SWITCH: Mobile | ePaper | Subscribe

Homes Rentals Jobs Autos Contests

Christopher Sherman

Mexico violence curtailing church missions

Christopher Sherman The Associated Press

Last updated Friday, February 3, 2012 - 6:17pm

McALLEN, Texas -- John and Wanda Casias knew the risks of being missionaries in one of Mexico's most violent, cartel-dominated regions, their children say, but they refused to curtail their work and instead put their ministry ahead of their safety.

The couple's slaying this week during a home invasion comes as missionary groups are rethinking how they prepare their volunteers to live in Mexico and other hotspots -- or whether to send them at all.

Drug cartels, Drug violence, Mexico violence, Safety, International Read more Comments

Frustration grows for Texas wildfire evacuees

Christopher Sherman The Associated Press

Last updated Friday, September 9, 2011 - 5:52pm

BASTROP, Texas -- Residents left homeless by a massive Central Texas wildfire turned their attention Friday to what they need to move forward, with some voicing frustration over a perceived delay in federal response even as early signs of recovery appeared in reopened neighborhoods.

Firefighters focused on extinguishing hotspots and had isolated remaining flames from the blaze that has burned for almost a week in and around the city of Bastrop, destroying nearly 1,400 homes and sweeping across about 45 square miles of rain-starved landscape.

Drought, Weather, Wildfires, National Read more Comments

Courtney Hughes sits in the family car as they decide where they will be spending night as residents along Kickapoo Rd. are under a mandatory evacuation in Waller County, Texas on Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2011. Firefighters gained ground Wednesday against one of the most destructive wildfires in Texas history even as the number of homes lost reached almost 800, and an elite search team set out to find any victims in the smoking ruins. (AP Photo/Houston Chronicle, Mayra Beltran)

Texas residents quickly fled as wildfire closed in

Christopher Sherman The Associated Press

Last updated Thursday, September 8, 2011 - 9:35am

BASTROP, Texas -- Dennis Silman was in line at the store when his wife's urgent call came through: They needed to get out. Smoke was drifting up through the woods and the wildfire that just 30 minutes earlier wasn't near enough to pose a problem was visible over the treetops by the time he got home.

In just 90 minutes, Silman was able to make four trips loading clothes and a few important possessions into his Mustang. He could feel the blaze's heat and hear the crackling roar as he packed his car. Less than two hours after they drove away for the last time Sunday, the Bastrop Complex fire consumed his home and six other houses of relatives who all lived within about four square miles of each other.

Drought, Texas, Weather, Wildfires, National Read more Comments

Hurricane Alex churns toward Mexico, Texas coasts

Christopher Sherman, Paul J. Weber, The Associated Press

Last updated Wednesday, June 30, 2010 - 11:33am

BROWNSVILLE, Texas — Hurricane Alex churned westward through the Gulf of Mexico early Wednesday, far from oil spill cleanup efforts but on a collision course with Mexico and the southern Texas coastline.

Hurricane, Weather Read more Comments