Today is
Tuesday June 09, 2026
ANDERSON COUNTY — As coronavirus cases continue to spike across the Lone Star State, one East Texas County saw a large uptick in its confirmed case count. According to our news partner KETK, the Texas Department of State Health Services said in a news release, Anderson County has nearly 900 newly confirmed cases of coronavirus and nearly all are located in jails. The release did not specify the count at each facility located throughout the county. Anderson County also released a statement on Tuesday afternoon that one non-jail case was confirmed in the county to bring their grand total to 103 cases. Of those, 66 have recovered to leave the area with 37 active cases.
SMITH COUNTY — The Smith County Commissioner’s Court held its first in-person meeting on Tuesday to provide an update from the Coronavirus Relief Fund Task Force. According to our news partner KETK, under the CARES Act, the Coronavirus Relief Fund is used for specific purchases under state and local governments to mitigate COVID-19. Texas received $11.24 billion which was allocated to counties across the state. Counties under 500,000 population, received $1.85 billion. With the money Smith County received, 20% was given upfront while 80% will be reimbursed at a future date. Read the rest of this entry »
VAN — Van ISD has canceled summer workouts for the boys athletic program until further notice after four staff members tested positive for COVID-19. According to our news partner KETK, only one of the infected staff members is associated with boys athletics, while the other three have not been in contact with students. All four are in quarantine. Workout facilities utilized by all students have been sanitized and will continue to be cleaned according to CDC guidelines. “Student and staff safety is always our number one priority and we have taken every precaution to keep our student-athletes safe. Read the rest of this entry »
EAST TEXAS — The North East Texas Regional Mobility Authority (NET RMA) made a presentation at the Gregg County Commissioner’s Court on Monday. The total between the three projects is $635,000. It is the biggest donation to-date for the organization, According to our news partner KETK. “We’ve been able to take excess funds from toll revenues to support our counties in our area with their priority projects,†said Dave Spurrier, NET RMA senior board member. “The NET RMA was to give local and rural communities to give a larger voice and we collectively do that, support each other and this is just another way we’re doing that,†said Spurrier. Read the rest of this entry »
OVERTON — The City of Overton will host “Fireworks in the Park†on July 4. On Monday, the city of Overton’s Interim City Manager, Clyde Carter, told KTBB, “We’re just making it a bigger event with bounce houses, water slides, food vendors, food trucks, other vendors. This is the first time we are opening it completely up to the public, not charging any fees at all for vendors to come out and set up, they just need to contact the city ahead of time.” Read the rest of this entry »
TYLER — After five years, Jack Ryan’s Steak and Chophouse in downtown Tyler announced that it will not reopen following the coronavirus shutdown. One of the owners of People’s Petroleum Building, Garnett Brookshire told KTBB on Thursday, “I can’t give you any details just because we haven’t finalized our plans…we hope what is coming as soon as this fall would be another great upscale steakhouse option for the downtown and Tyler community.” An announcement is expected this summer. Owners Brad and Wes Ebey said their original Jack Ryan’s location in Kilgore will remain open. Read the rest of this entry »
TYLER – Hospitals in Texas are gradually resuming services and hoping to return to full capacity. Carter BloodCare says these are crisis times for the community blood supply. One-thousand donors are needed each day and the blood center is seeing an average of 600 a day for the past month. Carter BloodCare’s ability to meet the urgent transfusion needs of patients is in severe jeopardy. In the era of COVID-19, Carter BloodCare knows safety is top of mind for blood donors. While giving blood is still safe, Carter BloodCare continues to make social distancing and sanitization precautions top priority to keep donors healthy, while assuring blood is on the shelves for patients requiring transfusions. Read the rest of this entry »
TYLER — The Discovery Science Place announced plans to reopen to the public after concerns of COVID-19 forced its closure. On Tuesday, Executive Director, Chris Rasure told KTBB, “We have got a lot of new procedures in place to try and maximize everyone’s health and keep everyone safe. One of the first things that people will notice is that they are going to be required to wash their hands before they enter the museum. We built a brand new hand washing station out front by the front door…they’ll notice one of the main things is that we are limiting capacity.” Read the rest of this entry »
EAST TEXAS — The East Texas Food Bank will distribute emergency food boxes and/or fresh items such as produce (pending availability) at drive-thru distributions. The distributions are open to anyone and there are no eligibility requirements. A verbal declaration of name, address and income will be asked, but there is no ID or paperwork required. To pick up a box for someone else, a hand-written note must be provided with the person’s name, address, permission for you to pick it up and their signature. The distributions are drive-thru only and walkups will not be accepted. Tyler distribution will be Friday, June 12 from 8-10 a.m. Read the rest of this entry »
LONGVIEW — Longview police have arrested a suspect wanted in a weekend stabbing. According to our news partner KETK, police responded to an assault call around 3:30 Saturday afternoon on Culver Street. The unnamed victim was found with a stab wound in the abdominal area. Lacey Steddum, 38, of Longview, admitted to the crime and told officers where to locate the knife. Steddum was booked into the Gregg County Jail on a charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
GREGG COUNTY — Longview police are investigating a fatal shooting Sunday morning. It happened just after 8:30 on Morrison Street. According to our news partner KETK, officers were responding to a shots fired report and found Ernest Berry Neal, 36, dead from a gunshot wound. Anyone with information is urged to contact Longview Police at 903-237-1170 or Gregg County Crime Stoppers at 903-236-STOP.
TYLER — An East Texas business is giving back to law enforcement agencies in our area. According to our news partner KETK, the owner of Superior Outfitters in Tyler, Austin Rohr, took time Friday morning to personally deliver checks to the Tyler Police Department and the Smith County Sheriff’s Office. “We have a community that supports law enforcement. We’ve spent decades building strong relationships and to have Superior come here today, it goes a long way to show the support they have for law enforcement.†Sheriff Larry Smith says the money they received money will also be going toward their Sheriff’s Office Foundation. Read the rest of this entry »
TYLER — Dozens of participants and onlookers packed Tyler’s downtown square Friday evening for a “Prayer in the Square” event. It was another in a series of local activities held in the wake of the George Floyd incident in Minneapolis. The gathering included prayers, music, and praise and worship. Some brought signs with messages including “Black Lives Matter,” “How many weren’t filmed?”, and “After we pray together, can we make change together?” There was also a voter registration table. “Prayer in the Square” was organized by Kilton McCracken of The Mentoring Alliance, a Tyler-based youth-focused ministry.
NEW YORK (AP) – J.C. Penney says it is closing 154 stores nationwide in what it is calling the first phase of its efforts to shrink its footprint. The Plano, Texas-based retailer said it could take about 10 to 16 weeks to complete the closures. Penney filed for bankruptcy protection last month, making it the biggest retailer to do since the coronavirus pandemic forced non-essential stores to be shut down temporarily. As part of its bankruptcy reorganization, Penney said it planned to permanently close nearly a third of its 846 stores in the next two years. That would leave it with just over 600 locations. The Texas stores are in Dallas, Lewisville, Greenville, Lufkin, Paris, Palestine and Huntsville.
TYLER — A man was killed early Friday morning after being hit by a train while sleeping on the tracks. According to Tyler police, the crash occurred just before 5 a.m. near the intersection of Bellwood Street and Whiteside Road. According to a news brief from Tyler Police, the man has been identified as Juan Zuniga Jr, 23 years old. The train attempted to stop but was unable to do so in time. Zuniga’s family has been notified. Union Pacific Railroad Police were also on scene.