By Molly Ann Howell
Managing Editor
A new year is upon us, but first the Sun is taking a look back at the past year with 10 of the biggest local stories.
These stories are not in a particular order but were chosen based on their impact on Gallup and McKinley County as a whole.
15-YEAR-OLD SHOT IN GALLUP
When a Hozho Academy student got shot while out on an evening walk, the community gathered around him and held multiple town halls calling for public safety improvements.
Liam Donaldson left his mom’s house around 7 pm and told her he’d be back around 7:45 pm that night. But Liam didn’t make it home that night.
Instead, his mom received a call around 7:30 pm: It was the Gallup Police. Liam had been shot and was currently in the emergency room.
According to a Gallup Police Department press release published on Aug. 20, Gallup Police Officer Gilbert Gonzales responded to the area of South Second Street and Logan Avenue after Liam reportedly called 911 himself. The shooting took place on a dirt trail along the Rio Puerco, which is a drainage canal that runs along Second Street.
Liam said he didn’t initially see the man who shot him. He only noticed that there were other people around when he heard one of the two men exclaim “Oh, f***.” Liam turned around at the sound of the man’s voice, and then he heard a gunshot.
“My first thought was that they were shooting at each other, and then I saw the gun was pointed at me,” Liam said. “I didn’t realize they’d shot me; I thought they’d shot at me and missed.”
For a while, the public was left in the dark about what happened to Liam. The Gallup Police did not release an initial statement about the shooting. Most people probably didn’t even know about it until Hozho Academy Principal Juliane Hillock sent out a letter to families of the school on Aug. 19 alerting them to the situation.
In her letter, Hillock discussed how Hozho staff and students, and even herself, have been victims of crimes in the area.
“This has been concerning, but now that one of our students has been shot in broad daylight while simply walking our streets, we can no longer wait to address safety in our community,” Hillock said. “These individuals have not been apprehended, and the community has not been notified of the danger. We, as community members, need to ask our community leaders to address the issue of crime and safety.”
Hillock called for a town hall meeting where the public would have a chance to discuss their public safety concerns. The town hall was held at Hozho Academy on Aug. 22.
The Gallup City Council and Police Chief Erin Toadlena-Pablo sat on a panel during the meeting while people voiced their concerns.
Besides the town hall, Hozho Academy also held a candlelight vigil on Aug. 27 outside of Gallup City Hall during the regular City Council meeting. Hillock said the vigil wasn’t just for Liam, but rather for all community members who have been victims of violence. She also said the school plans on holding future events to discuss violence in the community.
DEMOCRATIC VP CANDIDATE, SPEAKERS FIRE UP NAVAJO NATION
For the first time in modern history, a candidate on a presidential ticket campaigned on the Navajo Nation.
Democrat Vice President candidate Tim Walz traveled to Arizona on Oct. 26 to speak at a rally in Phoenix less than two weeks before the 2024 General Election, in which he was running alongside Vice President Kamala Harris. But he also stopped in Window Rock, Ariz. and at the Gallup Municipal Airport.
Walz arrived after 1 pm on Oct. 26 at the Gallup Municipal Airport for a brief press event with city officials. Then, the candidate’s motorcade traveled toward Window Rock for a rally in the Navajo Nation capital.
Before Walz took the stage, the enthusiastic crowd heard numerous speakers share their support for the Harris-Walz campaign. These speakers spoke about the significance of this election and why they were there to support the Democratic candidates.
Former Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez spoke to the crowd about the importance of voting.
“As Native Americans, our voices have long been marginalized, but now is the time for us to reclaim our power and make our presence felt,” he said. “Voting is not just a right; it is a responsibility we carry forward in [our veterans’] memory.”
When Walz spoke, he thanked the crowd for being there.
“You could be anywhere, you could be doing anything else, but you chose to come here because you understand that democracy matters,” Walz said. “Your love of the Navajo Nation and of the U.S. is strong, and your presence here is proof of that. We’re here because we’re not taking any vote for granted.”
RAILROAD INFERNO
A BNSF train carrying liquid petroleum gas (propane) derailed, creating an explosion at the Arizona/New Mexico border April 26. Flames from the two railcars nearly engulfed the eastbound lanes of Interstate 40 shortly before 1 pm.
McKinley County Sheriff James Maiorano III said the highway was shut down for 54 hours, causing traffic delays and bottleneck traffic along rural byways.
The westbound train derailed on both sides of the border, bringing together a multitude of law enforcement agencies and firefighters. No injuries were reported.
According to a McKinley County Fire Rescue press release, 35 railcars carrying mixed freight derailed, six of which contained propane.
A hazardous and toxic materials team arrived on the scene shortly after the explosion and had the job of determining the level of the danger posed to the public by the fumes emitting from the burning railcars, plastic, and other debris.
Once the area was considered no longer a threat to residents, businesses and first responders, the cleanup project commenced shortly after the reopening of the I-40 April 28. Westbound I-40 reopened around 10 am, and eastbound lanes reopened a few hours later at about 1:45 pm.
The BNSF hazmat team arrived within the first couple of hours of the derailment, Maiorano said, and they were quick to provide food, drinks and accommodations for people who were temporarily displaced from their homes.
The cause of the derailment remains under investigation.
GFD, GPD RESPOND TO DOWNTOWN EXPLOSION
Two employees of Bulk Transfer were injured after a fuel tank exploded in downtown Gallup on Nov. 12.
