Serving the High Plains
Serving the High Plains
Sorted by date Results 1 - 25 of 26
New Mexico on Monday began a two-week “reset” of coronavirus restrictions amid skyrocketing rates of the disease. The curbs recalled those ordered by the governor in March. Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham on Friday also announced a three-tier, county-by-county system for reopening businesses after the two-week period ends Nov. 30. Based on her description, it’s similar to the school-reopening criteria established weeks ago. Lujan Grisham cited a tripling in the number of hospitalizations in the past month and a more than doubling in deaths in th...
Eleven more confirmed cases of coronavirus were reported Monday in Quay County, all in the Tucumcari ZIP code. Six females and five males were infected. The age breakdown was one age 9 and under, three age 10 to 19, one age 20 to 29, two age 30 to 39, one age 40 to 49, one age 50 to 59, one age 60 to 69 and one age 70 to 79. The total number of cases in the county since the pandemic began rose to 209. A total of 77 people have been deemed as recovered from the virus. The breakdown by ZIP code since the pandemic began is 148 in Tucumcari, 45 in...
Five more cases of coronavirus were reported Sunday in Quay County as New Mexico reported a record-breaking number of deaths in one day. For the latest cases in the county, the breakdown by ZIP code was three in Tucumcari, one in Logan and the first-ever case in Bard. Three females and two males were infected. The age breakdown was one age 10 to 19, two age 40 to 49, one age 60 to 69 and one age 80 to 89. That brought the overall total in the county to 198, with three deaths, since the pandemic began in the spring. A total of 91 cases have...
The New Mexico Department of Health on Saturday reported a record-breaking 15 new cases of coronavirus in Quay County. The county’s total broke the previous mark of nine, set Friday. It was the third consecutive day the county had broken or tied its record. A total of 86 cases have been reported in the county in November alone. Three deaths have occurred in Quay County since the pandemic began, including one reported Wednesday. The latest cases in the county were 10 in the Tucumcari ZIP code, four in the Logan ZIP code and the first in the Nara...
Nine confirmed cases of coronavirus, a record, were reported Friday in Quay County. The county’s total broke the previous mark of eight, set Nov. 11 and Thursday. A total of 71 cases have been reported in the county in November alone. Three deaths have occurred in Quay County since the pandemic began, including one reported Wednesday. The latest cases in the county were seven in the Tucumcari ZIP code, one in the Logan ZIP code and one in the McAlester ZIP code, according to the state Department of Health website. The age breakdown was one u...
A record-tying eight confirmed cases of coronavirus were reported Thursday in Quay County during another record-breaking day in New Mexico. The county’s total tied a record mark set Nov. 11. A total of 62 cases have been reported in the county in November alone. Three deaths have occurred in Quay County since the pandemic began, including one reported Wednesday. The latest cases in the county were seven in the Tucumcari ZIP code and one in the Logan ZIP code, according to the state Department of Health website. Six males and two females were c...
A Quay County woman died from coronavirus as five more cases of the virus were reported Wednesday during another record-breaking day in New Mexico. According to an email from the New Mexico Department of Health, the latest Quay County death was a woman in her 60s who was hospitalized with underlying conditions. It was the third death in the county since the pandemic began this spring. A total of 26 deaths were reported in the state Wednesday, raising the overall total to 1,290. The latest cases in the county were four in the Tucumcari ZIP code...
Quay County saw three more confirmed cases of coronavirus Tuesday as the state of New Mexico again broke records for most cases and most deaths in one day. The latest cases in the county all were in the Tucumcari ZIP code. Two women and one woman were confirmed with the virus. Two were age 30 to 39, and one was 50 to 59. Three cases also were reported Monday in the county, all in the Tucumcari area. Two men and one woman were confirmed with COVID-19. One was age 50 to 59, one was 60 to 69 and one was 80 to 89. A total of 49 cases have been...
Logan Municipal Schools saw a decline in its “alarming” numbers of middle and high-school students failing at least one class in remote-learning environments, reported the district’s superintendent. Superintendent Dennis Roch said during the school board’s October meeting that 43% of middle-school students and 33% of high-schoolers were flunking at least one class during the semester. He said students in online learning environments weren’t completing their coursework on time because they were working or parents weren’t around to supervise....
A draft from the New Mexico Public Education Department offers possible glimpses of how secondary students might return to in-person classes throughout the state. Logan Municipal Schools superintendent Dennis Roch told school board members last week the agency’s COVID Toolkit draft was revealed during a recent meeting of the New Mexico School Superintendents Association. He cautioned the draft “is not gospel; it could change.” In general, the PED is considering options for small-group teaching, or cohorting, at schools for secondary stude...
“Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions.” — Psalm 51:1 Almost a year had passed since the beginning of his affair with the wife of one of his most valiant soldiers. King David spent that time avoiding the thought of his sin, and manipulating circumstances to cover it up. Maybe it would go away. It, however, did not go away. That's not what our transgressions do. Rather than fade with time, they fester. At last,...
A Tucumcari woman and a Massachusetts man were jailed on felony charges Sunday after the woman was accused of opening a Tucumcari Police Department squad car door after his initial arrest and let him escape. He was captured minutes later. Maria Renee Apodaca, 19, was charged with assisting escape, conspiracy, criminal damage to property over $1,000 and criminal damage to property under $1,000. The escape count is a third-degree felony that can lead up to three years in prison and a $5,000 fine. The conspiracy and one of the criminal damage coun...
