Today is
Tuesday July 21, 2026
CORPUS CHRISTI (THE TEXAS TRIBUNE) – Corpus Christi City Council is set to discuss Tuesday whether to revive a controversial and ambitious endeavor to build a desalination plant to convert seawater into drinkable water — a project the council rejected nine months ago over high costs and environmental concerns.
A stubborn drought and rising demand has left the city strapped for water, but the coastal community is still divided on whether an expensive plant is worth the cost to taxpayers and the local ecosystem.
Desalination removes salt and other minerals from seawater or salty groundwater, but plants are expensive to build and require lots of energy to run.
The city’s water department, the mayor and some City Council members view the proposed plant, the Inner Harbor Desalination Project, as the key to a long-term, steady water supply. City Manager Peter Zanoni often calls it a “drought-proof” solution capable of producing up to 30 million gallons of drinking water a day.
If approved Tuesday, the earliest the facility would deliver water is late 2029, too far away to help the city dodge its immediate emergency needs. According to projections, the city is expecting to impose emergency water restrictions in December, when demand is expected to exceed supplies in six months, though recent rain may push restrictions back into early 2027.
Mayor Paulette Guajardo, a strong supporter of the project, said the city needs to think long-term. “At the blink of an eye, three years will be here,” she said.
The facility is estimated to cost $978.8 million, which the water department said is a “guaranteed maximum price.” That’s about 25% cheaper than previous cost estimates.
The water department has already corralled a number of contractors to jump on the plant, which would be built along the bay in Hillcrest, a historically Black neighborhood. It’s fully permitted and about 60% designed. The soonest it would deliver water, if approved Tuesday, would be late 2029.
Climbing costs played a big role in the City Council’s September decision to abandon the original plan, but critics are also concerned about where the plant’s salty leftovers would be released. Under the proposal under consideration Tuesday, millions of gallons of the brine byproduct — which can be twice as salty as seawater — would be discharged into Corpus Christi Bay, home to a variety of fish, crabs and seagrass.
The city hired a consultant, Spheros Environmental Group, to review the Inner Harbor project’s ecological impact on the bay. The report, finalized last week, concluded that the plant would not disrupt the bay’s ecosystem, Zanoni said.
That report follows a 2020 study evaluating the city’s original desalination project by Freese and Nichols, an engineering consulting firm based in Houston, which found that sea creatures living in the bay can tolerate high salt conditions, and that the proposed plant’s discharge would not surpass that threshold.
But Isabel Araiza, co-founder of the citizens group For the Greater Good, is not convinced.
“It just makes sense in a practically closed-based system, you don’t dump 54 million gallons of brine and sludge into the bay every single day and not expect that to destroy the bay,” Araiza said.
She’s asking city leaders to instead focus on forcing the region’s largest water users — oil refineries and petrochemical plants — to conserve water. Over the past decade, Corpus Christi aggressively courted large industrial facilities that require large amounts of water, promising a sufficient supply.
Now, the city’s main reservoirs have shriveled up, threatening 25% water cuts for all city customers that could begin in December or early 2027. City leaders on Tuesday also will discuss how those restrictions would be implemented, and how high surcharge rates would be, if a Level 1 emergency is triggered — the point when the city is six months away from supply falling short of demand.
Araiza said the proposed desalination plant is “not a sustainable solution economically or environmentally, it’s an industrial want,” and that “the right moral and ethical choice” is to reject it again.
But some community members view the desalination plant as the city’s last lifeline.
Nelda Martinez, who lives along the bay, pleaded with City Council members to move forward with the Inner Harbor project.
“People that you serve are worried if they’re going to have their job tomorrow,” she said during a March meeting. “There have been businesses that have shut down. There have been businesses that now are planning their exit plans. There are people and entities that have decided that they’re not going to move here.”
Ginny Cross, vice president of advocacy for United Corpus Christi Chamber of Commerce, said she hopes city leaders move forward with a desalination plant because an evergreen water source could save businesses from threats of future surcharges. Mandatory restrictions would be especially hard on car washes and landscaping companies, she said.
