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News
Headlines - February 7, 2007
E Street fire destroys garage
By Sarah LaBrune
Star Editor
news@dakotacountystar.com
A fire broke out on Friday around 9:45 p.m. at 1210 E Street in South
Sioux City. According to First Assistant Chief Clint Nelson, ÒThe
owner, Gabriel Ortega, was changing a fuel filter in a vehicle. In
doing so he spilled some gas on the floor. He turned away to get some
rags to wipe it up when the fumes ignited the fire. The ignition
source was a space heater nearby that started the fire. The owner
escaped unharmed, but he had to break out a window to escape the
garage as his exits were cut off. Ortega's garage and contents,
including the vehicle, were a total loss.On arrival the garge was
fully involved with heavy fire showing.The fire was extending to the
neighbors gargae and with the fire engulfing the Ortega's garage,
firefighters consentrated our efforts on saving the neighbors
garage. The neighbors garage did have the siding burn as well as the
roof. The cold created a lot of ice, but overall the guys handled it
really well. We did have two guys slip and fall, but they were not
injured. The Fire department was assisted at the scene by the South
Sioux City Police Dept, Dakota County Sheriff's Dept, Nebraska State
Patrol, and Nebraska Public Power District.Ó (Photos by D.L. Benton)
By Sarah LaBrune
Star Editor
Eleven years ago on Feb. 10, 18-year-old Leticia Barajas was stabbed over 37 times by her ex-husband Pedro Sanchez.
Barajas said she and her husband were having problems and she was through with the marriage when he showed up at her trailer at 420 W. 30th Street, Lot 8. After telling him she was washing her hands of the marriage, Sanchez went outside and returned with a boning knife that he used to repeatedly stab her while her son and nephew were in the next room.
"It was only a grace of a miracle that saved my life," Barajas said.
While falling in and out of conscious Barajas was able to dial 9-1-1 only to have Sanchez hang up the phone. He called 9-1-1 and said "I think I've killed my wife" then hung up the phone. However, the opertor called back and asked to talk to Barajas. Paramedics arrived and Barajas was transported to Mercy Medical Center, then Marian Health Center She received over 57 pints of blood and did not wake up for close to three days. But, when she did wake up, her parents knew their daughter was back when she told them she was thirsty for water and hungry for a baked potato and a steak.
Sanchez went to court where he was found guilty and is still serving time.
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By Sarah LaBrune
The South Sioux City Planning and Zoning Board met last Thursday to discuss the possible quiet zones in South Sioux City.
The estimated cost of the project is $830,000 with Burlington Northern picking up $410,000 ($60,000 cash and $250,000 for C Street and $100,000 for Dakota Avenue signal upgrades) and the city paying $420,000. A portion would be funded through sales tax and federal funds.
The proposal calls for the closing of the crossings at 2nd Avenue between 39th Street and North Railroad Street and a second closing at West 30th Street and 4th Avenue. With closed crossings, the trains would not need to blow their whistles.
The idea to create quiet zones came after residents complained about the loud train whistles that are heard throughout the day and night. There are approximately 16 trains that roll through South Sioux daily.
City Administrator Lance Hedquist estimated that one-third of the town can hear the train whistles.
Former Econolodge owner Dick Salem said he originally was against the idea of creating quiet zones three years ago, but after owning a property near a train crossing he is all for a quiet zone.
"I am sorry now that I was actually against it when I bought the motel," Salem said.
Salem said the customers were upset about the loud horns and often said they would not come back to stay at the Econolodge.
Dr. Robert Billiar, owner of the South Sioux City Animal Hospital, said he is against the quiet zones, because he does not want 2nd Avenue closed. His office is located at the corner of West 29th Street and 2nd Avenue.
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By Mike Renning
The South Sioux City Cardinals got the proverbial monkey off their backs last Saturday with an air-cleaning 55-50 win over Omaha Roncalli in the Mini-Dome. The Cards snapped an eight-game losing streak by beating a team that had beaten the Card earlier in the season and had beaten the No. 5 rated Class B team in the state the night before.
The Cards used a monumental effort in the come-from-behind victory that saw them battle back from a deficit reached double digits in the first half. Roncalli led the Cards 13-11 after one quarter and 32-23 at the half time buzzer before South Sioux City started whittling away at the Ram's lead.
The Cards bolted out of the locker room at the half and trimmed the Roncalli lead to six at the end of the third period then raced past their visitors in the fourth, outscoring Roncalli 19-8 to claim the five-point win.
Shea Whitsell led the Cardinal scoring attack with 16 points off the Cardinal bench. Jordan Spirk tossed in 13 while Nick Horan added a dozen.
The Cardinals hosted Ralston last Tuesday in the South Sioux City Mini-Dome and will travel to Omahato take on Gross Catholic tomorrow night. They will host Sioux City North next Tuesday.
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By Mike Renning
The Homer Lady Knights ended an exciting and pressure-packed week last Monday in the Lewis and Clark Conference finals in Laurel. The Lady Knights posted a 69-50 quarter final win over Wausa in Homer Jan. 30, won an overtime thriller over Bancroft-Rosalie in Winnebago last Friday in the semi finals and were edged by Newcastle in the championship Monday in another nail-biter, 51-46.
The week that ended in such dramatic fashion began with little fanfare as the Lady Knights used relentless defensive pressure and the spoils that come with it to build a 16-point lead in the first half and ended the half leading by a dozen.
"We did not shoot the ball well early in the game," said Homer head coach Merlyn Tremayne. "We had a big third quarter with a lot of high percentage shots off of our press."
That third quarter saw Homer increase their lead to 61-36 at the end of the stanza before the final was set at 69-50 with reserves playing a good share of the fourth.
Tricia Hoffman led the Lady Knights with 33 points, most of them coming from inside the paint and from sharp passes from her teammates. Ase Overfelt was all over the court for the Lady Knights and put in 112 points while dishing out seven assists and taking away nine steals. Kelsey Krusemark also had 11 points and led the Lady Knights with seven rebounds.
The win over Wausa earned the Lady Knights the right to take on the Bancroft-Rosalie Lady Panthers in Winnebago last Friday night for the right to advance to the Lewis and Clark Championship in Laurel. The Lady Panthers and Lady Knights had already played twice this season with Bancroft-Rosalie winning 62-47 on Dec. 15 and 48-40 on Dec. 28 to give the Lady Knights their only two losses for the season. This night would be different.
"This was about as good of a girls game that I have been involved in," said Tremayne. "The quality of play, intensity, both teams playing hard, big play after big play and a full house of screaming fans, it was great."
Both teams began the game understandably tight. Krusemark opened scoring for the Lady Knights underneath. Both teams traded a couple of turnovers then Overfelt drilled a jumper with 5:32 left in the opening quarter before Krusemark added her second bucket with an offensive rebound and put back to give Homer a 6-0 lead. They increased the lead to seven at 10-3 when Bridget Tighe was fouled on a drive to the basket with 4:04 left, she failed to complete the conventional 3-point play. Krusemark added a another bucket for a 12-3 lead before the Lady Panthers battled back to end the first quarter with a 16-10 advantage for Homer.
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