Serving the High Plains
Serving the High Plains
Sorted by date Results 1 - 24 of 24
A Tucumcari man was charged with first-degree murder after being accused of fatally shooting another resident in the head at a home Friday. Dead was Bryan Youman, 19, of Tucumcari. Charged was Joshua Braziel, 30, of Tucumcari on counts of first-degree murder and possession of a controlled substance (methamphetamine). Both are felonies. The murder count is a first-degree felony that can lead to a life sentence, defined in New Mexico as 30 years before the possibility of parole. According to a...
Three more confirmed cases of coronavirus were reported Friday in the Logan ZIP code by the New Mexico Department of Health. With that, Logan has exceeded the number of cases (33) since the pandemic began to Tucumcari's 32, despite the population of the Logan ZIP code being less than one-fifth of Tucumcari's. The San Jon ZIP code has five total cases. The total number of cases in Quay County by ZIP code is 70, which is a discrepancy from the DOH's overall reported total of 69. The latest cases were two people age 60 to 69 and one age 70 to 79,...
The New Mexico Department of Health on Thursday confirmed a new case of coronavirus in Quay County — the third day in a row one was reported. The latest case was a male age 10 to 19, according to the agency's website. The location of the latest case wasn’t known. ZIP code data for Quay County on the DOH’s website hadn’t been updated. An email to a spokeswoman to Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham asking about the discrepancy hadn’t been immediately returned. That brought the total in Quay County to 66 cases since the pandemic began, with deaths to...
The New Mexico Department of Health on Wednesday confirmed a new case of corornavirus in the Logan ZIP code. The latest case was a woman age 20 to 29, according to the agency's website. That brought the total in Quay County to 65 cases since the pandemic began, with two deaths. The overall totals by ZIP code in the county are 32 in Tucumcari, 30 in Logan and five in San Jon. That total adds up to 67; the DOH did not have an explanation for the discrepancy. Forty-four residents have been deemed as recovered from the virus. A total of 1,703...
One of the officers of the Tucumcari Zia Club that's applied for a liquor license for the former Cooper's Cleaners building expressed confidence the club would be granted that license and the club would be an asset to the community. The application for a liquor license at 428 S. Second St. by the Tucumcari Zia Club was made public during a recent Tucumcari city commission meeting. Two neighbors complained to the commission about what the license could mean with late-night music or drunken...
Additional elementary students in Quay County didn’t begin classes after Labor Day as previously anticipated because it didn’t meet the state criteria for school reopenings. And Tucumcari Public Schools’ superintendent said he doesn’t anticipate the county meeting those coronavirus benchmarks soon. For schools in New Mexico to offer in-person classes to all elementary students by Sept. 8, their counties were required to have coronavirus case rates of less than 8 per 100,000 people and a COVID-19 test positivity rate below 5% from Aug. 19 to S...
Tucumcari Lake this summer is experiencing what could be described as a good insect infestation - especially when notorious saltcedar trees are involved. Jason Lamb, director and agriculture agent at the Quay County Extension Center, said he recently received two calls from residents asking about apparent damage to invasive saltcedar trees at the lake. Lamb went there and observed saltcedar beetles, also known as tamarisk beetles, and their larvae feeding on the trees. He verified the species...
Note: Events subject to change due to the COVID-19 pandemic. • Sept. 26 — Altrusa International COVID Cash Drawing. This year’s reverse raffle will be conducted via a Facebook live event. Tickets are $100 for the chance to take home the grand prize of $15,000. Additional cash prizes will be awarded throughout the evening. Proceeds of the event benefit Altrusa’s community service projects. More information will be available soon. To buy tickets, contact any member of Altrusa International of Tucumcari or call ticket chair Sylvia Wampler (575) 4...
The Tucumcari Senior Center and Logan Senior Center remain closed to the public indefinitely but will deliver meals to those who qualify. Those interested in meal deliveries should call the Tucumcari facility at 461-2307 and the Logan facility at 487-2287 for more information. Area schools are using a hybrid model of online and/or in-person teaching. Tucumcari schools Wednesday — Breakfast: Cinnamon graham cracker, Lucky Charms, milk; Lunch: Cheese quesadilla, pinto beans, lettuce salad, fresh tomatoes, salsa, fresh orange. Thursday — Bre...
On this date ... 1970: Two children died after their bicycle was struck by a car, and a Tucumcari man was shot and wounded by police after they tried to question him about the accident. A 9-year-old boy and 6-year-old girl were riding a bicycle in a residential area when a 20-year-old driver skidded 48 feet and struck them, hurling them 140 feet from impact. The children were taken to Trigg Memorial Hospital, where they were declared dead on arrival. After police pulled over the driver, he reached into his car after saying he wanted a...
A Texas truck driver was cited for violating the state’s public health act last week at the San Jon Port of Entry after being accused of refusing to wear a mask and throwing his driver’s license at an inspector. According to a state police citation filed in Tucumcari magistrate court, Christian Lee May, 46, of Tyler, Texas, refused to wear a facial covering when dealing with port personnel the afternoon of Aug. 31. The citation also states May became disorderly and threw his driver’s license at one of the port’s inspectors. May did not sign th...
