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Construction began last week on a new 300-foot guy-wired public safety communications tower south of Canadian near the Y intersection of US 60 and 83. The old tower was felled by a late October 2020 ice storm. As specified in Hemphill County’s call for bids on this project, this tower is required to withstand a minimum wind load of 90 mph, a three-second wind gust without ice, and a 30-mph wind load with 0.75 inches of radial ice. The tower supports emergency communications between the Hemphill County Sheriff’s Office, EMS, and the Canadian Fire Department. Amarillo’s CommTech LLC is erecting the tower at a cost of $107,373. The cost of tower replacement will be borne, in part, by the Panhandle Regional Planning Commission and, in part, by the county’s insurance provider. Judge George Briant said he hoped the tower would be back in service by the end of this month.

“If you didn’t spend the 4th of July in Canadian, Texas, I’m sorry about your luck,” declared Marsha Jo Morehead Pool, of Gun Barrel City, last Sunday after an idyllic weekend of rodeo viewing, parading, turtle racing, watermelon feasting, and catching up with family and friends.

The Canadian Arts Alliance and Canadian Wildcat Theatre drew a crowd to the Texas Crown Performance Hall last Friday with a performance of The Untold Story of Rose Red, by playwright Alaska Reece Vance. Cast members were students of the annual children’s theatre camp, where young actors are trained for several days before showcasing their work onstage.

With COVID restrictions finally lifted, Hemphill County Court is back in business. As a result, County Attorney Kyle Miller was able to report the results of several cases his office has handled recently.

The latest from the Texas Tribune (www.texastribune.org) While new cases, hospitalizations, and deaths remain low, the number of vaccines administered each day has declined. More than 40 percent of Texans are fully vaccinated, and a University of Texas/Texas Tribune Poll found nearly half of Texas voters have returned to their pre-pandemic lives.