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Wimberley farmer catches two porcupines that were eating his crop

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:44:32 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) – Sky Cutler is the owner and lead farmer at the Dirty Candy Farm in Wimberley. At the beginning of spring, Cutler noticed large bite marks in much of his produce, particularly in some of his heirloom tomatoes. He thought the culprits were raccoons or opossums, which he’s seen before, and set up a trap – which wouldn't harm the animals – to catch them. “I moved [the trap] closer to the tomatoes and put some old tomatoes in there,” Cutler said. A couple of weeks went by until one day he was riding his motorcycle past the traps, “and I just like, skid to a stop,” he said. Inside the traps were two porcupines. “I wasn't really expecting porcupines. I've seen their footprints around the property but never really in the garden,” Culter said. “Just super surprising to catch two of them at the same time.” “I don't blame them. It's hot out… so them going after the tomatoes is totally understandable,” Cutler said. He said the fact they are porcupines and “really ...

Unrelenting July heatwave intensifies

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:44:32 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Temperatures are holding at about 10 degrees hotter than normal each afternoon this week as Austin bakes in its third-hottest start to July on record.A Heat Advisory continues through Wednesday night and will likely be extended into the coming weekend as afternoon "feels like" temperatures rise to between 108-112° -- dangerous levels for those spending time outdoors.A strong upper-level ridge of high pressure may lead to all-time record high temperatures in Las Vegas, NV later this week, and refuses to loosen its grip on our local weather for the next 1-2 weeks. Triple-digit high temperatures and dry weather continue for the foreseeable future.Forecast high temperatures Wednesday NEW BLOG: How this summer’s heat compares to last year in Austin Summer Fan DriveOur Summer Fan Drive is underway! Please click here to find out how you can make an online donation and learn more about Family Eldercare's Summer Fan Drive event with KXAN on Friday. Several of our KXAN staf...

Average rent in Travis County hits $1,700 a month, report

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:44:32 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- A report looking at five Central Texas counties found despite slight reprieve, rent and home prices are still going up year-over-year. Across five counties in our Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) -- Bastrop, Caldwell, Hays, Williamson and Travis -- home sale prices increased overall by nearly 8% from 2021 to 2022. The median home price across the MSA was more than $500,000 last year, according to the report.While more expensive prices have historically been concentrated in Austin, the report shows the counties with the largest increases in average rent prices were actually the exterior counties as people were pushed out of central Austin. Austinites voted for more affordable housing. Where did your money go? The report noted that Travis County continues to see the highest average rent price at more than $1,700, but that counties at the outskirts of the MSA -- Bastrop and Caldwell -- saw the highest percent increase in average rent from the year prior hitting a...

NATO summit kicks off in Lithuania, Turkey on board with Sweden joining alliance

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:44:32 GMT

WASHINGTON (Nexstar) -- The 74th NATO summit kicked off today with a show of unity with Turkey now on board with Sweden joining the alliance.Just hours before the 31 members of the NATO alliance gathered in Lithuania for their annual summit, NATO's secretary general announced Turkey has agreed to support Sweden's bid to join the military alliance after nearly a year of opposition."This is this is good for Sweden, Sweden will become a full member of the alliance. It's good for Turkey because Turkey is NATO ally that will benefit from a stronger NATO," NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said.The president of Turkey said he first needs to send the accession protocol to the Turkish parliament for approval.White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan applauded the deal, which would allow Sweden to become the 32nd member of NATO."While this deal was, of course, the product of direct talks among the three parties to that agreement - NATO, Turkey and Sweden, the United States ha...

Beautifying your home parkway the sustainable way

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:44:32 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- It's a part of your home landscape that you might not consider when making your yards look pretty. It's called the parkway. The parkway lives between the curb and the sidewalk. Most homeowners don't think about making their parkway better looking. But homeowner Gary Citron and his wife updated their parkway to have more than just turf grass. They not only wanted to make it more aesthetically pleasing, but they also wanted to do it sustainably.Gary's wife was a volunteer at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildlife Center. She learned about sustainable landscaping giving the Citrons a leg up on what they needed to do for theirs. They needed to determine what plants and bedding would do well in this Texas weather so, obviously, they want with drought-tolerant plants.The landscaping was done in just a single day by three people. Plants that now adorn their parkway include Gulf Meuhli, Big Meuhli, Berkeley Sedge and San Luis Sedge. Woolly Stemodia was the choice of ground cover. T...

