Latest news with #TexarkanaPoliceDepartment
Yahoo
05-04-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Catastrophic rainfall triggers Flash Flood Emergencies as severe weather outbreak drags into fourth day
CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. -- Life-threatening flooding and dangerous severe weather pummeled large swaths of the nation's heartland again Friday night for the third night in a row, and Saturday is shaping up to be just as bad, if not worse, for some areas with worries of heavy rainfall not seen in generations. In a sign of what could be yet to come for many this weekend, torrential rains stalled over southeastern Missouri and the Texarkana region of northeastern Texas and southwestern Arkansas on Friday night, triggering multiple Flash Flood Emergency warnings - the National Weather Service's most dire flooding alert. In Missouri, tens of thousands in Cape Girardeau and Van Buren were under flooding emergency Friday night. Cape Girardeau reported over 3 inches of rain in just over 90 minutes late Friday evening in one burst, with emergency managers reporting at least 10 roads covered in water and ongoing water rescues. Farther south, forecasters issued similar dire warnings for Texarkana, where 2-4 inches of rain fell, and water rescues were ongoing. Texarkana police were responding to stranded motorists on Friday night across the Texas city during the Flash Flooding Emergency. "We're just gonna lay it out there … If you don't have a darn good reason for being out (like one that involves a visit to the emergency room), please stay home and off the roads!! This is not just another Friday night in Texarkana," the Texarkana Police Department wrote on Facebook. Flood Watch, Warning And Emergency: Here Are The Differences That Could Save Your Life Earlier in the day, officials in Hopkinsville, Kentucky, reported 60% of their downtown area was underwater. Meanwhile, dozens of Tornado Warnings wailed across the Lower Mississippi Valley and into northeastern Texas as a stalled frontal system spawned a renewed round of severe thunderstorms and super cells. Significant damage to structures was reported around Clarksville, Texas, but there were no immediate reports of injuries. Spotters reported to the National Weather Service office in Shreveport, Louisiana, that a bottling plant in Hawkins, Texas, was damaged by a nearby tornado strike. The tornado was part of a series of supercells tracked by National Weather Service meteorologists across East Texas. It followed nearly the same path as the twister that struck the plant in 2016. There have been no reports so far of any reports of injuries from Friday night's storms. But at least eight people have died from the multiple severe weather and flooding events through the week as a massive storm system remained stuck over the central U.S. A 9-year-old boy was killed Friday morning in Frankfort, Kentucky when he was swept away by floodwaters on his way to school. Seven others have died from tornadoes and severe storms -- five of them in Tennessee, according to state officials. Deadly Tornado Outbreak, Flooding Ravage Several States In Central Us The dire flooding threat stretches through the weekend. Repeating rounds of rainfall will lead to potentially historic amounts, particularly focused on the lower Ohio Valley, mid-South and Ozarks, according to the FOX Forecast Center. Storm total rain amounts of 5-15 inches are likely, and some locations may see up to 20 inches. Rainfall rates of 2 inches per hour or more will lead to rapid-onset flash flooding, leaving people caught off guard by the speed of water rise. Since Monday, over 9 inches of rain has fallen in Lewisburg, Kentucky, with just over 7 inches in Bowling Green, nearly 7 inches in Memphis and nearly 4 inches in Nashville. A category 4 risk for flash flooding – the highest level on the warning system – remains in effect for more than 5 million people through early Sunday morning. That includes large cities like Little Rock, Jonesboro, and Memphis. Nashville is just outside that zone in a level 3 flash flood risk. "Saturday is the day that concerns me the most right now," said Meteorologist Ryan Husted with the National Weather Service in Nashville. "Because we have time for our atmosphere to recharge, which means we have the potential for dangerous severe thunderstorms once again. In addition, our ground is saturated -- that means any rain that falls will run off and it's going to cause flooding. I'm very confident that Saturday is a dangerous day for flash flooding going into Saturday night." Flood Watches are in effect for nearly a 1,000-mile stretch that includes parts of 12 states. The amount of rain will also trigger flooding in areas that do not usually flood, according to NWS forecasters. In addition to flash flooding, extensive river flooding is feared. NOAA's Water Prediction Center has placed 45 rivers in the region forecast to reach major flood stage, with over 110 others expected to reach at least moderate flood stage. "Impacts from this event will be significant and may be historic," said meteorologists with NWS Paducah. Even long after the rain ends on Sunday, the flood impacts will be far from over. All the water will continue to surge into progressively larger streams and rivers across the region. These, in turn, will rise through the weekend and even into next week. Houses that did not flood when the rain was falling may find themselves underwater days later. As the water eventually drains into the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers