The pool behind the Fort Sill Patriot Club served as a classroom Thursday for dive teams from Lawton Police Department and Fort Sill's Directorate of Emergency Services.
The divers were learning how to use LPD's new underwater communications system that will make dive team operations safer and more efficient, according to Lawton Police Lt. Robby Edmondson.
"It's something we've been working on for years," he said.
Lawton Assistant Police Chief James Apple said a little under $36,000 from a $534,541 stimulus grant was used to buy the new underwater communications gear. Lawton Police Lt. Tom Crawford, supervisor of the LPD dive team for the past 11 years, did much of the legwork on getting the gear writing the specifications, putting the packet together and getting bids on the equipment.
The package includes 10 diving masks equipped with four-channel transceivers, a main surface station and two mobile surface units that can move to different locations to communicate with divers. The digital communications equipment made by Aquacom allows two-way traffic between diver and surface. In addition, the divers can talk to each other.
Lawton Police Sgt. Robert Bishop said he works with the dive team "top side," sitting in a john boat monitoring the divers' air bubbles as they rise to the surface.
"This is going to be different. Instead of me watching bubbles, we can talk," Bishop said.
"It's going to enhance our operations tenfold," Edmondson said.
"Most of the dive operations we conduct are in zero visibility. Communication from diver to diver has been by hand signals or ropes. They can't see each other a lot of times," he said.
There was basically no communication to the surface, Edmondson said. The international sign for a diver to come up was to bang on metal.
The new communications system will bring about a tremendous increase in safety, he said.
"It allows us to be more efficient because we can direct our divers from the surface," said Edmondson. Friday, September 03, 2010
Torrential rain Thursday night caused chaos and disruption to complement the chorus of rumbling thunder and striking lightning throughout Lawton and the surrounding area.
Emergency radios reported in earnest as sheets of heavy rain and small hail began to pummel the area shortly before 8 p.m. The line of rain struck north of Lawton first as it approached the Comanche County seat.
A pickup that overturned shortly before 8 p.m. along Interstate 44 near the Medicine Park exit was a difficult find for would-be rescuers. Wichita Mountains Estates Fire Chief Bob Martineau reported the downpour was so heavy he couldn't risk taking the rescue truck onto the interstate until the downpour lightened.
"The rain and hail are coming down too hard," Martineau reported at 7:55 p.m. "It's (hail) gosh-darned dime-sized and quarter-sized."
The occupants of the pickup were unhurt and retrieved from the scene by an Oklahoma Highway Patrol trooper the truck was left for recovery on Friday, according to radio traffic.
Within minutes the OHP reported "40-55 mile-per-hour winds" at the interstate's Mile Marker 53 near Elgin. The Medicine Park "Y" on Oklahoma 49 was also closed due to the downpour, according to radio reports. Friday, September 03, 2010
Cameron University students will find it easier to stay sound in mind and body this school year.
The CU Wellness Center, which opened for business Aug. 18, held an open house Thursday afternoon to welcome students and introduce them to the services available at the center, which is located on the first floor of North Shepler Tower, on Cameron's main campus.
Students were able to mingle and enjoy refreshments while visiting with the center's staff and seeing the facility's three examination rooms and small laboratory.
Wellness Center director Deanice Shegog said the purpose of the open house was "so the students, faculty and staff know we're here to get them in, get them more comfortable coming."
The center is a great first stop for students with minor health issues colds, stomach bugs, influenza, cuts, burns and more. It also offers referrals for more serious medical issues and monitoring for students with chronic health problems like hypertension.
Counseling is also offered to students. Friday, September 03, 2010
ANADARKO_ The run-off election is finally over for the Caddo County Election Board.
Thursday afternoon District Judge Richard G. Van Dyck ruled the election for county assessor would stand with the challenger Edward Whitworth officially defeating incumbent Sandy Crumm.
Crumm filed a request with the district court alleging voter irregularities that included electioneering and voter fraud. Crumm, who could have been represented by an attorney, chose to present the evidence herself.
She provided the judge with pictures of campaign signs for Whitworth which she said were placed illegally.
"I don't know how to proceed," Van Dyck said. "You presented me a couple of pictures of an intersection I don't recognize."
Crumm replied the pictures were taken at the courthouse intersection in Anadarko.
The signs would not have been illegal until voting started at which point they must be placed 300 feet from the polling place.
As he dismissed the electioneering charge Van Dyck ruled the charge was being dismissed because there was nothing to identify the date when the pictures were taken.
Electioneering issues are criminal offenses, according to state statute.
Crumm also presented to the judge a list of nine people who allegedly were not registered to vote in Caddo County. Friday, September 03, 2010
Comanche County Democratic Headquarters will open Saturday, as area Democrats prepare for the 2010 general election.
