Latest news with #DustinFawcett
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Climate
- Yahoo
Cleanup efforts underway for Pleasant Farms after massive storm
ECTOR COUNTY, Texas (KMID/KPEJ)- Clean-up efforts are underway in Pleasant Farms after Tuesday morning's storms left many homes destroyed. Now Ector County Judge Dustin Fawcett hopes to help those who suffered damages get back on their feet. He has declared a local state of emergency in hopes of getting access to more resources. The Local Emergency Declaration will allow the County to help the residents in need. Those who need help cleaning up their property will have to fill out a form at the South Ector County Volunteer Fire Department. 'This came as a response when our team was out going around to all of the property and looking at the damage and some of those constitutes came to us and asked us for help,' Judge Fawcett said. 'We know typically under a typical County statute we do not have as a County have the ability to us taxpayer funds on private properties. But in these certain scenarios, if I do declare an emergency it then allows us to do so.' The County leaders did an aerial assessment Tuesday to document the destruction of the area. So now they could begin helping with the cleanup efforts. 'We got our full crew out here,' Jeff Avery Public Works Director said. 'We got about 30 guys that are out here today.' For all of the residents who live in Pleasant Farms and got some damage from the storm, if they need help, they must sign some paperwork to establish the need. Or you can call the office, and they will bring you the documents you need. 'You can also call, my office at (432)381-0098 press zero and Marcy will answer the phone.' Avery said. Officials spent Tuesday surveying the damage and have a pretty good idea about how many people were impacted. 'So far, we have identified nine RVs that were completely destroyed,' Wes Carta director of environmental enforcement said. 'We have three mobile homes that were completely destroyed. And we got approximately 15 other structures that received some other type of damage.' Commissioner Billy Hall represents the Pleasant Farms area, and he says he has been working hard and wants to help this area and the people. 'Now that we have all of the agency together, now it is just moving forward and now lets get this thing cleaned up,' commissioner Hall said. The crew will continue to be out here until five today or if projects tale longer they will continue to help. This Emergency Declaration is limited to only seven days. At the Commissioner Court meeting on Tuesday, Commissioners can vote for for an extension in case they need more time. County leaders said they have had 15 to 17 property requests for help so far. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
5 named to lead emergency services districts
May 27—Ector County commissioners on Tuesday named the five Ector County residents who will govern the newly-formed Ector County Emergency Services Districts 1 and 2. The May 3 election gave the green light to the creation of Ector County Emergency Districts 1 and 2. Emergency Services District Prop A, (fire) got 762 for and 711 against. For proposition B for EMS, 749 voted for and 704 against. The election imposes a property tax that will be used to fund emergency services for county residents. The approval means a property tax increase for residents outside of the city limits but in Ector County. But it also means the possibility of faster response times for emergency services to those in the far flung areas of Ector County. County Judge Dustin Fawcett previously praised the citizen-led effort to get better emergency services. "It was an incredible effort led by citizens ... about how to solve the issue," he said. "I'm proud of the citizens and this was truly a county-wide effort with the community turning out." The commissioners named Patti Kappauf, Heather Burks, Randy Lightfoot, Kevin Searcy and John Turner to the governing board of the newly-formed district. The five will oversee both the A and B portions of the district. Members will later be elected by residents in the county. Fawcett said eight people applied. Commissioners also heard several presentations including one from a Kimley-Horn representative regarding the Permian Basin Regional Planning Commissions' Safety Action Plan for the Safe Streets for All Program. West County Road and State Highway 385 are both areas with a high number of major accidents. Many are caused by speeding, failure to yield the right of way and cars pulling out of driveways. The representative indicated Ector County and the City of Odessa can eventually apply for federal funding to address some of the areas that are the most deadly. Commissioners also heard a presentation from Brandon Westlake regarding the M-Bar Ranch Energy Project. The project is a wind energy project that sits in both Ector and Andrews counties. The project could be solar and wind and could eventually host a battery storage system or a data center. The group has not yet asked for tax abatements but will address the matter during a future meeting. One project in Andrews is a 240 megawatt for wind and generated almost $1 million in property taxes to Andrews ISD last year. The court also unanimously approved: — An invitation for Bid Specifications for Seal Coat Aggregate II, Project No. 2025-IFB-087. — Awarded for the Diesel-Powered Aircraft Ground Power Unit for IFB No. 2025- IFB-077, to AERO Specialties. — Accepted several grants including the Dollar General Literacy Foundation Grant to the Ector County Library in the amount of $3,000 for summer reading books to give away. Also, the Texas Library Association/H-E-B Summer At The Library Grant to the Ector County Library in the amount of $1,350. — Commissioners also approved the survey cost/fee estimate associated with the future outer loop and donated land to house the future South Ector Volunteer Fire Department. The land is at FM 866 and Interstate 20. The land was donated by Rockhound Solar. Part of it will also eventually be home to a gun range for the Ector County Sheriff's Department. — Commissioners moved the decision to hire a human resources director to executive session and then in open session named Delia Ortiz to the position. — Commissioners agreed to raise the fees in the Ector County Library Rotary Room and Auditorium as the current rates are from 2003. They agreed to change the fees for the Rotary Room from $7.50/day to $25/hour and to increase the Auditorium from $15/day to $50/hour.
