Author: KVIA

Max Zepeda

LAS CRUCES, N.M.(KVIA) — Twice in a week, former New Mexico State University basketball player Deshawndre Washington failed to appear in court for an ongoing hazing case. Washington is accused of 15 felonies tied to a hazing scandal during the 2023-23 NMSU basketball season.

Part of the season was cancelled, and NMSU’s men’s basketball coach at the time, Greg Heiar, was fired amid the allegations.

Monday, Washington failed to appear in Las Cruces for court and was later seen playing in a basketball tournament in Lebanon. His agency said conflict in the Middle East prevented him from returning to the U.S. for court.

After his absence on Monday, a judge ordered a bench warrant for his arrest.

Wednesday, he failed to answer the call to the court. That day, a judge lifted a gag order so those tied to the case can speak publicly about it.

Since Wednesday, Washington’s attorneys and his agency remained silent about his whereabouts.

Friday, ABC-7 reached out to a former U.S. Marshal to explain what’s next for Washington’s case, and what law enforcement can do to bring him back to the U.S.

ABC-7 also reached out to Washington’s representatives for comment, and while his lawyers would not provide new information, his agent Kerry Carter confirmed to ABC-7 that Washington’s agency is in the works of providing new details to TMZ.

The New Mexico Department of Justice continues to pursue the case.

Click here to follow the original article.

Gabrielle Lopez

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) — Two environmental quality reports said the Marathon El Paso refinery released harmful gasses in South-Central on Tuesday and Wednesday. One of the reports noted one of the gases released for 24 hours.

Tuesday night, residents near the refinery noticed a strong gas odor. District 2 City Representative Josh Acevedo confirmed the smell came from the Marathon refinery. He said air monitoring in the area didn’t detect any readings indicating health risks.

The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality’s reports from Wednesday said the Marathon refinery released three air contaminant compounds: 1,3-butadiene, propylene and sulfur dioxide.

According to both reports, the conversion process used in petroleum refineries (Fluid Catalytic Cracker, or FCC) had a process upset, which shut down and resulted in emissions to flare. As a response, the FCC and other process units shut down.

1,3-butadiene

The incident report said an estimated 19.1 pounds of 1,3-butadiene went into the air for two hours and 13 minutes Tuesday from 7:10-9:23 p.m.

According to the U.S. Department of Labor, 1,3-butadiene produces through the processing of petroleum and is mainly used to make synthetic rubber. It’s also found in small amounts of plastics and fuel.

It’s described to be a colorless gas with a mild gasoline-like odor. The U.S. Department of labor said low exposure may irritate the eyes, throat nose and lungs. With skin exposure, the gas may cause frostbite, the department said. Higher exposure may cause decreased blood pressure, headache, decreased pulse and fainting.

The Labor Department said it’s common to be exposed to the gas in the petroleum refining industry. Others can be exposed through polluted air near chemical, plastic or rubber facilities.

Propylene

According to the incident report, an estimated 8897.9 pounds of propylene went into the air for two hours and 13 minutes Tuesday from 7:10-9:23 p.m.

Propylene is another colorless gas with a petroleum-like odor, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration CAMEO Chemicals database.

The database said when it’s moderately concentrated in the air, it can cause dizziness, drowsiness and unconsciousness.

Sulfur dioxide

The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality’s second report said the refinery released sulfur dioxide into the air for 24 hours starting Tuesday at 7:47 p.m. An estimated 862 pounds went out, the report said.

Like the other gases released, sulfur dioxide is colorless with a strong odor. The National Park Service said the gas can threaten human and animal health. Fossil fuel combustion is one of the main sources of sulfur dioxide emissions.

NPS said sulfur dioxide irritates the skin, eyes, nose throat and lungs. The gas can also reach with other chemicals in the air and change into a particle that can get into the lugs.

Several South-Central El Paso residents told ABC-7 they felt their eyes burn Tuesday night while the gasses emitted into the air.

“I was coughing, I felt a little dizzy and nauseous,” Katrina Osborn said.

On social media, residents expressed confusion about the smells, as they didn’t know what they were in the moment. One resident said she started to reconsider moving to the area.

“I was considering buying a house around here, and that is one of the reasons why I’m having second thoughts about looking for homes around here. Because I don’t know what we’re exposed to,” Grace Torres said.

Wednesday, ABC-7 reached out to the Marathon refinery, and a spokesperson said teams addressed the situation. Again, air monitoring deployed and reportedly didn’t detect any readings that indicate health risks.

refinery report 1Download

refinery report 2Download

Click here to follow the original article.

Nichole Gomez

El Paso, TX (KVIA-TV)-Crews working on the Borderland Expressway project are about to start placing the first beams. Please plan your travel in advance.

