Appointments For The Second Dose Announced For Those Attending Recent COVID-19 Vaccine Clinics
Appointments for the second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine for those individuals who received the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine at one of the three clinics hosted last month in Hopkins County or the clinic held Delta County have been announced by Hopkins County/Sulphur Springs Emergency Management officials Saturday. The first follow up is slated next week.
“If you had your first dose at any of the vaccination clinics below you do not need to make an appointment for your second dose. You only need to show up at the same location at the same time as the first,” said Local Health Authority Nurse Brynn Smith.
These are follow-up appointments for the second dose only. No new doses of the COVID-19 vaccine will be administered during these follow up vaccine clinics.
| Location Of 1st Shot | Date Of 1st Shot | Date For 2nd Shot | Time And Location For 2nd COVID-19 Vaccine |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hopkins County | Tuesday, March 16 | Tuesday, April 6 | Same location and time that you went for the first shot. |
| Hopkins County | Saturday, March 20 | Saturday, April 10 | Same location and time (FUMC) as the first shot. |
| Delta County | Monday, March 22 | Monday, April 12 | Same location and time that you went for the first shot. |
| Hopkins County | Monday, March 29 | Monday, April 19 | Same location and time that you went for the first shot. |
Saltillo Softball Falls to Como-Pickton, 10-1
The Saltillo Lady Lions softball team fell behind early and could not recover, losing at Como-Pickton on Friday, Apr. 2 by a score of 10-1.
Saltillo put a run on the board to start the game, taking a 1-0 advantage against the home Lady Eagles. But Como-Pickton struck back, and with fierce tenacity, scoring three runs of their own in the bottom of the first to take a 3-1 lead after one frame.
The Lady Eagles were not done there, though, as they added on two runs in the bottom of the second and third inning to take a quick 5-1 lead after three full frames.
Como-Pickton applied salt to the wound when they added on four more runs in the bottom frame of the fourth to take a 9-1 lead over the visiting Saltillo Lady Lions. The Lady Eagles added on one more run in the bottom of the sixth en route to a demanding 10-1 victory over visiting Saltillo.
In hitting, Chandler Bain was 0 for 4 with 1 walk. Ryleigh Redar fared a bit better, going 2 for 2 at the plate with 1 walk. Paisley Kastner hit 1 for 2 adding a walk, and Maddy Smith, Regan Speir, Julianna Giles, and Ofelia Cabrera all hit 1 for 3 from the plate.
With the loss, the Saltillo Lady Lions softball team is now 3-3 overall for the season (3-0 in district). Next up, Saltillo will be hosting Rivercrest on Tuesday, Apr. 6. That game is scheduled to tee of at 4:30 P.M.
2.5 Million Doses Of COVID-19 Vaccine Headed To Texas, 200 Allocated To Hopkins County
More than 2.5 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine will be shipped to providers across Texas next week. The Texas Department of State Health Services is allocating 1,094,920 first doses to 2,011 providers in 200 counties, including 200 doses destined for Sulphur Springs pharmacies.
Brookshire’s and Walgreens Pharmacies each are slated to receive 100 doses of the Johnson & Johnson 1-dose COVID-19 vaccine during the week of April 5 for distribution. Most local pharmacies have a waiting list, with sign up online, if the provider is accepting new registrants.
DSHS is also ordering 626,290 second doses for people vaccinated a few weeks ago. An estimated 900,000 additional first and second doses are expected to be available to additional pharmacy locations, federally-qualified health centers and dialysis centers across the state as allocated directly by the federal government.
Texas had administered more than 11.8 million doses of the vaccine, an increase of 1.8 million in the last week, and 360,000 more Thursday than was reported on Wednesday. Nearly 7.8 million people have received at least one dose, and more than 4.3 million are now fully vaccinated. Among Texas seniors, more than two-thirds have received at least one dose, and nearly half are now fully vaccinated. More than one-third of all Texans at least 16 years old have gotten a shot and nearly one in five are fully vaccinated.
