This Week

West Texas Utilities Company locked the door of its local office Monday afternoon, bringing an end to a 73-year presence on Kearney Street.

Recent personnel changes within the company and deregulation of the state’s electric industry prompted the closure of the Clarendon office.

Brown paper now covers the front windows of the WTU office, and the interior is bare to the walls since the company sold off the last of its appliance merchandise.

The utility, now called AEP-WTU, will continue to occupy the back of the building, and servicemen Leon Ward and Mike Proffitt will still use it as their base of operations.

WTU has provided electric services to here since 1927 when the Abilene company purchased the interests of Central Power & Light. WTU acquired the local ice plant, office, and docks in that transaction.

For many years, WTU also operated an office in Hedley. That location was closed in 1977.

With the closure of the Clarendon office, electric customers must dial a toll-free number for service of any kind. AEP-WTU says the Customer Service Center in Corpus Christi will provide prompt attention to requests from local customers.

For more information, call AEP-WTU at  1-888-216-3523.

Texans will have the opportunity to save some money during the second annual Sales Tax Holiday this weekend, August 4-6.

During the Sales Tax Holiday, most clothing and footwear priced at less than $100 is exempt from state and local sales taxes. Though the holiday is timed to help families outfit their children to go back to school, the tax break isn’t limited to children’s wear.

Terry Askew, owner of Saye’s in Clarendon, says she’s looking forward to the holiday.

“It did bring in business last year,” Askew said. “The timing is nice for back to school clothes, and it’s a great opportunity for people to buy early for Christmas.”

Askew said her store will match the sales tax break by taking an additional 8.25 percent off everything in the store.

Also this year, the state has expanded the holiday to include layaway items.

“Eligible clothes and shoes placed in layaway during the Sales Tax Holiday weekend may be taken out at a later date tax-free,” Texas Comptroller Carole Keeton Rylander said. “This will allow hard-working Texas families with limited budgets to pay for their purchases a little bit at a time and still receive the tax break.

“The tax exemption applies to school uniforms, work uniforms, pajamas, robes and slippers, socks and underwear — and even jackets and sweaters if you can find any in the stores during this 100 degree weather.

“The tax exemption does not apply to accessories, jewelry and watches, or items that are carried, such as wallets, handbags, briefcases, and backpacks,” Rylander said.

During the first Sales Tax Holiday last year, Texas families spent more than $400 million dollars on tax-exempt clothing and shoes, saving more than $32 million in sales taxes. This year, the savings are expected to add up to $37 million.

For a list of items that are tax exempt and non-exempt during the Sales Tax Holiday, visit  the Comptroller’s website

The Clarendon Board of Aldermen met in regular session July 25 in the Board Room of City Hall.

Gary McKay of McKay Engineering discussed the need to replace more sewer lines in the upcoming grant application.

Donna Hicks gave an annual report for the Local Housing Authority, and Larry Hicks explained the present project of adding geothermal heating and cooling systems to the housing units.

Mayor Tex Selvidge presented the request regarding the Animal Control officer in the absence of County Judge Jack Hall. The county is wanting to use the city’s Animal Control personnel for use in other parts of the county. The aldermen tabled the issue until more information is provided.

Lynn McKinney addressed the board concerning the condition of Sims Street near his home. The street at that point covers one block between US 287 and Broncho Stadium, and McKinney said it is in very bad condition and requested it be paved. The aldermen took no action but assured McKinney it would be looked at.

Librarian Carolyn Blackerby presented changes she wanted made to the Library Board by-laws. The aldermen approved changing the number of members on the advisory board from five to a minimum of five.

Mary Douglas and Sharon Knox were approved as new Library Board members, and Carolyn Moffett and Amy Auker were selected as alternates. Jim Douglas was approved as the lay representative for the Texas Panhandle Library System.

The water, sewer, and sanitation ordinance was discussed and changes were made.

The trash collection for the county was discussed. The mayor will speak to the county at the next commissioners’ court meeting.

City Superintendent Jim Roberts gave an update on the City Park. The sprinkler system has been installed, and the restroom will be ready soon.

WASHINGTON, DC – For the third year in a row, US Rep. Mac Thornberry (R-Clarendon) has been appointed to the Conference Committee for the FY 2001 Defense Authorization Act. 

