Front Page News

Photos by Mary Alice Murphy

The Silver City Council in 2025 decided to return to a past tradition, the Battle of the Badges. The competition, with this year the theme of disabilities, pitted the various first responder agencies to a challenge of understanding how people will disabilities deal with challenges every day.

Mayor Pro Tem and Councilor Guadalupe Cano organized the event, along with a committee. She invited four agencies to participate in various challenges, including a track raced on crutches, a cornhole toss with visual disabilities, a challenge of trying to get across a message for those with hearing disabilities, without using spoken words, a wheelchair race and various trivia questions that contestants had to answer. 

By Roger Lanse

Original:

According to the Pinos Altos Volunteer Fire Department, they were paged out to a manufactured home fire at Highway 15 near Sanctuary Road at 8:52 a.m., this morning, May 16, 2025.

Also responding are the Tyrone and Whiskey Creek VFDs, the Silver City Fire Department, and the Grant County Fire Management Office. The fire is being worked at this time – 9:45 a.m., and what was originally reported as black smoke is now white.

Additional information will be coming as the Beat receives it.
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The Grant County Sheriff's Office and the U.S. Forest Service also responded to this structure fire. The New Mexico Fire Marshal's Office is handling the investigation into the cause of the blaze.

By Roger Lanse

On Saturday, May 3, 2025, at approximately 3:08 p.m., Silver City Police Officers were dispatched regarding a reckless driver complaint. Officers made contact with the vehicle in the Los Victor parking lot at the corner of Hudson Street and College and initiated a traffic stop. According to an SCPD offense report, the driver, Joshua Larranaga, was arrested for driving under the influence and placed in a patrol car, along with a brown pistol found under the ignition within easy reach of the driver.

While busy with Larranaga, the report states an intoxicated passenger, later identified aa Brianna Ramirez, 25-26, threw handfuls of gravel at both officers and a police unit, striking them and damaging the police unit. After she was placed in a police vehicle, a blotter report says she began kicking the doors and windows of the patrol car. Officers then took Ramirez to Gila  Regional Medical Center where she refused treatment and while waiting for her refusal form to be completed, she started to walk toward the medical staff and had to be restrained by officers.

By Roger Lanse

According to the Pinos Altos Volunteer Fire Department, they were paged out to a manufactured home fire at Highway 15 near Sanctuary Road at 8:52 a.m., this morning, May 16, 2025. 

Also responding are the Tyrone and Whiskey Creek VFDs, the Silver City Fire Department, and the Grant County Fire Management Officer. The fire is being worked at this time – 9:45 a.m., and what was originally reported as black smoke is now white.

Additional information will be coming as the Beat receives it.

By Frost McGahey
Investigative Reporter

Photo of dust storm by Angelica Rodriguez from KOAT

[Editor's  Note: Sheriff's rebuttal below article.]

At the beginning of April, 2025, southern New Mexico was hit by a giant dust storm. The New Mexico State Police closed I-10 from the New Mexico/Arizona line to Las Cruces. The State Police were also dealing with a crash on Highway 26, the road from Deming to Hatch.

The State Police needed help closing down Highway 180 from south of Hurley to Deming.

This is a condensed/edited version of the calls of the New Mexico State Police to the Grant County Dispatch trying to get help from the Grant County Sheriff's Department. It takes place over one and half hours.

Photos by Mary Alice Murphy

The Grant County Art Guild Studio hosted a show for Silver City High School art students over two weekends. These photos were taken on May 10, 2025. The art world will benefit greatly from these talented artists.

 Photos by Mary Alice Murphy

On Saturday, May 10, 2025, the WNMU Ceramics Department held its annual sale at the Murray Hotel. Ceramics Department Director Courtney Michaud gathered pieces from her students to sell to fundraise for the department. The prices were reasonable, the creativity amazing, the colors, shapes and sizes ranged from bright to earthy, round to sculptural and small to large. A lot of the pieces were decorative only, but many were food safe to use at one's table. 

By Mary Alice Murphy

In a brief open session at the May 14, 2025 special meeting of the Gila Regional Medical Center Board of Trustees, Chairman Dr. Fred Fox explained that although the members had thought all the details of the renewal of the contract for Chief Executive Officer Robert Whitaker had been finalized and ready for approval, they had learned that some details were still being worked out between Whitaker and the lawyers.

The contract was tabled to be discussed in executive session.