“We obviously want our public officials to be good stewards of our tax dollars, but I fear that the days of plentiful, inexpensive water are gone,” Cross said. “I hate that reality for everybody, but I think we’re either going to have expensive plentiful water, or expensive scarce water. I think if we’re going to pay for it, we’d rather have lots of it.”
The city is also considering two desalination plant proposals from private companies. In March, the City Council agreed to hear a plan from Aquatech, a desalination company offering to finish building a water plant for plastics manufacturer Corpus Christi Polymers if the city agrees to purchase water from it.
City representatives also are in talks with AXE H2O, a 2-month-old Houston company that is offering to fully fund and build a desalination facility in the Coastal Bend area. Before work could begin, the city would have to commit to buying at least 50 million gallons a day for at least 30 years.
Kenneth Dees, a water resources engineer based in Fort Worth, said Corpus Christi and the rest of the state should start preparing to shell out more for water, including desalination plants, as the drought deepens and infrastructure ages.
“We’re not running out of water, we’re running out of cheap water,” Dees said.
The original article for this story appears here.
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DALLAS (AP) — Firefighters responding to reports of a gas leak at a Dallas apartment complex had already arrived and were preparing to evacuate residents when the building exploded in a massive fireball, killing three people and injuring several more, the city’s fire chief said Friday.
Dallas Fire-Rescue Chief Justin Ball said the first group of four firefighters arrived within two minutes of the call reporting the gas leak on Thursday.
“Right before they were going to enter and evacuate, it exploded,” Ball said.
Firefighters had been on scene for about 10 minutes, conducting necessary safety protocols that include blocking off the street, finding the leak, donning protective gear and setting up a water supply, he said, describing their actions as “heroics.”
Officials stand near rubble following an apartment complex fire, Friday, May 29, 2026, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
Officials stand near rubble following an apartment complex fire, Friday, May 29, 2026, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
“No time was wasted,” Ball insisted. “That takes time to put all the safety protocols in place. I would be criticizing them if they had not done that.”
The explosion shook nearby homes and the resulting inferno razed the two-story complex. A child and two other people were killed and at least five people were injured and sent to hospitals. No firefighters were injured, Ball said.
The building’s 22 units were occupied by 19 families. Ball said authorities searched the charred wreckage late into Thursday night and early Friday morning with drones, cadaver dogs and specialized urban rescue teams, and did not expect to find any more victims.
“There is nobody unaccounted for or we’d still be searching,” Ball said. “We’ve had no one come to us and say, ‘Our family member is missing.’”
Several blocks of streets around the explosion site were still closed off by police cars and police tape Friday. The smell of smoke lingered over the area as law enforcement officials and workers in bright yellow vests circled the rubble of what was once the apartment building.
The cause of the gas leak before the explosion is still unknown.
The National Transportation Safety Board said a team of eight investigators arrived Friday. The agency investigates gas pipeline accidents, and said initial reports indicated a contractor had damaged an underground gas pipeline.
An attorney for the apartment owner said the building was being sold to a buyer who planned to build a new housing unit. He said an engineering firm hired by that company struck the gas line while doing soil testing.
“The owner is shocked by this outcome and likewise mourns this outcome,” attorney Geoff Henley said.
Phone and email messages left with an engineering company that the complex’s owner said was doing soil testing were not immediately returned.
Sherry Woods, who lives in an apartment across an alleyway from the fire site, said Friday she was sitting outside her front door when she and her boyfriend smelled what they believed to be gas.
Moments later, the explosion nearly knocked her down.
Trish Thompson surveyed the site from across a grassy field Friday morning and could see the gap on the block where the apartment complex stood just 24-hours earlier.
Thompson, who lives nearby, described hearing a “loud rumble, something more like a train to me” and seeing smoke and fire.
“Pray for them,” Thompson said.
TYLER – After receiving a grant worth over $300,000 from the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) in the 2025 cycle. According to our news partner KETK, the TWC presented TJC staff and state and local officials with the $325,293 grant in a ceremony on Friday. The funding will support students training to be veterinary technologists and technicians and the purchase of medical training equipment for the program.
