Regional News

Economic News Week: November 7, 2011 The Dow Jones Industrial average fell 61.23 points, or 0.5 percent and ended at 11,983.24 for the week this past Friday. Our nation’s unemployment report remains on shaky ground. However, it did drop slightly to 9.00% in October, down from 9.1% just the month before.

The Hill Country has already experienced its first cold front of the season! With temperatures in the low 30’s, the American Red Cross Winter Heater Program begins November 1st, supplying local residents with space heaters to stay warm during the upcoming months. Last year, the chapter distributed one hundred seven (107) heaters to local families.

Red Cross tips help make it safe and less scary. KERRVILLE, TX, October 25, 2011 — As ghosts and vampires get ready to roam the streets, the American Red Cross has tips to make this a frightfully safe Halloween. Costume Safety Whether a child wants to be a princess, a monster or a superhero for Halloween, parents can help keep it safe by: Adding reflective tape to costumes and trick-or-treat bags. Using flame-resistant costumes. Using fac ...

After serving almost three decades in the office of the District Attorney, Sam Oatman has announced that he will not be seeking reelection. Oatman began his career as a prosecutor in 1976 in Lubbock County as an Assistant District Attorney before returning to his hometown in Llano to serve as the First Assistant District Attorney under the Honorable Louis Crump in 1981. Oatman was then appointed to District Attorney by Governor Mark White in 1984, following the resignation of ...

Angela Dowdle, attorney and former prosecutor, formally announced her candidacy for District Attorney for the 33rd and 424th Judicial Districts with a caravan throughout the counties served by the districts. Dowdle joins Wiley "Sonny" McAfee, an attorney from Burnet County, who recently announced his candidacy for District Attorney in the 2012 Republican Primary. Dowdle and her campaign caravan started off in San Saba County on the morning of September 6, 2011, traveled through Llano ...

Firefighting crews are stretched past their limits with wildfires raging throughout Central Texas. With a cold front bringing gusting winds and low relative humidity on Sunday, September 4, the Texas Forest Service logged 63 new fires affecting 32,936 acres. The battle continued on Monday with 22 new fires on 7,544 acres. Blanco Volunteer Fire Department assisted Sunday afternoon with a 20-acre fire on the south side of Canyon Lake, at Canyon Park.

Wiley "Sonny" McAfee, an attorney from Burnet County, has announced his candidacy for District Attorney in the 2012 Republican Primary. The 33rd and 424th Judicial Districts include the counties of Blanco, Burnet, Llano and San Saba. Current District Attorney Sam Oatman has held the office for 28 years, since first being elected in 1984. McAfee, 60, served as police officer, prosecutor, law enforcement advisor and Court of Appeals appellate attorney before his current career as a tra ...

The Postal Regulatory Commission released a list of more than 3,600 post offices that are being considered for closure. Post offices on the closure list include Hye, Willow City, and Doss. The stakeholders of the Hye Preservation Society scheduled a meeting on August 15 to determine if there was sufficient support to prevent the closure of the Hye Post Office and to map out a plan. Thirty-six post offices located in Texas are included on the list of possible closures, ...

San Antonio’s KSAT reported that a woman was killed on US Highway 281 on Sunday in the southern end of Blanco County. Officials with the Department of Public Safety told the news station that a southbound car had stopped in traffic to make a left turn into the Lake of the Hills subdivision when it was rear-ended by a truck, sending the car into the northbound traffic lane and into the path of two motorcycles. One motorcyclist, a man from Pflugerville, was able to avoid the car, ...

Quality Texas Foundation named Hill Country Memorial (HCM) as an Achievement Level recipient, the second highest honor within the five-tier recognition program. The foundation reports that Achievement Level recipients execute well-deployed, effective, systematic approaches to organizational management, with good performance levels and trends evaluated against industry standards. HCM Chief Strategy Officer Debbye Wallace said HCM applied for the award as part of a vision to be ...