Area News

Five more COVID-19 deaths were reported in Hidalgo county along with 375 new cases of the disease. The deaths included three men and two women from the cities of Hidalgo, McAllen, Mercedes and Mission and their ages ranged from theirs 60s to over the age of 70. There have now been 2,121 COVID-19 deaths in…

LJISD holds third annual Winter Coat Drive Students in need at La Joya ISD received some welcome warmth just in time for the winter season. Last Saturday Dec. 5, the La Joya Independent School District held their third annual Winter Coat Drive. Set up in a drive-thru style outside the district’s Public Information Center, the…

Facing border wall construction that could potentially make them lose 70 percent of their property, the National Butterfly Center is moving forward with plans to expand the property by 350 acres. The expansion, which could be finalized by the end of the year, would see the 100-acre property grow to 450 acres. “We can’t disclose…

The Mission CISD has partnered with Hidalgo County and Curative, Inc. to provide free coronavirus testing to anyone in the Rio Grande Valley. On Monday, a kiosk at the Tom Landry Hall of Fame Stadium (702 W. 15th St. in Mission) opened to the public. The walk-up testing center at the Mission Consolidated Independent School…

How the coronavirus pandemic feeds the pandemic of abuse Arguably, worse than the terror of traumatic abuse at the hands of a loved one is the fear that there is nowhere to turn or escape. Articles from the last nine months detail the ever-increasing issue of violence fed by a decrease of contact. They are…

A special meeting was held in Mission this week, where the council discussed the state of the Texas Citrus Fiesta again. TCF Board President Oscar Martinez and TCF Director Lisa Rivera were present at the meeting, and answered more questions for the city council as a follow-up to last week’s quorum, where the entire TCF…

A former city of Palmview council member will be filling in for a vacant seat on the council following unofficial results of Tuesday’s runoff election. Arlando “Lando” Nacianceno, custodial director for the La Joya school district, received more than 56% of the votes in the election to determine who will fill in for outgoing Palmview…

One week after announcing his resignation, Mission Housing Authority Executive Director Jaime Acevedo will remain on board with the agency through the end of the year. Acevedo, who originally set Friday, Dec. 11 as his last day, decided to stay at the agency through Thursday, Dec. 31. He made the announcement following a Monday meeting…

Hidalgo County Judge Richard F. Cortez has tested positive for COVID-19, the county announced Thursday. Cortez, 77, has worked from home for most of the pandemic and learned of his positive test after a family member tested positive, according to a statement from the county. Cortez is asymptomatic and said he is feeling fine, but…

Hidalgo County reported eight more souls lost their lives to the COVID-19 pandemic on the same day the county announced 330 new positive cases of the disease. In a Wednesday news release, the county reported that the new COVID-19 death toll now stands at 2,110 and a total of 46,449 cases of the disease. 2,517…