Fire and emergency crews responded to a Rowlett helicopter crash this afternoon.
In the video shown above, the helicopter is seen without its tail rotor. The pilot appears to have the aircraft autorotating level for a hundred feet or so before the aircraft inverts.
The Rowlett Fire Department provides emergency and non-emergency services to an area of twenty-one square miles in eastern Dallas and has a residential population of 62,000. On any given day there are thirty firefighters on shift staffing their four stations.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott begs for federal socialist help again per a statement from his office.
The Texas governor, who has opposed COVID19 vaccine mandates and other preventive measures, said on Friday that his state had requested federal help with testing sites.
Abbott said in a press release that the state requested “resources for federally-supported testing locations and medical personnel and additional federal allocations of monoclonal antibodies.”
In June 2020, Governor Abbott blamed young people for the rise in COVID19 cases only to be diagnosed with the virus himself. He used monoclonal antibodies – a high dollar treatment option when he was diagnosed with coronavirus himself just a day after being at a fundraiser event the day before.
In October, Abbott issued a state executive order that barred Texas entities, including private business, from issuing COVID-related vaccine mandates. That came after the federal government announced a plan requiring private businesses with more than one hundred employees to require vaccinations or weekly testing.
Abbott was accused if playing politics at the time.
His statement against President Biden stated, “In yet another instance of federal government overreach, the Biden Administration is now bullying many private entities into imposing COVID19 vaccine mandates, causing workforce disruptions that threaten Texas’ continued recovery from the COVID19 disaster.”
Abbott is facing a primary challenge from both former Congressman Allen West and former Texas Senator Don Huffines.
Huffines has attacked Abbott on issues ranging from government administration to illegal immigrants, the coronavirus response, and blaming the governor for last year’s February power outages which he called “ridiculous.”
Abbott Begs Like Last Year While Denying Local Assistance
Hospitals in Dallas and throughout North Texas said they needed hundreds of additional emergency staff to deal with the surge of viral cases of coronavirus. The state denied their request for emergency personnel.
Mandatory masks stay in Dallas ISD after a Sunday night email to parents.
Dallas County like much of America is in a coronavirus Hot Zone as the Omicron variant is causing a rapid rise in COVID infections. Beyond Dallas ISD it is unclear on what steps state or federal government can take in light of the pandemic.
Masks Stay Thru Spring Break – At Least
The full statement to Dallas Schools’ parents is here:
Dallas ISD Parents,
Happy New Year. As we prepare for classes to resume this week, we continue to monitor COVID19 data and prepare for a safe return. Dallas County recently returned to level Red as the new Omicron variant has proven to be more easily transmitted than previous strains. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) anticipates the number of positive cases will increase over the next few weeks.
Dallas ISD’s mask requirement, along with other safety measures, has helped keep the number of positive cases down across the district. As staff return to work and classes resume, adhering to the mask protocol will be critical to controlling the spread and keeping students in classrooms. We will continue our mask and quarantine protocols and reassess at spring break. In-person classes will resume Wednesday January 5, as scheduled.
We remain committed to following established safety measures:
requiring masks
encouraging vaccinations
practicing social distancing
continuing cleaning and hygiene efforts, and
frequent testing.
Campus nurses will be available to test campus staff and students. We will also have a central testing site at the William H. Cotton Service Center, 3701 S. Lamar, from 8AM – 1PM on Monday, January 3 and Tuesday, January 4.
Those who have been fully vaccinated and are deemed a close contact will not be required to quarantine if they are not displaying symptoms. As always, anyone who displays symptoms of COVID19 should stay home and contact their health care provider.
The safety and well-being of our students and staff continues to be our top priority. Thank you for your support and commitment to helping keep everyone safe.
Mask Debate Continues
The ongoing discussion of masks in schools will likely continue a debate about students wearing masks beyond just NextDoor groups.
Most notably a group of upper middle class white individuals have been pushing back against the mask mandate at Dealey Montessori. The protests were pushed by Lauren Davis who has worn masks regularly in public spaces. They also come despite President Trump stating he has taken both the vaccine and booster leading some of the Alex Jones style sycophants to describe him as a “sell out.”
Those businesses are now feeling the crunch of employees testing positive for COVID19 in a wave of Omicron variant infections which have propelled numbers past last year’s highs.
