Hobbs News-Sun

03/09/2025

Become a member today! www.hobbsnews.com/subscribe. Support local journalism! Get local news, announcements and sports! Subscribing is easy!

03/08/2025

Become a member today! www.hobbsnews.com/subscribe. Support local journalism! Get local news, announcements and sports! Subscribing is easy!

03/07/2025

Today's edition: Wilks achieving dreams! - https://mailchi.mp/4bf80f76dd84/todays-news-sun-edition-10971152

03/07/2025

03/06/2025

Today's edition: Arrest made in shooting - https://mailchi.mp/fe6041cd3155/todays-news-sun-edition-10971131

03/04/2025

Hobbs Coach Ronald Ross, News-Sun sports editor Jason Farmer and News-Sun reporter and podcaster Jason Watkins discuss the upcoming N.M. high school basketball state tournament.

Hobbs News-Sun Sports | N.M. High School State Basketball Tournament Preview With Jason Farmer, Jason Watkins The New Mexico High School St...

02/28/2025

Sports Hobbs freshman Adyson Everhart right where she wants to be Posted on February 27, 2025 Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Reddit Then and Now Hobbs freshman Adyson Everhart right where she wants to be JASON FARMER/NEWS-SUN As a fourth grader, Hobbs freshman Adyson Everhart was alrea...

02/28/2025

Today's edition: Reclassifying 911 dispatchers - https://mailchi.mp/19e6738aae0c/todays-news-sun-edition-10971026

02/28/2025

UPDATE: The USGS has changed the magnitude of this quake to a 4.8

DID YOU FEEL IT? USGS is reporting a 4.7 magnitude earthquake near Ackerly north of Midland at about 1:30 p.m.

02/28/2025

Local News New CAO named for Covenant Hobbs Posted on February 27, 2025 Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Reddit New CAO named for Covenant Hobbs For the News-Sun Covenant Health in Lubbock, Texas, has named the next Chief Administrative Officer for Covenant Health Hobbs Hospital. In Marc...

02/27/2025

Today's edition: New organic food option - https://mailchi.mp/b1f5679178de/todays-news-sun-edition-10971011

02/26/2025

An unvaccinated child has died in the Texas measles outbreak

LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) — A child who was not vaccinated has died from measles in West Texas, the first death in an outbreak that began late last month and the first from measles in the U.S. since 2015.

The death was a “school-aged child who was not vaccinated” and had been hospitalized last week, the Texas Department of State Health Services said Wednesday in a statement. Lubbock health officials also confirmed the death, but neither agency provided more details. A news conference is scheduled for Wednesday afternoon.

Covenant Children’s Hospital in Lubbock didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment, nor did Texas Gov. Greg Abbott's office.

The measles outbreak in rural West Texas has grown to 124 cases across nine counties, which state health officials have said is Texas’ largest in nearly 30 years. There are also nine cases in eastern New Mexico.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed this is the first measles death in the country since 2015. Measles cases were the worst in almost three decades in 2019, and there was a rise in cases in 2024, including an outbreak in Chicago that sickened more than 60.

The outbreak is largely spreading in the Mennonite community in West Texas, where small towns are separated by vast stretches of oil rig-dotted open land but connected due to people traveling between towns for work, church, grocery shopping and other errands.

Texas health department data shows the vast majority of cases in the area are among people younger than 18. The measles, mumps and rubella vaccine — which is safe and highly effective at preventing infection and severe cases — is recommended for children between 12 and 15 months old for the first shot, with the second coming between 4 and 6 years old.

The vaccine series is required for kids before entering kindergarten in public schools nationwide. But the measles cases in West Texas have been concentrated in a “close-knit, undervaccinated” Mennonite community, state health department spokesperson Lara Anton has said, especially among families who attend small private religious schools or are homeschooled.

Gaines County, which has 80 cases, has one of the highest rates in Texas of school-aged children who opt out of at least one required vaccine, with nearly 14% of K-12 children in the 2023-24 school year.

