Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
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New Mexico’s coronavirus death toll has hit 400, after four additional deaths were reported Monday. The four deceased all lived in the state’s northwestern region, which has a high Native American population and has been hit hard by the COVID-19 outbreak. Meanwhile the virus has had little impact on the health of eastern New Mexico residents with just 109 confirmed cases and no deaths reported in Curry or Roosevelt counties through Monday. Statewide, New Mexico’s number of confirmed COVID-19 cases was at 9,062 on Monda...
SANTA FE — A Clovis business owner is one of about a dozen challenging the authority of Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham to issue daily fines for health order violations during the COVID-19 pandemic. A lawsuit filed Wednesday in the 9th Judicial District argues the governor’s administration has improperly threatened businesses with $5,000 daily fines, when the state Public Health Act authorizes fines of $100 or less, and seeks a permanent injunction from issuing the larger fines. Lujan Grisham, Public Safety Secretary Mark She...
SANTA FE — Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham says the state expects to allow dine-in restaurants, salons, gyms, malls and other businesses to reopen by June 1 as COVID-19 numbers continue to improve. New Mexico is now meeting the majority of its benchmarks for reopening, known as “gating criteria,” and the rate of COVID-19 transmission has hit the state’s target for the first time, the governor and health officials said. “We’re not quite seeing a decline in cases, but we are feeling good about the stability of what’s occurring in...
Two regional summer entertainment staples have fallen victim to coronavirus. Heritage Days in Portales and the UFO Festival in Roswell won’t happen in 2020, organizers announced last week. “After a consecutive run of 35 years, we are going to have to take a break this year due to the ongoing pandemic,” Portales Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Karl Terry said of Heritage Days. The event is scheduled the third Saturday in June each year with a street dance on the Friday before. “After announcing last month that we woul...
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott continued this week to reopen businesses that had closed to slow the spread of novel coronavirus. Phase 2, as he calls it, will allow tattoo parlors, bars and daycare centers to begin reopening. But the dates vary by each industry. And while the new order applies to the entire state, four Texas Panhandle counties — Deaf Smith, Moore, Potter, and Randall — will be delayed by over one week because of ongoing COVID-19 outbreaks. Here’s what you need to know. What’s the problem in the Panhandle? The num...
Staff and wire reports Curry and Roosevelt counties have had just 26 positive cases of COVID-19 reported between them as of Saturday morning, with no deaths. That's the good news. The bad news comes from west of the region, and especially from the east. New Mexico surpassed 3,500 cases of the virus on Friday and the state's death toll reached 131 - up from 2,726 cases and 99 deaths last Sunday. The greater concern is just 100 miles to the east, where Texas Panhandle numbers ha...
More than 90,000 New Mexicans have filed initial unemployment claims over the past four weeks. According to unofficial numbers released Friday by the New Mexico Department of Workforce Solutions, 20,085 more New Mexico residents filed for unemployment April 3-9. They join more than 70,000 people who have filed such claims in the past three weeks, since the spread of the new coronavirus began to prompt widespread business closures in New Mexico. On Monday, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham extended the in-person business closure...
New Mexico on Friday set unwelcome single-day records for positive tests of COVID-19 and for deaths from the disease. State officials also projected the virus will kill between 2,100 and 4,700 New Mexicans over the next 12 months — a prediction much worse than the 510 state deaths forecast a week earlier by University of Washington researchers. “The only real way to attack this virus is to stay away from it,” Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham said during a news conference streamed on the governor’s Facebook page. Eastern New Mex...
The number of positive coronavirus cases in New Mexico neared 300 and the virus’ death total reached four in the state, health officials said on Monday. The most recent deaths were a woman in her 90s and a woman in her 70s. Both died Monday in Bernalillo County, officials said. Both had an underlying medical condition. Officials said 281 people had tested positive for the virus in New Mexico. On March 23, that total was 83. Officials did not release information on the most recent Curry County residents reported as having t...
The numbers have a story to tell. First, New Mexico’s number of residents who’ve tested positive for COVID-19 was up to 191 on Saturday morning. Friday saw the most positive tests in a single day — 55, including a Cannon Air Force Base airman in his 20s. Officials said the man is in self-isolation at his home in Portales. That makes two confirmed cases in eastern New Mexico. A Curry County woman in her 50s is also quarantined at home after testing positive on Monday. And then there’s the economic relief package Congres...
A former Clovis attorney, now a public defender in Santa Fe, says she has tested positive for COVID-19. Jennifer Burrill, who moved to Santa Fe from Clovis in 2016, told The Santa Fe New Mexican that she learned of the positive test result on Tuesday night. The New Mexico Law Offices of the Public Defender on Wednesday issued a news release stating it has temporarily closed its Santa Fe office and has launched a contact history. The office is closed until at least April 12,...
Tucumcari’s district attorney said he was held in contempt of court after “heeding the governor’s declaration of a public health emergency” and failing to attend a hearing in Carlsbad earlier this month. Timothy Rose is asking the New Mexico Supreme Court to require Judge Lisa Riley to rescind the contempt order, which was issued after Rose’s request to attend the hearing by phone was denied. Tenth Judicial District Attorney Rose had agreed to take on a case in the 5th Judicial District, which prosecutors there were unab...
Several New Mexico businesses and local branches of national chains have announced temporary closures or changes to their hours in response to efforts to control the spread of COVID-19. Among those who’ve made announcements: • Bath & Body Works on Monday announced on its website it will temporarily close all of its stores in the U.S. and Canada. Its employees would continue to be paid, CEO Andrew Meslow said in the announcement. • Walmart on Sunday announced reduced hours: 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily. • Cato announced reduced...
