McKinley County was one of three counties recognized with a 2022 Risk Awareness Program Award during the 2022 New Mexico Counties 85th Annual Conference on June 16 in Albuquerque.

The RAP is a workplace risk control educational program that aims to reduce the frequency and severity of county claims through better risk awareness and safety practices.

McKinley County has been participating in the program for 14 years now. The county won an award acknowledging this achievement, along with another that celebrated the fact that the county’s auto claims have gone down by 24%.

The program helps train county employees on what to do in case of an emergency.

“It’s just good stuff to...

City approves funding for ongoing tourism promotion

Gallup’s primary guardians of tourism are funded for another year, after the city council passed a raft of tourism-related measures that will keep the Gallup-McKinley County Chamber of Commerce, Gallup Cultural Center and airport services humming.

Tourism is big business for Gallup, accounting for about a third of the area’s above-ground economy, according to Chamber Executive Director Bill Lee. That estimate probably falls short because of the money that changes hands in the underground artisan economy.

The council approved a $120,000 contract with the Chamber to keep the Visitor Information Center open year-round ($75,000)...

A man was arrested after he allegedly hit a young girl outside of a local gift shop and threatened the store owner with a gun.

On June 23, around 1:14 pm, Gallup Police Officer Darius Johnson was dispatched to 1506 S. Second St., Crazy Joe’s Store, because a man reportedly had a handgun.

When he arrived at the scene, Johnson met with the manager of the store, who said a man wearing khaki-colored pants, a gray shirt, and red sunglasses pulled a gun on him. The manager stated that he saw the man, who was later identified as Armondo Eddie, hitting a young girl, and yelling at her.

According to Johnson’s report, the manager walked to the front of his business and told Eddie, 38, to...

Gallup Officer Jarad Albert was parked in his patrol car near Ellis Tanner Trading Company, 1980 State Hwy. 602, about 7:11 pm on June 22 when a witness approached him and reported a drunk driver.

The witness said the driver was heading northbound into town, and that the vehicle was a silver car with heavy damage to the passenger side. He said the car almost hit him, and that the woman driving tried to hide her face as she drove away.

Albert started looking for this alleged drunk driver, and while he was driving past Speedway South, 1730 S. Second St., he noticed a car that matched the description parked at one of the gas pumps. He met Kayla Brown, 27, who he noticed had bloodshot...