Fire Near Reimer's Ranch Almost Contained
Crews are still working on a fire near Reimer’s Ranch in Western Travis County. Lake Travis Fire Rescue says the fire has burned 200 acres and is about 90 percent contained this morning. Three homes were evacuated and firefighters say there were no injuries. The fire near Hamilton pool started as a 50-acre fire on Sunday. Firefighters say weather conditions caused it to re ignite Monday. Lake Travis Assistant Fire Chief Bobby Abbott said it all started with an uninsulated downed power line.
Troopers Inspecting Commercial Vehicles
Law enforcement will be doing safety inspections on 18-wheelers and other commercial vehicles starting today through Thursday. DPS troopers are joining law enforcement from Mexico and Canada for this 72-hour Roadcheck program. DPS released stats on last year's inspections:
During Roadcheck 2010, DPS troopers inspected 6,906 commercial vehicles, placing 25 percent of the vehicles (1,738) out of service because they were found to have serious enough safety violations to be removed from service until repairs could be made. Troopers placed 160 of the drivers (2.3 percent) out of service for violations ranging from not properly tracking their hours of service to suspended, expired or cancelled driver licenses. Four drivers were placed out of service for drug or alcohol violations. Troopers issued five tickets for seat belt violations.
Lane Closures on South Congress
South Congress is going to be reduced to one lane in each direction between Mary Street and Oltorf starting today. City crews are replacing part of a wastewater line in that area. Crews will be working from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The work is expected to be finished on Thursday.
New ACC President Officially Appointed
Yesterday the Austin Community College District Board of Trusteesofficially named Dr. Richard M. Rhodes the next president and CEO of ACC after voting to approve his contract. Rhodes will take office starting September 1. He is currently the president of El Paso Community College and is the chair of the Texas Association of Community Colleges.
USC Loses 2004 National Championship Title
The Bowl Championship Series stripped the University of Southern California football team of their 2004 National Championship yesterday. The Austin American-Statesman has details:
BCS officials had said USC was in danger of having its championship vacated after the Trojans were hit with heavy NCAA sanctions last year for rules violations committed during the 2004 and '05 seasons. The NCAA ruled star tailback Reggie Bush received improper extra benefits during those seasons and was ineligible when he played... The BCS also said the Trojans must vacate their participation in the 2006 Rose Bowl. USC lost that game 41-38 to national champion Texas.