Elvis Made the Scene
Sulphur Springs Senior Center hosted ‘A Date With Elvis’. Wes Smith pleased the crowd. Everyone had a great time.
Posted by Karon Templeton Weatherman on Wednesday, February 10, 2016
PJC-Sulphur Springs Center Accepting Applications for Vocational Nursing Program
Carla Jones, right, of the Paris Junior College Health Occupations Department, assists Laura White of Sulphur Springs with her application for entry into the PJC vocational nursing program. White, a health science major, was among several students from the PJC-Sulphur Springs Center applying for the nursing program this week.
Ross Family Seeks Justice For Chance In Federal Court
A Hopkins County family is seeking a jury trial in the Sherman Division of the Eastern District Court of Texas. Shelly and Tony Ross seek damages for emotional distress, medical and funeral expenses, plus attorney fees in case number 4:16-cv-00095-ALM-CAN filed with the court by the David D. Davis Law office of Grand Prairie.
Named in the suit as defendants are the city of Sulphur Springs, Hopkins County, Sulphur Springs Police Lt. Brad Horton and officers Adrian Pruitt, Brandon Mayes, and Joe Scott, county deputies Nick Floyd and Paul Fenimore, as well as jailer Jeff Hightower. The suit claims these officers used excessive force, failed to protect, and inflicted emotional distress.
Ross died Sunday March 8th in Trinity Mother Frances Hospital where he had been transferred from Hopkins County Memorial Hospital where he had been taken for emergency treatment following what seemed to be a cardiac arrest while in custody at Hopkins County Jail. A Tyler Justice of the Peace ordered an autopsy (complete autopsy found here) immediately following his death.
Ross, 34, was arrested early Friday evening March 6 by Sulphur Springs’ police officers who responded to a call on Whitworth Street of a shirtless man acting erratically (video from arrest found here). Prior to being booked into Hopkins County Jail he was placed in the padded violence cell where he remained for 11 minutes before being found face down and unresponsive. Officers were able to find a faint pulse and called EMS. CPR was stared at the jail and his pulse was stronger but he was not breathing on his own when he arrived at Hopkins County Memorial Hospital.
According to police reports, Ross was arrested when officers encountered him and he was said to have balled his fist and charged an officer. The officer tazed Ross but Ross was able to pull the wires out and fled. The officer pursued and a fight ensued. Officers said Ross was difficult to contain and they were forced to taze him more than once. Ross continued to resist even when taken to jail according to Sulphur Springs Police Chief Jay Sanders.
On April 9, Chief Sanders responded to a question asked during the Tuesday April 7th city council meeting. “Why are the three arresting officers still on duty while an investigation of the death of Chance Ross is being conducted?” This was the question asked by Ross’ brother, Chad Ross Tuesday night April 7th during the city council’s regular session. Ross stated that the family had viewed video of his brother being brought into jail without a shirt and having burn marks on his shoulders that seemed to have been the result of his having been tazed. Ross said his brother was handcuffed and escorted by three Sulphur Springs’ officers and that three county officers assisted those officers in stripping his brother of his pants and placing him in a cell. City officers remained on duty following questions regarding the arrest (see story here).
White Advances to State in FCCLA Competition
Mallory White, a junior at SSHS, will advance to the state FCCLA competition after a 6th place finish in Job Interview at the recent regional convention. White had prepared a portfolio and was interviewed regarding what she learned in the preparation.
Two Life Event Planning teams competed at the regional event but did not advance. FCCLA competitions include preparation of a teacher’s lesson for elementary school, job interview, focus on children, community service projects, and other career focused events.
Animal of the Week: Boogie
Boogie is a 2 year old male mutt who was picked up by Animal Shelter Officers on January 29 from the Mockingbird Lane area. Shelter Officers are currently unable to pin point his exact breed.
“We’re calling him a beagle mix because of his size,” Animal Shelter Officer Barbi Blanch said. “Maybe Shepard or even Husky. He’s kind of a Heinz 57, but he’s not very big.”
Boogie was originally owned by a homeless man. His owner tried to adopt him out before moving to Arkansas, but was unsuccessful.
“He was trying to find the dog a home, but he didn’t have a home either,” Officer Blanch said. “He just sort of left him and moved on.”
Boogie is a calm dog who enjoys gentle play and relaxing in holes. The holes that dot the front yard of the Shelter are the result of multiple dogs digging holes when placed in front of the Shelter for outside time.
“He’s very laid back and seems to get along with other dogs,” Officer Blanch said. “We’ve had him out in the back a couple of times with Buster Brown (previous Animal of the Week) and he seems to okay with anybody and everybody. He’ll play with other dogs and he seems to be the calmer of the two.”
Boogie is full grown and heart worm negative. He will be available for adoption during the February 13 off site adoption, but he will be at the Shelter. The off site — 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Atwood’s — is restricted to puppies and small dogs. The Animal Shelter will also be open Saturday during the same time frame.