in the days and weeks ahead, some flooding is likely downstream. Waters in Baton Rouge, Mississippi may reach the highest level in four years later this month, according to the FOX Forecast Center. As has also been the case much of the week, multiple rounds of severe storms producing damaging winds and a few tornadoes are forecast for Saturday and Saturday night from the Sabine Valley into the mid-Mississippi and Ohio Valleys. Some strong tornadoes (EF-2+), very large hail, and severe gusts above 70 mph will be possible. The day will be active right from the start, as storms line up from northeast Texas up into the Ohio Valley. Flooding rain, quarter-size hail, and a few 60+ mph wind gusts will be the primary concerns. As the day goes on, a notable risk of tornadoes will be in place across northern Louisiana, central Mississippi, and far northeast Texas. Finally, a notable increase in the threat for damaging non-tornadic winds will exist from western Tennessee down as far south as the Houston metro. Wind gusts from these storms may top 75 mph. Overall, NOAA's Storm Prediction Center has a large swath of the Lower Mississippi Valley into the Tennessee and Ohio Valleys – many of the same areas simultaneously under threat of historic flash flooding. The line of storms will charge across Mississippi and Louisiana overnight with primarily a damaging wind threat. A couple of tornadoes will be possible as well. Severe weather will continue into early on Sunday and move across parts of the Gulf Coast states and Tennessee article source: Catastrophic rainfall triggers Flash Flood Emergencies as severe weather outbreak drags into fourth day
Yahoo
01-04-2025
- Yahoo
Texarkana man arrested after hit-and-run sends man to hospital
TEXARKANA, Texas (KETK) – The Texarkana Police Department has arrested a 32-year-old man for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon in connection to a Sunday night hit-and-run. Drugs, gun, stolen vehicle recovered after chase ends in Henderson Texarkana PD said detectives used video from nearby cameras to determine that a man was walking through a church parking lot in the 300 block of W. 25th Street at around 6 p.m. on Sunday when a silver Kia left the road and accelerated before hitting him. The man who was hit by the Kia was found on Monday morning, across the street from where he was hit, at one of the doors to Highland Park Elementary, according to Texarkana PD. He had severe injuries and was taken to a local ICU where he's currently in critical condition. A Texarkana PD detective was canvassing a neighborhood just four blocks away from the crash scene when officials said they found a heavily-damaged Kia at the residence of Patrick Cridell, Jr., 32. Texarkana PD said their investigation progressed enough to arrest Cridell for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. Cridell was then booked into the Bi-State Jail. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
27-03-2025
- Yahoo
Texas man busted by Tesla 'sentry mode' after allegedly ramming 4-wheeler into multiple vehicles
A Texas man was arrested after allegedly damaging multiple Teslas across the city of Texarkana. The Texarkana Police Department announced on Facebook that Demarqeyun Cox, 33, was arrested for allegedly ramming a "mini four-wheeler" into several Tesla vehicles. Police are working to see which reports of Teslas being damaged could be linked to Cox. The suspect is currently charged with one count of felony criminal mischief and failure to identify. He is currently being held on a $105,000 bond, according to local NBC affiliate KETK-TV. Texarkana Police Department Public Information Officer Shawn Vaughn told Fox News Digital that officers have linked Cox to multiple instances of vandalism, but they're being kept to one charge because authorities consider it to be "one criminal episode." Fbi Launches Task Force To Crack Down On Violent Tesla Attacks, Mitigate Threats "Basically, you know, several incidents that happened within a very short period of time there. So, it's one charge which, you know, enhances the charge essentially to a felony because each of those individually increases cumulatively, rather increases the dollar amount of the damage there. So, you know that that gets it to the felony level [of] about two or three," Vaughn told Fox News Digital. Read On The Fox News App Vaughn also said that the suspect allegedly used an object to scratch the word "Elon" onto two different vehicles. Despite this, police still have not confirmed whether the attack was politically motivated. Footage from a damaged Tesla outside a Chinese buffet restaurant allegedly caught Cox in the act. Tesla vehicles have a "Sentry Mode" feature that acts as a surveillance system. When in this mode, the vehicle's cameras and sensors are able to record activity around it. "Think of Sentry Mode as an intelligent vehicle security system that alerts you when it detects possible threats nearby," according to the Tesla Model 3 owner's manual. How Tesla 'Sentry Mode' Busts Attackers, And How Owners Can Enable It According to police, they received another report of a damaged Tesla after Cox's has been an uptick in attacks on Tesla vehicles in recent months amid growing protests against CEO Elon Musk's work with the Trump administration. Tesla vehicles and dealerships have been vandalized and damaged in several states and even in Canada. The Trump administration has started cracking down on the vandals, calling the uptick in attacks "domestic terrorism." So far, three suspects have been charged in connection with "the violent destruction of Tesla properties," according to the Department of Justice. The defendants face charges that carry a minimum of five years in prison, but could go up to 20 years. "The days of committing crimes without consequence have ended," Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a statement. "Let this be a warning: if you join this wave of domestic terrorism against Tesla properties, the Department of Justice will put you behind bars." When asked whether he could see Cox's case being taken up by the DOJ, Vaughn said, "If they would want to pursue it, I'm sure that the department would share the information with them."Original article source: Texas man busted by Tesla 'sentry mode' after allegedly ramming 4-wheeler into multiple vehicles