Open house Saturday County Chair Rhonda Williams said county officials will hold an open house from noon to 4 p.m. Saturday at 610 W. Lee Blvd., which will function as party headquarters through the November general election. State and local Democratic candidates have been invited to attend the opening, giving residents a chance to meet them and ask questions. Pamphlets and signs also will be available for those who want them.
Williams said it is important that area Democrats participate in the event.
"I would like the citizens in the county to come to the 'meet and greet' and express how they feel about all or any social programs," Williams said. "This is the time to be socially active."
Williams said it is important that constituents know how their candidates plan to stretch tax dollars to fund programs and activities, what things they will be doing differently, and what programs they plan to bring to Southwest Oklahoma. Friday, September 03, 2010
Two Lawton elementary schools are getting a helping hand from Dollar General to improve student reading skills.
Sullivan Village Elementary School will receive $2,777.05 from Dollar General's "Connect Through Reading" youth literacy grant for its project, "Reading X 3." Across town, Brockland Elementary School will receive $2,500 from Dollar General's "Back to School" grant for its project "Bridging the Technology Gap."
Both schools should receive their money within the next two weeks. Neither school receives money from the federal Title I program, which helps schools with majorities of economically disadvantaged students, so the money is especially welcome in a year where state aid allocations are down.
Sullivan Village instructional coach Jennifer Foster and counselor Brenda Walker applied for the grant in May.
The grant Sullivan Village is getting required the project help raise literacy for both students reading below grade level and above grade level, Foster said.
She said Sullivan Village will use the money to purchase manipulatives teaching aids designed to appeal to different learning styles for nine classrooms. Friday, September 03, 2010
A section of Lawton Avenue will remain closed through Sept. 8, due to construction on a sewer line for a private residence.
Lawton Avenue is closed between Northwest 14th and Northwest 15th streets, with only local traffic permitted on the street until construction is completed. Friday, September 03, 2010
Fort Sill Garrison Commander Col. Raymond P. Lacey has issued a response from Fort Sill concerning the damages to Ferguson House on the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge.
"Fort Sill authorities are working closely with the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge and the Department of the Interior to determine a way ahead," he said. "No approved plan for restoration of the Ferguson House has been developed yet. Fort Sill has been, and continues to be, a steward of Southwest Oklahoma history and is committed to the restoration of the Ferguson House. Team Sill considers Southwest Oklahoma a great place to live and raise a family and each piece of history we can maintain is an important tie to our heritage as a state and nation." Friday, September 03, 2010
It's official Comanche County has a budget for the current fiscal year.
The Comanche County Excise Board approved the budget early Tuesday morning during a regular meeting. The same budget was approved by the Comanche County Commissioners Monday.
The $7,918,000 budget was finally approved after a couple of weeks of number-wrangling, as Central District Comanche County Commissioner Ron Kirby, who is responsible for creating the annual budget, negotiated with all county department heads to produce a balanced budget.
The initial budget requests from department heads were about $50,000 in the red, mainly due to shrinking state allocations because of the ongoing budget crisis. A proposed balanced budget was presented to the commissioners Monday by Kirby, but it would have called for the Comanche County Court Clerk's office to lose one employee. Thursday, September 02, 2010
Firefighters were weary and bathed in mesquite smoke Wednesday following a long afternoon's firefight, according to Indiahoma's fire chief.
"We've got it out," Chief Chris Jones said shortly before 6 p.m.
It was a series of "8 or 9 different fires burning between a 4 to 5 mile stretch" of U.S. 62 that kept a consortium of firefighters and emergency personnel battling brush and blazes from shortly after noon until the early evening hours, Jones said.
"There were a bunch of little spot fires," said Chris Killmer, Comanche County Emergency Management spokesman. "Dispatch reported it was possibly begun by a truck or trailer dragging a chain."
Jones said his Indiahoma department brought a dozen firefighters and 5 trucks to the fight, which was joined by fire crews from Cache, the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge, Fort Sill, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Snyder and Mountain Park. The Comanche County Western District offered a tanker truck and the Memorial Ambulance stationed in Cache and the Kiowa County EMS were on the scene to assist, he said. Thursday, September 02, 2010
ANADARKO Election season for Caddo County candidates is almost over.
The Caddo County election board spent Wednesday morning hand counting the ballots from the precincts that voted for District 3 county commissioner.
Incumbent Carlos Squires was defeated by eight votes by challenger Brent Kinder in the run-off election held Aug. 24.
On Aug. 27 he requested a hand recount of the ballots cast and paid $600 for the process.
The end result was that Kinder received an additional vote for a total of nine more votes than Squires with the final tally being 840 for Kinder and 831 for Squires.