“These grants will provide students in East Texas the real-world training and technical education they need to have a successful career,” Gov. Greg Abbott said. “The future of our state is in good hands because of the education we are providing to young Texans today.” Read the rest of this entry »
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A federal immigration officer wanted for shooting a Venezuelan man during the Trump administration’s Minnesota crackdown was arrested Friday in Texas, authorities said.
Christian Castro, of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency, was taken into custody 11 days after Minneapolis prosecutors charged him with assault and falsely reporting a crime in the Jan. 14 nonfatal shooting of Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis.
Hennepin County, Minnesota prosecutors said the state’s Bureau of Criminal Apprehension located Castro, 52, in Texas and worked with agents from the Department of Homeland Security’s Inspector General’s Office and the Texas Rangers to arrest him.
“Today’s arrest is a critical step forward in our prosecution of Mr. Castro,” Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty said.
Online court records do not list an attorney for Castro and it wasn’t immediately clear if he has one. Messages seeking comment were left with ICE, the Homeland Security Inspector General’s Office and the Texas Rangers.
Castro is the second federal agent to be charged over their conduct during the Minnesota crackdown, which was known as Operation Metro Surge. He is one of two agents that ICE Director Todd Lyons said lied about the circumstances of the incident.
According to prosecutors, Castro fired through a home’s front door and shot Sosa-Celis in the thigh after Castro and another officer chased a different man, Alfredo Alejandro Aljorna, to the Minneapolis apartment duplex where he and Sosa-Celis lived. Sosa-Celis and Aljorna were legally in the U.S., Moriarty said.
Federal authorities initially accused Sosa-Celis and Aljorna of beating an officer with a broom handle and a snow shovel. A federal judge later dismissed the charges, and ICE and the Justice Department opened an investigation into whether officers lied about what happened.
In a statement after the charges were announced, ICE said the U.S. attorney’s office was investigating statements made by officers, who could face disciplinary action including being fired and prosecuted. ICE called the Hennepin County attorney’s action “unlawful and nothing more than a political stunt.” DHS’s Inspector General’s Office, which Moriarty credited with assisting in the arrest, is separate from ICE and is meant to serve as a watchdog for DHS agencies, including ICE.
Minneapolis last month released video showing the moments before Sosa-Celis’s shooting, captured from a distance by a city-owned security camera.
The video appears to show a person standing with a snow shovel outside the house, near the street, then retreating toward the house and tossing the shovel into the yard. This happens as a person being chased by another person runs up from the street, falls on the sidewalk, gets up, and keeps heading toward the house.
The three appear to scuffle near the front steps for about 10 seconds. The exact moment when Sosa-Celis is shot isn’t clear. A car with flashing lights pulls up, and another person walks up.
The Trump administration sent thousands of officers to the Minneapolis and St. Paul area as part of President Donald Trump’s national deportation campaign and considered Operation Metro Surge a success.
But tensions mounted during the weekslong campaign, and the shooting deaths of U.S. citizens Renee Good and Alex Pretti by federal officers sparked mass unrest and raised questions about officers’ conduct.
Minnesota leaders and the Trump administration have clashed over who has the authority to investigate and prosecute federal officers for on-duty conduct.
Moriarty’s office last month charged immigration agent Gregory Donnell Morgan Jr. with assault for allegedly pointing his gun at people in a car on a highway. He turned himself in last week and his lawyer disputes the charges.
The county is also investigating Good’s and Pretti’s killings and sued the Trump administration in March to gain access to evidence in those cases and the Sosa-Celis shooting.
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Tyler – Early Voting for the City of Tyler mayor runoff election is set for June 1-9. Stuart Hene is currently serving as a Tyler City Councilmember and John Nix is a former City Councilmember are running for the position.
Early voting hours will be:
*8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, June 1-5
*9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, June 6
*8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday and Tuesday, June 8-9. Read the rest of this entry »
TYLER – As the Downtown Improvement Project moves closer to completion, the City of Tyler will mark a major milestone with a celebration recognizing the reopening of North College Avenue, West Erwin Street, and the intersection connecting the two.
