The Hobbs City Commission on Tuesday moved one step forward in the process of adopting a proposed ordinance to update city fireworks code during a virtual meeting, moved from Monday due to Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Originally discussed in November, Commissioners voted unanimously to send the rewritten proposal for publication, the next step in the process. According to New …

In the ongoing battle against COVID-19, Hobbs Municipal Schools has added another layer in its armor with 2,261 MERV 13 air filters. The filters will replace the current air filters in each H-VAC system in each HMS school building. “Those filters are more dense so they trap the particles of the COVID-19 virus,” HMS Superintendent TJ Parks told the News-Sun. …

No constituents roaming the hall looking for their senators. No lobbyists hanging around the representative’s office. No crowded committee rooms. It won’t look like any previous normal session of the New Mexico Legislature this year. That’s because the 60-day session that starts at noon Tuesday won’t be anywhere near normal — for two reasons, not one. Both the COVID-19 pandemic …

JAL — Due to COVID-19, the Jal City Hall closed Tuesday afternoon. City Manager Matt White said employees who work in the building were sent for testing after an employee who initially thought she was having normal sinus troubles became very ill and tested positive. “The problem is I’ve got seven people in three little offices. They’re just crammed up …

Sofia Lopez wants to give back and she’s using her birthday to do so. This year, instead of birthday gifts, Sofia has asked family and friends to donate to Isaiah’s Kitchen, a food outreach charity in Hobbs, and hopefully, by her eighth birthday on Jan. 16, the charity will benefit. It all started a few weeks ago. Sofia and her …

Sofia Lopez wants to give back and she’s using her birthday to do so. This year, instead of birthday gifts, Sofia has asked family and friends to donate to Isaiah’s Kitchen, a food outreach charity in Hobbs, and hopefully, by her eighth birthday on Jan. 16, the charity will benefit. It all started a few weeks ago. Sofia and her …

Sara Lack vividly remembers her childhood growing up in Hobbs and living in poverty. “It was a single-mother household,” Lack remembered. “There were a lot of times when we didn’t know where we would get our next meal or have a roof over our heads. My mother worked extremely hard to provide what she could and instill the values of …

Oh what a difference a few months can make. In April 2020, West Texas Intermediate oil fell to an unheard of price of -$37.63. On Tuesday and Wednesday, WTI reached $50 per barrel. As of close on Wednesday, WTI crude on oilprice.com was $50.46. Buoyed by the announcement by Saudi Arabia it was cutting production by 1 million barrels per …

Lea County had three new reported deaths on Friday due to COVID-19, according to the N.M. Department of Health, and 55 new cases. The department reports the two deaths were: A male in his 60s from Lea County. The individual was hospitalized and had underlying conditions. A male in his 70s from Lea County. The individual had underlying conditions. A female …

The embattled Hobbs Apartment complex on East Clinton Street saw a flurry of activity Thursday as code and safety inspectors from several different city departments made their way around the complex looking for violations. Even before the inspectors arrived, the complex was abuzz with workers, fixing windows, working on plumbing and blowing leaves and generally sprucing up the complex. There …