Grant County Commission holds work session 010924, part 1

[Editor's Note: This is part 1 of the Grant County Commission work session on Jan. 9, 2024.]

By Mary Alice Murphy

The Grant County Commission work session on Jan. 9, 2024 began with a presentation from Hidalgo Medical Services CEO Dr. Dan Otero. He also gave a brief update on Tu Casa.

He highlighted numbers on the packet he had just given to the commissioners. [Editor's Note: However, he did not share the packet with the Beat.]

Otero noted that the numbers of unique patients at the primary care, the mental health care and other services varied month-to-month, but he never announced the numbers. He also said the Director of Senior Services Steven Chavira had prepared a report for Grant and Hidalgo counties on the expanse of services for "our most vulnerable population, our seniors." [Again, not shared publicly.]

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Grant County Water Commission votes on water line locations

By Lynn Janes

On December 21, 2023, the Grant County Water Commission had a regular meeting at the city annex building.

Karl Pennock of RCAC (Rural Community Assistance Program) will be working closely with Stantec after this presentation they will doing today.

Priscilla Lucero, Southwest New Mexico Council of Governments director, gave an update on funding. The letters of intent needed for colonias funding will be due January 8, 2024. The application deadline will be March 8, 2024. A new funding mechanism has come in and will be specifically for mining communities. The town of Hurley has received $1 million for the wells at the airport and will be fully funded and will not require a match. They should be receiving that soon. Originally the application had been for $620,000 and they would be using matching funds to do the whole project but instead they received the full amount to do the project and the extra funds can be used on the lift station. Now that leaves the discussion of where the ISC (Interstate Stream Commission) monies will be used. January 16, 2024, the commission will be doing a presentation in Santa Fe and everyone with the commission will be needed to attend. Lucero and Laura Phelps, Community Development Manager Freeport McMoRan, will be putting the presentation together and have it updated.

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Argument over dog ends in shooting

By Roger Lanse

Grant County Sheriff's Office deputies responded to an aggravated assault with weapon call to 21 Coleman Street on Thursday, Jan.18, 2024, at about 4:14 p.m. The Grant County Regional Dispatch Authority advised the victim was at Gila Regional Medical Center and that the shooter was possibly, and later confirmed to be, Bob Holroyd, of 24 Coleman Street.

Complying with all deputies' commands, Holroyd came out of his residence, according to GCSO offense reports, extremely intoxicated, and was placed into investigative detention. As they were leaving the residence a deputy noticed what appeared to be a black high-powered pellet rifle near the front door.

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Freeport-McMoRan Reports Fourth-Quarter And Year Ended 2023 Results

To download a PDF of the release, please visit the following link: Freeport-McMoRan Reports Fourth-Quarter And Year Ended 2023 Results

Click Here for a complete listing of Freeport-McMoRan Inc. press releases.

GRMC held Board of Trustees meeting 122023, part 3

New permanent CFO announced.

By Mary Alice Murphy

{Editor's Note: This is part 3 and the final of a series of articles on the Dec. 20, 2023 GRMC Board of Trustees meeting. It continues the updates and reports. And I made an error at the end of Part 2: The next report will come from Chief Nursing Officer Ron Green.]

Chief Nursing Officer Ron Green presented the next update at the Dec. 20, 2023, Gila Regional Medical Center Board of Trustees meeting.

Green noted that at the last meeting, he had reported that the hospital had a handful of Western New Mexico University graduating nurses that he hoped would join the hospital's nursing residency program. "I'm happy to say, we have signed six to begin the 4-6 month program on Jan. 4. It's mostly a process to bridge the school experience to traditional nursing. We have a couple of others due to family situations who we are hoping will join us in late spring or early summer. We are excited to have them."

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GRMC held Board of Trustees meeting 122023, part 2

By Mary Alice Murphy

{Editor's Note: This is part 2 of a series of articles on the Dec. 20, 2023 GRMC Board of Trustees meeting.]

After approving the consent agenda on Dec. 20, 2023, the board members heard updates and reports from Gila Regional Medical Center administrators.

The first was a report and education for the board from Risk and Compliance Director Denice Baird.

She said there are several health care laws. Violations can carry different penalties for civil or criminal cases. The penalties can range from small to very large fines as well as prison time and potential exclusion from providing services.

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FBI now lead agency in Deming explosion

By Roger Lanse

According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Albuquerque Public Affairs Office, the FBI is now the lead agency investigating the explosion in Deming on Monday, Jan. 22, 2024, at about 10:30 a.m. Although the PA officer would not release much information about the blast, citing the ongoing investigation, she did confirm the explosion occurred near the entrance of the probation office on S. Silver Street in Deming.

The PAO called the device a 'package,' and also confirmed local reports of unexploded 'packages' found elsewhere this morning -- one each in Las Cruces and Albuquerque, but none in Lordsburg. The specific locations of where these unexploded 'packages' were located was not released. Information on injuries or property damage also was not disclosed, nor were details describing the 'packages,' or who may have left them.

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Explosion confirmed in Deming Monday morning

By Roger Lanse

According to Jose Montoya, Interim Chief of the Deming Police Department, DPD officers responded at about 10:30 a.m. on Monday, Jan. 22, 2024, to a reported explosion near the entrance to the probation office which is located at 920 S. Silver Street. When officers arrived at the scene, Montoya said, they saw a suspicious metal device and backed off, set a perimeter, and called the New Mexico State Police Bomb Squad. Montoya referred all other questions to the NMSP, which is investigating the incident.

The Beat has reached out to NMSP and was told that agency is "currently working on getting something out."

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