The milestone celebration will be held on Friday, May 29, at 10:30 a.m. at the intersection of North College Avenue and West Erwin Street. The event will highlight visible progress in the heart of Downtown and recognize this important step toward the final phases of the project. Guests are encouraged to stay in the area and support Downtown businesses following the celebration.
The reopening of this key intersection on June 1 restores a major connection for drivers and offers the public a chance to see how far the project has come. For more information about the Downtown Improvement Project, visit MyTylerTexas.com.
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Tyler – This week, 361 Tyler ISD teachers were surprised with the prestigious TOP (Tyler Optimal Performance) Teacher designation, resulting in $4,365,127 in additional compensation from the state. The designation is part of Tyler ISD’s Approved Local Designation System under the state’s Teacher Incentive Allotment (TIA), created by House Bill 3 to attract and retain highly effective educators.
To earn a TOP Teacher designation, educators must meet rigorous criteria, including student growth metrics, attendance, teacher observation data, and student surveys. Read the rest of this entry »
SMITH COUNTY – The North East Texas Regional Mobility Authority (NET RMA) will host virtual and in-person public meetings to share information and gather input on the proposed extension of Toll 49 from State Highway 110 to US Route 271, part of the Tyler Outer Loop. The proposed project is currently undergoing an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) study. The environmental study will follow the requirements of federal and state law.
The public meetings are open to anyone interested in learning more about Toll 49 Segment 6 and the EIS process. The project team will be on hand to answer questions. Read the rest of this entry »
TYLER – There will be a funeral procession through parts of south Tyler on May 27, in honor of the late Tyler Fire Department Driver/Engineer Scott Starkey. The route will begin at Flint Baptist Church in Flint. And end at Bascom Cemetery, in Tyler. Traffic could be briefly affected during this time. The funeral will begin at 10:30 a.m., followed by the procession.
LONDON, Uk. (AP) – BP has ousted its chairman over what it called serious concerns related to “important governance standards, oversight and conduct.”
The departure was abrupt and unexpected, with Albert Manifold having been appointed to the position late last year.
“Albert has helped bring a welcome focus and pace to BP’s transformation,” Amanda Blanc, senior independent director, said in a statement Tuesday. “However, the board has been surprised and disappointed to learn of governance oversight and conduct issues it deems unacceptable and has taken decisive action.”
BP’s board named Ian Tyler as interim chair, effective immediately.
BP, based in London, is a “supermajor,” one of the five largest oil production and exploration companies in the world when measured by revenue and profit.
Manifold, who had been the top executive at Dublin-based global building materials company CRH for 10 years, became the chair at BP in October. BP was looking for someone to revamp the oil giant and went with an industry outsider in Manifold, who had made major strategic changes at CRH.
After a new focus on renewable energy at BP in 2020, by 2025 the company was seeking a return to its roots. BP’s hard reset was criticized by environmentalists, as well as some shareholders.
CEO Murray Auchincloss said last year that optimism over opportunities in renewable energy was misplaced, with the company moving “too far and too fast.”
Changes in leadership at BP in recent years has been tumultuous.
CEO Bernard Looney resigned in late 2023 after BP determined that he had misled the company over his past relationships with colleagues.
Auchincloss stepped down in December, and the company named Meg O’Neill as his successor.
Manifold’s was challenged almost immediately when shareholders defeated company resolutions this spring that would have allowed BP to reduce climate reporting requirements and move its annual meetings fully online. Some 18% of shareholders voted against Manifold’s election as chairman, a high level of opposition for an appointment that is generally rubber stamped by investors.
Legal & General, one of Britain’s largest insurers and investment companies, said at the time that Manifold was responsible for resolutions that would have had “a negative impact on shareholders’ insight into how the company is addressing financially material long-term risks, and seizing long-term value creation opportunities, associated with the energy transition,” the Times of London reported on April 23.