Earlier this month, new federal health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said a panel would investigate the childhood vaccine schedule that prevents measles and other dangerous diseases.

Measles is a respiratory virus that can survive in the air for up to two hours. Up to 9 out of 10 people who are susceptible will get the virus if exposed, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Most kids will recover from the measles if they get it, but infection can lead to dangerous complications like pneumonia, blindness, brain swelling and death.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control is providing “technical assistance, laboratory support and vaccines as needed” to West Texas, the agency told the AP, but the state health department is taking the lead in the outbreak investigation.

02/20/2025

Today's edition: New warming shelter - https://mailchi.mp/8113dec2befa/todays-news-sun-edition-10970870

02/19/2025

Today's edition: Measles cases go up in Lea, Gaines - https://mailchi.mp/37fc29acab61/todays-news-sun-edition-10970854

02/12/2025

First New Mexico measles case of 2025 confirmed in Lea County

SANTA FE – The New Mexico Department of Health (NMDOH) is alerting Lea County residents of the days, times and locations where they may have been exposed to a person with measles.

The NMDOH Scientific Laboratory has confirmed a measles infection of an unvaccinated Lea County teenager. NMDOH is working with the patient’s family, Nor-Lea Hospital and the local school district to assure all contacts are up to date with their measles vaccinations. Two doses of measles vaccine are 97% effective against disease.

Anyone who visited the following locations during these given days and times may have been exposed to measles:
10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 9, Nor-Lea Hospital Emergency Department at 1600 Main Street, Lovington, N.M.
5:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 6. Sixth Grade Academy gymnasium at 310 N 5th Street, Lovington, N.M.

Lea County borders Gaines County in Texas, which is investigating an ongoing measles outbreak with at least 15 confirmed cases. However, the New Mexico youth had no recent travel or exposure to known cases from the Texas outbreak.

“It is important to get up to date on vaccinations now, especially if you or your children are not fully immunized for measles,” said Dr. Miranda Durham, NMDOH Chief Medical Officer. “Measles can spread easily, whether you're in Lea County or elsewhere in the state, if you're not current on the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine.”

NMDOH is hosting a vaccination clinic in Lea County next week with no appointment necessary at the Hobbs Public Health Office, 1923 N. Dal Paso at the following days and times:
Wednesday and Thursday, Feb. 19 and 20, 9 a.m. - 3:30 p.m. (closed noon to 1 p.m.)
Wednesday and Thursday, Feb. 26 and 27, 9 a.m. - 3:30 p.m. (closed noon to 1 p.m.)

To check your vaccination status:
Visit the state Vax View website.
Call the NMHealth Helpline at 1-833-SWNURSE (1-833-796-8773).

To get the MMR or other vaccines:
Contact your medical provider, pharmacy or local public health office.
Visit nmhealth.org for providers or scheduling assistance.
Call the NMHealth Helpline at 1-833-SWNURSE (1-833-796-8773). Vaccines are free for New Mexico children under the Vaccines for Children program.

Measles is extremely contagious.
Symptoms appear 7-21 days after exposure and can include fever, cough, runny nose, and red eyes, followed by a red spotted rash that usually starts on the head or face and spreads across the body.
Complications can include diarrhea, ear infections, and pneumonia.

New Mexico had two measles cases in 2024 – they were the first measles cases since 2021.

Medical providers should report suspect cases of measles immediately to the Department of Health at 1-833-SWNURSE (1-833-796-8773), which is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

02/12/2025

**Update** A Dense fog advisory is in effect until 10am

*Tatum highway closer to Tatum is very limited visibility.

Fog is starting to settle in the community. Be aware of dense fog patches. Visibility may be reduced. If you must be out, take your time, leave earlier than normal. Have extra water on hand, a blanket, and a flashlight. Be cautious and alert.

02/11/2025

Today's edition: What are the barriers to mental health in this area? - https://mailchi.mp/98c2eb0334d5/todays-news-sun-edition-10970732