In Hopkins County 22.92 percent of the population has received at least 1 dose of the COVID-19 vaccine (6,688 residents) and 13.06 percent were fully vaccinated (3,809 residents) as of 11:59 p.m. April 1. Overall, 10,497 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine have been distributed to people with a Hopkins County Zip code, according to the DSHS April 2 COVID-19 Vaccine Data dashboard.
| City (Zip code) | Total | First Dose | Fully Vaccinated |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sulphur Springs (75482) | 221 | 141 | 86 |
| Sulphur Springs (75483) | 61 | 45 | 22 |
| Brashear (75420) | 332 | 225 | 111 |
| Como (75431) | 429 | 312 | 129 |
| Cumby (75433) | 727 | 495 | 255 |
| Dike (75437) | 296 | 210 | 90 |
| Pickton (75471) | 294 | 224 | 93 |
| Saltillo (75478) | 238 | 159 | 82 |
| Sulphur Bluff (75481) | 140 | 89 | 54 |
| Winnsboro (75494) | 2819 | 1945 | 1100 |
| Yantis (75497) | 1563 | 1044 | 563 |
As of this week, all Texans ages 16 and older are eligible to receive a vaccine. DSHS also launched the Texas Public Health Vaccine Scheduler at getthevaccine.dshs.texas.gov, which allows people to register for a vaccine appointment from a participating public health entity such as DSHS and some local health departments. Already, more than 125,000 people have registered.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention today updated its travel guidance for people who are fully vaccinated, saying that they can safely travel within the United States and no longer need to get tested or quarantine before or after travel, unless their destination requires it. People who are not yet vaccinated should continue to stay home and quarantine for seven days after travel and get tested three to five days after returning.
According to DSHS, vaccination has helped drive down the number of new cases and people hospitalized with COVID-19 to their lowest level since June. However, with hundreds of variant cases identified in Texas that have the potential to spread more quickly and cause more serious disease, vaccination remains critically important. The available vaccines have proven effective against the variant strains, so the more people vaccinated, the easier it will be to keep the variants under control and prevent new ones from emerging, according to the April 2, 2021 DSHS news release.
In Hopkins County, March ended with 121 COVID-19 recoveries and only 98 new COVID-19 cases (60 confirmed by molecular lab testing and 38 probable cases assigned to individuals who either tested positive through an antigen test or have a combination of symptoms and a known exposure to someone with COVID-19 without a more likely diagnosis.) With the exception of December when all prior probable cases were added to the total count midmonth, March is the first time since August that recoveries have outpaced new cases.
Cases in Hopkins County have decreased significantly from 483 new cases in December to 400 in January, 269 in February and 98 in March. April started off with 8 new confirmed cases on Thursday, the most in a single day since the 12 new confirmed cases recorded on Feb. 25.
The patient count in the COVID-19 unit at CHRISTUS Mother Frances Hospital-Sulphur Springs was also down from 29 at the start of January, 14 Feb. 1, 10 on March 1 and 2. In Trauma Service Area F, which includes all of Northeast Texas, the lab-confirmed COVID-19 patient count dropped from 204 on Jan. 1 to 143 Feb. 1, 65 on March 1 and 21 on April 1.
Additional COVID-19 Vaccine Information
- COVID-19 vaccine dshs.texas.gov/covidvaccine/.
- Weekly vaccine allocations, including the full list for the week of April 5
- Vaccination hub providers with contact information
- DSHS/TDEM map of vaccine providers
- Texas Vaccine Data dashboard
- Texas COVID-19 Vaccine Doses Wasted Report
- Texas Public Health Vaccine Scheduler getthevaccine.dshs.texas.gov
Traffic Snarled By Truck Trailer Mishap On East Shannon Road
Traffic along East Shannon Road between South Broadway Street and Mockingbird Lane became snarled Friday afternoon by a truck trailer mishap.
According to police reports, the driver of the truck and with enclosed trailer pulled over off Shannon Road with the intent of going inside one of the restaurants to get something to eat. Unfortunately, he pulled off the road too far his trailer overturned into the ditch between the service road and Interstate 30 east.
A couple of large wreckers were called to the scene to lift the trailer. While the wreckers services worked to right the trailer and get it off the side of the road, police began directing motorists caught around 7 p.m. in the traffic snarl between South Broadway and Mockingbird to turn around and travel off the service road through Chick-Fil-A parking lot to Duckworth Street, to access Mockingbird Lane to continue east. Police then closed the section of East Shannon between Broadway and Mockingbird until about 7:50 p.m. April 2, 2021.
Walks and Errors Combine to Do In the Wildcats Baseball Team in an 8-1 Loss to Hallsville
A district baseball summit battle of the top two teams ended poorly for the Wildcats due to walks and errors in an 8-1 loss to Hallsville at Wildcat Park Thursday night (April 1).
