Month: June 2011

The raging Wallow Fire is inching closer to El Paso Electric’s transmission line in Arizona, threatening the supply of electricity in the El Paso and Las Cruces communities. The utility announced Wednesday evening the fire was approximately 15 miles from EPE’s Springerville-Luna transmission line. “In the event that the transmission lines are compromised or damaged

El Paso County, TEXAS- The El Paso County Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigations Crimes Against Persons Division is seeking assistance from the community in three unsolved homicides. Two occurred in October 2009, one occurred in August 2010. HOMICIDE NO. 1: On Saturday, October 17, 2009, about 9:00 a.m., 22-year-old Victor Escudero was found in his home

Las Cruces, N.M. ? Former NM State men?s golfer Matt Edwards qualified for the PGA?s 2011 U.S. Open, June 6, at a sectional qualifier at the Oakmont Country Club in Glendale, Calif. Edwards qualified with a two-round score of 5-under par, 137 tying for first overall. He will now tee it up at the Congressional

DES MOINES, Iowa ? Senior Dimitrios Fylladitakis finished ninth in the men?s hammer throw in a rainy day in Des Moines, Iowa at the 2011 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships on Thursday. Thunderstorms in the area during the women?s 4×400 meter relay cleared the stadium and action on the track was officially cancelled for

The Hispanic Outlook in Higher Education magazine has named UTEP as the top school in the country for bachelor’s degrees awarded to Hispanics. Elias Provencio-Vasquez, dean of the school, said in a statement that these distinctions help the school recruit top researchers and instructors, as well as talented students. Provencio-Vasquez said it is estimated that

Wildfires, high winds and extreme drought are among factors that led the New Mexico Department of Agriculture to declare Dona Ana County as a natural disaster area. Dona Ana County is one of 15 counties in the state now under this designation. This also makes farmers now eligible for federal assistance to deal with the

Maria Garcia’s story on June 6, about fifty new video phones purchased by city hall at a cost of nearly five-hundred dollars each generated an enormous volume of feedback. The feedback is running entirely one direction, and it?s not positive toward the city. A viewer named Arianni wrote ABC-7 to say, ?City waste! All they

Firefighters had to use a ladder to spray foam on the historic Toltec building to disperse a swarm of bees Thursday morning. The building’s owner, Billy Abraham, said he heard about the bees Wednesday and when he arrived at the site, he said he say the entire tree across the building on the 500 block

As the El Paso Electric Company closely monitors the electric lines threatened by the Wallow Fire in Arizona, city officials remind people of the importance of preparation in case of rolling blackouts and the loss of running water. The city’s Department of Public Health recommends residents to have an emergency kit that includes: Water: 2

The New Mexico Environmental Department announced it fined Western Refining Company $350,000 for alleged emissions violations in a facility in northwestern New Mexico. According to NMED, the compressor engines at Western’s refinery east of Gallup released above-normal levels of nitrogen oxides and carbon monoxide between March and September 2010. In a statement, the agency said

Lightning kills more than 50 people on average every year in the United States. “People don’t take lightning as seriously as they should,” National Weather Service meteorologist Joe Rogash. Taking the threat seriously means staying indoors during thunderstorms. Phone lines and power cords can also transmit a strike into your home, so stay away from

El Paso Electric officials have been briefed by firefighters in Arizona, and they’ve received positive news. Henry Quintana, public relations director for the utility, told ABC-7 flames from the Wallow Fire are still not close enough to El Paso Electric’s transmission lines to be considered an imminent threat. Quintana explained there are two El Paso

EL PASO, Texas — An El Paso man probably wishes he’d stayed off the road Wednesday. Hector Marquez was arrested, after police pulled him over and allegedly found more than 10 pounds of cocaine in his car. Marquez was driving north on Americas at Socorro Road around 2:30pm when he was stopped for not having

El Paso Fire Department investigators told ABC-7 they are not ruling out the possibility that someone purposefully set fire to a truck. The blaze eventually spread to a home housing a family of five. Fifteen firefighters responded to what started as a vehicle fire in the 6000 block of Sorrento shortly after 3 a.m. Wednesday.