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
County to canvass votes, discuss library
May 12—Ector County Commissioners this week will canvass vote totals and take action on the creation of Emergency Services Districts 1 and 2 created by the recent election as well as discuss the library. The meeting is scheduled at 10 a.m. Tuesday for the commissioners court at the Courthouse Annex, 1010 E. Eighth St. The court will canvass votes on Wednesday. Ector County Judge Dustin Fawcett said the court will write an order to create Emergency Service Districts 1 and 2 Wednesday and send that to the Ector County Appraisal District. A meeting on May 27 will be held for the court to appoint a board to govern the districts. He said about 10 people have applied for the volunteer governing slots and applications are still being accepted for those wanting to serve on the board that will eventually be elected. He said qualified people will live in the county, must be 18 and a qualified voter. The court will also assess what the nature of the interest of applicants is and appoint the five members. The appointed board will govern both districts. Commissioners will also hear from the Ector County Library Foundation about a new library construction project. In November 2024 the court voted unanimously to earmark $10 million for the new library, which is scheduled to sit at the site of the current Ector County Health Department. Fawcett said the Foundation is in a capital campaign for the project and must raise more than half of the projected cost. On Tuesday, they are being asked to approve the $10 million county portion of the build. In other business Fawcett will ask the court to vote for a resolution to freeze property tax rates for senior citizens over 65 and the disabled. He said the county currently has an exemption of $25,000 for seniors and $3,000 for the disabled but this proposal will put a ceiling or a freeze on what those groups currently pay. "It will be frozen at the 2025 number and won't ever go up but can go down," he said adding that as Odessans reach age 65 their rates will also be frozen. "Lots of people live on a fixed income and ... I would rather freeze it for them ... That is better policy," Fawcett added. The agenda details the court will also discuss videoconferencing for the court. Currently, elected court members can video conference in to meetings but cannot vote. They must be in person to vote, something Fawcett said he believes is important. He said the county would likely have to purchase new technology and software to allow all members to be visible on the screen during a meeting where someone is dialing in remote. "I am not in favor of getting new technology when we just upgraded ... not a good use of tax dollars. I know sometimes we all have unforeseen circumstances and have to miss, but the meetings are the only requirement and are just twice a month, not including budget hearings or special meetings." Commissioners will go into executive session for discussions about legal matters and the hiring of an HR leader. Following that executive session commissioners will begin public meetings about the new courthouse as it heads into the design-build phase. Fawcett said citizens who want to speak at the workshop will need to fill out a participation form at the beginning of the regular meeting. The workshop, he said, will likely take the rest of the day and re-convene on Wednesday.
