The measles outbreak in West Texas is worsening.
State health officials said Friday the number of confirmed cases rose to 49, up from 24 earlier in the week. The majority of those cases are in Gaines County, which borders New Mexico.
Measles cases were limited to rural areas surrounding Lubbock, the largest city in the region, until Friday afternoon, when Lubbock Public Health confirmed its first case.
The Centers for Disease Control states that it can only deploy experts to assist Texas if the state requests it, which has not yet occurred. While the CDC did provide approximately 2,000 MMR vaccine doses to Texas at the state’s request, the majority of these doses are being used to boost immunity in partially vaccinated children, rather than to vaccinate those who are completely unvaccinated.
As of the 2023-24 school year, Gaines County had one of the state’s highest vaccine exemption rates, at nearly 18%, mainly due to its large Mennonite population, a religious sect that believes in “total separation from the outside world”.
“The church isn’t the reason that they’re not vaccinated. It’s all personal choice and you can do whatever you want. It’s just that the community doesn’t go and get regular health care.” — Texas Department of State Health Services spokesperson Lara Anton
Last month, the Houston Health Department confirmed two cases of measles associated with international travel in unvaccinated Harris County residents. Those were the first Texas measles cases since 2023 and prompted a health alert on January 23.
A man is dead after a police-involved shooting in Pflugerville.
Austin firefighters responded to a blaze in South Austin near the large homeless encampment near William Cannon Drive and I-35.
Users on X have been documenting issues with homeless encampments around the city and are attempting to call out local elected officials to fix the problem.
City officials are trying to understand why AFD firefighters had trouble accessing water from hydrants early Thursday morning while battling a fire at a local pawn shop.
“Austin Water is working closely with Austin Fire (AFD), Capital Delivery Services, and TxDOT to investigate the fire hydrant issues that arose in the Rundberg Lane / IH-35 area Wednesday morning. TxDOT confirmed with Austin Water that there were no IH-35 construction impacts that would have taken hydrants out of service at that time. — Austin Water
Many fire hydrants in the area were out of service so AFD called in additional units to look for working hydrants.(KXAN-TV)
Stephon Martin Morson, a 19-year-old Austin man charged with murder in a Southeast Austin shooting, saw his bond dramatically reduced from $800,000 to just $100. (CBS Austin)
The Austin Police Association has criticized this change, calling it irresponsible.
They’re not the only ones:
Austin City Council passed a resolution Thursday banning parking in bike lanes.
Due to a $110 million budget shortfall for the 2024-25 school year, Austin ISD has implemented a hiring freeze, as announced by CFO Katrina Montgomery at a recent board meeting. (KVUE-TV)
A project first presented to Round Rock City Council in 2017, and approved for development in 2019, will finally break ground next month following years of design, planning, and incentive negotiations. (Austin Business Journal)
Frozen food manufacturer Night Hawk is planning a major expansion at its Buda facility. (Austin Business Journal)
Austin City Council appointed District 9 Council Member Zohaib Qadri, who represents UT and West Campus, to the Capital Metro Board of Directors. Qadri serves as vice chair of the Austin City Council’s Mobility Committee. (Daily Texan)
The Austin Parks Foundation is offering the free rides on Zilker Park’s Zilker Eagle Mini Train in commemoration of President’s Day on February 17.
ERCOT is projecting an 8% shortfall in its energy production by 2027. The newest report from the Electric Reliability Council of Texas outlines potential issues with the state’s power reserves. (Fox7 Austin)
It was four years ago this week.
A discussion about what’s happened since the 2021 ice storm and power grid failure and a new push to strengthen the grid with Senate Bill 6.
WEATHER
5-DAY FORECAST / AUSTIN, TEXAS
The biggest snowstorm of the season is a real possibility next week from the southern Plains to the Interstate 95 corridor in the Northeast. (AccuWeather)
In less than a month, Texas skywatchers will get a chance to witness the moon turn blood red. On the evening between March 13 and March 14, the Earth will move directly between the Sun and the full moon, our home star casting our planet’s shadow onto our natural satellite in the first total lunar eclipse since November 2022. (Chron)
A magnitude 4.9 earthquake was felt yesterday in the El Paso area.
Texas House Speaker Dustin Burrows used a Valentine’s Day message on X to reiterate his commitment to school vouchers, promising Elon Musk that the House will pass the legislation. (Austin American-Statesman)
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott acknowledged that the state’s proposed education savings account program could lead to a decrease in public school funding. (Lonestar Live)
In a significant victory for Attorney General Ken Paxton, the Texas Supreme Court dismissed the State Bar of Texas’ lawsuit regarding his efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election results, adding to his recent string of legal and political successes. (Texas Tribune)
There’s no shortage of contenders vying to be the next mayor of San Antonio.
Days after the Senate Finance Committee grilled the Texas Lottery Commission about how they handled a $95 million Lotto Texas jackpot from April 2023, new allegations surfaced about former Texas Lottery Commissioner Gary Grief’s role.
A new report alleges both SpaceX and Tesla have benefited from the labor of undocumented workers for years, as they have regularly worked at Tesla’s gigafactory in Austin. (Chron)
PODCAST: The latest episode of Texas Public Radio’s Texas Matters looks at recent “50501” protests in all fifty U.S. capitals, why migrant shelters in South Texas are nearly empty and how arts and culture are a major contributor to the state’s economy.
Listen here.
Three educators, including the principal of Newman International Academy in Arlington, have been arrested on abuse charges. Authorities are investigating whether previous allegations were ignored.
One of Texas’ Top Ten Most Wanted fugitives has been arrested in Montgomery County. (My Texas Daily)
Texas Monthly asks: What’s Wrong With Downtown Dallas? (Texas Monthly)
SPORTS
COLLEGE BASKETBALL: Kentucky vs. Texas / Moody Center / 7:00 p.m.
Texas (15-10, 4-8 SEC) vs. #15/18 Kentucky (17-7, 6-5 SEC)
Tonight’s game marks just the third all-time meeting between Texas and Kentucky and the first time the Longhorns have played host to the Wildcats in Austin.
The 8th-ranked Texas A&M Aggies play host to Arkansas this morning at 11:00 a.m.
6th-ranked Houston is on the road today at Arizona.
The 12th-ranked Texas Tech Red Raiders are in Stillwater, Oklahoma, this afternoon to take on Oklahoma State at 2:00 p.m. (Yahoo! Sports)
COLLEGE BASEBALL: The 19th-ranked University of Texas baseball team dropped its season opener to Louisville, 4-3, in extra innings Friday evening at Globe Life Field. (Texas Longhorns)
The Longhorns continue play tonight at the Shriner’s Children College Showdown in Arlington when they face Ole Miss at 7:00 p.m. (Texas Longhorns)
In the heart of Texas, 1200 members of the Homestead Heritage community have spent the past five decades working the land for their food, energy, water and livelihoods, both for their own health as well as that of the land.
