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PI-ISD begins summer meal distribution program
PI-ISD food service staff arranging meal bundles on April 17, 2020, during their curbside food service program. Photo by Gaige Davila. By Gaige Davila editor@portisabelsouthpadre.com The Point Isabel...
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PI-ISD chief of police dies
PI-ISD Police Chief Jose A. De Leon. Graphic by PI-ISD. By Gaige Davila editor@portisabelsouthpadre.com Point Isabel Independent School District Police Chief Jose Angel De Leon, Jr., died this past...
View ArticleCity of PI: continue safety measures amid growing COVID-19 cases
Special from the City of Port Isabel As we enter the third month since the first City of Port Isabel Proclamation was declared by Mayor Juan Jose “J.J.” Zamora, it is still important that protective...
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New Ocelot spotted at Laguna Atascosa
OM344, a young male ocelot found at Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge, is seen on a trip camera image from inside the refuge. Photo courtesy of U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services. Staff report A...
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COVID-19 cases continue increasing at PIDC
An infirmary inside the Port Isabel Detention Center. Photo courtesy of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. By Gaige Davila editor@portisabelsouthpadre.com The Port Isabel Detention Center (PIDC)...
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SPI city council rejects e-scooter pilot program
South Padre Island residents line to speak in opposition to e-scooters during a SPI City Council meeting on June 17. Photo by Gaige Davila. By Gaige Davila editor@portisabelsouthpadre.com Members of...
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Port Isabel Lighthouse set to reopen
The Port Isabel Lighthouse on March 24, one week after it was closed by the city out of concern for COVID-19’s spread. Photo by Gaige Davila. Staff report The Port Isabel Lighthouse will reopen at the...
View ArticleTwelve COVID-19 cases confirmed in PI
By Gaige Davila editor@portisabelsouthpadre.com Port Isabel now has 12 confirmed cases of COVID-19. Port Isabel’s case increase is in tandem with Cameron County’s, which stands at 1301 cases as of...
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Gov. Greg Abbott orders Texas bars to close again and restaurants to reduce...
Gov. Greg Abbott at a press conference at the state Capitol in Austin on Monday, June 22,2020. Photo credit: Ricardo B. Brazziell/Pool/American-Statesman By Patrick Svitek, The Texas Tribune June 26,...
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“We didn’t even have our first wave yet” Cameron County warns residents as...
By Gaige Davila editor@portisabelsouthpadre.com Texas Governor Greg Abbott points to a chart detaining rising COVID-19 cases in the state during a press conference on June 22. COVID-19 cases in the...
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PIDC detainee pleads for life after issued final deportation order
A Port Isabel Detention Center detainee walks in line with other detainees in a photo from 2017. Photo courtesy of ICE. By Gaige Davila editor@portisabelsouthpadre.com A Ugandan man detained in the...
View ArticleSPI cancels Fourth of July fireworks show
By Gaige Davila editor@portisabelsouthpadre.com The City of South Padre Island has cancelled their Fourth of July firework show as COVID-19 cases increase across Cameron County. “The Fourth of July...
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Residents organize in solidarity with #BlackLivesMatter movement
Mark Peabody, second from right, stands with protesters in front of the Port Isabel Lighthouse in solidarity with the #BlackLivesMatter movement and advocating for stopping police violence in the U.S....
View ArticleH-E-B limits toilet paper, eggs, disinfectant purchasing
Staff report H-E-B is placing purchasing limits on more items as COVID-19 cases continue to increase in Texas. Some of the items with purchasing limits are unique to stores in the “Border Region” area,...
View ArticleH-E-B confirms Port Isabel store employee tests positive for COVID-19
By Gaige Davila editor@portisabelsouthpadre.com H-E-B has confirmed an employee at their Port Isabel store has tested positive for COVID-19. The employee was last in the store on June 19. A link to the...
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BREAKING: Cameron County closes county parks, beach accesses and issues...
File photo. By Gaige Davila editor@portisabelsouthpadre.com Cameron County Judge Eddie Treviño, Jr., has ordered the closure of Cameron County’s parks and beach accesses and has issued a curfew for 12...
View ArticleSPIPD Reports: June 22 – June 29
Curated by Steve Hathcock Editor’s note: The following South Padre Island police reports have been edited for clarity and according to AP Style. IDENTITY THEFT: FRAUDULENT USE OR POSS OF ID INFO (FEL)...
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Rio History: A Brief History of the Queen
Postcard of the first Queen Isabella Causeway. By Steve Hathcock Special to the PRESS The idea of connecting Padre Island to the mainland had been floated for over 25 years before the following...
View ArticleGovernor Abbott mandates face coverings in public statewide
By Gaige Davila editor@portisabelsouthpadre.com Texas Governor Greg Abbott has issued an executive order requiring all Texans to wear face coverings in counties with 20 or more positive COVID-19 cases....
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SPI issues restrictions to city beaches for next 7 days
Beachgoers on Memorial Day weekend behind Bar Louie and Courtyard Marriott, one of the most populated times on South Padre Island’s beach accesses. Photo by Gaige Davila. By Gaige Davila...
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