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ALBUQUERQUE — Girl Scouts in New Mexico will be working to help a very specific population group impacted by the devastating wildfires in the state May 14 –  animals.

Girl  Scouts will be collecting food and supplies for pets and livestock that have either been evacuated or abandoned due to the combined Hermits Peak and Calf Canyon Fires.

The public is invited to contribute dog or cat food, hay, grains, or any additional supplies that can be donated to organizations addressing this immediate need in San Miguel, Mora, and Santa Fe Counties.

“Many Girl Scout troops leapt into action to collect and deliver toiletries, food, and clothing...

Business owners, residents to benefit

WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senators Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., and Ben Ray Luján, D-N.M., and U.S. Representatives Teresa Leger Fernández, D-N.M., and Melanie Stansbury, D-N.M., introduced the Hermit’s Peak Fire Assistance Act May 11 to provide additional compensation to New Mexico residents and business owners impacted by the Hermit’s Peak Fire.

The Hermit’s Peak Fire Assistance Act would require FEMA to design and administer a program for fully compensating those who suffered personal injury, property losses, business and financial losses resulting from the Hermit’s Peak Fire.

The Hermit’s Peak Fire, which later merged with the Calf...

City: Water rate INCREASE needed to replace old pipes

If climate change isn’t a good enough reason to conserve water, hang onto your bathing cap: a stiff rate hike is on the way for Gallup water customers.

Estimates on the cost to business customers weren’t immediately available but the proposed increase, which will likely take effect on customers’ July water bills, will amount to $5.50 to $6 a month for lower-consumption residential customers, and $12 to $15 for residents who use more.

That’s on top of the sewer rate increase last year, and another  22.5% water rate hike will follow in another year. In the end, water rates will go up a little more than 50%.

The higher...

Hyatt weighs in on court of public opinion

It’s been over a month since Gallup High seniors snuck into their high school on the night of March 31, decorating the school’s commons and the principal’s office with streamers, balloons, signs, and glitter, among other things.

A lot has happened since then.

According to a criminal complaint filed by the Gallup Police, a surveillance video showed 26 people were involved in the prank. The Gallup McKinley County Schools investigation identified 25 of those people, and those students were suspended.

April 15 marked two weeks since students were suspended.

According to the district’s secondary behavior handbook, a student who has...