|
|
|
High-speed chase ends in body
recovery
Monitor Staff Reports
SEVEN POINTS–A Forney man is in custody following a high-speed chase on
State Highway 274 through Seven Points Monday.
Seven Points police officers Rodney Henderson and Kenny Boyle initiated
a traffic stop on an eastbound silver Dodge dually pickup on
Farm-to-Market 85.
The vehicle was reported stolen by the Carrollton Police Department,
according to a press release.
The driver, later identified as Christopher Lynn Colgrove, 30, of
Forney, resisted their efforts and fled northbound on SH 274 around 9:30
p.m..
Police followed in pursuit, and speeds in excess of 85 mph were reported
by police.
The pursuit ended in Scurry behind the elementary school, when the
driver lost control and wrecked the truck in a heavily wooded area.
Kaufman County sheriff’s deputies laid spikes across the roadway,
causing Colgrove to lose control shortly after midnight.
Colgrove fled the scene on foot, and was found and arrested around 4
a.m. Tuesday.
Colgrove was hiding in a shed and was taken into custody without further
incident.
He is being held in Kaufman County Law Enforcement Center on a felony
warrant with additional charges expected for felony evading arrest and
unauthorized use of a motor vehicle.
However, while Kaufman County sheriff’s deputies were searching for
Colgrove, they came upon the body of a shooting victim.
The victim was identified as Charles Canfield, 18.
No arrests were made related to the killing.
TCEQ
names Kemp in water awards
By Barbara Gartman
Monitor Staff Writer
KEMP–In a letter to Kemp Mayor Billy Teel, the Texas Commission on
Environmental Quality (TCEQ) recognized the city of Kemp for its
Outstanding Coliform Rule Implementation.
The city was presented a certificate issued Aug. 7, honoring the
accomplishments in 2006 of the city water department.
Copies of the certificate were given to council members at the meeting
Tuesday.
In other business, council members:
• heard an update by Jim Stewart with the Beacon Hill at Cedar Creek
Lake addition.
Stewart showed a conceptual master plan of the proposed addition.
The plan calls for approximately 33 waterfront homes, a floating marina,
piers with enclosed party rooms, a fishing lake with an aerating water
fountain, club house and many other features.
Janice and Terry Ellis will Excite Realty will conduct the real estate
sales for the addition.
“You’re excited and we’re excited,” Teel said.
Plans are underway for the property, located off U.S. Highway 175 near
the water plant, to be annexed into the city limits.
Monitor Photo/Barbara Gartman
Jim Stewart (at the podium) describes the new Beacon Hill addition
coming to Kemp. The proposed master plan is being held by Herman Custard
who is in charge of the dirt work.
• heard city maintenance director Tony Jenkins’ concerns over the ditch
being dug in across the street, front of the fire station.
He said the deep ditch is extremely dangerous because of soil
conditions. The first three feet are black dirt, but the next six are
unstable shale that continues to cave in, making it dangerous for
employees working on a sewer line.
• heard a complaint from Kemp resident Alan Palmer concerning the
deplorable conditions of 10th and 11th street near where he lives.
He said his mother-in-law drives a van with handicap amenities, and
during a recent visit to see the new grandbaby, did approximately $150
in damage to her vehicle on the bad roads.
Council members agreed the roads were in bad condition and said they are
hoping to find some solutions to the continuing problem.
“I live on 11th Street and I have relatives that refuse to come to Kemp
to visit,” councilman Dr. Daniel Sue said.
• relinquished rights to open easements on 26 acres between Harvey’s
Exxon and the Kemp Fire Department.
• denied a zoning change from single Family-1 (SF-1) to Commercial-2 on
property located at 307 N. Main Street, and the subsequent request for a
specific use permit allowing self-storage buildings to be built on the
site.
• approved ordinance No. 07-10, establishing a uniform swimming pool,
spa and hot tub code.
• heard a report from city manager James Stroman on the John King
property.
“Warrants were issued in connection with the property on July 7,” he
said.
Stroman suggested council members consider some ways to help bring the
problem to an end.
Fator
next million-dollar winner?
Courtesy photo
Terry Fator fans gather at Whatz Up to cheer on Marie Sligh’s son as he
made it to the final four contestants on NBC’s “America’s Got Talent”
Tuesday. Local real estate agent Sligh (second from left) is flying to
California to be part of the studio audience Tuesday, Aug. 21 to see
whether or not her son will win the million-dollar top prize. Fator,
hailed as the “best ventriloquist ever seen” by at least one judge,
wowed the audience with his Walter puppet’s impersonation of Garth
Brooks singing “I’ve Got Friends In Low Places.” The final Fator Watch
Party is set again for 7 p.m. at Whatz Up in Seven Points. The results
of audience call-in votes will be revealed Aug. 21.
Blaze claims home
By Kerry Yancey
Monitor Staff Reports
MABANK–A quick response by Mabank, Kemp and Gun Barrel City firefighters
enabled some valuables to be saved, but the Tanner family lost their
home to a propane-fueled fire Tuesday afternoon.
Kaufman County Assistant Fire Marshal Randy Richards said Mabank
firefighters were on the scene – the west end of Whiterock Road,
northwest of the city – six minutes after receiving the 3:25 p.m. alarm.
Kemp and GBC firefighters arrived soon afterward, and battled intense
heat stress as much as the fire. The heat index at the Mabank Fire
Station registered 107 degrees when firefighters responded.
Courtesy Photo/Jim McKee
Area firefighters battle a propane-fueled fire that heavily damaged a
two-story home north of Mabank Tuesday.
Approximately 20 firefighters, along with three engines, two tankers,
two grass trucks and a Mabank Volunteer Fire Department rescue unit
manned by MVFD Auxiliary members, battled the fast-moving blaze.
Precinct 4 Commissioner Jim Deller also provided a 4,000-gallon tanker
truck full of water, Richards said.
The standing mutual assistance agreement among the three departments
“made the difference here,” Richards said.
Because there were enough firefighters, incident commanders rotated them
out every 10 or 15 minutes, so none would become exhausted in the
stifling heat, he explained.
Joan and Tommy Tanner, along with their teenage children, lost most of
their possessions to the fire, which heavily damaged the rear of the
home.
Joan Tanner and the children had just left the home about 15 minutes
earlier so the youngsters (age 17 and 15) could attend sports practices,
Richards said.
The cause of the fire was traced to the electric supply leading to a hot
water heater at the rear of the house, he said. Some household chemicals
stored in the water heater closet helped fuel the fire.
When the fire burned through the closet door, it then spread to a
propane gas grill on the back porch.
The propane bottle didn’t explode, but the heat forced a valve to vent
propane gas, which ignited. The effect was like spraying a blowtorch
across the rear of the home, Richards explained.
Firefighters were able to save some valuables and heirlooms from a
first-floor bedroom, but the family lost most of their possessions.
“It would not surprise me if the insurance company totals the house,”
Richards said.
“This was an excellent stop by the first arriving units,” he added.
“Without their quick response and aggressive attack, there could have
been a lot more damage.”
No injuries were reported among the firefighters, and the family pets
were unharmed, Richards added.
Courtesy Photo/Jim McKee
Mabank firefighter Clay Bramblitt wipes sweat
while drinking some cold water. Firefighters endured a heat index of at
least 107 degrees while dousing a house fire Tuesday.
|