Arkansas

Residents of an east Arkansas town have been without water for the past 2 weeks due to below-freezing temps

Published

2 years ago

January 30, 2024

Residents of an east Arkansas town have been without water for the past 2 weeks due to below-freezing temps

HELENA-WEST HELENA, Ark. — Residents of an east Arkansas town have been without running water for the past two weeks after the state was hit by below-freezing temperatures, and the outage has forced them to line up for bottled water, fill up jugs or take showers at a truck brought in by the state.

The outage affecting about 1,400 residents of Helena-West Helena is the second in the past year for the small town 52 miles (84 kilometers) southwest of Memphis, Tennessee, located along the Mississippi River.

The town faced a similar crisis last summer, when the same part of the city was without water in June.

Local officials are racing to fix leaks throughout the city and restore water to residents, but they say they’re facing the longer term challenge of overhauling a system with an infrastructure that dates back decades.

“The issues we’re facing now have been building up for decades,” said John Edwards, a former state lawmaker and executive director of an industrial park who’s been tapped by the mayor to assist in responding to the water crisis.

The outages are affecting one of two water systems for Helena-West Helena, which was two separate cities until 2006. One of the wells serving the system failed during the winter weather that hit the state, under pressure from leaks and dripping pipes.

“It’s hit or miss,” Russell Hall, director of the Phillips County Office of Emergency Management said. “One house might have halfway decent pressure, and another house might have a trickle, depending on gravity and other things.”

The state National Guard has brought in a water truck to provide potable water, and a 16-stall portable shower was brought in for residents to use. Each day, distribution sites for the water have seen a steady line of people filling up on water to use for their homes.

“It’s very difficult when you get up in the morning and you can’t take a bath, you can’t shower,” Mack Williams, 59, said as he picked up bottled water from a county distribution site. “You’ve got five, six, seven, eight people in the house, it’s very difficult.”

Gerald Jennings has been using a yellow bucket to catch rainwater to boil, then use to bathe and flush toilets. He said he knows of others doing the same thing.

“I’ve got to use what nature gave me, which was the rain,” the 58-year-old retiree said as he stood outside his home. “We got lucky that it was raining during this particular time.”

Laprece Stayton, a 40-year-old beautician, was picking up water at a distribution site. She said she had running water at her house, but it was low pressure and coming out “a little yellow, a little discolored.” She’s boiling water or not using it at all.

She said she was doing ok because she feels she is not affected as badly as other people and that she did not blame any single person for the issues.

“It’s no one’s fault,” she said. “If you have a car, you can’t keep a car for 60 years without having wear and tear on it. Pipes are going to have wear and tear on them.”

Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders last week urged a state commission to expedite a $100,000 emergency loan for the city to refurbish two wells and replace valves in the city’s water system. The Arkansas Natural Resources Commission has since approved what is the second $100,000 loan the panel has issued the city since last year’s crisis.

Sanders called the loan “part of my administration’s larger efforts to help the city refurbish its water system and prevent future system failures.”

Hall, the county’s Emergency Management director, said he doesn’t know when the water will be restored. He said citizens in general have been understanding of the emergency water distribution process.

“I’m sure that people are frustrated,” Hall said. “Three-quarters of my 911 dispatchers do not have water at their house right now. They have to come to work and still have to go through with their daily lives.”

The bigger question facing the city is how much the long-term fix to its water system will cost, and who will pay for it. Edwards said it would cost about $5 million to fix the failed well and make fixes to the water plant and other wells that would help keep the city from landing in the same crisis in six months.

The city’s water outage comes as other towns face problems with their aging water infrastructures. Several other cities faced water shortages in Arkansas during the winter storm. And in neighboring Tennessee, the rural town of Mason was without water for a week after freezing temperatures broke pipes and caused leaks in its neglected system.

Residents in three rural communities in far eastern Kentucky along the Virginia border have also been without water for more than a week after freezing weather.

“What’s happening here can and will happen in other places,” said Edwards, the director of an industrial park assisting during the water crisis. “We’ve got a lot of utilities in this state that have aging problems, and I hope this will be a cautionary tale for what officials in other communities can do to avoid being in this circumstance.”

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Arkansas

Tulsa downs Northwest Arkansas | Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

Published

7 hours ago

June 20, 2026

Press Room

Tulsa downs Northwest Arkansas | Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

SPRINGDALE — Tulsa scored two runs in the first INNING and four more in the second to grab an early lead en route to a 9-1 win over Northwest Arkansas on Friday night in front of 4,076 fans at Arvest Ballpark.

The Drillers (44-23) took a 2-0 lead in the top of the first on Chris Newell’s two-out, RBI-single and a bases-loaded walk by Kole Myers. Tulsa snapped a two-game skid.

Naturals manager Brooks Conrad just gave credit to the Drillers for a strong effort.

“You’ve got to tip your cap to the opposing pitching staff,” Conrad said. “They threw great. We had one run in the first, then they blanked us the rest of the game. It wasn’t our lack of effort or lack of preparation. It was just one of those games where we couldn’t get anything going offensively.