Wildcats’ pitchers held the Bobcats to just 5 hits but 11 walks and 5 errors made the hits effective.
Meanwhile the Wildcats also struggled with the bats collecting only 4 hits and scoring only 1 run. Wildcats pitcher Hayden Hurst took the loss. He kept the Wildcats close but could only go 5 innings when his pitch count maxed out at 111. Hurst only allowed 2 hits and 3 runs while striking out 7 but he walked 9. Matthew Sherman went the final 2 innings allowing 3 hits and no earned runs. Faulty fielding and two more walks resulted in 5 unearned runs scoring.
Both Mayer Millsap and Matthew Singleton had 2 hits. Millsap also walked and scored the Wildcats lone run. Singleton hit a double. Hurst had the Wildcats’ RBI. Kaden Wallace and Colt Silman had walks.
The Wildcats slip to 4-2 in district play after the first half of the schedule. They are 7-12 for the season. The Wildcats open the second half of district play at Longview Tuesday night.
KSST is proud to be the official Wildcat and Lady Cat Station. We broadcast Sulphur Springs ISD games year round live on radio. When allowed, we also broadcast games via our YouTube channel.
Woman Jailed For DWI Following Minor Crash
A 22-year-old Sulphur Springs woman was jailed for DWI following a crash early Friday morning, according to arrest reports.
Sulphur Springs Police contacted the woman in connection with a minor crash reported around 12:20 a.m. April 2, 2021, on North Davis Street at Atkins Street. Officers reported smelling alcohol on the woman, who allegedly admitted to consuming four alcoholic beverages at a local bar about an hour before. She had reportedly thrown up on the ground behind her vehicle, a Hyundai Elantra. She was alleged had glassy eyes and was to be unsteady on her feet to the point she was swaying, police alleged.
The officer determined the 22-year-old to be be intoxicated based on her inability to successfully perform standard field sobriety tests. Police took her into custody. She agreed to provide a blood sample, which was taken at the local hospital. The Sulphur Springs woman was then jailed for DWI, according to arrest reports. She was released from jail later Friday, April 2, 2021, on a $1,000 bond on the Class B misdemeanor drunk driving charge.
KSSTRadio.com publishes Sulphur Springs Police Department reports and news. The Police Department is located at 125 Davis St., Sulphur Springs, Texas. Non-emergency calls can be made to (903) 885-7602.
If you have an emergency dial 9-1-1.
The Sulphur Springs Police Department continues to serve its citizens with pride in its overall mission and will strive to provide the best possible police force in the 21st century.
If you have an emergency, dial 9-1-1
The Hopkins County Sheriff’s Office is located at 298 Rosemont Sulphur Springs, TX 75482. You can reach them for non-emergency matters at (903) 438-4040.
Miller Grove ISD Announces UIL Excellence
Miller Grove ISD had a successful outcome at their Academic District UIL competition, with many students advancing to Regional competition.
The participating students placed as follows:
- Andi Resendiz(Sr)-6th-Ready Writing
- Jamilyn Hensley(Fr)-3rd Ready Writing-Adv to Regionals
- Celeste Robertson(Fr)-5th Editorial Writing
- Bailee Shipp(Soph)-3rd Feature Writing, 1st Prose-Adv to Regionals
- Jorja Bessonett(Sr)-1st informative speaking-Adv to Regionals, 4th Ready Writing
- Michaela Ewasko(Sr)-4th Literary Criticism
- Jocelyn Helterbrand(Sr)-1st Prose-Adv to Regionals, 6th Literary Criticism
- Landon Burnett(Fr)-4th Informative Speaking
- Jolee Fox(Sr)-1st Persuasive Speaking-Adv to Regionals, 1st LD Debate-Adv to Regionals
- Kavan Smith(Soph)-3rd Persuasive Speaking-Adv to Regionals
- Jagger Qualls(Jr)-3rd LD Debate-Adv to Regionals, 4th Persuasive Speaking
- Lainy Burnett(Jr)-2nd Prose-Adv to Regionals
- Kyli Melton(Soph)-6th Prose
- Kayti Brignon(Jr)-3rd Prose-Adv to Regionals
- Addison Stanton(Jr)-4th Prose
- First Place overall speaking team
- Second Place literary criticism team
- One Act Play-4th Place
Music
- Michaela Ewaszko(Sr) Piano Solo and Ensemble 1 Rating advancing to State in May
Robotics
- Two junior high and one high school Robotics teams advanced to state competition on April 10th for high school and April 17th for Junior High
- JH- Sebastian Tovar(7th), Yahir Santana(7th), Kaden Hiller(7th), Alessandro Alvarez(8th), Blanca Culbertson(8th)
- High School-Aiden Yudell (Fr), George Back(Fr), Hannah Nalls(Fr)
Teens Arrested For Sparring On An I-30 Overpass
Two Sulphur Springs teens were arrested for sparring on an I-30 overpass in late Thursday morning, according to police reports.