Kinder will now be sworn in as county commissioner in January as there are no Republican challengers.
In the race for Caddo County Assessor, challenger Edward Whitworth defeated the current assessor, Sandy Crumm, 1,473 to 1, 382 votes. Thursday, September 02, 2010
WASHINGTON Illegal immigration into the United States has slowed considerably in the last several years, a study released Wednesday concludes.
The decline marks the first significant turnaround in two decades, researchers with the nonpartisan Pew Hispanic Center say. As a result, the U.S. illegal immigrant population may have fallen as much as 8 percent from 2007 to 2009.
"We've seen a reversal in what had been the long-term growth in the illegal immigrant population," researcher Jeffrey S. Passel said Wednesday.
An estimated 11.1 million illegal immigrants live in the United States. Possibly because of tighter enforcement measures and economic circumstances driving some immigrants back home, the population is down from its estimated 2007 peak of 12 million.
"Particularly along the southern border, enforcement has ramped up considerably," Passel said. "It's harder and more dangerous for immigrants to cross into the country."
From 2007 to 2009, an estimated 300,000 illegal immigrants sneaked into the United States annually. This marks an improvement over the period from 2005 to 2007, when an estimated 550,000 illegal immigrants entered annually, and 2000 to 2005, when an estimated 850,000 entered each year.
Homeland Security Department spokesman Matt Chandler attributed the decline in recent years to "the administration's unprecedented commitment of manpower, technology and infrastructure" to the nation's borders. Thursday, September 02, 2010
A family was shaken and investigators left hunting for more clues into a Wednesday morning shooting on Northwest Bell Avenue.
Police were called to 209 NW Bell at 6:30 a.m. after the family inside the home said their house had been shot, according to the report. LPD Officer Christopher Adamson spoke with a 49-year-old woman at the scene who said six people were sitting inside the home when they heard 2 to 3 shots outside the house and all fell to the floor until the shooting stopped, the report states. When she got off the floor, the woman stated, she saw that her window was broken and curtains were on the ground.
Adamson stated two undisclosed caliber shell casings were found outside near a parked vehicle, and he found one bullet hole going through a screen on the front of the house and into the house "the bullet struck a couch that was in front of the window."
The shooting remains under investigation. Thursday, September 02, 2010
Lawton police are investigating a series of vehicle windows that were shot out by BB or pellet gun early Monday morning.
Eighteen vehicles throughout town were reported to have suffered shot and shattered glass between midnight and 9 a.m. Monday. The unifying link between the many incidents was the notation by investigators that the windows had been shot by an air propelled device "looks like a BB/pellet gun," reports stated.
Vehicles were damaged at the following locations: 2308 NW Lincoln, 2301 NW Williams, 1809 NW Keystone, 7600 block of Northwest Taylor, 2318 NW 30th, Northwest 40th and Ozmun, 2343 NW 41st, 4319 NW Pollard, 612 NW Mickelgate, 611 NW Allison Lane, 1621 NW 26th, 253 NW 41st, 2801 N. Sheridan, 2309 NW 38th Place, 1403 NW Keystone Drive, and 6004 SW Park.
Detectives continue to investigate these and other complaints of recent motor vehicle damage, reports state. Woman fights back at ATM
A 35-year-old Lawton woman reported being beaten during an attempted robbery during an early-morning withdrawal from a southwest-side ATM her quick hands and ability to take a punch quashed any glory the would-be robber hoped to gain. Thursday, September 02, 2010
Nearly 300 elementary schoolchildren learned where healthy food comes from, why it's good for them and where it goes, thanks to an interactive educational exhibit called "Farm to You."
Christian Reimers, age 10, is a member of Cindy Jenkins' fourth grade class that walked from Cleveland Elementary School to the Comanche County Fairgrounds to see the exhibit earlier this week..
Christian said he learned about the food pyramid for starters. Then his group went over to the hamburger station to learn where all the fruits and vegetables grow. Afterward they went to a table to pick foods that are part of the food pyramid, and Christian chose grapes and peaches.
"Then we went to the teeth station," he said. "We learned one side is happy and one side isn't happy, because they haven't been brushing."
Their final stop was what Christian called "the germ station." There, their hands were sprayed with something that glows purple under a black light to show the presence of "germs." It's to teach them the importance of washing their hands before eating. Christian said that was his favorite part of "Farm to You."
"This is a program that the OSU (Oklahoma State University) Cooperative Extension Service has. It's available to all the counties in the state of Oklahoma," Comanche County Extension Educator Kendra Piasecki said.
She said the children who go through it learn that food comes from a farm, and they learn what agriculture is. Thursday, September 02, 2010