Ducks Unlimited Dinner Thursday
Ducks Unlimited began in 1937 during the Dust Bowl when the waterfowl population had plummeted to an all time low due to drought. A few sportsmen banded together and formed an organization with one mission; to preserve the continent’s waterfowl habitat. After years of faithful members spread across the United States, Mexico, and Canada, Ducks Unlimited is the largest and most effective private waterfowl and wetlands conservation organization in the world.
Fundraisers around the country are held to support the organization such as fundraising banquets. Our local Ducks Unlimited banquet will be held on Thursday, February 11, 2016 from 5:30-10 p.m. at the Hopkins County Regional Civic Center. This event is open to the public and tickets will be sold at the door, single tickets are $55 and double tickets are $80. The ticket price includes a membership fee and dinner. There will be a live and silent auction, as well as a raffle drawing.
First District Loss for Lady Cats Soccer
The Lady Cats Soccer Team suffered their first district loss of the season in Longview, 3-1 Tuesday night. Lady Cats Coach Jesus DeLeon called the Lady Lobos the hardest opponent because of their depth. He said they make it where a team has to have everyone at the top of their game.
The Lady Lobos scored first and were able to add a second goal on a rare miscommunication in the Lady Cats defense. Lady Cat Mileena Zirreta’s goal made it a 2-1 contest late in the first half. Coach DeLeon said he was not willing to hang back and keep the score down in what more than likely would be a sure loss. He added pressing forward meant being vulnerable to counter attacks and sure enough a Longview counter attack resulted in a third goal. The Lady Cats are now 4-1 in district play and 13-2 for the season.
Next the Lady Cats return to Gerald Prim Stadium to play Texas High, a team that gave them problems last year. Coach DeLeon said the Lady Tigers might have come back to the pack some after graduation of a couple of last year’s good players.
Playoff Game Set for Lady Cats
With a District Championship, Lady Cats basketball will travel to Grand Saline to meet Lindale. The Tuesday night, February 16th game will be played at 7 p.m. in the Grand Saline High School gym. Sulphur Springs will be the home team. Tickets for the game are $3 for students and $5 for adults.
The game will be heard on KSST and streamed on ksstradio.com and the KSST app. Scores will also be posted on social media by KSST.
After the Lady Cats Basketball Team defeated Pine Tree, 47-19 Tuesday night, Lady Cats Coach Jeff Chapman acknowledged that it was hard for a team to get up to play someone they had soundly defeated the first time around. The Lady Cats won at Pine Tree, 60-13 on January 15.
Coach Chapman said his team was not as smooth Tuesday night as they usually were. He firmly believes his team will be ready when playoff games begin. Coach Chapman discussed freshman Sadavia Porter who scored ten first quarter points to get the Lady Cats going and who led the Lady Cats with 15 points. Many of Sadavia’s points came after steals. Coach Chapman called her a great athlete who is getting better and better. He also praised the team’s one senior honored on senior night Lexie Moore. Coach Chapman said Lexie, who is a third year varsity player, had made great strides as a player. He added she was smart and caught on to things quickly and was also unselfish.
The win also earned the Lady Cats their first district championship since 2002 when Caron Hoffman was coach.
Spring Planting
by Mario Villarino
As you go over ksstradio.com during your Sunday ready, you probably are celebrating Valentines’s Day somehow and enjoying the cooler temperatures of the year. Our youth livestock projects are getting ready for their county livestock show scheduled for the last part of the month (NETLA Show Feb 25-27, 2016, Regional Civic Center Arena) and our ranchers and gardeners are getting ready for our summer to start. I want to remind you that this is a great time to work in your composting and pruning before the springs properly comes. Be cautions in starting planting unless you have a way of protecting those early seedlings from a sudden cold front frost. Here I am including the recommendations from Texas A&M AgriLife horticulturist for the month of March:
“Often, tomato and pepper plants started outdoors from seed will grow so quickly they will catch up with commercial plants in size within a few weeks. For many gardeners, this is the only way to obtain rare or heirloom varieties. But because this has been a winter with erratic weather patterns, it’s best to keep an eye on young tomato transplants so that they may be covered if the threat of a late frost occurs. Don’t be in a hurry to set out young pepper plants. Wait until the temperatures seem to be settled. Pruning of evergreens and summer flowering trees and shrubs should be completed in early March. Prune spring flowering trees and shrubs as soon as they finish blooming. Start hanging baskets of petunias, ferns and others for another dimension in landscape color. One attractive begonia plant can yield a number of others through careful rooting of stem cuttings. Plant dahlia tubers in fertile, well-drained soil. In North Texas there is still time to plant seeds of your favorite annuals in flats to be transplanted out-of-doors when danger of frost is past. Select and order caladium tubers as well as coleus plants for late April and early May planting. Do not plant caladiums until soil temperature reaches 70°F. As camellia and azalea plants finish blooming, fertilize them with three pounds of azalea-camellia fertilizer per 100 square feet of bed area. Check mulch on azalea and camellia beds and add where needed. Fertilize roses every 4 to 6 weeks from now until September.Beware of close-out sales on bare-root trees and shrubs. The chance of survival is rather low on bare-root plants this late in the season. Your best bet at this time of year is to depend on container-grown or balled-and-burlapped plants for landscape use.Plant Blue Plumbago (Plumbago capensis) now for season long low maintenance color. It is usually cold hardy to Zone 8 and sheltered places elsewhere. Although tolerant of sunny conditions, blue plumbago prefers a little protection from the hot afternoon sun. It is quite drought tolerant and blooms from spring till frost. Now is a time to thin larkspur, zinnia, cockscomb and cosmos seedlings. Plants will bloom much better if thinned to about 4″ apart. Transplant or share the extras with gardening friends.”