Fox News
27-03-2025
- Fox News
Texas man busted by Tesla 'sentry mode' after allegedly ramming 4-wheeler into multiple vehicles
A Texas man was arrested after allegedly damaging multiple Teslas across the city of Texarkana. The Texarkana Police Department announced on Facebook that Demarqeyun Cox, 33, was arrested for allegedly ramming a "mini four-wheeler" into several Tesla vehicles. Police are working to see which reports of Teslas being damaged could be linked to Cox. The suspect is currently charged with one count of felony criminal mischief and failure to identify. He is currently being held on a $105,000 bond, according to local NBC affiliate KETK-TV. Texarkana Police Department Public Information Officer Shawn Vaughn told Fox News Digital that officers have linked Cox to multiple instances of vandalism, but they're being kept to one charge because authorities consider it to be "one criminal episode." "Basically, you know, several incidents that happened within a very short period of time there. So, it's one charge which, you know, enhances the charge essentially to a felony because each of those individually increases cumulatively, rather increases the dollar amount of the damage there. So, you know that that gets it to the felony level [of] about two or three," Vaughn told Fox News Digital. Vaughn also said that the suspect allegedly used an object to scratch the word "Elon" onto two different vehicles. Despite this, police still have not confirmed whether the attack was politically motivated. Footage from a damaged Tesla outside a Chinese buffet restaurant allegedly caught Cox in the act. Tesla vehicles have a "Sentry Mode" feature that acts as a surveillance system. When in this mode, the vehicle's cameras and sensors are able to record activity around it. "Think of Sentry Mode as an intelligent vehicle security system that alerts you when it detects possible threats nearby," according to the Tesla Model 3 owner's manual. According to police, they received another report of a damaged Tesla after Cox's has been an uptick in attacks on Tesla vehicles in recent months amid growing protests against CEO Elon Musk's work with the Trump administration. Tesla vehicles and dealerships have been vandalized and damaged in several states and even in Canada. The Trump administration has started cracking down on the vandals, calling the uptick in attacks "domestic terrorism." So far, three suspects have been charged in connection with "the violent destruction of Tesla properties," according to the Department of Justice. The defendants face charges that carry a minimum of five years in prison, but could go up to 20 years. "The days of committing crimes without consequence have ended," Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a statement. "Let this be a warning: if you join this wave of domestic terrorism against Tesla properties, the Department of Justice will put you behind bars." When asked whether he could see Cox's case being taken up by the DOJ, Vaughn said, "If they would want to pursue it, I'm sure that the department would share the information with them."
Express Tribune
27-03-2025
- Express Tribune
Texarkana man crashes mini four-wheeler into Teslas, carves 'Elon' into vehicles
A 33-year-old Texarkana man, Demarqeyun Cox, is facing felony criminal mischief charges after a wild series of Tesla attacks—caught entirely on camera. Surveillance footage shows Cox crashing a mini four-wheeler into multiple Teslas, including one outside Golden Palace restaurant, where he rammed a vehicle at full speed before speeding off. 'I was inside having lunch when my phone alerted me,' said Virita Carstaffin, the owner of one of the damaged Teslas. 'It's going to cost over $1,000 just to fix the front door.' She also confirmed she had no connection to Cox. Later that same day, officers identified Cox riding the same four-wheeler near Summerhill and New Boston roads. 'He gave a fake name, which they quickly figured out wasn't real,' said Texarkana Police Department PIO Shawn Vaughn. 'Based on the surveillance video, they knew for a fact he was the one who at least hit the initial Tesla.' But the vandalism spree didn't stop there. Authorities believe Cox also targeted Teslas at Lowe's on Walton Drive and Genesis Prime Care on College Drive—this time reportedly using a sharp object to carve the name 'Elon' into the side of the vehicles. Cox is now being held in Bi-State Jail with his bond set at $105,000. The motive remains unclear, but one thing's certain: his anti-Tesla stunt has left a bizarre mark on the city—and a few very expensive repair bills. BUSTED: Large Texas man arrested after crashing mini 4-wheeler into parked Tesla vehicles across the city of Texarkana — Breaking911 (@Breaking911) March 26, 2025