Thornberry was appointed to the Committee by Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert.

The purpose of the Committee is to resolve differences in the House and Senate versions of the FY 2001 Defense Authorization Act, which were passed by each chamber earlier this year.

“I think this is an opportunity to do some good for our area and the Nation,” Thornberry stated.

Thornberry also serves as Chairman of the Special Oversight Panel on Department of Energy Reorganization and is Vice Chairman of the Armed Services Committee’s Military Procurement Subcommittee.

Two men narrowly escaped with their lives last week when Hedley was the site of two separate train collisions within 24 hours.

Fire fighters look over the remains of Rodney McCracken’s semi-truck. The Hereford man was hit by a BNSF train last Thursday at Hedley.
Enterprise Digital Photo
 
The first accident happened Thursday, July 20. Reports say an eastbound Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) train struck a semi-truck driven by 30-year-old Rodney McCracken of Hereford.

McCracken was southbound on McDougal Street at about 9 a.m. when the impact occurred, rending the truck from its trailer and dragging it more than 100 feet.

The driver of the truck was taken to Northwest Texas Hospital where he was treated and released, reports say.

Driver inattention was given as the cause of the Hereford man’s accident.
 
Hedley man James Edward Potts suffered a broken neck after his Chevy pickup was hit by a BNSF train Friday at Hedley.
Enterprise Digital Photo
 
On Friday, July 21, another accident happened on the opposite side of Hedley at about 8 a.m.

DPS trooper Daniel Hawthorne said 45-year-old James Edward Potts of Hedley was eastbound on Railroad Street when he turned right on Bailey Street to cross the BNSF tracks.

An eastbound train struck Potts’ Chevrolet extended cab pickup in the passenger side door. The bed of the truck was torn loose and came to rest down the track from the mangled cab.

Potts is blind in his right eye, Hawthorne said, and he probably didn’t see the train coming.

The Hedley man was flown to Northwest Texas Hospital by Lifestar and was still in serious but stable condition Monday afternoon, a relative said.

Potts suffered a broken neck in the accident.

A major power failure last week plunged most of Clarendon into darkness and threatened the water supply for towns as far south as Crowell.

 
Workers for AEP-West Texas Utilities took down the historic WTU sign from the front of their Kearney Street office in Clarendon last week in preparation for closing the office later this month. In an unrelated incident four hours after the sign came down, the city was plunged into darkness when a AEP-WTU mobile substation failed.
Enterprise Digital Photo.
 
A mobile substation owned by AEP-West Texas Utilities (AEP-WTU) went down last Tuesday, July 18, at 6:49 p.m. Power was not restored for nearly eight hours.

A spokesman for AEP-WTU said Clarendon’s substation was undergoing routine maintenance, which involved cleaning and upgrading the transformers and insulators, when workers experienced a problem with the plant’s voltage regulator.

“The problem with the voltage regulator required immediate attention,” said Linda Caton, a communications consultant for AEP-WTU.

Workers transferred the city’s electrical load to two mobile substations to make repairs on the main substation, Caton said. A failed relay in the larger 5MW mobile substation caused the power outage.

With temperatures in the high 90s, residents quickly began feeling the effects of the outage as air-conditioners stopped all over town.

Commercial activity also died as service stations were unable to pump gas, and restaurants were unable to prepare meals.

B&R Thriftway manager Buddy James said his store has backups on the cash registers that are good for only about 20 minutes. After that, the town’s only supermarket was shut down. James said Thriftway lost some meat but other stock was not affected by the blackout.

Perhaps hardest hit was Greenbelt Municipal Water Authority, which provides water for several area towns including Clarendon and Hedley. With the power out, Greenbelt’s pumps were halted.

“The water towers in Clarendon were completely out before the power came back on,” said Greenbelt’s Bobbie Kidd. “The tower in Hedley was half empty, and the two million gallon ground storage tank east of Hedley was totally empty.”

Kidd said several miles of water pipeline to Childress were empty also.

“It affected us all the way to Crowell,” he said.

After the power came back on, Greenbelt began pumping non-stop to get caught up. Storage facilities were not filled until Sunday, Kidd said.

“We lost over nine hours of pumping time Tuesday night and had lost two hours during an outage the day before.”

