Amid fears of arsenic in private water wells, Texas A&M is offering low-cost tests in Ector and Midland counties
Officials are worried that there’s arsenic in some of the estimated 13,500 private water wells in Ector and Midland counties. Full Story
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Carlos Nogueras Ramos
Permian Basin Reporter
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Carlos Nogueras Ramos is a regional reporter based in Odessa. Carlos joined The Texas Tribune in 2023 in partnership with Report for America. Carlos tells the stories of Texas from the vast energy-rich Permian Basin region. Before the Tribune, Carlos spent time in Philadelphia writing about local politics, including the city’s 100th mayoral election. A Spanish speaker, Carlos was one of the few Latino reporters on the campaign trail, covering the most expensive primary election to date in Philly. He is a proud Puerto Rico native, born and raised in Cayey. He studied at Berklee College of Music in Boston and the University of Puerto Rico.
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![A water faucet drips on Feb. 5, 2022.]()
Credit: Evan L'Roy/The Texas Tribune -
Tainted water flowed to these Texans’ homes for three years. No one told them.
A new operator was assigned to fix the well in Midland County, which is still not compliant with state standards. Full Story
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![A playa (flood plain) borders a neighborhood in South Midland on Thursday, Feb. 1, 2024. For three years, residents from the neighborhood outside city limits consumed well water laced with traces of arsenic. The well can be seen in the bottom right of the flood plain.]()
Credit: Eli Hartman/The Texas Tribune -
Immigrant families on edge amid uncertainty over new Texas law
Advocates for immigrant rights say they worry the law could encourage racial profiling. The law’s authors say it won’t likely be enforced beyond the border. Full Story
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![Migrants in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico cross the border from Mexico to the U.S. side of the Rio Grande, on March 20, 2024.]()
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Two West Texas infants in the same neighborhood diagnosed with rare botulism
A third infant nearby also contracted botulism last August. Local and state health officials said there is no public health emergency. Full Story
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![Downtown Midland is seen on Monday, April 27, 2020.]()
Credit: Ben Powell for The Texas Tribune -
Panhandle residents begin rebuilding, even as fight to contain fires continues
The fire that engulfed their town was only 15% contained over the weekend, but Canadian residents were back to selling flowers and preparing for an election. Full Story
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![Martin Ocasio loads pallets of cattle cubes onto a trailer to be delivered to a rancher, in the Hemphill County Extension building in Canadian on Sunday, March. 3, 2024.]()
Credit: Justin Rex for The Texas Tribune -
As wildfires rage through Panhandle, Fritch residents seek respite at church
Shaken by the devastation, families find comfort in each other as they pick through the rubble and commune at a church in nearby Borger. Full Story
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![Scott McBroom looks at the rubble of his burned house Friday, March. 1, 2024, in Fritch, Texas.]()
Credit: Justin Rex for The Texas Tribune -
Firefighters rush to subdue deadly Panhandle wildfire before dangerous conditions return Saturday
Light rain and snow Thursday allowed firefighters to gain better control of the state’s largest-ever fire, which has killed at least two people. Full Story
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![A satellite view of the aftermath of the Smokehouse Creek wildfire in Fritch, Texas, U.S. February 28, 2024.]()
Credit: Maxar Technologies/Handout via REUTERS -
“Nobody really knows what you’re supposed to do”: Leaking, exploding abandoned wells wreak havoc in West Texas
The Texas Railroad Commission is tasked with plugging wells. But the state regulators say their scope is limited. Full Story
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![Bill Wight looks at the well that was leaking high volumes of salt water on his land Saturday, Feb. 24, 2024, in Crane County.]()
Credit: Sarah M. Vasquez for The Texas Tribune -
Texas gives $125 million to rural sheriffs and prosecutors for pay increases
The 2023 legislation establishing the grant program also includes new equipment for rural sheriffs. Full Story
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![Several vehicles were parked outside of the Real County Sheriff’s Office in Leakey on Jan. 12, 2022.]()
Credit: Kaylee Greenlee Beal for The Texas Tribune -
Driving in West Texas is deadly dangerous. A new report measures how much.
A nonprofit commissioned the report that found severe and fatal vehicle crashes in the Permian Basin far outpaced the state. Full Story
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![Morning oilfield traffic on West Broadway Street in Andrews.]()
Credit: Jerod Foster for The Texas Tribune