These calls were made to the Tucumcari-Quay County Regional Emergency Communications Center from Aug. 31 to Sept. 6: Monday • 9:18 a.m.: Property damage in 700 block of West Sunset Avenue, Tucumcari. • 9:56 a.m.: Arrest warrant in 300 block of South Third Street, Tucumcari. • 10:02 a.m.: Trespassing in 200 block of East Center Street, Tucumcari. • 10:36 a.m.: Unattended death in 2000 block of Quay Road 64, San Jon. • 12:22 p.m.: Theft in 200 block of East Center Street, Tucumcari. • 12:28 p.m.: Accident with property damage in 1900 block of So...
Quay County saw a confirmed case of coronavirus Thursday in Logan and Friday in San Jon, according to the New Mexico Department of Health. The latest victims were age 30 to 39 and 50 to 59, according to the DOH’s website. Those brought up the total number of cases in the county since the pandemic began to 64, with two deaths. The overall totals by ZIP code in the county are 32 in Tucumcari, 29 in Logan and five in San Jon. That total adds up to 66; the DOH did not have an explanation for the discrepancy. According to the state’s COVID-19 rap...
A revised public health order, issued Thursday by Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham that went into effect Friday, relaxed some of the requirements for a 14-day quarantine when traveling to New Mexico from other states. Restrictions still in place under the health order only slightly relaxed quarantine requirements on travel from the border states of Texas and Arizona. According to the order, individuals arriving from a state with a 5% test positivity rate or greater or a new coronavirus case rate of 80 per million residents must separate from others...
Quay County is receiving more than $520,000 and the city of Tucumcari more than $40,000 in federal coronavirus relief money. Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham’s office on Sept. 1 announced a total of more than $150 million in aid to 83 local New Mexico governments from the federal CARES Act passed earlier this year. The news release stated the grants are designed “to cover the cost of necessary expenditures incurred due to the public health emergency.” Applications were open to almost all of New Mexico’s local governments, excluding only the city of...
Tucumcari Police are investigating after a man was shot but not seriously injured during an apparent spat early Thursday. Deputy Chief Peter Rivera said the victim was not cooperating with law enforcement. Rivera said the shooting was not a random act, and did not believe the public was not in danger. He said the victim and shooter likely knew each other. “We don’t know whether it was anger or stupidity that caused this,” Rivera said. Rivera said the shooting happened about 1 a.m. Thursday. He said the victim also gave conflicting accou...
The cattle industry is an intrinsic piece of New Mexico's history and culture and a vital component of our state's economy. Spanish explorers brought a small herd of cattle to the upper Rio Grande nearly 500 years ago and today New Mexico is home to more than 1.6 million head of beef and dairy cattle. Together, they are our state's most profitable agricultural products. The coronavirus has impacted nearly all industries and sectors worldwide and New Mexico's cattle industry is no exception. As...
President Donald Trump recently tweeted, “The United States of America will NOT be cutting funding to @starsandstripes magazine under my watch. It will continue to be a wonderful source of information to our Great Military!” The events leading up to this tweet have been confusing. Did the Pentagon or Trump shut down Stars and Stripes, a decision that Trump later reversed? Stars and Stripes is a venerable military funded yet independent news outlet for service members. The Stars and Stripes story broke in the wake of an Atlantic magazine art...
At least the media haven’t politicized the weather reports — yet. Watching the next Category 4 hurricane hit Florida is about all I can stand to see on TV these days. The news and cable talk shows are brutal — all partisan politics all the time. Sports programs are almost as bad, thanks to their blind worship of the Black Lives Matter movement and its dangerous ideas. The NBA coverage is the worst. You almost feel like you have to swear your allegiance to BLM or confess to being a lifelong racist before every tip off — which is why the NBA’s TV...
The New Mexico Secretary of State’s Office urges residents to help their communities, contribute to democracy and make a few extra dollars by becoming a poll worker for the 2020 General Election. County Clerks across the state need poll workers to serve a variety of roles on or before Election Day. The COVID-19 crisis has resulted in a critical need for poll workers, as most traditional poll workers are over age 61 and more susceptible to complications from the virus. The Secretary of State’s Office is collecting contact information from any...
This might make me seem terribly unspiritual, but there’s a point. For years now I have been a fan of the sport of Mixed Martial Arts (MMA). One thing I’ve picked up along the way is that some of the best fighters don’t look very threatening at all. In fact, it’s often the opposite. The clean-cut guy with the “Dad-bod” could snap you in half if he wanted. The fighter with the mean face, tense as a coiled rattler on his way to the cage, may in fact be as tough as he looks. But, oddly, the...
A lawyer representing Mesalands Community College requested dismissal of a former president’s whistleblower lawsuit, alleging its board of directors are not “officers of the State” and that the suit was filed in the wrong venue. The college’s board of directors fired Mesalands President John Groesbeck in April after placing him on paid administrative leave for unstated reasons the previous month. Groesbeck in July filed a lawsuit in Santa Fe County district court against Mesalands, alleging whistleblower violations and retaliation. In the sui...
Nearly 100 boaters participated Saturday in a boat parade on Ute Lake in Logan to show their support for President Trump - one of many such water rallies held across the country during the Labor Day weekend. The parade began about midday from Houseboat Cove on the lake's south side with boats decorated with American flags and flags showing support for President Donald Trump, who seeks re-election in November. David Crook of Logan said as the parade progressed, boats were lined up from the...
Quay County saw jobless claims more than triple during the April to June period, according to data released last week by the New Mexico Economic Development Department. Unemployment claims jumped from just over 100 during the previous quarter to more than 300 during the April-to-June quarter, the agency reported. The latter quarter was when economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, which prompted state-mandated shutdowns starting in mid-March, began to fully be seen. The Economic Development Department stated in its report the uptick in...