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TxDOT collects short-term traffic counts in Amarillo District

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AMARILLO—The Texas Department of Transportation’s (TxDOT) Transportation Planning and Programming (TPP) Division is collecting short-term traffic counts at 1,800 locations across the Amarillo District through Oct. 6. These 24-hour traffic counts will be collected for on-system roadways by contract personnel. Traffic counts are necessary to give TxDOT the information needed for designing new highway projects, determining where maintenance projects need to take place, and to aid in developing air-quality analyses in the district. Traffic count maps from previous years are available to the public online at: https://www.txdot.gov/apps/statewide_ mapping/StatewidePlanningMap. html.
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Local DAR members seek donations for 2022-23 Wreaths Across America project

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The Comancheria Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution is kicking off the 2022-23 season, and the first local meeting will be on Thursday, Oct. 13, with Cindy Bowen as hostess. She will present the program on family heirlooms. The local chapter’s goals are to promote patriotism and remember our history through projects, awards, programs, and a scholarship fund.
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The perfect burn

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No, they haven’t revived the traditional Homecoming bonfire. This conflagration was set by City employees on Monday morning at the municipal brush pile, where crews had waited several days for the perfect wind conditions—not too gusty and not too still—in order to set the burn and clear the area for the next round of grass clippings, amputated tree limbs and other combustible organic matter. The perimeter of the brush pile was so large, it took several City employees to light the edges, and then to monitor for any potential outbreaks. The heat from the flames was so intense that, at some point, a small twister formed in the dirt nearby, offering a perfect example of the well-known phenomenon that smoke and heat from extreme fire creates its own weather. City Public Works Director Tommy Wyatt pronounced the fire “a perfect burn,” saying the operation went off without a hitch. “Our procedure is to light the fire and try to have it out the same day, then firewatch it all night,” Wyatt said. “At first light of the next day, we take our equipment, push everything into a pile, and cover it all with dirt to keep it from smoking.” For residents needing to dump grass or limbs over the next few days, a temporary disposal area has been established nearby, marked by a yellow gate and signage.
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Annual Calf Fry and Cook-Off is on tap for balmy autumn weekend

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All signs are go for this weekend’s the Canadian River Beach Club’s 14th Annual Calf Fry and Barbeque Cook-Off at Canadian’s Jones Pavilion on Saturday. The weather is expected to be sunny, with temperatures topping out around 94, and a light 5-10 mph wind out of the south/ southwest, just perfect to keep the cook fires burning.
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Four cases heard Tuesday in Hemphill County Court

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Four misdemeanor cases were heard Tuesday in County Court, with County Judge Lisa Johnson presiding and County Attorney Kyle Miller prosecuting. Daniel Santos and Vanessa Marquez pled guilty to theft of property—a Class A misdemeanor—and were each granted one year of deferred adjudication probation, and ordered to pay $750 fines and court costs, and to meet all terms and conditions of probation.
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Secretary of state announces new poll-watcher training program

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AUSTIN—Texas Secretary of State John Scott recently announced a new poll-watcher training program that allows interested Texans to become certified as poll watchers for the upcoming Nov. 8 general election. Under Texas law, individuals seeking to become poll watchers must obtain a Certificate of Completion from the Texas secretary of state’s office through this training program—as well as a certificate of appointment from a candidate, political party, or specific-purpose political action committee—in order to be accepted as a poll watcher at a particular polling location, meeting place for an early voting ballot board or signature verification committee, or central counting station where voted ballots are tabulated.
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Anniversary of Lyman Wagon Train Battle observed at Ramp Ranch Saturday

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History enthusiasts gathered at Ramp Ranch southeast of Canadian on Saturday, Sept. 10, to honor the 148th anniversary of the Lyman’s Wagon Train Battle—which took place on that site and raged for five long days from Sept. 9-14, 1874. The battle was one of many waged during the Red River War, a campaign by the U.S. Army to remove the Comanche, Kiowa, Southern Cheyenne, and Arapaho Indian tribes from the Southern Plains, and to enforce their relocation to reservations in Indian Territory.

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Hospital board does not go gently into the new fiscal year

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Without community comment, the annual hearing for the adoption of the district’s budget and tax rate for the new fiscal year is usually a routine matter. Not so this go-round on Sept. 6.

After rehashing the budget that shows an $802,384 net operating loss, two Hemphill County Hospital board members balked. Revenue for the FY 2022-23 budget is $24,461,525 (including tax revenues), with $25,263,909 in operating expenses.