Another tragic motor vehicle crash occurred this past week here in our county. Shellie Dawn Haley, of Lampasas County, just 21 years of age lost her life in a one vehicle accident out in the Bend. Haley and two friends were out at the river enjoying the day when on the way home she crashed and was thrown from her vehicle and killed. The other two passengers were transported to Lampasas ER but are recovering at this time. I want to thank all the first responders from both San Saba and Lampasas and the Department of Public Safety Troopers for all their hard work. It was a very hot and sad scene and these types of situations become very difficult for all of our first responders. This was the fourth, in a string of motor vehicle crashes, in and around the Bend that have involved alcohol, over the past ten days or so. We are working with the Department of Public Safety, Texas Parks and Wildlife and the Lampasas Sheriff’s office in an effort to focus on this area. We will be focusing on impaired drivers, speeding and narcotic interdiction and are asking everyone to slow down and joy the beautiful view and do not drink and drive. Please keep the families of those involved in this tragic crash in your prayers as well as the first responders who have to deal with each and every one of these tragedies.There were a total of five arrests made over the last week. Two for Driving While Intoxicated, one for deadly conduct, one for possession of marijuana and one for driving while license invalid. There are currently five in jail with seven being housed out of county. Work is steady at the jail and with the help of the commissioners crew we have begun to patch the parking lot at the jail and work on the lawn, due to our sewer line project. We did have some rough luck this week when our TLETS computer went down with a fried circuit board (whatever that animal is) and it completely shut down our ability to run traffic. I want to thank our surrounding counties for their assistance with picking up the slack. The computer was thirteen years old and I guess we can say we got our use out of it, but man what a pain. We have replaced the system and are back up and running but it was quite the project. It always seems to be something and I guess that’s Gods way of keeping us on our toes. I also want the thank Mike McDowell for coming to our rescue once again. He is always willing night or day to respond to the jail and deal with whatever situation has reared its ugly head. Thanks Mike you’re a life saver. We have all been praying for the rain and we desperately need it. Commissioners court met yesterday and the burn ban, for San Saba County, was put back in place. I know we are still seeing a lot of green out there but that is not a good thing right now. The conditions are ripe for a large fire and with this wind we could be in big trouble in a real hurry. Please make sure that you are careful if you are using one of the exemptions to burn and know and understand the liability involving any burning at this time.I had the privilege this week to work with some Pre K Four kids from San Saba Elementary. They toured the jail, saw our “time out chair” and we even gave a demonstration for the kids. Dana Wells was kind enough to be our volunteer. She was a good sport and the kids loved it and I believe that there are some pictures floating around somewhere. We gave a tour of the jail, the EMS barn and the Fire House and the kids loved every minute of it and were very well behaved. I have always believed that we need to make sure that we stay involved with our youth through all stages of their lives so that we can better understand and meet their needs as well. If you are looking for heroes, then you have to go no further than our teachers to find one. I have stated this fact over the years in the Cops Corner and the Sheriff’s Report, without our teachers and the amazing work that they do with our children each and every day, we could not survive. A big thanks goes out to Brandee Worsham, Gabby Delgadillo, and Dana Wells for bringing those children to visit with us, you are all brave souls. Once again we want to thank everyone for their prayers and calls. You can reach us at 325-372-5551 or 5432 and in an emergency just call 911.