Cats overwhelm homeowner in Johnstown

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:44:32 GMT

A local cat rescue group is looking for homes for more than 40 cats that were found at a Fulton County home. But one advocate says finding places for the cats is more difficult than other animals. Unkept promises for New York City’s displaced asylees in the Capital Region Ed Moore has lived in his house his entire life and he says it has become completely overrun and unmanageable by stray and abandoned cats. So bad that local cat adoption and advocate groups are stepping up to assist.“I had a caller alert me to a bunch of kittens up by the road, cats getting hit and killed. Within minutes, I saw kittens everywhere, pregnant cats. I have got injured cats here, at least twenty kittens that we counted and 22 adults, stopped counting at 22,” said Heather Capano with the Friends of the Forgotten Cat Rescue Inc. of Johnstown.Moore tells me he has been feeding the cats for decades and is attached to some of them.“I don’t mind a couple being around. The outside cats and the this and ...

Unidentified female recovered from Hudson

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:44:32 GMT

BETHLEHEM, N.Y. (NEWS10) – Multiple agencies were on the scene to assist in a recovery effort on the Hudson River in Selkirk. Emergency crews recovered an unidentified, African-American female – who was not wearing a life vest. Chief of the Selkirk Fire District, Thomas Neri, described what unfolded at Henry Hudson Park. “The police department has an idea of who this person may be, but they didn’t confirm it yet,” said Neri. Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! He says she was found an eighth of a mile north of the boat launch in the Town of Bethlehem, after several boats called in around 11:30 A.M. to report they had spotted a body in the river.One man who was out fishing near the scene said he’s praying for the family.He said first responders have a very tough job and because of this recovery the family will now be able to lay their loved one to rest.  Gov. Hochul updates New Yorkers on floods, rain Neri says there’s a ...

Ex-prisoner transporter sentenced to 9 years for raping detainee at Missouri rest stop

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:44:32 GMT

JOPLIN, Mo. (AP) — A man has been sentenced to nine years in prison for raping a Washington detainee at a Missouri rest stop while transporting her to a Minnesota jail, the U.S. Department of Justice announced Tuesday.The department said 37-year-old Rogeric Hankins transported inmates who were arrested on out-of-state warrants as part of his job as a private prisoner transporter at Inmate Services Corporation.Prosecutors said Hankins picked up a pretrial detainee from an Olympia, Washington, jail in March 2020 to take her to St. Paul, Minnesota. On the way, he stopped at a Joplin, Missouri, rest stop where prosecutors said he forced the detainee into a bathroom stall and raped her.Hankins’ public defenders did not immediately respond to email and phone requests for comment Tuesday.“The defendant sexually abused and violently assaulted a woman in his custody, exploiting his authority and depriving this survivor of her constitutional right to bodily integrity,” Assistant Attorney Gene...

Denver police sergeant injured during Nuggets parade had leg amputated, donation page says

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:44:32 GMT

Sgt. Justin Dodge (Courtesy of Denver Police Department)The Denver police sergeant who was seriously injured during the Nuggets’ NBA championship parade in June has had his leg amputated, according to a message posted to a website created to collect donations for him and his family.Sgt. Justin Dodge was in front of a fire truck carrying Denver Nuggets players during the June 15 parade, trying to protect paradegoers who had moved onto the street, when the truck rolled over his left leg, Denver police Chief Ron Thomas said during a news conference that afternoon.Dodge went into surgery that day, but Denver Health Medical Center emergency room chief Dr. Stephen Wolf said during the new conference that Dodge’s injuries could threaten his leg.A website in Dodge’s name, sgtjustindodge.com, that links to a Denver Police Foundation donation page states Dodge is recovering from a “recent leg amputation.”A spokesperson for the Denver Police Foundation said they a...

Homicide on High Line Canal trail under investigation by Arapahoe County officials

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:44:32 GMT

The Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a homicide after deputies found a man’s body on the High Line Canal trail Tuesday morning.Just after 5:30 a.m. Tuesday, deputies from the sheriff’s office responded to a report of a man lying on the ground of the High Line Canal trail in the area of East Iliff Avenue and South Quebec Street.When deputies arrived, they found the man dead at the scene, deputy John Bartmann said. Investigators were called to the scene and are currently investigating the death as a homicide.According to Bartmann, investigators believe the man died within the last 24 hours.At this time, no information is being released on how the roughly 40-year-old man died. The Arapahoe County coroner’s office will release the victim’s name and cause of death at a later time.Related ArticlesCrime and Public Safety | Sniper firing at Denver high-rise terrifies residents; police investigating possible connection to Broomfield s...