Sulphur Springs Police responded just after 11 a.m. April 1 at the East Loop 301, where a ruckus reportedly ensued, with a male reportedly assaulting a female on the I-30 overpass.
Upon arrival, police saw a 17-year-old male and a 17-year-old female yelling at each other. Police, in arrest reports, allegedly observed the young woman yelling at several others who had stopped to try to break up the fight between the dating couple.
When asked to put his hands behind his back while police ascertained what had transpired, the young man allegedly yelled profanity to the officers. Police alleged they placed him on the ground with the minimum amount of force required to detain him.
After investigation, however, police determined the female was also an aggressor in the physical altercation. Both teens allegedly admitted to striking each other with their fists, which witnesses confirmed seeing occur, police alleged in arrest reports. She also allegedly admitted that she punched her boyfriend first, the other teen, first. The male did have redness and swelling consistent with being hit, according to police reports.
Police arrested both teens involved in the squabble shortly after 11:30 a.m. April 1 on a Class A misdemeanor family violence assault charge. The female brawler was released from Hopkins County jail Friday morning, April 2, 2021, on a $2,000 bond. The male remained in Hopkins County jail Friday morning, April 2, 2021, for the sparring on an I-30 overpass; his bond also was set at $2,000 on the assault charge, according to jail reports.
KSSTRadio.com publishes Sulphur Springs Police Department reports and news. The Police Department is located at 125 Davis St., Sulphur Springs, Texas. Non-emergency calls can be made to (903) 885-7602.
If you have an emergency dial 9-1-1.
The Sulphur Springs Police Department continues to serve its citizens with pride in its overall mission and will strive to provide the best possible police force in the 21st century.
If you have an emergency, dial 9-1-1
The Hopkins County Sheriff’s Office is located at 298 Rosemont Sulphur Springs, TX 75482. You can reach them for non-emergency matters at (903) 438-4040.
Burney Excited To Begin Work As Chamber Of Commerce President/CEO
Community members stopped by in small groups throughout lunch time Thursday to welcome Butch Burney on his very first day as Hopkins County Chamber of Commerce president/chief executive officer-elect.
Burney will work with Lezley Brown, who announced earlier this year that she will be resigning as president/CEO later this month in order to seek new challenges and opportunities, for about two weeks to make the transition go as smooth as possible. Brown’s last day is April 16.
“We are excited about welcoming him to the Chamber family. We are family around here. That’s the way we have operated for a long long time. We’re excited to welcome him on board. I told him I going to try to teach him whatever I could kind of like a fire hydrant: just stand in front of it and take whatever you can get,” Brown said with a laugh.
Brown says while it’d be hard to pick just one event as a favorite or most memorable, hosting the annual Hopkins County Stew Contest during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 was probably her most challenging as Chamber president/CEO. She recalled also holding her breath at last year’s Chamber Banquet, when the patio lights strung in the Civic Center almost came crashing down when one of the flags got tangled in a string as they were being brought in.
“I don’t know that one stands out more than another. We’ve had a great time for five years, so it’s hard to pick just one,” Brown said, noting that while she’s a little sad to be leaving something she’s been a part of for five years and that has become such way of life for her family, but is excited too. “Seasons change. It’s time for a little change, so I want to embrace it. I love change, so we’ll see what’s next.”
For Burney, that change will began Thursday, April 1, 2021, his first official day of employment with the Chamber of Commerce.
On April 9, Burney will be assisting at the annual Chamber Golf Tournament, and Brown noted, plans have already begun for this year’s Hopkins County Stew Contest. So, as soon as the tourney is over, he’ll jump right in to the deep end with Stew planning.
But, Burney is no stranger to either the Golf Tournament or the Stew. He not only grew up and has worked and lived in Hopkins County for years, but also as a part of the Chamber has in the past worked various fundraising events including the golf contest.