For more information on this or any other agricultural topic please contact the Hopkins County Extension Office at 903-885-3443 or email me at [email protected].
President Names Hopkins County For December Disaster Aid; County Completing May Disaster Relief Agreement with FEMA
As Hopkins County officials conclude their agreement with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) regarding the Presidential Disaster Declaration made last May, the President has once again declared Hopkins County a disaster county following the December 26-27, 2015 floods that did major damage to roads and bridges in the county.
According to County Judge Robert Newsom, the final agreement regarding the May, 2015 disaster that did major damage to roads and bridges is about two weeks away from completion. Commissioner Beth Wisenbaker, tasked with the responsibility of representing all precincts in the county to FEMA, “Until I put my signature on the contracts, I’m not sure how long it will be before this ends.” Wisenbaker also stated that final dollar amounts for the May disaster are basically set but could change before signing day.
However, now with the most recent disaster declaration, the county will begin the process again. FEMA representatives have already begun the tour of areas affected by the December disaster. Wisenbaker states there are yet roads for FEMA to drive as they assess the damage. In fact, according to a previous story reported by KSST News, some of the December damage was done to areas where the May damage had already been repaired. Wisenbaker states that FEMA representatives are beginning to realize that how roads are built in Hopkins County is different from road construction elsewhere.
Older roads in Hopkins County have no stabilization base and that base is difficult to establish. Wisenbaker stated that when roads were first built the dirt from the ditch was used to form the base. Crude oil was mixed with that dirt as well and laid over the base. She stated that even with current methods, the rebuilding of roads in the county is difficult. She stated that using oil sand, the rebuilding of a road in Hopkins County costs $72,000 per mile. Other methods are more expensive. She said that obtaining crude oil is also currently difficult. With oil prices low, most oil companies are “…leaving it in the ground,” she said.
Yet, there remains the exact placement of repairs under the disaster. The areas to be repaired are marked with GPS coordinates and those specific areas are the focus of the repair and reimbursement system. Wisenbaker stated that when repairs to roads and bridges are performed the county pays for the work and then turns in the receipts to FEMA.
FEMA’S PRESS RELEASE REGARDING THE PRESIDENT’S DECLARATION:
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency announced that federal disaster aid has been made available to the State of Texas to supplement state and local recovery efforts in the area affected by severe winter storms, tornadoes, straight-line winds, and flooding during the period of December 26, 2015 to January 21, 2016.
The President’s action makes federal funding available to state and local governments and certain private nonprofit organizations on a cost-sharing basis for emergency work and the repair or replacement of facilities damaged by severe winter storms, tornadoes, straight-line winds, and flooding in Bailey, Castro, Childress, Cochran, Dallas, Deaf Smith, Dickens, Ellis, Hall, Hardeman, Harrison, Henderson, Hopkins, Kaufman, Kent, King, Lamb, Lubbock, Navarro, Parmer, Rains, Red River, Rockwall, Titus, and Van Zandt counties.
Federal funding is also available on a cost-sharing basis for hazard mitigation measures statewide.
Kevin L. Hannes has been named as the Federal Coordinating Officer for federal recovery operations in the affected area. Hannes said additional designations may be made at a later date if requested by the state and warranted by the results of further damage assessments.
Following is a summary of key federal disaster aid programs that can be made available as needed and warranted under President Obama’s disaster declaration issued for the State of Texas.
Assistance for the State and Affected Local Governments Can Include as Required:
- Payment of not less than 75 percent of the eligible costs for debris removal and emergency protective measures taken to save lives and protect property and public health. Emergency protective measures assistance is available to state and eligible local governments on a cost-sharing basis (Source: FEMA funded, state administered.)
- Payment of not less than 75 percent of the eligible costs for repairing or replacing damaged public facilities, such as roads, bridges, utilities, buildings, schools, recreational areas, and similar publicly owned property, as well as certain private non-profit organizations engaged in community service activities. (Source: FEMA funded, state administered.)
- Payment of not more than 75 percent of the approved costs for hazard mitigation projects undertaken by state and local governments to prevent or reduce long-term risk to life and property from natural or technological disasters. (Source: FEMA funded, state administered.)
How to Apply for Assistance:
- Application procedures for state and local governments will be explained at a series of federal/state applicant briefings with locations to be announced in the affected area by recovery officials. Approved public repair projects are paid through the state from funding provided by FEMA and other participating federal agencies.
FEMA’s mission is to support our citizens and first responders and ensure that as a nation we work together to build, sustain, and improve our capability to prepare for, protect against, respond to, recover from, and mitigate all hazards.