Tuesday, city council approved an ordinance requiring new businesses to add more trees and shrubbery to their property. Now, the business community’s upset about how much green it’s going to cost them. In a 6 to 2 vote, city council approved a landscaping ordinance requiring new business developments to plant trees and plants on their

EL PASO, TEXAS ? Five UTEP football games will be televised this fall ? including three on CBS Sports Network and two on FOX Sports Networks. Conference USA announced its full TV slate on Tuesday. CBS Sports Network, formerly CBS College Sports, will beam three UTEP football games to a national television audience. The Miners?

DES MOINES, Iowa ? Freshman thrower Richard Olsson finished 24th in the men?s javelin competition on Wednesday afternoon at the 2011 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships at Drake Stadium. Olsson?s first throw of 64.67m (212-2) was his day?s best, but it wasn?t enough to advance him to the final round of the event. The

Four days after a breached levee at the Franklin Canal flooded several homes, some residents are still wondering how the breach was able to get so big. The flooding happened Saturday morning at the 7000 block of Ramos Court. Several homes remain evacuated until city inspectors clear the houses of any health hazards. Officials with

El Paso District Attorney Jaime Esparza says a recent finding by the Texas Medical Board will not affect the way his office handles cases involving fired El Paso medical examiner Dr. Paul Shrode. The state board dismissed an investigation into allegations that Shrode lied on his rsum and was not qualified to perform his duties

A walk by a garden of solar panels sparked an idea that could revolutionize the way cancer patients receive chemotherapy and greatly reduce the side effects associated with the treatment. With traditional chemotherapy treatment, the drug is delivered intravenously, traveling through the bloodstream where it comes in contact with many organs on its way to

In which direction should the Sun City grow? The City of El Paso is busy putting together a plan for the next decade or two of growth. Those in charge of El Paso’s Water Utility have definite opinions about which way the Sun City should not grow. “We don’t want to continue to sprawl,” said

The Public Service Board, which controls El Paso County’s water, discussed the city’s future growth plan at its board meeting Wednesday morning. The big question — considering the water situation in the Sun City — is which direction should El Paso grow? West, Northeast or East? “We were concerned that some of the land use

Fort Bliss now has a state-of-the art housing complex for wounded warriors. The complex was designed to accommodate soldiers who have been injured in battle and who don’t need to be hospitalized, but still require at least six months of constant treatment. The facility offers 116 suites and 232 beds, and families will be able

A physical therapist has been convicted of aggravated sexual assault of an 85-year-old woman. Prosecutors convinced jurors that Sergio Herrera, 60, used his position as a physical therapist to get into an eastside senior living center and rape a woman in 2009. Police arrested him in September of that year. Wednesday afternoon, just hours after

El Paso County Sheriff’s Deputies arrested a woman on Tuesday for allegedly performing dental work, out of her home, without a state license. According to officials with the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office, investigators received information from Horizon City Police regarding a resident who was allegedly performing Dental Services out of her residence. Officials say

A state board has dismissed an investigation into allegations that Dr. Paul Shrode lied on his rsum and was not qualified to perform his duties as a medical examiner. The Texas Medical Board dismissed the case June 3. According to a document obtained by ABC-7, the board concluded “there was sufficient proof that Dr. Shrode

Extreme heat might not be the first hazard you think about when it comes to the monsoon season, but it accounts for more deaths every year than any other severe weather hazard. El Paso typically sees more than 15 triple-digit days every summer. Even with very little moisture in the air, the heat can still

Reacting to public outcry, Delta says it will allow members of the military to check four bags for free. The news came after two Army soldiers returning from Afghanistan complained in an online video that Delta charged their unit a total of $2,800 when some of them checked a fourth bag. In a video posted

The United States Postal Service has proposed consolidating mail processing to El Paso. Members of the American Postal Workers Union are stamping this possible change with disapproval. ?Keep the mail here, keep the mail here,? was a chant heard Monday morning outside the main Las Cruces post office location. Bottom line, picketers say consolidation would