Stories by Texas Tribune fellows Archives - Page 70 of 119

ER nurse Meredith Brooks, center, helps transfer Winona Tevington, 90, out of the emergency room to her surgery at Houston Methodist The Woodlands Hospital.

“Light at the end of the tunnel”: Texas COVID-19 hospitalizations down as omicron wave appears to crest

By Karen Brooks Harper, Chris Essig and José Luis MartínezFeb. 2, 2022

Texas falls short, again, of the pandemic record for COVID-19 hospitalizations, while daily deaths are expected to continue rising for several more days.

Eliana Smith, a senior at Cedar Ridge High School in Round Rock, organized a protest to push for stronger COVID-19 regulations in schools.

Health care

Texas students, frustrated by limited COVID-19 protocols, turn to petition drives and walkouts

By Brooke ParkJan. 31, 2022

The omicron variant has resulted in record-high COVID-19 cases in Texas schools. Despite student and staff absences, one Round Rock student said schools are remaining open for in-person learning “while everything around us is falling down.”

Igalious “Ike” Mills distributes clumps of hay around a pasture on his Nacogdoches farm. Nationally, Black farmers have lost more than 12 million acres of farmland over the past century, due to biased government policies and discriminatory business practices.

Politics

Black Texas farmers were finally on track to get federal aid. The state’s agriculture commissioner wants to stop that.

By James PollardJan. 24, 2022

Sid Miller is challenging a debt relief program that the U.S. Department of Agriculture saw as a way to correct historic discrimination. An advocate for Black Texas farmers says the challenge “pushes us back even further.”

Hurricane Harvey struck Rockport in 2017, causing widespread flooding and property damage.

Environment

Texas may get a coastal storm barrier, but will it be too late?

By Bethany IrvineJan. 21, 2022Jan. 22, 2022

The federal infrastructure bill’s passage renewed hopes that Texas would finally get a coastal storm barrier. But Galveston and Houston could still get hit by a hurricane before it is built.

U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Laredo, is one of the more powerful Texas Democrats in Washington due in part to his assignment on the House Appropriations Committee.

Criminal Justice

FBI agents descended on Democratic U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar’s house, but won’t say what they’re investigating

By Abby Livingston and Brooke ParkJan. 19, 2022Jan. 19, 2022

An FBI spokesperson said the agency was present on two streets around Cuellar’s house in Laredo “conducting court-authorized law enforcement activity.”

A wildfire blazed through Bastrop State Park on Tuesday.

Environment

Prescribed burn gone wrong likely sparked wildfire in Bastrop County, officials say

By Erin Douglas and Timia CobbJan. 19, 2022

Controlled burns, used to prevent catastrophic wildfires, are typically safe and rarely get out of control. Experts warn that burns gone awry can scare residents and compromise the critical fire management tool.