Dallas County Health and Human Services announce new COVID19 test center locations at local health centers, clinics, and some pharmacies at no cost to the patient.
Please always call ahead to check availability and make and appointment if required.
Recently, Southwest Airlines Chief Executive Officer Gary Kelly was diagnosed with COVID19 after telling Congress mask mandates did not work. More recently, former President Donald Trump told a crowd in Dallas he had received the vaccine booster.
On Sunday at the American Airlines Center, a surprising admission from the former President. President Donald Trump gets COVID19 vaccine booster per his conversation with Bill O’Reilly which surprised many in the crowd leading to a small crowd booing his admission.
Many Republicans have dismissed official healthcare guidance seeking treatments such as hydroxychloriquine or ivermectin despite clear evidence they do not play a positive role in slowing infection rates or hospital admissions for coronavirus.
In the meantime, Omicron rates are skyrocketing across Europe and parts of the United States and health officials are worried again about winter hospital bed availability.
Trump Gets COVID19 Vaccine Booster
It isn’t clear what prompted Trump to get the vaccine booster, but recently Southwest Airlines Chief Executive Officer Gary Kelly was diagnosed with COVID19 just days after telling Congress he doesn’t think masks provide any health benefit in contradiction to Centers for Disease Control guidance.
Last summer, Dallas has been described as a COVID19 “hot zone” due to high infection numbers.
Southwest Airlines Chief Executive Officer Gary Kelly has COVID19 just days after glibly telling Congress he doesn’t think masks provide any health benefit in contradiction to Centers for Disease Control guidance.
It is unclear how many cases are happening within Southwest Airlines right now, but more locally Dealey Montessori cases shot up immediately when unmasked students were allowed it the classroom in violation of Dallas ISD’s mask mandate.
Gary Kelly Has COVID19, But Losing Control At Airline?
Weeks ago Southwest Airlines had to cancel 2000 flights in a weekend stranding tens of thousands of passengers across the United States. At the time they blames weather and technology, but insiders say it was a mass Blue Day – where employees call out sick from work. American Airlines had similar issues.
Southwest also said it would follow Goveror Greg Abbott’s mask mandate prohibitions instead of federal government rules.
A similar program for students 12 and older had a November 15 deadline.
School Vaccine Incentive Update
The new program move follows an earlier program that paid students age 12 – 17 for proof of vaccination status.
Per a Dallas schools website, high demand for the $50 incentive, paid through gift cards, along with shipping delays during the holiday season have created an unforeseen delay in the distribution of the vaccine incentive gift cards.
Those students who submitted documentation by the November 15 deadline will still get their incentive.
Data released by Dallas Independent School Districttells the story. Dealey 7 new cases of COVID19 since dropping the mask mandate. The mandate dropped for two students out of several hundred.
The impact is being felt as several full classrooms are being required to quarantine. This comes after the reckless nature of one parent.
The parent is being enabled by both principal, Beth Wing and PTA President Alishia Salmon.
The DISD coronavirus dashboard shows five cases at Dealey. It does not reflect the seven cases listed in an email to parents.
Dallas County COVID19 numbers are falling. They are rising on the Dealey campus where mask mandates are now ignored.
Dealey 7
Officials expect the Dealey 7 numbers to rise after they surrendered on masks. The mandate has had almost 100% compliance.
Adults using bullhorns hurled accusations at kindergarten students over unfounded abuse claims. Officials did say protestors must stay on sidewalks, but did not maintain that zone. During the October protest parents reported protestors with firearms at school.
Dallas ISD Police and Dallas Police stated there were no arrests during protests.
Protest ring leader, Lauren Davis has not responded to many emails for comment. She is Chief Culture Officer for The Gents Place.
Despite protests, Davis’ children wear masks in other locations around Dallas. There is no record of her complaint anywhere other than Dallas ISD leading up to these events.
The Gents Place did post an ominous question earlier asking which was the better weapon: the AK47 or M16. Some have called it charged with an implicit threat to the school.
Dallas school officials have also declined to respond to emails. These emails from both parents and Other Side Dallas show the district in bunker mode.
Parents say the Dealey PTA leadership, particularly Alishia Salmon, enables the Davis complaint. She talks about “community” without taking any action to stop Ms. Davis for her role in protests.