Yahoo
07-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Barns B and C at Coliseum will get face lift
Mar. 6—By 2026 the Ector County Coliseum will get more air conditioned space and a face lift for Barns B and C. During a Thursday meeting, which was scheduled Thursday rather than Tuesday due to Spring Break, commissioners voted to update the barns by combining them. The barns, Ector County Judge Dustin Fawcett said, will be combined and will offer air conditioned space by March or April of 2026. Fawcett said funding for the project will come from the Hotel Occupancy Fund. "It will open for more events with more air conditioned space." Fawcett said stakeholders including representatives from the SandHills Rodeo, Permian Basin Fair and the Chuck Wagon Gang offered input on what they felt for needs for the Coliseum. Fawcett said square footage will increase and construction will pause during this year's Permian Basin Fair. Commissioners also: — Heard a safety corridor study by Kimley Horn and also about grant money available for safer streets. The goal is to draft a safety action plan after holding public workshops and analyzing crash reports to recommend countermeasures. Fawcett said the exciting thing is to go after some federal funds to help bolster roadways for safety. — Accepted a donation from Barnhart Bolt to the Sheriff's Office for $39,000. — Approved the Early Voting Schedule and the Election Day Vote Centers for the May 3 Joint General Election. — Approved Mike Gardner as the airport board appointee for the Odessa Schlemeyer Field Airport Board. — Approved Judge Dustin Fawcett as the MPO Board appointee. — Approved the Care Coordination Agreement between the Ector County Health Department and PermiaCare. — Approved a correction on a warranty deed between Ector County, Texas, and Odessa Junior College District. — Approved a TxDOT Consultant Selection form for the TxDOT 2406ODESA Project. — Approved a Designation of Sponsors Authorized Representative form for the TxDOT 2406ODESA Project located at Odessa-Ector County Schlemeyer Field. — Approved an Amendment by and between Ector County and Tyler Technologies, Inc., to grant Tyler Technologies permission to access and review data stored in the EJM Database. — Approved a Variance Application for a Replat of Lot 25, Block 10, 385 Ranch Estates West, Precinct #4. — Approved an annexation of a 3.94-acre tract, situated in Section 40, Abstract 593, Block 42, Township 2 South, Texas and Pacific Railway Company Survey, Ector County. — Approved a Subdivision Plat Application for J & P Subdivision, 2nd Filing, being a 1.16-acre tract of land within a 22.00-acre tract, located in Section 5, Block 41, Precinct #2. — Approved a budget amendment request for the Coliseum project.
Yahoo
27-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Measles outbreak sparks concern
Feb. 26—In the wake of two confirmed cases of measles, Ector County is monitoring and preparing for the disease. The Ector County Health Department has scheduled MMR vaccine clinics 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. Feb. 27 and 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. March 6 at the health department, 221 N. Texas Ave., Odessa. Pre-registration is recommended to cut down on wait times, a Facebook post stated. Also, pregnant women cannot get the live vaccine. County Judge Dustin Fawcett said Wednesday the county's priority is making sure that the resources are allocated appropriately. At the Feb. 25 commissioners court meeting, they agreed to purchase a specialized negative 70 degrees Celsius freezer that can be used to store measles test kits prior to the kits being sent to the state, he added. The freezer can also be used for other types of test kits and the county hopes to recoup some of the cost by charging clinics and doctors who need to store items there. "(The freezer) is something that we are seeing that is needed for our community so that we can send those tests down to the state because the state is the one that ultimately runs those verifications and either affirms or tells us that those cases are negative. We just had several of those actually that have come back negative that we had sent down. We had sent down three and all three of the specimens that we were awaiting the results (for) came back negative," Fawcett said. Vaccinations and testing can be done at any one of the 29 different medical providers in Ector County, or at the health department, he said. "When it comes to the testing, we encourage the parents, and I can't state the importance of this enough, that we encourage them to call their provider ahead of time (and) tell them the symptoms that they are seeing before taking their kids in. Do not just do a drop in because of the highly infectious nature of this disease. It's got over a 90 percent contagion rate, meaning that there's a 90 percent chance, if you're in the same room as someone who's infected, that within that two-hour period, which is the lifespan of that disease at airborne, that you can contract if you are unvaccinated," Fawcett said. All children in Ector County under the age of 1 year are at risk from measles, he said. "So certainly our focus is on daycares. Unfortunately, our public health department has been working on speaking with the owners of all of our daycare facilities. We have a good relationship with them, making sure that they continue to push out education to parents that if their kids do have any of these symptoms, they must stay home. We know that there is an economic cost to that, but there is a greater health concern, because of the contagious nature of this disease," Fawcett said. Another big concern, he