Some passing clouds. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 74F. Winds S at 5 to 10 mph..
Some passing clouds. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 74F. Winds S at 5 to 10 mph.
While substantial rains may have recently fell in some Comal County areas, officials remind the sum total wasn’t enough to lift the ban on outdoor burning unincorporated areas that has been in place for nearly four months.
Fire Marshal Kory Klabunde said the county’s average Keetch-Byram Drought Index, which assigns points for forest fire potential, was at 764 points on Monday, well beyond the 500-point trigger county commissioners require for burn bans.
The KBDI measures the amount of precipitation necessary to return dry soil to capacity in a point system ranging from zero (very wet) to 800 (very dry). After rains Tuesday and into Wednesday, the Comal County’s overall KBDI average was 705 on Wednesday after falling 29 points in the last 24 hours.
Under burn ban restrictions, approved by commissioners in April and renewed in July, no open flames are allowed outdoors; scofflaws face fines of up to $500. For more, visit the fire marshal’s webpage at mycomalcounty.com/Fire_Marshal.htm, or facebook.com/ComalCountyFireMarshalsOffice.
Two arrested in odd incidents
New Braunfels police reported no river-related arrests last weekend, which was the slowest for such activity this summer. Police issued only 13 citations for parking and traffic violations on Saturday and none on Sunday.
Police made two interesting arrests over the weekend. On Friday they called to a South Seguin Avenue restaurant for a report of suspicious activity around 11:14 p.m. Workers there told police a man reaching into pockets for his cell phone instead found a gun.
David Ferguson, city communications manager, said police said the man was at a downtown bar, where he took out a handgun from his pocket thinking it was his phone. The gun was reported stolen out of Converse, and after his transport to Comal County Jail, officers found an alprazolam (Xanax) pill hidden in his shoe, Ferguson said..
Chet Michael Aguirre, 36, of Joshua, Texas, was charged with a unlawfully possessing a weapon with a felony conviction, theft of a firearm, possessing a prohibited substance into a correctional facility and public intoxication. He remained in the county lockup Wednesday under bonds totaling $25,500.
Around 7:17 p.m. on Saturday, Ferguson said an apartment manager spotted a man he thought was casing possible burglary targets in the parking lot of the complex.
“When he was approached by the apartment manager, he brandished a drywall knife and threatened the manager while trying to get away,” Ferguson said. “Officers located him in a traffic stop a short time later.”
Although no one was injured, Sebastian Edmund Vela, 29, of San Antonio, was charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. Vela was released from county jail Monday after posting $20,000 bond.
No further information on Purgatory Road cycle fatality
The Texas Department of Public Safety, which is investigating Sunday’s fatal motorcycle accident on Purgatory Road near Farm-to-Market Road 306, says it had nothing to add to reports received from local authorities.
Scott Payne, 62, of San Antonio, was traveling on Purgatory Road toward FM 306 when he lost control of the motorcycle and careened into a concrete culvert near the intersection west of New Braunfels.
On Monday and again Tuesday, DPS officials had no information on the cause of the accident, whether other vehicles were involved, weather conditions at the time, if an autopsy was ordered or if the driver had worn a helmet.
Sgt. Orlando “Gus” Moreno, DPS-San Antonio public information officer, said troopers had not yet filed a preliminary report but said the agency would forward additional details when it is completed.
“We have nothing further to add to the information you already have,” Moreno said Tuesday. “The cause of the crash is under investigation, and any additional details will be in the completed report.”
Including Payne, six have died in accidents on FM 306, at or near intersections with Purgatory Road, River Chase Road and RM 32 since 2020.
On Oct. 8, 2021, two motorcyclists traveling together on FM 306 were killed after one cycle careened into a tree and the other was struck by an oncoming pickup truck, severely injuring the truck driver and killing the passenger.
The two Harley-Davidson motorcycles, driven by a man from Devine and one from La Vernia, were eastbound on FM 306, when one was struck by a Ford F-250 pickup, carrying a 62-year-old male and 68-year-old female from Trenton, Missouri. Both cyclists were killed — including the other seeking to avoid the first wreck — and the female in the truck.
On Nov. 19, 2020, a 37-year-old Canyon Lake woman was killed when her 1981 Honda motorcycle was hit by a Dodge pickup driven by a 66-year-old man from Seguin at the FM 306/River Chase intersection.
On Feb. 9, 2020, a 50-year-old San Marcos man was killed when his 2001 Dodge Ram pickup collided head-on with a 2004 Honda Civic near the RM 32 intersection, injuring the Honda driver, a 19-year-old Canyon Lake man.
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