“I think the bright spot was our defense. (Carson) Roccaforte continues to do well. It’s a point now that I see him night in and night out, and it’s to the point I see him every night and it’s just another good night.”

Tulsa, which took advantage of 11 walks by Naturals pitching to go with 12 hits, has already wrapped up the Texas League North Division first-half title. The half ends on Sunday.

Myers added a two-run single in the second, while Zyhir Hope chipped in a run-scoring single and Jake Gelof drew a bases-loaded walk to push the lead to 6-1.

Myers drove in three runs, while center fielder Mike Sirotka finished with three hits, scored a run and drove in one.

Naturals starter Hunter Owens (1-3) allowed six runs on seven hits over two innings of work to absorb the loss. He struck out one and walked four.

Northwest Arkansas (29-36) got a run in the bottom of the first thanks to a two-out RBI single by shortstop Daniel Vazquez. But the Naturals had a runner thrown out at the plate when Rudy Martin Jr. tried to score from first on Colton Becker’s double.

Despite the back-to-back losses, the Drillers improved to 12-4 in June.

Drillers manager Eric Wedge declined to comment following the game.

Prior to joining the Drillers last year, he had previously spent ten seasons managing at the major league level, including seven years with the Cleveland Indians and three with the Seattle Mariners. His most successful season came in 2007, when he was named the American League Manager of the Year after finishing just one game shy of leading Cleveland to the World Series.

The same two teams continue the series on Saturday evening. First pitch is scheduled for 6:05 p.m. The series concludes on Sunday afternoon at 2:05.

Naturals 6, Drillers 5 (10 innings)

Martin singled up the middle to drive in the winning run and help Northwest Arkansas outlast Tulsa 6-5 in 10 innings in a game that started an hour late because of a rain delay on Thursday night.

Spencer Nivens started the 10th inning at second base, moved to third on a sacrifice bunt by Vazquez and scored on Martin’s hit.

Northwest Arkansas rallied from an early 4-0 deficit to claim the win. The Drillers scored four times in the top of the second, but the Naturals got three back in the fourth and tied the game on Colton Becker’s RBI triple.

Tulsa bounced right back with a run in the top of the seventh, but again Northwest Arkansas bounced back to tie the game in the eighth. Martin reached on an error and scored on a wild pitch.

Martin and Vazquez had two hits each. They drove in a run each. Martin scored twice.

Augusto Mendieta (2-2) picked up the win in relief. He tossed two hitless innings of relief, struck out five and walked one.

Paul Boyd

pboyd@nwaonline.com

Paul Boyd is an award-winning sportswriter who covers prep and college sports for the Northwest Arkansas Democrat Gazette. He has covered sports in Arkansas for more than 30 years. Paul grew up in Northeast Arkansas and earned a journalism degree from Arkansas State University. He has been working in Northwest Arkansas since 2005.

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Arkansas

Authorities report 2 Tulsa residents found dead in Arkansas from apparent murder-suicide

Published

18 hours ago

June 19, 2026

Press Room

Authorities report 2 Tulsa residents found dead in Arkansas from apparent murder-suicide

BENTON COUNTY, Ark. — The Benton County Sheriff’s Office reported two Tulsa residents were found dead in a car parked off an Arkansas highway in what authorities believe is an apparent murder-suicide.

On Wednesday, deputies with the sheriff’s office stated they received a report about a car parked of Old Highway 68 near Siloam Springs with what appeared to be two deceased people inside.

Once authorities reached the scene, they were able to confirm both individuals had passed away.

Following an investigation, the Benton County Sheriff’s Office said they confirmed the individuals in the car were 26-year-old Kena Donshaie Knapper and 5-year-old Tyler Zane Winston from Tulsa, Oklahoma.

According to the Arkansas State Medical Examiner, Winston’s death was ruled as a homicide while Knapper’s death was ruled a suicide.

At this time, the Arkansas State Crime Laboratory is still completing the final written report in this case.

FOX23 will provide more information in this case as it becomes available.

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Arkansas

One dead in Lepanto drowning incident

Published

1 day ago

June 19, 2026

Press Room

LEPANTO, Ark. – One person is dead after a reported drowning Thursday evening in Lepanto, located in Poinsett County, according to the Lepanto Fire and Rescue.

The fire department says they were called to a possible drowning in the Rivervale area a little after 6 p.m.

When emergency crews arrived, they began search efforts in the water.

During that time, they say the body of an individual was found.

“We extend our thoughts, prayers, and deepest condolences to the individual’s family and friends,” the Lepanto Fire Department said.

They also thanked the Poinsett County Sheriff’s Office, Marked Tree Fire Department, Lepanto Police Department, Lepanto Dispatch, Pafford EMS, Arkansas Game and Fish, and Poinsett County Coroner’s Office for assisting in the search and recovery efforts.

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