Glass Lewis, an influential shareholder advisor, urged investors to vote against Manifold’s election. It held that BP took “unprecedented action” by refusing to consider a resolution from a group of climate activists and pension funds hoping to force the board to create an alternative strategy should demand for fossil fuels decline, the Times reported.
Like other big oil companies, BP has struggled with falling demand in recent years.
BP’s 2025 earnings fell 16% from a year earlier to $7.49 billion as the price of Brent crude, a benchmark for international oil prices, dropped 16.9%. The company’s preferred measure of earnings is underlying replacement cost profit, which adjusts for one-time items and fluctuations in the market value of inventories. Net income plunged 86% to $55 million.
Last year there were media reports that British oil giant Shell was in talks to buy rival BP. Shell denied the reports at the time.
The search for a new chair is underway, BP said Tuesday.
Shares of BP Plc slid nearly 5% in midday trading on the NYSE.
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CHAPEL HILL – Chapel Hill ISD is deeply saddened by the recent and sudden loss of 2026 graduate Vanessa Vazquez. Vanessa was a valued member of the Bulldog family, and her passing is heartbreaking for our students, staff, and community. The school extends their heartfelt condolences and prayers to her family, friends, classmates, and all who knew and loved her.
During this difficult time, we ask our community to keep the Vazquez family in your thoughts and to respect their privacy as they grieve. Counseling support will be available for students and staff members in need.
Vanessa will always be remembered as part of the Bulldog family.
DALLAS (AP) — After three terms in the U.S. House and two unsuccessful campaigns for the U.S. Senate, Colin Allred said he’s heard plenty about voters’ suspicions that politicians are just trying to make a buck in Washington.
“‘What about the stock trading in Congress? What about people getting rich in Congress?’” Allred said they ask him regularly. “And I have to say to them, you’re absolutely right about that, too. We need to be better.”
He’s challenging Rep. Julie Johnson in the Democratic runoff for a Dallas-area House seat on Tuesday, and he’s one of several candidates trying to harness populist anger over congressional stock trading. Allred has denounced Johnson for trades involving companies like Palantir, a data analytics firm with ties to President Donald Trump’s administration.
Johnson said her trades were handled by a financial manager, and she accused Allred of being “only out for himself.” She pointed to financial disclosures that showed Allred’s wealth nearly doubling during his own time in Congress, although Allred said his assets were in a blind trust and the money came from his wife’s income as a partner at a law firm.
“To be clear, the sum total I made on that trade was only $90,” Johnson said of her Palantir stock. “My opponent is trying to make it seem like it was hundreds or thousands.”
The bitter campaign is emblematic of broader debates within the Democratic Party over the role of money in politics. Long a refrain of strident progressives and good-government reformers, accusations that political rivals are self-dealing or bought by special interests have become a mainstay of Democratic primaries. The heightened criticism of lawmakers’ personal wealth comes as the party looks to sharpen its anti-corruption message against Trump and to develop a platform for overhauling Washington if Democrats take power in the midterms.
Some are tracking congressional stock trading
Trump campaigned on a promise to “drain the swamp,” capitalizing on Americans’ disdain for the Washington establishment. Now that his family is profiting while he’s back in the White House, Democrats are eager to regain the upper hand on an issue that could prove potent with voters.
“The difficulty is that right now, no party has the mantle on anti-corruption,” said Daniel Lobo-Lewis, a political consultant in Washington. “Many voters outside of the beltway see both parties as corrupt, because they see all politicians as bought by the donors or by their own self-interest.”
Lobo-Lewis and Nico Agosta founded the Political Integrity Project last year to track stock trading and corporate donations involving members of Congress.
The organization asks candidates to sign an “integrity pledge” to refrain from trading stocks or accepting corporate donations while in Congress and vow not to work as a lobbyist after they leave office. So far, about 90 challengers and seven sitting lawmakers have taken the pledge.
“If we want to, in any way, start rebuilding trust in our political institutions, it starts with no-brainer changes like this that have an approval rating above and beyond any other issue you could imagine,” Lobo-Lewis said.