said, is the elderly and immunocompromised population. "That is certainly a concern is that folks who (are) immunocompromised health issues ... are at risk also," Fawcett said. The zero to 4-year-old population is a concern because only about half of them are vaccinated, so the county is monitoring that. Fawcett said there is a contact tracer at the health department who is tracking measles. "We have the scenario built up for our one confirmed case. We have a hypothesis of when (the child) perhaps contracted the measles and we have been making sure that we have come in contact with everybody who could have come in contact with that child. We are working diligently on that aspect of it and we're having daily conversations with the Department of State Health Services," he added. School age children are 5 to 18 so the vaccination rate among children 5 to 9 is 73 percent, Fawcett said and 10 to 19 is 84 percent. "School age is typically 5 to 18, but daycares are also hubs of these children and so we can't neglect that piece of data which is that 52.8 percent vaccination rate for the 6 month to 4-year-olds of the MMR," Fawcett said. The concern with vaccinating as young as 6 months is that the efficacy of the vaccine could be minimized. If a child gets the measles vaccine under 12 months, they may have to have it again at 12 to 15 months to be considered fully vaccinated. "That's not as concerning health-wise, but again, these are conversations that everybody needs to have with their providers and we encourage them to have those conversations with them," Fawcett said. A news release from the Immunization Partnership said several news sources reported Feb. 26 that health officials have confirmed the death of an unvaccinated school age child in West Texas due to measles, marking the first fatality in a significant outbreak that began last month. The Immunization Partnership continues to monitor the situation and is collaborating with health officials in West Texas to provide resources and amplify public health warnings. This tragic loss underscores the urgent need for vaccination and community-wide efforts to prevent further spread of this highly contagious disease, the release said. The Immunization Partnership release stated it is the only organization in Texas dedicated to restoring trust in vaccines through education and public engagement. "Our thoughts are with those grieving this unimaginable loss. Measles is not just another illness — it can have devastating consequences, especially for infants and children, those with weakened immune systems, and individuals who cannot be vaccinated, TIP Executive Director Terri Burke stated in the release. "No one should have to endure such a preventable loss, and this moment serves as a painful reminder of the importance of protecting one another through vaccination," Burke added. The MMR (Mumps, Measles, Rubella) vaccine is a two-dose regimen. The first is recommended between 12 months and 15 months. And the second is typically given between 4 and 6 years of age. Generally speaking, children with weakened immune systems, those with allergies to a component of the vaccine and pregnant women, she said. Children under 5, unvaccinated, pregnant women, those with weakened immune systems including those with HIV/AIDs are the most vulnerable to the disease, Burke said. Measles is not just a rash — it can cause pneumonia, blindness, and as we have now seen death, she said. The county where it started has a nearly 18 percent non-medical exemption rate — meaning parents have filed a notarized form with their schools to opt their children out of required vaccines. Only 82 percent of kindergartners were vaccinated last school year — public health officials agree that it takes a 95 percent rate to have herd immunity. Parents have been urged to keep their unvaccinated children at home for 21 days but that is obviously difficult for many families, Burke said. In 2000, the U.S. announced it was eradicated. But at the same time, a now debunked paper (the author was ultimately stripped of his medical license) was published saying measles vaccine caused autism. Cases started popping up in Gaines County and Burke said it has now spread to neighboring counties including Lea County, N.M. Asked if the cause of the outbreak was at least partly to do with the anti-vaccination movement that came to prominence during COVID Burke said the anti-vaccination movement has been around for a while, "but yes, the rhetoric that surrounded the COVID pandemic and subsequent vaccines exacerbated the already growing anti-vax movement." The United Family issued a news release Wednesday stating that United Supermarkets, Amigos, and Market Street Pharmacies in Texas can administer the Measles, Mumps & Rubella (MMR) vaccine in store. With convenient locations and evening and weekend hours, the pharmacy can provide an alternative to doctor's offices. According to the Texas Department of State Health Services, 124 measles cases have been identified with symptom onset within the last three weeks. Eighteen of the patients have been hospitalized and there has been one death of a school-age child. Due to the highly contagious nature of this disease, additional cases are likely to occur in Gaines County and the surrounding communities, the release said. For vaccines, the release said: — No appointment is necessary. Guests can walk in to talk to a pharmacist and request an MMR vaccine. — Pharmacists can vaccinate children age 13 and under with a prescription from their doctor. They can vaccinate children 14 and up without a prescription. — Post-exposure prophylaxis is available for adults within 3 days of exposure.
