Puerco Valley fire chief calls blaze ‘suspicious’

A fire in the area of the truck stop at I-40 exit 359 burned an old Lupton, Ariz. trading post to the ground. Known to those in the area as the Ortega Dome, it was leased from the Navajo Nation.

The Nov. 5 blaze was not the first for the Dome. About two years ago Puerco Valley Fire Chief Cliff Snyder said there was another fire there. But the building survived it. This time, it didn’t.

Snyder said by the time firefighters arrived in response to the call around 4:32 am, it was already too late to save the building. He thinks the fire is suspicious because there were no occupants and no utilities hooked up to the...

Week ending Friday, November 5, 2021

 

Melt Floods

Increased runoff from the melting of Greenland’s ice sheet is heightening the risk of global coastal flooding, according to new research. Scientists from Britain’s University of Leeds say Greenland’s runoff has risen by 21 percent over the past four decades, and has become 60 percent more erratic from one summer to the next. They found that global heating has melted 3.5 trillion tonnes of ice during that period, which flowed into the ocean. Over the past decade alone, that melt has lifted sea levels by 1 cm. The study concludes that the rising sea levels from that melt heighten the risk of flooding for coastal communities...

The City of Gallup Animal Protection Division has temporarily suspended acceptance of animals being surrendered or dropped off by owners or others, per a Nov. 15 release. Due to the COVID Pandemic, the City of Gallup Animal Protection Division was forced to suspend spay/neuter operations, which has caused a massive outbreak of litters of puppies and kittens.

 

”With the program back up and running, there is a large backlog of people requesting to have their animals sterilized,” the release states. “We are attempting to get them scheduled as soon as possible to reduce the number of unwanted animals from being surrendered or simply left at the Animal Shelter.”



The City, in...

Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham ordered that because New Mexico is at high risk for exposure or transmission of COVID-19, all individuals 18 years of age and older living or working in this state are eligible to receive a booster dose of a COVID-19 vaccine as of Nov. 12.

The newly-released Public Health Order from Department of Health Acting Secretary David R. Scrase, M. D. directs all individuals ages two years old and above to wear a mask or multi-layer cloth face covering in all indoor public settings, except when eating or drinking. This order does not prohibit any business, house of worship, non-profit entity, or other entity from imposing more stringent requirements.

It further...