“He’s been a part of the Chamber for a long time, so he’s got an idea what’s coming but we’re going to kind of punt to him that day,” Brown said.
Burney served on the Chamber Board for five years, but recently took 1 1/2 year off. In fact, he was on the board when Brown was hired and praised her work in the top role.
“I’ve seen the great things she’s done with the Chamber. She really has positioned it extremely well with the budget and events that she’s done and the outreach and all that,” Burney said.
After the Chamber president/CEO job was posted following Brown’s announcement of planned resignation from the seat, Burney said he talked to several people about it.
“It just seemed like a good opportunity and a good challenge,” Burney said.
Looking ahead, Burney said he plans to continue working to further the Chamber’s goal to help all businesses, especially the smaller businesses, and to continue being a proponent of the city, promoting the way of life and business life in Sulphur Springs and Hopkins County. The Chamber exists to support businesses and is looking at additional means of doing so.
“We’ve been talking about maybe some additional things we’re going to do to help small businesses because that’s the bulk of our membership – small businesses. Larger industries have their own resources they can rely on, but small business is still the heartbeat of small towns like Sulphur Springs and small counties like Hopkins County. There are a few things we’ve got in the works to help small businesses. We’ll be unveiling them as we put those in order and get those working,” he said.
Outreach is another key goal for the Chamber moving forward. Burney said he and the Chamber plan to reach out to members and businesses to better understand their needs and find ways the Chamber can better help them meet those needs.
Burney said as the city begins opening the square and facilities back up to the community with what appear to be improvements in the COVID-19 situation, the Chamber is following suit. For instance, the annual golf tournament next Friday and the Hopkins County Stew Contest are expected to return to normal, barring a few adjustments in the stew site map for better accessibility on the 14 acres at the park where it’s held or changes in the pandemic that would require. These are among the many things that help reach the Chamber Executive Board’s goal of ramping activities back into full swing.
“I think everybody’s ready to start getting back to some normalcy. As soon as we can start rolling things out we’re going to,” Burney said.
Burney said his family has always been a Hopkins County family. He was born and raised here, and his wife is from Como. He has worked in Hopkins County for “quite a bit” of his adult life.
“The reason that we have stayed here and we have worked here is that we love Hopkins County and we love Sulphur Springs. We want to see the best for the county and for the city,” Burney said. “I think it’s win-win. If the city wins then the people who live here win and the Chamber wins. If businesses, then the Chamber wins. It’s just a win-win situation. We just want to promote Sulphur Springs and do whatever we can to make this the best place to live and work.”
He noted all of the changes that have occurred since the 1970s, 80s and 90s, citing Celebration Plaza as a great meeting place downtown, the improvements and expansions at the hospital in at least the last decade, and the growth of a cross section of small and large industries and retail. Sulphur Springs has continued to get better and Burney hopes to be a part of continuing that progress through his work with the Chamber.
“Sulphur Springs has done a fantastic job of prospering, I think, especially in the last 10-15 years,” Burney said. “I am happy to have seen that happen. We just want to continue to be a part of that.”
Two Overtime Goals For Longview Lead to 3-1 Win Over the Wildcats Soccer Team
For about 1:46 the Wildcats Soccer Team looked like they might just pull off an upset of District 15-5A Champ Longview in a Regional Quarterfinal game at Lindale Thursday night (April 1).
The Wildcats took a 1-0 lead with just 3:38 left in regulation when Omar Hernandez beat the Lobos goalkeeper to a ball and slipped it past him into the net.
Faced with playoff elimination, Longview put their offense into high gear. The intense pressure around the Wildcats goal led to a foul just 21 yards from the Wildcats’ goal and right in the middle of the field. The Lobos’ free kick found the net and the score was tied 1-1 with 1:52 left in regulation.
The match ended up tied 1-1 after regulation and after the first half of overtime. Longview finally broke through with 2 goals in the second half of overtime scoring at 7:44 and at 1:35. The 3-1 loss was another tough, physical playoff game featuring lots of yellow cards and hard fouls. While Longview moves on in the playoffs, the Wildcats’ season comes to an end.
The Wildcats end up with a season record of 17-11-1 and with impressive playoff wins over Whitehouse and Red Oak. The loss marked the final game for 11 Wildcats’ seniors.
KSST is proud to be the official Wildcat and Lady Cat Station. We broadcast Sulphur Springs ISD games year round live on radio. When allowed, we also broadcast games via our YouTube channel.