Congress has yet to enact a stock trading ban for its members, though insider trading is already illegal for members just like it is for anyone else. There are multiple proposals on Capitol Hill, but none have gained traction.
A bipartisan bill to ban congressional stock trading stalled this year despite receiving Trump’s blessing during his State of the Union. And Democrats remain divided over the number of alleged loopholes in their competing proposals.
Anti-corruption messages spread in Democratic primaries
A crowded race in a Democratic-leaning Utah congressional seat has featured attacks over candidates’ personal wealth. State Sen. Nate Blouin criticized his main rival, former Rep. Ben McAdams, for having equity in a Utah data center firm, and excoriated others in the race for past investments and jobs.
McAdams said the equity of several thousand dollars was payment for a past contract completed by his government consulting firm while he was a private citizen. His campaign defended the data center project by saying it would use no water and run on clean energy.
A spokesperson for McAdams also claimed Blouin “is currently hiding his corporate donations” by removing them from campaign disclosure reports, which McAdams’ campaign claims “is not only deceitful, it breaks campaign finance law.”
In an interview, Blouin rejected the claim that he broke the law, and said that he removed the donations because he returned the money to each donor.
“It was actually quite uncomfortable to return some of those,” said Blouin, because some of the firms included local firms and clean energy companies. “But there is a perception that campaign contributions from lobbyists and companies influence votes, and I think there is some truth to that.”
In a New York City congressional district that includes both Wall Street and the Democratic Socialists of America’s headquarters, the city’s former comptroller, Brad Lander, has accused Rep. Dan Goldman of trying to buy another term by using his own wealth to match campaign contributions. Goldman, an heir to the Levi Strauss family fortune, says he entered all of his assets into a blind trust after taking office in 2023.
A spokesperson for Goldman said Lander is “running a deceitful campaign based on absurd lies that Dan is beholden to special interests” and that Goldman has raised more campaign funds than Lander “without taking a dime of corporate PAC money.” Goldman has spent his own money on the race, the spokesperson said: “To ensure that the NY-10 voters can be sure that he is beholden only to them and his principles.”
Lander said Goldman’s spending is “not illegal, but it is certainly anti-democratic when a quarter-billionaire like Dan Goldman not only dumps millions of his own inherited wealth into his elections but also solicits money from the same forces who are rigging the economy and worsening the affordability crisis.”
More candidates are fighting over stocks in California
Even representatives who support a ban on congressional stock trading are feeling the heat.
Democratic Rep. Brad Sherman of California is facing multiple primary challengers who have criticized the congressman for holding stocks while serving in Congress. Sherman does not trade individual stocks and supports a ban on stock trading.
“I only own three individual stocks, which I inherited from my mother when she passed away, which were originally acquired by my grandmother,” Sherman said. “I have never sold them because I made a promise to my constituents that I would not buy and sell individual stocks.”
One of Sherman’s primary challengers is Jake Levine, a former climate adviser to President Joe Biden, who signed the pledge from the Political Integrity Project. But Sherman said Levine “refuses to disclose key elements of his $18 million stock portfolio, and actively bought and sold stocks while serving on the National Security Council.” Levine has said he cannot disclose the portfolio because it is managed by his family and he has no oversight.
In the race to succeed former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, California State Sen. Scott Wiener has critiqued his progressive opponent, Saikat Chakrabarti, over his personal wealth. Chakrabarti is a former software engineer who earned millions as an early employee at the tech firm Stripe. He later served as the first chief of staff to Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y.
Wiener said that Chakrabarti “has enormous investments” and “is trying to buy this seat” while “spreading bogus conspiracy theories” with his own wealth. He criticized Chakrabarti for not disclosing the last decade of his stock trades.
“If you’re making a ban on stock trades a central part of your campaign — as Saikat is doing, running around saying that everyone under the sun is corrupt — how about you tell the voters about your own stock trading history,” Wiener said.
Chakrabarti retorted that his wealth as a private citizen is not relevant to his future time in office and that he would place all of his assets into a blind trust should he be elected. He critiqued Wiener for being supported by super PACs funded by the AI firm Anthropic and other major corporations.