According to TxDOT El Paso, Stan Roberts Road will be fully closed in both directions between McCombs and Martin Luther King on Tuesday and Thursday next week.

On Saturday, McCombs Road will be closed in both directions between US 54 and Stan Roberts.

All closures will happen from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.

TxDOT says the McCombs site on the Borderland Expressway in northeast El Paso is one of three locations that will get new beams in the next few weeks.

The columns and caps have been in place for months, and now the first beams are being installed.

Crews will work during the day, mostly with full road closures. Drivers should plan ahead and use detours.

On Stan Roberts Road, this site will be the first to have a beam placed, scheduled for the 11th and 13th.

Meanwhile, crews are working on the future interchange.

First, many concrete panels are being put together to form mechanically stabilized earth walls. These walls rise above the ground and show what the future elevated surface will look like.

Teams are working together on the walls, doing tasks like cleaning the forms and drilling holes in the wood. These crews are helping build the future retaining walls. The extension is designed to hold embankment material, prevent erosion, and make sure there is a smooth transition between different structures.

The beams at the future US 54 interchange will be installed last. Because the main lanes are already paved, a full closure will not be necessary for this part.

Nearby, you can see that construction has started on the future main roads of the Borderland Expressway. Paving will take place soon. If you drive along NM 213 toward MLK, you’ll notice crews are now leveling the ground since the drainage work is finished.

TxDOT says if you travel on US 54, McCombs Road, MLK Avenue, or Stan Roberts Road, please keep these closures in mind when planning your route.

CLOSURES: (Courtesy: TxDOT EL PASO)

I-10 Widening West 2 Project

Saturday, August 8

3 a.m. – 3 p.m.

I-10 eastbound between Anthony and Los Mochis full closure

Monday, August 10 and Tuesday, August 11

Nightly, 9 p.m. – 6 a.m.

I-10 eastbound between Anthony and Los Mochis full closure

Detour: Traffic will exit at Anthony, proceed onto South Desert through the Anthony and Vinton intersections, and enter I-10 eastbound after Los Mochis.

Crews will be placing beams.

Artcraft Project

Sunday, August 9 – Thursday, August 13Sunday, August 16 – Thursday, August 209 p.m. – 6 a.m. (Nightly)

I-10 east and westbound between Loop 375 (Transmountain) and Artcraft full closure

Crews will be placing steel girders and welding operations.

Monday, August 10 Continuous Closure (4 – 6 week closure)

Intersection of Berringer through Artcraft access closure

Crews will be working on a water main bore.

Borderland Expressway Phase 2 ProjectTuesday, August 11 and Thursday, August 13

Daily, 6 a.m. – 6 p.m.

Stan Roberts east and westbound between McCombs and Martin Luther King full closure

Access to EPEC Newman Power Plant will be available via Martin Luther King and Stan Roberts intersection.

Saturday, August 156 a.m. – 6 p.m.

McCombs north and southbound between FM 2637 and Stan Roberts full closure

Crews will be installing bridge beams.

Loop 375 Rehabilitation Project

Sunday, August 9 – Thursday, August 13

8 p.m. – 6 a.m. (Nightly)

Loop 375 (Border Highway) westbound between Fonseca and Oregon full closure

Loop 375 (Border Highway) eastbound between Schuster and Fonseca full closure

Loop 375 (Border Highway) eastbound entrance ramp from Paisano full closure

Loop 375 (Border Highway) eastbound entrance ramp from US-54 full closure

Saturday, August 15

6 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Loop 375 (Border Highway) eastbound between Schuster and Fonseca full closure

Loop 375 (Border Highway) eastbound entrance ramp from Paisano full closure

Loop 375 (Border Highway) eastbound entrance ramp from US-54 full closure

Loop 375 (Border Highway) west and eastbound between Fonseca and Oregon alternate lane closures

Crews will be working on milling, paving, and installing guardrail.

Sergeant Major Bridge Reconstruction Project

Monday, August 10 – Friday, August 14

Nightly, 12 a.m. – 3 p.m.

Purple Heart Highway (Loop 375) north- and southbound right lanes between Sergeant Major Exit and Entrance Ramps.

Crews will be placing Continuously Reinforced Concrete Pavement (CRCP).

Districtwide Striping Project

Sunday, August 9 – Thursday, August 13

9 p.m. – 6 a.m. (Night)

I-10 east and westbound between Horizon and Paisano mobile operations

Crews will be removing and installing pavement markings.

Guardrail Repair

9 a.m. – 4 p.m.

Monday, August 10

North Desert turnaround to South Desert at Vinton complete closure

Tuesday, August 11

Spur 601 westbound entrance ramp to US-54 North complete closure

Wednesday, August 12

Loop 375 westbound between US-54 and Main Gap picnic area left lane closed

Thursday, August 13

North Desert between Artcraft and Trade Center left lane closed

Friday, August 14

North Desert at Trade Center left lane closed

Crews will be repairing guardrails.