SANTA FE — Lobbyists and their clients reported about $151,000 in spending this session — more than $5,000 a day on dinners, receptions and other goodies for New Mexico lawmakers. And that’s just part of the spending. More-detailed reports are due in May. The largest expenditure reported during the 2020 session was $28,000 — a golf promotion for legislators, paid for by the New Mexico Golf Tourism Alliance. The group usually provides free golf passes. Lawmakers didn’t go hungry, either. Members of at least three legislative c...
SANTA FE — Amid fears of declining oil prices, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham on Tuesday vetoed legislation that appropriated $50 million to various transportation projects throughout the state. Senate Bill 232 included $1.635 million for Curry and Roosevelt counties. In a veto statement, the governor noted it isn’t yet known “the degree to which COVID-19 and declining oil prices will impact our state’s economy.” She did not believe SB 232 constituted a sound investment in the state “because it appropriates $50 million to...
In her office at the high school in Boulder, Colorado, the assistant principal has a large cardboard box where she can toss the spoils of her ongoing battle with the newest student addiction. “This is what I call the box of death,” said Kristen Lewis. “This is everything that we’ve confiscated.” The box is filled with vape pens like Juuls, the leading brand of e-cigarettes, dozens of disposable pods for nicotine liquid, and even a lonely box of Marlboros. At Boulder High, students are prohibited from smoking cigarettes or vap...
A strong cold front is expected to bring snow to northern New Mexico and send temperatures plunging throughout the state over the next few days. Eastern New Mexico can expect its first hard freeze Thursday night and Friday morning, according to the National Weather Service. “There’s still a lot of uncertainty with this system,” meteorologist Kerry Jones said. “But we’re pretty solid on the cold temperatures. ... Temperatures are going to drop substantially into Thursday.” He said the state will be getting “a piece of a bi...
A 460,000-pound piece of equipment was successfully transported Friday from Los Alamos National Laboratory to Clovis, passing through the heart of Santa Fe, on its way to a repair site across the country. The truck-and-trailer rig being used to carry the massive load - a rotor that is 69 feet long and 6 feet in diameter - caused a few delays for drivers, but also drew plenty of stares as it made its way through the Land of Enchantment before a train ride east. New Mexico...
CLOVIS — In a few weeks, you can cross the state’s largest retailer off of your list for firearms purchases. Effective July 27, Walmart plans to stop selling firearms at all New Mexico locations, including its stores in Clovis and Portales. The stores will continue to sell ammunition, along with BB guns, airsoft guns and similar items. “It will be good for us small dealers,” said Larry Reeves, who has owned the R&S Gun Shop in downtown Clovis for 47 years. “It will be good for the bigger dealers too, like Big 5 and Gebo’s. I...
Eastern New Mexico received its first tornado scare of the season on March 12 when watches were issued throughout the region. Curry, Quay and Roosevelt counties avoided the twisters that night, but neighbors to the south in Dexter saw a touchdown that resulted in multiple minor injuries and several damaged homes. The night reminded old-timers of the deadly tornadoes that struck eastern New Mexico and the Texas Panhandle on March 23, 2007. Heleneta Blevins and Walter Cravy,...
The state Environment Department and Attorney General’s Office on Tuesday morning filed a lawsuit seeking to compel U.S. Air Force officials to acknowledge, address and remediate contamination caused by discharge of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFOS/PFOA) at Cannon and Holloman Air Force bases. “No one has a right to pollute New Mexico’s vital water resources,” said Attorney General Hector Balderas in a news release. “... The New Mexico Environment Department will move swiftly and decisively to ensure protectio...
Welcome to Between Editions, our online update for the latest news from eastern New Mexico and around the region. We'll do this as often as we can in effort to keep readers of The Eastern New Mexico News informed beyond our print editions, which publish each Wednesday and Sunday. Let us know what you think by leaving a comment on Facebook or via email: [email protected] • Portales Public Works Water Department officials are working to repair a "sudden unplanned water break in the area of Western Skies, Territorial Estate...
SANTA FE — As expected, the House District 63 race is going into a recount. The Secretary of State’s Office currently has Clovis Republican Martin Zamora holding a 27-vote lead over incumbent Democrat George Dodge — 2,982-2,955. It’s one of three legislative races going into a recount, and it’s by far the closest. Democrat Abbas Akhil leads Jim Dines by 109 votes in their District 20 race, while Republican Gregg Williams Schmedes leads Jessica Velasquez by 138 votes in District 22. An automatic recount is triggered when the...
NEW YORK — Former Clovis High receiver Rishard Matthews will soon be back on an NFL roster, as he has reportedly agreed to sign with the New York Jets. ESPN reported the news Tuesday morning. The 29-year-old was released by the Tennessee Titans in September after he had requested a release or trade, citing displeasure with his limited role in the offense. He was released after the Titans couldn’t find any suitors. Coming off injuries that limited him through the offseason and preseason, Matthews had not started once. He als...
WILMINGTON, N.C. — Motorists streamed inland on highways converted to one-way evacuation routes Tuesday as about 1.7 million people in three states were warned to get out of the way of Hurricane Florence, a hair-raising storm taking dead aim at the Carolinas with 140 mph winds and potentially ruinous rains. Even as far west as New Mexico, statewide organizations were monitoring the situation and preparing to send aid as needed. The American Red Cross’ senior manager for donor recruitment in Albuquerque told The Eastern New...
