Month: March 2018

Family members say two residents of the Farmington area of northwestern New Mexico are hospitalized and on life-support machines after being stricken by hantavirus, a rare and potentially fatal virus carried by rodents. The Daily Times reports that 9-year-old Fernando Hernandez of Bloomfield is at Children’s Hospital Colorado in Aurora, Colorado, and that 27-year-old Kiley

State figures show the spending that came in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey generated jobs in construction, retail and other sectors, giving a surprising boost to the Houston-area economy. The Houston Chronicle reports that billions of dollars in insurance payments and federal disaster aid came to the region following Harvey’s arrival in August. People spent

An email sent by Atmos Energy to Texas regulators reveals company workers were investigating natural gas leaks involving fires at two Dallas homes some 12 hours before an explosion at another home killed a 12-year-old girl. The company did not evacuate residents or shut off gas lines in the neighborhood near Dallas Love Field airport

Two people have been arrested following a brawl involving two North Texas high school soccer teams that drew spectators from the sidelines and stands. Carrollton police told The Dallas Morning News that a player was taken into custody along with an adult Friday and charged with assault. The fight began toward the end of a

Recent mass shootings have spurred Congress to try to improve the nation’s gun background check system that has failed on numerous occasions to keep weapons out of the hands of dangerous people. The problem with the legislation, experts say, is that it only works if federal agencies, the military, states, courts and local law enforcement

In its heyday, “American Idol” dominated television and online chatter. It even inspired a New Yorker cartoonist. “The voices in my head want to sing on ‘American Idol,” a patient confides to his shrink in a 2006 Leo Cullum panel, proof of its cultural imprint. Two years after the singing contest ended its run on

After a work conference, Maura Turner was looking forward to a girls’ weekend with her close friend, Christine Loeber, a social worker and executive director of The Pathway Home that treats veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder. Turner went to Loeber’s home in Yountville, California, on Friday and found the door locked. Soon after, she heard

Federal scientists are trying to decide if it’s time to let the big dogs out. Nearly 120 dogs from three large breeds perfected over centuries in Europe and Asia to be gentle around sheep and children but vicious when confronting wolves recently underwent a study to see how they’d react to their old nemesis on

A Houston-area woman has been sentenced to 35 years in prison for the mistreatment of seven special needs teenagers found in 2016 locked in a room strewn with human waste. Fifty-five-year-old Paula Sinclair was sentenced Friday after pleading guilty to several counts of causing serious bodily injury to a child. The teens found in the

A server at a Houston-area diner has received an unexpected $16,000 college scholarship after details of her act of kindness – cutting an ailing customer’s food – spread online. Texas Southern University in Houston on Thursday awarded the scholarship to 18-year-old Evoni (EV’-uh-nee) “Nini” Williams. She works at a Waffle House in La Marque (luh-MARK’)

Masked Mexican rebel leader Subcomandante Marcos, wearing a purple three-piece suit, is paired with Britney Spears in a Wonder Woman costume. Their child is a tiny albino Marcos, smoking a pipe and wearing a turban with his own little ski mask, his body the black-suited torso of James Bond. Another work by border artist Claudio

The painting shows masked Mexican rebel leader Subcomandante Marcos in a purple three-piece suit, paired with Britney Spears in a Wonder Woman costume. Their child is a tiny albino Marcos, smoking a pipe and wearing a turban and mask of his own. This is the psychedelic spin that 45-year-old border artist Claudio Dicochea gives to

The NMSU men’s basketball team appeared to be headed for an easy victory early in their WAC Tournament semifinal matchup against Seattle University, but they had to rally late to secure a spot in the WAC title game. The Aggies defeated the Redhawks by a final of 84-79 Friday night in Las Vegas to book

Local recording artist Elia Esparza recently announced she auditioned for the “American Idol” singing competition. Many El Pasoans have seen Esparza perform locally when she performed at the Hyundai Sun Bowl. Esparaza also performed on “La Voz Mexico” and in front of a national audience on “The Voice.” Now we can expect to see Esparza

The Border West Expressway project should have been finished by now, but plenty of work still needs to be done. The $600 million project is the construction of 5.6 miles of highway from Racetrack Dr. in El Paso’s Upper Valley to the area of Santa Fe St. downtown. Portions of the highway will be tolled,