Maintenance

Monday, August 10 – Friday, August 14

9 a.m. – 4 p.m.

Loop 375 (Transmountain) westbound between Tom Mays Park entrance and Paseo Del Norte right lane closed

Crews will be working on the shoulder.

Spur 601 east and westbound between Chaffee and US-54 alternate lane closures

Spur 601 east and westbound at Chaffee entrance and exit ramps closed

Cotton north and southbound between San Antonio and Delta alternate lane closure

Crews will be working on crack sealing.

Sunland Park westbound between Mesa Hills and I-10 right lane closed

Crews will be milling and paving.

Gateway North between Yandell and Montana right lane closed

Crews will be working on concrete.

Executive exit ramp to Loop 375 (Border West Highway) westbound closed

Crews and Signal Shop removing signs.

Sunday, August 16

4 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Ramp K between US-54 South and I-10 West closed

Entrance ramp between Trowbridge and US-54 South closed

I-10 West between US-54 and Piedras three right lanes closed

Crews will be working on bridge.

Closure Links:

West Area Project Closures

I-10 Widening West Closures

East Area Project Closures 

Click here to follow the original article.

Rosemary Garcia

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) — This summer, a select group of Ysleta ISD students participated in a summer internship with Marathon Petroleum Corporation.

Five high schoolers from YISD’s Career and Technical Education (CTE) program participated in Marathon’s internship program from June through July. According to YISD, the interns are rising seniors. These students underwent a competitive selection process.

The internship provided a hands-on experience in a real-world setting that will help them succeed in their future careers.

The participating students include Parkland High School’s Emilio Escarcega; Del Valle High School’s Dylan Lujan; Ysleta High School’s Aaron Marquez and Jordyn Villarreal; and Elias Quinonez, who attends Riverside High School.

“They’re getting a real taste of what it’s like to work at Marathon. So from the time they are getting here in the morning. They’re working as if they already work here for our company,” said Tommy Skinner, the refinery’s human resources director.

“We were there training them, teaching them, showing them. They were interacting with the refinery people,” Victor Vela, the IT manager at Marathon, said.

ABC-7 spoke to the students about taking part in this unique program.

“The experience I had here was very fulfilling because I got to meet with the project managers. I got to meet tech service engineers, and they all taught me so many valuable skills in their career path.” Emilio said.

“Anyone I would talk to was nice, and they were willing to help,” Dylan said.

“I’ve heard about stuff like this, but I’ve never really seen it in practice. So being able to see it, it’s really been interesting and fun for me,” Aaron said.

“The people I got to meet, each individual, and the way they got involved,” Elias answered when asked about his favorite part of the program.

The students were able to meet and work alongside Marathon employees and develop new skills.

“We need to learn a lot of soft skills. We have a lot of them understand math and science, but we need to understand how to work in groups and how to do presentations and those kinds of things and, and I feel like this type of environment kind of forces you to learn how to do those things,” Rebecca Ayala, an environmental engineer, added.

Now, the five students said they are ready to incorporate their new skills in the classroom and beyond.

“I’m so confident now that, like, it’s really inspired me and challenged me and ultimately has helped me in my abilities,” one student explained.

Click here to follow the original article.

Gabrielle Lopez

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) — Storms developed over El Paso Thursday, bringing hail to some residents in West and Upper Valley El Paso.

ABC-7 viewers shared some weather video with us, which you can watch above.

Send us pictures and videos of the weather through our share form.

Click here to follow the original article.

Gabrielle Lopez

UPDATE (6:28 p.m.): EPE’s outage map said 13 outages are still active and 5,002 customers are affected.

EPE said there’s no estimated restoration time.

UPDATE (5:20 p.m.): EPE said 32 power outages are ongoing, with 6,491 customers affected.

Some of those outages are in Dona Ana County, according to EPE’s outage map.

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) — More than 8,000 customers are without power across El Paso Thursday, according to the El Paso Electric outage map.

The majority of outages are in the Far East. In the Pebble Hills and Zaragoza area, the map said 3,913 lost power.

There are also outages reported in the Northeast, East and Central.

El Paso Electric’s power outage map as of 5:10 p.m.(Courtesy: EPE)

The outage map said the outages are being assessed.

Click here to follow the original article.

Mia Tricarico

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) — As the City of El Paso moves forward with plans for the Northeast Data Center, those opposed are taking their recall fight to a district judge. Organizers trying to oust District 4 City Representative Cynthia Trejo held a press conference outside City Hall Thursday to announce legal action agains the city over “fluctuating and unlawful” petition requirements.