On this date ... 1970: The Tucumcari/Quay County Chamber of Commerce gave the Outstanding Citizen Award to Charles Jones of Glenrio. Jones was instrumental in confiscating stolen cars, arresting drunken drivers and apprehending a dangerous criminal at the Route 66 border town. Jones runs a cattle business in addition to a service station in Glenrio. • Up to 250 people are expected for a four-day convention of the New Mexico Association of Soil and Water Conservation Districts. The convention w...
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. Some area schools are using a hybrid model of online and/or in-person teaching. Tucumcari schools Wednesday — Breakfast: Apple cinnamon muffins, string cheese, apple juice, milk; Lunch: Cheese quesadilla, pinto beans, chuckwagon corn, salsa, apple juice. Thursday — Bre...
Note: Events subject to change due to the COVID-19 pandemic. • Wednesday — Virtual Christmas Cash Mob at Burns Lumber. This event will be broadcast on Facebook Live ffrom 3 to 4 p.m. at the store. Tucumcari MainStreet is partnering with the Tucumcari/Quay County Chamber of Commerce and local businesses as part of Very Merry Tucumcari festivities to bring fun and boost local shopping. Participants bid on items, arrange payment and socialize during the session. Hosts entertain and educate as they sell items and encourage viewers to shop loc...
The San Jon Municipal Schools board of trustees managed to finish all its official business in just eight minutes during its monthly meeting last week. After board President Frank Gibson declared the meeting adjourned at 6:08 p.m., administrative assistant Stacy Kent commented she’d worked for the district for 25 years, and Monday’s session was the “quickest ever.” Most of the board’s actions were routine matters that prompted little to no discussion, such as approving the monthly consent agenda, accepting line-item fund transfers and an an...
Tucumcari MainStreet is organizing a decorating contest with cash prizes as part of Very Merry Tucumcari festivities for the Christmas holiday. The nonprofit organization is encouraging homeowners and businesses to decorate their windows, doors and building exteriors to help brighten the city for the season. The first-place winner will earn $300, while second and third place net $200 and $100 respectively. Judging will take place on Dec. 1. For more information, call Tucumcari MainStreet at 575-461-3701....
Finally ... some much-needed good news in the battle against the coronavirus. Pharmaceutical giant Pfizer Inc. announced last week that its COVID-19 vaccine showed an astounding 90% effectiveness rate in early test results and that initial doses — if approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration later this month — could be available by the end of the year. It seems everyone welcomed the news, from health officials to politicians to Wall Street, where the markets soared. Health officials have been saying for some time that a vaccine cou...
In theory, there is a point where the economic impact of shutting down for the coronavirus is greater than the impact of the virus in terms of lives lost and reduction in quality of life. Where that point is continues to be debated by economists and, as we have seen, policy makers. The policy makers, however, are often guided by party affiliation and politics instead of the realities of the pandemic and economics. Economists, who are often guided by equations that provide numerical support for theories, find themselves in the same quandary as...
Our politicians and leaders still don’t get it. They don’t seem to understand — or care — that China has already declared World War III. The Communist Party thugs who rule China with a heavy hand didn’t have to invade Japan or drop an A-bomb on anybody. They just had to drop a deadly virus on the world. We know the coronavirus came from Wuhan, China. In my opinion, it was put out into the world deliberately, not by accident. In any case, the China pandemic has killed more than a million people around the globe and more than 240,000 Americans...
These calls were made to the Tucumcari-Quay Regional Emergency Communications Center from Nov. 9 to Nov. 15: Monday • 12:26 a.m.: Arrest warrant in 2000 block of South Mountain Road, Tucumcari. • 9:59 a.m.: Property damage in 1100 block of South Seventh Street, Tucumcari. • 11:08 a.m.: Trespassing in 2000 block of West Tucumcari Boulevard, Tucumcari. • 11:59 a.m.: Disturbance in 700 block of West Sunset Avenue, Tucumcari. • 12:50 p.m.: Intoxicated subject in 1100 block of East Tucumcari Boulevard, Tucumcari. • 1:12 p.m.: Breaking and enterin...
These individuals were booked into the Quay County Detention Center from Nov. 10 to Nov. 16: • James Dean Cordova, 41, Tucumcari, contempt of court. • Casey Gordon, 41, San Jon, encouraging violation of probation, parole or bail. • Amber Osborn, 28, Logan, intentional child abuse (no death or great bodily harm). • Ramon G. Talavera, 42, Tucumcari, five counts of criminal sexual penetration in the first degree (child under 13) and one count of criminal sexual contact of a minor in the second degree (child under 13). • Maria Renee Apodaca,...
Quay County set a record Saturday with eight confirmed cases of coronavirus in one day — all in the Tucumcari ZIP code. It was the most since Aug. 20, when the county saw seven cases. Three more cases were reported Monday in the county, all in the Tucumcari ZIP code. Two men and one woman were confirmed with the virus. One was age 50 to 59, one was 60 to 69 and one was 80 to 89. A total of 46 cases have been reported in the county in November. The total number of cases in the county since the pandemic began rose Monday to 153, with two d...
Students and teachers at San Jon Municipal Schools managed to hold their annual Veterans Day program last week despite ongoing restrictions due to the coronavirus pandemic. The state's ban on public gatherings of more than five people made usual ceremonies for the holiday impossible, including VFW Post 2525 in Tucumcari. But the San Jon FFA on Veterans Day uploaded a 12-minute YouTube video stitched together from small presentations at the school and students' homes via the Zoom...
Dr. Tracie C. Collins, dean of the College of Population Health at the University of New Mexico, was named as the new leader of the state's Department of Health. Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham announced the appointment Wednesday. Collins begins official work with the administration in mid-December. "I want to thank the governor for her confidence in me," Collins said in a news release. "This is a very challenging time for all of us. There is much work to be done to ensure the health and safety of...