The Lowbrow Palace will soon have a new home. The owners plan to relocate to Downtown El Paso. The mixed-use area will be located at 1101 and 1125 Texas. The owners plan to transform the properties and include food, entertainment and more music. “Redesign the interior, have a fresh location with better sound quality, a

The NMSU women’s basketball team got off to a slow start Friday in the WAC Tournament semifinals and never recovered against Seattle University. The Redhawks (17-14) jumped out to an early 8-1 lead and never looked back as they easily defeated the Aggies 84-61 to advance to the WAC title game against CSU Bakersfield. NMSU

An endangered beluga whale calf rescued off Alaska’s coast was swimming in his new home Friday at SeaWorld San Antonio after a cross-country flight. The whale named Tyonek was less than a month old when he became stranded in Alaska’s Cook Inlet last fall. Now 5 months old, the calf has been cared for by

A judge reduced bond Friday for a teen accused of killing her newborn child. Erica Gomez, wearing a red jail jumpsuit, stood quietly before Jail Magistrate Judge James Callan hoping to get her $800,000 reduced. Gomez was arrested Feb. 24 for the alleged murder of her newborn baby and charged with capital murder. El Paso

Emergency personnel have safely rescued an 18-year-old girl who was trapped for about 10 hours in a South Texas cave during a high school field trip. San Antonio Fire Department Chief Charles Hood says the girl was extricated late Thursday night and transported to a hospital for evaluation, as a precaution. Hood says the Lee

The White House announced Friday that President Donald Trump has pardoned a Navy sailor who took photos of classified areas inside a submarine and served a year in federal prison. White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders said Kristian Saucier was pardoned by Trump and the president was “appreciative” of his service to the nation. “He

UTEP officials say three people were hit by the driver of an older model Honda. A pedestrian was hit near UTEP and another at Prospect and Schuster, witnesses said. The driver allegedly fled the scene, leading police on a chase ending in Downtown El Paso. Witnesses said the driver hit multiple vehicles at the intersection

Francisco Cantu said he joined the Border Patrol at age 23 to get an on-the-ground education in international relations. Now 32, he says he didn’t expect his new memoir examining some of the agency’s uglier aspects would spark protests by far-left groups denouncing him for the enforcement work and forcing him to cancel some talks

A gang member on the Texas 10 Most Wanted sex offender list has been captured in Mexico and returned to the U.S. A U.S. Customs and Border Protection statement says 39-year-old Daniel Carrillo of Alpine on Thursday was turned over to officers at the Presidio Port of Entry. Authorities didn’t immediately provide details on Carrillo’s

Authorities say they’re worried about a hippopotamus that is roaming loose in a swampy area of southern Mexico. Nobody knows where the animal came from, but hippos are not native to the country. The hippo appears to have been living in a pair of ponds near Las Chopas, in the Gulf coast state of Veracruz.

There is a crash on Loop 375 Southbound at Rojas blocking the right shoulder, a police vehicle is blocking part of the right lane. Take Zaragoza to avoid the area.

University Medical Center was certified as the first and only comprehensive stroke center in West Texas on Friday. The accreditation means UMC can provide care for “the most complex” neurological cases, Salvador Cruz-Flores explained. Doctors at UMC specialize in cutting-edge treatments and specific medical techniques to treat patients. Cruz-Flores, a neurrologist, said more than 800,000

The El Paso Independent School District is asking for the public’s input on the names of four campuses that will soon be consolidated campuses. The consolidations were approved under the 2016 EPISD Bond modernization program. The campuses that need to be named are Bradley/Fannin Elementary, as well as new pre-kinder through 8th grade schools MacArthur/Bonham,

The NMSU men’s basketball team is now two wins away from another appearance in the NCAA Tournament after easily defeating Chicago State in the WAC quarterfinals Thursday night in Las Vegas. The Aggies jumped out to a 21-6 lead just over nine minutes into the game and never looked back en route to a 97-70

Family and friends are searching for 70-year-old Jose Margaro Gonzalez, who they say has been missing since Sunday. Family members say Gonzalez is a Vietnam veteran, a Bowie High School graduate and a respected member of their community. “Gonzalez is the president of the Aoy Alumni Association and was recently recognized by the Tejano Democrats