Joshua Dagda and his attorney, Brian Kennedy, said the city is changing the rules as they go, forcing them to collect more than 4,000 signatures instead of the hundreds required by law.

The city claimed it’s following proper charter laws, but petitioners say they won’t back down.

Dagda filed after El Paso City Council’s June 9 meeting. He filed over Rep. Trejo’s use of the city’s tax abatement contract with the Meta data center. He claimed she sided with a multi-billion dollar organization over her own stakeholders.

Dagda and Kennedy filed a writ of mandamus Thursday, accusing the city of illegally changing the requirements.

“It’s just not fair. You can’t constitutionally say we’re just going to pick a number from an election that didn’t elect anybody,” Kennedy said.

The city charter initially said petitioners need 20% of the votes cast in the election where the official was elected.

Rep. Trejo was elected in December 2024, and petitioners would need 786 signatures.

Now, the city pointed to a 1984 ordinance, which demands 4,233 signatures.

“They didn’t give us information. And plus, they never gave us a hard number,” Dagda said.

ABC-7 reached out to Rep. Trejo for an interview. She declined and sent the following statement:

“As a city representative, I have a responsibility to protect the interests of the people I serve and the taxpayers of El Paso. Based on the legal information presented to council, terminating those agreements could have exposed the city and taxpayers to significant legal and financial liability. It also would not stop the project from moving forward.”

Click here to follow the original article.

Gabrielle Lopez

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) — The City of El Paso launched a free program to help homeowners look into solar energy and possibly save on installation costs.

The program will provide guidance to help those who participate decide whether rooftop solar is right for their home.

Switch Together and the nonprofit Solar United Neighbors partnered with the city, according to a news release sent Wednesday. Switch Together is a group-buying model that secures competitive pricing from qualified solar installers, the city said.

The city said Switch Together does a reverse auction for qualified installers to compete to provide their most competitive pricing. Participants then choose a free recommendation outlining options and estimated costs. The city said some homeowners could qualify for additional solar incentives.

Registration is free, the city said. There’s no obligation to accept or proceed with an installation.

The deadline to register is Oct. 14. If the program doesn’t meet their needs, participants can drop out at any time.

You can register here.

Switch Together’s recent auction secured an average discount of 23% and average savings of $6,748, according to the city. Beyond rooftop solar systems, homeowners can also look at options for home battery storage and electric vehicle chargers.

“Registering for Switch Together provides the opportunity to explore installing solar and achieve energy bill savings without any obligations to move forward with the installation,” said Fernando Berjano, the senior climate program manager for the city. “If the personal recommendation does not make financial sense for their household, they may withdraw at any time.”

Click here to follow the original article.

Gabrielle Lopez

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) — The El Paso Independent School District appointed temporary board trustees for both District 6 and 7, as they were sworn into office Thursday night at EPISD’s headquarters in Central El Paso.

For District 6, the board chose Dr. Matthew Reza, a local nurse practitioner and U.S. Navy retiree, while for District 7, they elected Brian Kelly, the vice president of Hunt Companies.

Earlier Thursday, EPSID confirmed the list of candidates running for its Board of Trustee seats for Districts 6 and 7, as their interviews for the position and the deliberation was held Thursday night as part of their agenda.

The board voted in favor of Kelly for District 7 by a narrow three to two vote over tenured EPISD educator Esther Zapata, with EPISD board president Leah Hanany carrying the deciding vote.

Meanwhile, the board voted unanimously in favor of Dr. Reza for District 6, filling two seats that were left vacant due to resignations following the board declaring financial exigency in June.

Two board members resigned after a vote led to EPISD declaring financial exigency amid budget struggles and a multi-million dollar deficit. Financial exigency is similar to bankruptcy for educational institutions.

Trustee Daniel Call (District 7) voted against the motion and Trustee Valerie Beals (District 6) was absent. They each had about a year left in their terms.

To fill their seats, the board decided to appoint new members. Other members will review the applications and vote on who will serve until the next election.

Now, Dr. Reza and Kelley will both serve their terms as board trustees untill the upcoming election for both seats is held on May 1, 2027.

Click here to follow the original article.

Heriberto Perez Lara

CIUDAD JUÁREZ, Chihuahua (KVIA) — A non-profit organization in Ciudad Juárez, working alongside the Catholic Diocese of El Paso and the Hope Border Institute, has secured a grant to support migrants stranded in Juárez who need to start a new life at the border.

‘Derechos Humanos Integrales en Acción’ (DHIA) assists asylum seekers at the border who have also suffered violence during their journey since leaving their home countries.

ABC-7 spoke with a DHIA legal representative to learn more about this grant and how the organization will continue providing services to those in need in Juárez.

Watch the full story in our evening newscasts.

Click here to follow the original article.