Around 10 am the Gallup Fire Department and Gallup Police Department were dispatched to the area of Roundhouse Road after they received multiple reports of an explosion and a fire. Due to the amount of fire and smoke noted coming from the area, all off duty GFD personnel were asked to respond.
The first fire department unit arrived on scene at 10:09 am and reported that two commercial semi-tank trucks were on fire along with a large ground fire. First arriving GFD units also encountered an employee of the facility who was injured. Crews started patient care, and the employee was later transported to the hospital by MedStar Ambulance.
Crews found one semi-tank truck that had a rapid failure of the tank with a heavy ground fire around the semi. The second semi-truck had the cab ingulfed in fire that was impinging on another tank trailer with a large amount of fire on the ground burning between the two semi-trucks.
Fire crews deployed a hose line to knock down the semi cab fire and to prevent the fire from extending to the second semi-tanker. This was successfully accomplished. Additional fire units arrived and established a water supply after deploying 800 feet of five-inch supply line from a fire hydrant and deployed a second hose line with foam to start fire extinguishment on the semi-tank that was on fire along with the ground fire. A third hose line was deployed as a safety line and to protect a nearby building if needed.
Fire crews met with site personnel who noted that several valves were open that were adding fuel to the fire. These valves were engulfed in fire and fire crews used the hand lines to push the fire away from the valves, allowing fire crews to shut them off stopping the flow of fuel. Once the fuel flow was stopped fire crews were able to extinguish the remaining ground fire. The fire was reported knocked down and under control at 10:45 am and the fire was fully extinguished at 11:08 am. Fire crews also assessed a second employee of the facility who was also transported to the hospital later in the incident.
NEW MEXICO HOUSE LAWMAKERS BYPASS MOST OF GOVERNOR’S CRIME AGENDA
Only one bill was passed during the 2024 special legislative session, and it had nothing to do with crime.
House Bill 1 focused on funding for flood and fire response funding, pilot projects, healthcare, and resources for the courts.
However, the Senate and House adjourned within six hours on July 18 without addressing a majority of the bills Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham wanted to see pass into law.
In a press release published on July 18, Lujan Grisham voiced her disappointment in how the session ended, calling it “one of the most disappointing days of her career.”
TWO FELLOW DEMOCRATS CHALLENGE REP. LUNDSTROM IN DISTRICT 9 RACE
Patty Lundstrom has been the House Representative for District 9 since 2003, and during the 2024 General Election she hoped to keep her seat on the Legislative.
Two other Democrats faced off against her for the District 9 seat during the June 4 primary election: Christopher Hudson and Arval McCabe.
Lundstrom ultimately ended up keeping her seat, winning a total of 1,429 votes, or 62% of the vote. Hudson won 680 votes, or 29% of the vote, and McCabe received 9% of the vote, or 200 votes.
QUALITY, MARKET, KNOWLEDGE, TOOLS CHALLENGING NAVAJO SHEEP INDUSTRY
For the Diné, sheep are a part of their history. The animals are in their creation myths, and when the Spanish colonists first brought churro sheep, which are now called Navajo Churro sheep, to the Southwest, the animals soon became a part of the Diné economy and culture.
But the days of sheep camps and flocks roaming the plains and valleys in the Nation are long gone. On two separate occasions the Navajo Churro sheep came close to full extinction. Counting over one million heads at one time, there were reportedly less than 500 left in the world by 1977.
The Sun interviewed people in the industry and took a look at the changes that made their livelihoods difficult to keep up with.
FRANK CHIAPETTI JR. NAMED GALLUP’S NEW CITY MANAGER
Gallup had gone without a permanent city manager for over a year since Maryann Ustick retired from the position in June 2023. After months of reviewing candidate applications and debating who would be the best fit for the city, the city council named Frank Chiapetti Jr. the new city manager during their Aug. 27 regular meeting.
In the Aug. 30 issue of the Sun, a reporter interviewed Chiapetti and laid out his background and experience for the position.
CITY COUNCIL APPROVES WASTEWATER RATE CHANGE
The wait is finally over: the Gallup city council approved a wastewater rate change during their July 23 regular meeting.
City staff recommended a 25% increase for fiscal year 2025, and then a 3% increase for the following four years, ending in 2029.
The city’s goal with raising the wastewater rate was to try and balance replacing and repairing lines that are past their life expectancy – causing dozens of breaks around the city every year – with making the rate increase palatable to residents and business owners. City staff expect the rate increase to provide sufficient cash flow to fund debt payments as well as capital investment.
GALLUP SOLAR WARNS CUSTOMERS OF COMPANIES RUNNING A SOLAR PANEL SCAM
President of Gallup Solar Bill Bright recently learned of a scam going on around the McKinley County community where salespeople are showing up to peoples’ doorsteps and encouraging them to go solar and allow a company to install solar panels.
The solar panels work fine and provide electricity to the homes, but the homeowners eventually learn one major flaw: they’re not seeing a reduction in their electricity bill, which is one of the perks of installing solar panels for a homeowner.
“It’s unfortunately happening across the U.S,” Bright said. “I’ve been hearing news about it. [It’s] corruption, which is rampant in our country with retailers and contractors unfortunately. And they’ve moved into the solar industry.”
The Sun spoke to some people who fell prey to the scam and published more information about it in the Aug. 23 issue.
To read full versions of all of these articles, visit gallupsun.com.
