Month: July 2026

Gabrielle Lopez

UPDATE (July 16, 2026) — A high-speed pursuit Wednesday morning involved a Texas Department of Public Safety Trooper and U.S. Border Patrol, according to a DPS news release.

At 6:33 a.m., a DPS trooper tried to stop a red Jeep on I-10 in Hudspeth County, and the suspected driver — 31-year-old Adrian Leonardo Sandoval — failed to yield, prompting the pursuit.

During the chase, Sandoval allegedly drove over 100 miles per hour, according to DPS. He allegedly passed traffic on the improved shoulder and hit another vehicle.

The pursuit ended when Sandoval reportedly crashed into a canal.

Authorities arrested Sandoval after being pulled out of the canal. A woman was also in the Jeep and sent to a hospital.

Authorities charged Sandoval with evading arrest or detention causing serious body injury, reckless driving, fail to stop/render aid and human smuggling.

Officials are still investigating the incident.

SOCORRO, Texas (KVIA) — The Texas Department of Public Safety confirmed a crash in Socorro Wednesday. It happened near North Loop Drive.

Our ABC-7 photographer reported seeing a vehicle crashed into a canal near Bauman Road. Border Patrol, state troopers and Socorro police were at the scene.

ABC-7 reached out to DPS, and it said the scene was still active at 7:39 a.m. The department said it will have more details later Wednesday.

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Gabrielle Lopez

UPDATE (July 18, 2026, 10:13 a.m. ) — The El Paso County Sheriff’s Office said Saturday morning that water has been restored at the Downtown Detention Facility.

The following is a statement from the Sheriff’s Office about the restoration of water service at the facility:

“El Paso County Sheriff Oscar Ugarte is happy to report that water service at the Downtown Detention Facility has been fully restored.

As of this afternoon, all floors within the facility have fully functioning showers, toilets, and sinks. Maintenance personnel have completed inspections throughout the facility and confirmed that the water system is operating normally with adequate pressure.

The Sheriff’s Office will notify the Texas Commission on Jail Standards and the U.S. Marshals Service that the water interruption has been resolved and that the facility has returned to normal operations.

The El Paso County Sheriff’s Office extends its sincere appreciation to the El Paso County Commissioners Court, County Judge Ricardo Samaniego, County Administration, El Paso Water, the Texas Division of Emergency Management, and our maintenance personnel for their continued support and assistance throughout this incident. Their collaboration and commitment were instrumental in restoring normal operations while ensuring the safety and well-being of those in our care.”

This comes after a water main break in the facility, which was reported by officials back on Wednesday, July 15, caused water service issues to several of the floors in the detention center.

UPDATE (July 17, 2026, 1:43 p.m.): The El Paso County Sheriff’s Office said crews are still working to restore full service as of Friday morning. Crews made progress restoring pressure to some of the floors at the Downtown Detention Facility.

“As of this morning, crews continue working to restore full water service throughout the Downtown Detention Facility.

Late last night, water pressure had been restored as high as the ninth floor but was unable to reach the upper levels. As of this morning, hot water has reached the eleventh floor, while cold water service is currently available only through the fourth floor.

This morning, maintenance personnel replaced the facility’s backflow preventer, a component that had not previously been replaced. Crews are now working to gradually repressurize the facility’s water system to determine whether the repair restores consistent water service throughout the building. El Paso Water continues to work alongside our maintenance team throughout this process.

To ensure inmate needs continue to be met, some inmates from the upper floors have been relocated to the second floor to access showers, and those efforts will continue throughout the day. Staff are also continuing to manually deliver water to housing areas for sanitation and other essential needs. Laundry operations will continue this weekend at the Jail Annex to ensure inmates have access to clean clothing and bedding.

Throughout this incident, inmates continue to receive bottled drinking water and meals on their regular schedule. We appreciate the continued assistance of El Paso Water and our maintenance personnel as they work to safely restore full water service to the facility.”

UPDATE (July 17, 2026): The El Paso County Sheriff’s Office on Thursday said maintenance replaced affected parts that disrupted water service at the Downtown El Paso detention facility after a water main break. Crews are still trying to fully restore water pressure.

EPCSO sent the following statement:

“The El Paso County Sheriff’s Office continues working to restore full water service at the Downtown Detention Facility following issues with the building’s internal water system.

After identifying the suspected faulty components, maintenance personnel removed and replaced the affected parts. During the repair process, the removed components were found to have significant corrosion and sediment buildup, which is believed to have contributed to the loss of water pressure.

Throughout the incident, the Sheriff’s Office has implemented contingency measures to ensure the health and safety of inmates and staff. Texas Division of Emergency Management (TDEM), El Paso Water, and the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office have supplied pallets of bottled drinking water to the facility. El Paso Water has also provided a potable water trailer to supplement the facility’s water needs.

Inmates have continued receiving meals on their regular schedule and have been provided bottled drinking water and buckets of water to maintain toilet operations. Academy cadets have been assisting with distributing water to all floors of the facility. Additionally, approximately 63 female general population inmates were temporarily relocated to the Jail Annex to reduce the immediate demand on the water system while crews work to restore pressure.

At this time, all suspected faulty components have been replaced, and maintenance personnel are working to rebuild pressure throughout the facility. If sufficient pressure can be restored on the lower floors, the facility’s booster pumps are expected to deliver water to the upper levels. If those efforts are unsuccessful, replacement of the booster pumps will be the next step.

