newborns with microcephaly often act just like other newborns, perhaps a bit fussier, NBC News reported. But the disabilities will appear as the growing children miss important milestones. They'll have learning deficiencies, vision problems and hearing problems, and many will also have physical disabilities.

There is no cure.

RELATED: What to Know About the Zika Virus

News that the Bernie Sanders campaign is planning a rally right across from the Wells Fargo Center on the eve of the upcoming Democratic National Convention in Philly in July has raised questions regarding how unified the party will really be. NBC10's Jim Rosenfield has the details.

A gas station owner was shot to death in Newark Monday afternoon, and the man's family said they think he was targeted because he is Sikh.

Davinder Singh, 47, was shot at the Power Gas Station on West Market Street sometime before 4:25 p.m. Monday.

Police said Singh, of Iselin, was found unresponsive at the gas station and taken to a University Hospital, where he was pronounced dead shortly before 4:45 p.m.

Singh's son, Jatinder Singh, said that he thought his father, who had moved to the United States from India 25 years ago may have been targeted because he was Sikh and wore a turban. 

"There was no robbery, no struggle, no confrontation," he said. "I don't know what else it could be other than a hate crime."

Jatinder Singh told NBC 4 New York that his father was "the best man I ever knew" and that the family had worried about him working in Newark. 

The son said the 47-year-old had been robbed before but had always fought back. But on Monday afternoon, he didn't even have a chance.

"My dad came out to get some fresh air and the male came up to my dad, pointed a gun and shot him point-blank," he said.

Detectives from the Essex County Prosecutor’s Major Crimes Task Force are investigating the shooting. They didn't comment as to whether the case is being investigated as a hate crime. 

A New Jersey township voted unanimously to ban commercial leaf blowers this summer.

The blowers, often used by professional landscaping companies, will not be permitted in Maplewood from June 1 to Aug. 31. The ban was first reported by NJ.com.

The ban is meant as a pilot program that will be assessed at the end of the summer. It was put in place to combat resident noise complaints about the blowers.

At the meeting where the ordinance was passed on May 17, NJ.com reports that some residents opposed the measure. Resident Martin Youngberg told the town council residents could pay the price.

"As a homeowner and a person who has physical disabilities, I have to employ groundskeepers...if you ban the leaf blowers it's going to require more time for those people to finish the job they are doing," he said. 

Homeowner George Kolodiy told NBC 4 New York on Monday that he doesn't like the sound of commercial leafblowers but thought a blanket ban went too far. He said that landscapers currently go from house to house, making for hours of noise. 

"They go from one house to another altogether," he said. "It's a couple hours, you're going to hear that noise."

Landscapers in the town, meanwhile, bristled at the ban. Charlie Bravoco said that other options -- like power brooms -- are just as loud as the leaf blowers they use.

"It's at least as loud, or definitely louder," he said. 

The Kashi Company is voluntarily recalling some snack bars and granola sold in the U.S. over concerns the products may contain sunflower seeds contaminated with listeria.

The two affected products are the Trail Mix flavor of Kashi Chewy Granola Bars and the Cinnamon + Sunflower Butter flavor of Bear Naked Soft Baked Granola.

The company said the products contain sunflower seed ingredients distributed by SunOpta, a Minnesota-based company that has recalled dozens of products sold around the country.

The ingredients may contain listeria monocytogenes, bacteria that can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, the elderly and other people with weakened immune systems. Pregnant women are also at risk.

There were no reports of illness as of May 31, according to Kashi. No other Kashi or Bear Naked products are impacted by the recall, the company said.

Those who purchased the recalled products should discard them and contact Kashi for a full refund. The consumer hotline is 1-877-747-2467.

For the UPC codes and expiration dates of affected products, go to Kashi’s recall page.

An Uber driver struck and killed a woman moments after he dropped off passengers early Wednesday.

Philadelphia Police received numerous 911 calls around 1:20 a.m. about a car striking a woman along Cecil B. Moore Avenue near Ridge Avenue in North Philadelphia, said Philadelphia Police Chief Inspector Scott Small.

“They found a female laying in the middle of the street suffering from extreme trauma to her head,” said Small.