“This is all part of a larger problem, which is just the whole idea of corruption in our politics,” Chakrabarti said. “If you’re in Congress, you sit on committees that oversee a lot of these industries, and it’s unethical to be using that insider information, that knowledge to make stock trades. But that doesn’t apply to a private citizen.”
SMITH COUNTY – A vehicle is currently stuck inside a house in Smith County after crashing into the home on Monday afternoon.
According to officials with Smith County Emergency Services District 2, the crash occurred at around 5 p.m. after the driver of a Jeep crashed into a home located off Highway 271 in the Eagle Creek subdivision.
Firefighters are currently on the scene working to remove the vehicle from the house. No injuries have been reported following the crash and all the residents have been removed from the home. It is unclear at this time how the crash occurred.
SMITH COUNTY – Smith County will have 19 voting centers open for the Primary Runoff Election from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Tuesday, May 26.
Statewide runoff races are on the ballot. U.S. Senator, Attorney General, Railroad Commissioner and Court of Criminal Appeals, Place 3, Judge are on the Republican ticket. The Democratic ballot will have runoff races for U.S. Representative, District 1, Lieutenant Governor and Attorney General. The City of Tyler Mayor Runoff Election is not on the current ballot. That election is set for June 13, with early voting beginning June 1. Read the rest of this entry »
TYLER — Crews have responded to a major crash involving an 18-wheeler on FM 14 , state park highway, Sunday. According to our news partner KETK and Smith County Emergency Services District 2, an 18-wheeler and an SUV crashed on FM 14 at around 5:12 p.m. on Sunday, leaving one passenger trapped.
The SUV was flipped on its roof during the crash and one passenger had to be extracted from the vehicle so they could be taken to a hospital for treatment. Smith County officials do not know the extent of the passenger’s injuries.
The 18-wheeler driver was uninjured in the crash. Smith County officials said FM 14 would be closed until further notice as they work to clear the roadway.
TOOL – On Thursday evening, Henderson County residents packed into the West Cedar Creek Municipal Utility District meeting, protesting a proposal from Diode Ventures, a Kansas?based company seeking to build a data center near Key Ranch Estates.
When the room filled beyond capacity, dozens stood outside in the rain, waiting for their turn to speak. Their message was unified and blunt: “Profit should be secondary to people’s welfare.”
Diode Ventures already has two solar projects sold in Texas, one in Fort Bend County and another in Hamilton County, and is developing a massive 900?plus?acre site in Red Oak, south of Dallas, called Weston Holladay Technology Park. The company says that the project will position it as a leader in data?center development in the state’s “growing digital market.” Read the rest of this entry »
KILGORE – Kilgore College has named Chris Clifton as its new director of bands and instrumental music, bringing a Ranger Band alumnus back home to lead one of the college’s most storied traditions. Clifton, a 2003 KC graduate and former member of the Ranger Band, returns to KC after nearly two decades of public school band leadership experience across East Texas, including serving as director of bands at Carlisle ISD from 2015 to 2026. His previous experience also includes leadership roles at Gladewater ISD and Nacogdoches ISD.
As director of bands and instrumental music, Clifton will oversee the KC band program, including the Ranger Band, while working to recruit and develop student musicians for the college’s instrumental ensembles.
“For me, this is a full-circle moment,” Clifton said. “Kilgore College played a major role in shaping my musical journey, and I’m honored to return to the place that gave me so many incredible memories and opportunities. My goal is to rebuild and strengthen the tradition of excellence that has long defined the Ranger Band while creating an exciting experience for a new generation of student musicians.” Read the rest of this entry »
SMITH COUNTY – On Thursday, May 21, at approximately 10:15 am, Smith County Deputies responded to a reported Deadly Conduct incident that occurred at County Road 46, Old Harmony Road near Tyler. When Deputies contacted the victim, she reported that two suspects, both residents of the location, had assaulted and robbed her. They also were told that the incident took place on the previous evening and continued into the morning. At this time, Patrol personnel notified the Criminal Investigations Division (CID).