Kidd said this was the second longest power failure Greenbelt Water had experienced in his 25 years with the authority. But, he said, the previous outage was in the winter, and there wasn’t a problem with running out of water.

Greenbelt has back up power only for its offices, and Kidd said purchasing a generator to run even one of the plant’s three-phase pumps is financially unfeasible.

Other back up power supplies around town kept critical functions online.

Chief Deputy Butch Blackburn said the generator at the Sheriff’s Department did get hot, but a box fan was enough to keep it running throughout the blackout.

GTE’s switching station has battery backups that power the city’s phones. Bob Curtis, a spokesman with GTE, said the company did have a generator in Memphis ready to move if it had been required.  However, the batteries still had several hours of power when the electricity came back on, he said.

Donley County Hospital District Administrator Alan Graham said the emergency generator at the Medical Center Nursing Home never missed a beat. The diesel-fueled generator provided priority power to critical systems without any problems.

A new backup generator that powers the countywide repeater tower also kicked in.  The repeater tower provides communications among local law enforcement, fire department, and emergency medical personnel.

The tower’s generator did “sound funny,” according to Graham. But it carried the load during the outage just fine.

“Emergency personnel were never out of communication,” he said.

Graham said the tower generator was disconnected over the weekend so it could be recalibrated but that it was back online by Monday afternoon.

Caton said AEP-WTU crewmen worked diligently to bring the city’s substation back online. Ten transmission service techs and three distribution service techs were in town working on the problem. Five dispatchers in Abilene were on the job also.

Power was restored at 2:34 a.m. Wednesday.

A smaller 3.75 MW mobile substation continued to operated normally during the outage and kept the lights on in parts of the north and east sides of town.

Nickless Devin (left) participating in activities at the Johnson Space Center in Houston.
Nickless Devin of Clarendon was one of 25 Texas high school students who spent a week at the Johnson Space Center in Houston using their math and science skills to design a human mission to Mars.

Devin was nominated by State Senator Tom Haywood to be a part of a unique educational experience called the Texas Aerospace Scholars Program.  The program is the result of a partnership between NASA – JSC and the State of Texas to encourage students to pursue engineering options in school.

After being nominated, Devin began the program with distance and web-based learning experiences that culminated in a one-week long visit to JSC in Houston.  Devin and his teammates used their imagination, coupled with math and science skills, to develop a plan for how humans will get to Mars and then learn to live and work on the planet’s surface.

Their expertise came from a series of classroom sessions, field trips, hands-on projects, and assistance from JSC employee-mentors who provided them with insight into the challenges of living and working in a hostile environment.

For more information on the TAS Program, visit the website at http://aerospacescholars.jsc.nasa.gov/

On July 8, thirteen area girl scouts with five leaders left on a trip to Washington and Canada. 

The girl scouts were Lacie Fincher of Wellington; Jessica Noland, Whitney Rodgers, Caitlin Smith, Ashley Stansbury, and Erika Thompson, all of Amarillo; and Laura Dziedzic, Meghan Gribble, Valerie Taylor, Lydia Hartman, Melissa McAnear, Kelsey McQuien, and Treva Rowland, all of Clarendon.  The girls along with Debbie Oliver, Julie Hartman, Medina Gribble,  Becky McAnear, and Linda Rowland have been planning this trip for over a year and a half. 

Their first stop was in Seattle, Washington, for two days where they explored the underground city in Pioneer Square, the Pike’s Market, and the Space Needle.  From Seattle they headed for Vancouver, stopping on the way to wander through the Minter Gardens.  Once they reached Vancouver, they visited Gastown and rode the sky train.  They also crossed the Capilano Bridge, which more of the leaders were afraid of crossing than the girls.  From Vancouver the girls went to Victoria.  The highlight of the entire trip was the Empress Tea Room in Victoria.  They experienced the true form of an afternoon English tea. 

The following day they visited the Craigdarroch Castle and went whale watching.  This was the first for all of the girls and a very exciting experience, especially when one of the whales came very close to the Zodiac they were in. 

On Friday, they rode a ferry back to the states and drove down to the Hoh Rainforest, the only rainforest in the United States.  The last day before flying back, they visited Mt. St. Helen, which exploded twenty years ago.

Together, they learned about our past, had fun, and developed a friendship that will last for many years.