Medics rushed the unidentified 56-year-old woman to Hahnemann Hospital where she died a short time later.

The woman – who had no identification on her – had just left a deli and was crossing the road in the middle of the street when she was struck by a westbound 2016 Honda, said Small. the 34-year-old Uber driver tried to swerve and wasn't impaired, said police.

“He had just dropped off several passengers prior to being involved in this auto accident,” said Small.

Small said it was pretty clear what happened but that surveillance cameras could help the investigation.

“(She) walked into oncoming traffic,” said Small.

Uber said it was aware of the deadly wreck.

"Our hearts go out to the victim," said a statement from Uber. "We are cooperating with authorities to assist in their investigation."

A passenger plane landing at Newark Airport bounced up and down on a runway, causing ceiling panels to fall into the aisle, before a pilot canceled the landing and took off back into the skies above New Jersey, witnesses said.

The rough ride caused panels in the Boeing 767 to fall from the plane’s ceiling onto the aisleway below as flight attendants rushed to check on passengers. 

United flight 557 was traveling from Houston on Tuesday afternoon with 214 passengers aboard when it made the hard landing, according to airline officials. 

A passenger, who wished to remain anonymous, said the plane came down and skipped on the runway, so the pilot lifted it back into the air. The pilot then tried to land again but the plane came down even harder and rebounded several times before it took off again. 

"The pilot jerked the plane up to cancel the landing entirely," the passenger said.

The passenger said that it was during the second series of bounces away from the runway that ceiling panels fell, revealing what appeared to be mechanical boxes and other parts of the plane that are normally hidden away.

"One of the panels fell right next to my seatmate and I," the passenger recalled.

He said the panels collapsed into the aisle and that no one was hurt when they came down. The passenger said people didn’t appear to be afraid and helped hold the fallen panels.

As the plane was flying away from the airport an announcement came over the intercom saying, "It's our pleasure to welcome you to Newark Liberty International Airport," sparking chuckles from the cabin.

Another announcement asked flight attendants to return to their seats. A third announcement apologized for the bumpy ride. 

The plane circled over Newark Airport for about 30 minutes before finally landing to the cheers of passengers. 

"My seatmate and I were joking that we were gonna be the next season of 'Lost,'" the passenger said.

In a statement released Wednesday morning, United Airlines confirmed that paneling came loose. The airline company said the plane landed safely and there were no injuries. 

The plane was taken out of service to be evaluated and repaired, airline officials said.

Two senior citizens suffered minor injuries Wednesday morning when a small vintage plane crashed at a Chester County airport.

The two-seater 1940s Aeronca Champ plane left the runway at the New Garden Airport in New Garden Township just before 9 a.m., and then lost altitude and crashed moments later, according to a news release from New Garden Police.

Police and medics responded to the scene, where SkyForce10 captured images of a hole through the wall of a hangar where the plane crashed.

Authorities said two men inside the plane, ages 68 and 70, sustained minor injuries in the crash and went to a nearby hospital for treatment.

The plane lost power after takeoff and was trying to return to the airfield when it collided with the hangar, crashing clear through the wall. Authorities said there was minimal damage inside the hangar and that no one was in it at the time of the crash. The hangar itself suffered more severe damage, and engineers are evaluating it for repairs.

The Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board are investigating.

Take a deep breath because the following line might really make you mad.

Philadelphia is the angriest town in America. But that might not be the worst thing.

According to digital media company Thrillist’s list of "The 11 Angriest Cities in America, Ranked by Irrationality," Philadelphians display anger like no others.

“Has there ever been a more ironic nickname for a city than Philly’s Brotherly Love moniker? Or perhaps that is fitting, as brothers tend to show their love by beating the s@*t out of each other repeatedly,” wrote Thrillist’s executive editor Matt Lynch and writer Kevin Alexander.

The Thrillist writers go on to use tired examples of Philly anger including bad sports fans’ behavior – snowballs at Santa Claus and cheering an injury to Dallas Cowboys great Michael Irvin – and some new black eyes including throwing Ed Snider memorial bracelets on the ice. They also point out an insecurity that leads to anger.