The U.S. Marshals Service visited the facility to assess conditions for the federal inmates housed at the jail and determined that the temporary measures currently in place are acceptable. The Texas Commission on Jail Standards (TCJS) was also notified of the situation and has advised that the Sheriff’s Office’s efforts to ensure inmates continue receiving water are acceptable.

Our personnel remain committed to ensuring the safety and well-being of everyone in the facility. Staff will continue manually distributing water and addressing operational needs while repairs continue. We appreciate the public’s patience as we work to restore normal operations as quickly and safely as possible.”

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) — The El Paso County Sheriff’s Office said a water main break has been causing water service issues at the El Paso County Downtown Detention Facility since Tuesday.

EPCSO said the water main has since been repaired, and the facility is dealing with a pressure regulator issue. The sheriff’s office’s Maintenance Division is working to restore service.

Additionally, EPCSO said inmates have been able to use the restroom and access drinking water as needed. Portable restrooms were brought in for staff, and El Paso Water delivered bottled water for inmates, according to a news release.

“The safety and well-being of those in our custody and our staff remain our top priority, and we appreciate the assistance from our partner agencies as we work to resolve the issue,” EPCSO said.

The Texas Division of Emergency Management helped secure resources to take in water during repairs, according to the sheriff’s office.

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Nina Gallegos

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) – A Segundo Barrio mural honoring Hispanic heritage has been painted over. The mural — which stood on the side of a clothing store at 701 S El Paso St. — disappeared three years after its creation.

El Paso native Kelsey Kilcrease painted the mural. She said it made a difference to the people that lived in the community.

“We had so many people that would walk by every day and just tell us, either in English or in Spanish, just how meaningful it was to have something that felt just like it honored their culture, and that they loved that their neighborhood was being brightened up,” Kilcrease said.

She said it was her favorite mural to work on because of its impact.

Now, there’s a blank space left where the piece she worked so hard on used to be.

Kilrease found out about her mural’s disappearance through an artist who painted to the right of it, Adrian Lopez. Lopez sent her a video of his mural intact.

To the left was a blank space.

“I immediately just felt, I don’t know, I felt weird. I felt sad. I felt kind of angry. And I’d say most of all, I just felt caught off guard. And didn’t quite understand what had happened,” Kilcrease said.

Kilcrease took to social media to honor the experience she had painting the mural. When scrolling through old photos and videos of the process, she realized her memories and connections will outlast the art.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Kelsey Rose Kilcrease (@kelskilla)

“I just remembered how meaningful it was. And that to me, like that was what I needed, was just to like, remember the meaning behind it and really what I gained from it. So yeah, I still, I don’t know what happened or who did it. And I’m getting to a place where I think that’s okay,” Kilcrease said.

Kilcrease was one of four artists recruited for the SHEIN X Art Discover Project during Hispanic Heritage Month in 2023. SHEIN, a clothing company, commissioned several El Paso artists to paint murals, including Kilcrease and Lopez.

During the process, the two formed a special bond.

“Our art artistic styles just messed really well. Our personalities meshed, and we decided to just merge our murals into one big image to like, just really look celebratory and colorful,” Kilcrease said.

She said they only had four days to complete the mural after sanding down the wall.

Kilcrease is based in Albuquerque now, but she is originally from El Paso. The mural was a way for her to reconnect with her home.

“I’ll always have a special place in my heart for El Paso and its people. And since I had moved away for school and whatnot, it was just nice to like, feel that reconnection and to feel really like rooted and grounded with that mural,” Kilcrease said.

Kilcrease based the mural off an image of her baby sister, someone she said she uses as her muse in a lot of her artwork.

“When I was contacted about painting the mural, and the prompt was, you know, to paint something celebratory for Hispanic Heritage Month, I don’t know, I just thought, like, I think it’d be great to just, you know, paint my sister, who to me is like a symbol of our family, of being proud, being Hispanic and just joyful,” Kilcrease said.

Kilcrease said her and her sister were both sad about what had happened, but surprised to see all of the support from the community on her Instagram post. People told her walking by the mural every day brightened their day.

“It just like it made me feel happy. And so, like, I’ll be sad that it’s gone now. While it is a sad sentiment, it made me feel nice that like it was still causing like a positive impact,” Kilcrease said.

ABC-7 reached out to SHEIN to ask why the mural was painted over.

Kilcrease said she chooses to believe who ever did it didn’t have bad intentions, and doesn’t want them to be targeted for it.

In the future, Kilcrease said she hopes to paint another mural again and collaborate with Lopez.

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Max Zepeda

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) — As much of South Texas has bared the brunt of torrential rainfall this week, a tornado also touched down in Northwest San Antonio Wednesday morning.

Some El Pasoans in San Antonio told ABC-7 about experiencing the disaster first hand.

Alexa Aguilar, an architecture student at University of Texas at San Antonio, and her twin sister Daphne were in the heart of the storm, as was much of campus.

“It was like out of, like a scary movie. Like, honestly, I was shaking,” said Alexa.

ABC-7’s Max Zepeda spoke with both students about what they witnessed and the lessons they learned while looking for their friends within their apartment complex, who will now be recovering from the harsh weather for weeks.

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