The victim was taken to the downtown office to be interviewed. During the interview, the victim stated that sometime during the preceding evening , she was approached outside the residence by the suspects, who demanded money to purchase narcotics. When she refused, one of the suspects allegedly grabbed her and cut her arm with a knife. The victim was able to escape, retreat into the residence, secure herself inside her bedroom, and remain there for the remainder of the night. Read the rest of this entry »
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TYLER – The City of Tyler announced that Old Bascom Road in Tyler will be closed starting May 22, until June 25. The closure will allow for construction of the roadway and drainage improvements, the city said in release. Drivers are encouraged to use alternate routes and should expect delays near the intersections of Old Omen Road and Old Bascom Road and Kent Drive and Old Bascom Road.
JASPER COUNTY – No investi-gator needed for this capture. In Jasper County, a 9-and-a-half-foot alligator was captured after stalling traffic on 1013 West Wednesday. According to our news partner KETK, Jasper County Sheriff’s Office deputies can add “alligator catchers” to their list of accolades after successfully removing the alligator from the road. After being captured by deputies, the alligator was handed over to Texas Game Wardens and was safely relocated.
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SMITH COUNTY – Smith County will have 19 voting centers open for the Primary Runoff Election from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Tuesday, May 26.
Statewide runoff races are on the ballot.
U.S. Senator, Attorney General, Railroad Commissioner and Court of Criminal Appeals, Place 3, Judge are on the Republican ticket. The Democratic ballot will have runoff races for U.S. Representative, District 1, Lieutenant Governor and Attorney General.
The City of Tyler Mayor Runoff Election is not on the current ballot. That election is set for June 13, with early voting beginning June 1.
These polls are open for the Primary Runoff Election Day:
*Arp Community Center: 108 E. Longview Street, Arp
*Bethel Bible Church: 17121 Highway 69 South, Tyler
*Cameron J Jarvis Library: 102 S. Georgia Street, Troup
*Chapel Hill Fire Department: 13801 CR 220, Tyler
*First Christian Church (Christian Life Center): 4202 S Broadway Ave., Tyler
*Glass Recreation Center: 501 W. 32nd Street, Tyler
*Greater Life Church: 2751 FM 344 East, Bullard
*Heritage Building: 1900 Bellwood Road, Tyler
*Hideaway Members Services Building: 101 Hide-A-Way Lane, Hideaway
*The Hub: 304 E. Ferguson Street, Tyler
*Lindale Kinzie Community Center: 912 Mt. Sylvan Street, Lindale
*&Noonday Community Center: 16662 CR 196, Tyler
*Old Tyler Airport: 150 Airport Drive, Tyler
*St. Louis Baptist Church: 4000 Frankston Highway, Tyler
*St. Violet Baptist Church: 14129 FM 2767, Tyler
*Three Lakes Middle School: 2445 Three Lakes Parkway, Tyler
*Tyler Senior Center: 1915 Garden Valley Road, Tyler
*Whitehouse City Center: 109 E. Main Street, Whitehouse
*Winona Community Center: 520 Dallas Street, Winona
For more information about voting locations, times and what is on the ballot, or to use our interactive map, go to the Smith County Website.
SMITH COUNTY – All non-emergency Smith County offices will be closed for business on Monday, May 25, for Memorial Day. Offices will reopen for normal business hours on Tuesday, May 26, and Commissioners Court will be held at the normal time, 9:30 a.m. on Tuesday. Find the meeting’s agenda here. Offices and services from City of Tyler are also altering schedules and hours in observance of Memorial Day. Read the rest of this entry »
HENDERSON COUNTY – A Henderson County man who has been accused of killing his 84-year-old father was arrested in the Dallas area on Wednesday by U.S. Marshals. According to our news partner KETK, Henderson County Sheriff’s Office, deputies had been searching for Ronny Medford since May 12 after he was accused of killing his father inside their family home in Payne Springs.
An arrest warrant for murder was issued by a district judge for Medford following the death of his father.
“We have been working closely with the community and law enforcement agencies to locate Medford and it worked,” the sheriff’s office said.