“It goes well beyond boorish fandom. Some of the elements are similar to Boston -- the insecurity when comparing themselves to NY that manifests itself as over-the-top bravado; the penchant for street festivals devolving into public urine and vomit competitions; an accent that sounds like someone threw a chainsaw into a trash fire filled with gravel, etc.” [[247269581, C]]

But all this anger isn’t necessarily a bad thing.

“Yes, (anger) can fuel aggression but it can also fuel positive social change,” said Temple University Fox School of Business Human Resources Management associate professor and chair Dr. Deanna Geddes.

Geddes, who has studied anger and aggression for more than two decades, said anger is a “very misunderstood emotion.” And it can also be communal. Geddes said anger can be caused by interactions or changes from a person, institution or other group.

“Essentially we get angry because there has been some sort of social norm violation by some other party, it’s a social emotion because we don’t normally get angry sitting in a room by ourselves,” said Geddes in a phone conversation from her Montgomery County home.

Anger can be an “emotional contagion” that can spread just like the common cold in a public space.

“If we are with people who are angry we can become angry ourselves just because there’s this collectiveness to the emotion,” said Geddes. “There’s a certain sense of modeling other people’s emotions. So if you come at me expressing anger I might, in return, then model you and that anger can become contagious, so to speak, and I can choose to get angry back at you but I can also choose to not get angry back at you.”

“Anger can serve a very positive social function,” said Geddes. “There are so many positive ways you can respond to anger.”

Some of the constructive ways to express anger can include telling someone how you feel or fighting for social changes.

You must not go on the defensive: the key is not letting anger turn to aggression – often the two are confused, said Geddes.

“Aggression is actually the behavior with the intent to harm,” said Geddes. “It’s not so much that anger is a bad thing or anger is a problem… it’s how we react to the anger that we feel inside that can lead to more pro-social or anti-social responses.”

In most cases, angry people aren’t intending to do harm, said Geddes. But a gang mentality can take over due to “emotional hijacking.”

“Anyone from Philly, and the Philadelphia area, knows that there are always going to be the bullies out there, the jerks that wreck it for everybody else, but we continue to live here and love it here … it’s a wonderful community,” said Geddes.

She said that only a small percentage of Philadelphians are bullies and that often the emotions of being a passionate sports town are sometimes ruined by a small group of people turning to aggression.

If you want something else to angry about, Philly topped other angry cities like Cleveland, Boston, Washington, D.C. and Detroit on Thrillist’s list.

And if you are feeling fumed right now, Geddes said you can always try counting to 10 or even 100 to stay calm and get past any possible aggression.

A section of Columbus Boulevard in South Philadelphia is set to be renamed again (remember when it was Delaware Avenue?).

And the new name could be in the running for longest street sign in America:

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The renaming honors two Philadelphia natives whose service in World War II made them central characters in the HBO series “Band of Brothers. The new designation will stretch from Washington Avenue to Oregon Avenue.

State Rep. Bill Keller, D-Phila., will host a ceremony noon, Thursday, with Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney to dedicate the William J. Guarnere and Edward “Babe” Heffron Memorial Boulevard in Philadelphia.

The dedication ceremony will take place in the parking lot of the River View Shopping Center in Philadelphia, located near 1100 S. Columbus Blvd.

Keller’s H.B. 1279, signed into law as Act 87 of 2015, was the legislative impetus that made the renaming happen.

Guarnere and Heffron served with Easy Company, 2nd Battalion, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, in the 101st Airborne Division.

The soldiers of the 101st Airborne were the main characters in the 10-part 2001 miniseries produced by Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg.

Sexual conversations and video over text messages between a Pennsylvania college student and her boyfriend have landed him behind bars facing up to 170 years in prison after the girl's mother protested their relationship.

Antoine Hall, 26, of Philadelphia's Wissinoming section, carried on a sexual relationship with his 17-year-old girlfriend for at least four months this year, Radnor Police said. She is a college student at Eastern University, a Christian school in Wayne.

When the girl's mother learned about their relationship, she took the teen to Radnor Police to report the sexual contact -- despite both saying the relationship was consensual.

Police said the sex was legal because the girl was more than 16 years old.

But Hall allegedly broke the state's sexting and child pornography laws when the couple sexted dozens of times and took and exchanged sexually explicit photos and video, police said.

The teen told police Hall refused to delete a sex tape they recorded when asked, according to investigators.

Hall has been charged with four counts of producing child pornography, four counts of corruption of a minor and 83 counts of both possessing child pornography and criminal use of a computer or phone.

Hall is being held in the Delaware County Prison on $50,000 bail. There was no answer at his Philadelphia home and an attorney was not listed on court documents.

If convicted, Hall would have to register as a sex offender for 10 years under Megan's Law.

More than 6,600 people in Montgomery, Bucks and Chester counties became at risk of losing their food assistance benefits on Wednesday when a federal regulation limiting the benefits to three months resumed.

Thousands more in South Jersey could potentially lose the benefits as time limits there resume over the summer.

The three-month time limit, which had been suspended because of high unemployment rates during the Great Recession, went back into effect this year.

The limit is for benefits provided by the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (formerly known as food stamps) to people considered "ABAWDs" -- able-bodied adults without dependents, or people aged 18 to 49 who have no children and no disabilities. Some people receiving benefits in Pennsylvania began to hit the three-month limit on June 1.

Kathy Fisher, policy manager at the Greater Philadelphia Coalition Against Hunger, said a major issue her organization anticipates is that people who will lose benefits don't realize they're losing them -- they'll likely find out when they go to use their SNAP cards and they suddenly don't work, she said.

"All the people who will have their benefits cut off should have gotten a letter, but there are all kinds of issues of whether they get the letter, whether they don't read it [or] don't understand it," Fisher said.

She said that 3,350 people in Montgomery County, 1,120 people in Chester County and 2,200 people in Bucks County are estimated to be at risk of losing benefits as a result of the limits. Across the state, roughly 35,000 people total are at risk of losing benefits, she added.

Some counties and localities in Pennsylvania with high unemployment rates, including Philadelphia, Delaware County, Reading, Easton, Bethlehem and Allentown, are exempt from the limits based on unemployment rates, so people in those areas won't be affected. The state had to apply for those exemptions, Fisher said.

People losing benefits can re-qualify by finding a job to work at least 20 hours per week, volunteering or performing community service for 26 hours per month, obtaining a medical exemption or participating in a qualifying education or training program.

Still, Fisher said, the number of Pennsylvania residents facing their benefits being cut off is concerning.

"Obviously, it's not good," Fisher said. "It's in the interests of everyone's health and well-being that people are able to eat, so we hope that some folks out there who really aren't able to work are able to get exemptions. It's a horrible rule, but it's not a rule that Pennsylvania itself has any control over."

Across the river in New Jersey, advocates estimate that anywhere from 50,000 to 55,000 people could potentially be at risk of losing their benefits for the same reason. Counties in South Jersey will begin to hit the three-month limit in July and August, according to Maura Sanders, chief counsel for public benefits at Legal Services of New Jersey.

Sanders said Jersey applied for a provision that delayed the limits, but that the state government decided not to apply for waivers for high-unemployment areas like Pennsylvania did. She said 15 counties would have been eligible for those waivers because of their unemployment rates.

In places like Atlantic City and Camden, where there's high unemployment and low job opportunity, Sanders said, concern is particularly high.

"We don't know what's going to happen on the other end," Sanders said. "The big question I have is: Are there sufficient work activities [available] and are the counties ready?"

Sanders said that Bergen County in northern New Jersey's limit is up already, and that several hundred people lost their benefits.

"It worries me when they say several hundred lost benefits," she said.

Fisher at Philadelphia's Coalition Against Hunger said that the SNAP time limits will worsen food insecurity across the region and the state -- both for people who lose their benefits and people who don't, who will be forced to try to stretch their own resources to help friends and relatives who lose access.

"It has a ripple effect," Fisher said. "That's a really unfortunate reality, that it comes from somewhere, and usually from those who need help the most."

Firefighters battled two fires in one day at a senior apartment complex in Germantown.

The fire started at an apartment complex on the 200 block of East Church Lane. Firefighters were able to bring it under control. The Red Cross is currently assisting 50 to 75 people who were evacuated.

Fire officials told NBC10 it was the second time they responded to the complex Wednesday for a fire. No injuries have been reported. Investigators have not yet determined a cause for either fire.