Oklahoma
Traffic tie-ups, sudden darkness: ODOT officials preparing for April 8 eclipse
From selling special glasses to preparing for traffic snarls, Oklahoma officials are prepping for the April 8 solar eclipse expected to pass directly over southeastern Oklahoma.
Oklahoma Department of Transportation Executive Director Tim Gatz on Monday urged motorists to use caution during the eclipse.
Gatz’s remarks were made during the regular Oklahoma Transportation Commission meeting.
The moon will block out the sun, plunging parts of Mexico, the United States and Canada into darkness.
Southeastern Oklahoma will be impacted, including Broken Bow, Idabel, Hugo and Antlers. The eclipse will pass over Oklahoma starting at 1:44 p.m. and end by 1:51 p.m.
Gatz said his agency is working with the Oklahoma Highway Patrol, Office of Emergency Management and Oklahoma Turnpike Authority.
“We will have personnel on site during the eclipse working closely, hand in hand with OHP and their mobile command so we can quickly respond to anything that might come up,” Gatz said.
More: A total solar eclipse is coming to Oklahoma in April. Here’s where to find eclipse glasses
ODOT to pause construction in SE Oklahoma during eclipse
The Oklahoma Department of Transportation is looking at pausing maintenance activities and construction projects to make sure traffic flow out of the area can be optimized, Gatz said.
“The area will be concentrated in McCurtain County, in the southeast corner of the state,” Gatz said. “However, the effects will be more broad sweeping than that.
“We expect traffic conditions will be somewhat problematic across the southeast region.”
More: Solar eclipse 2024: What Oklahoma communities will have the longest time in totality?
He said it will be crucial that his agency can communicate with drivers in the area during that time.
Officials are expecting that those trying to see the eclipse will trickle into the area at a slower pace, but when the eclipse is over, spectators will all try to leave at once, Gatz said.
“I think that is where we are going to have our biggest traffic challenges,” Gatz said.
ODOT putting live cameras, messages boards in SE Oklahoma ahead of 2024 eclipse
The agency is setting up additional cameras to provide live pictures of the conditions, Gatz said.
Changeable message boards will be placed at key locations across the area so transportation officials can communicate with drivers, Gatz said.
“One of the things we want to ask drivers is please don’t stop on the highway during the event, because again that creates congestion in traffic queues that can result in secondary accidents along the routes and once those traffic queues build up, they can take hours to clear,” Gatz said.
Motorists should turn on their headlights, he said.
“This is planned to be a total eclipse and the light conditions are going to change dramatically,” Gatz said.
Motorists should be aware of and watch out for pedestrians, he said.
“Because somebody is going to pull off on the side of the road and get out of their vehicle and that is going to create a dangerous situation,” Gatz said.
The major highways in the area are U.S. 70, U.S. 259 and Oklahoma Highway 3, according to the Department of Public Safety.
Visitors might consider stopping at a restaurant until traffic conditions improve, Gatz said.
“We will do everything we can to try to be ready for it and are doing everything we can, but it is still going to be bad,” Gatz said.
Three state parks will be totally eclipsed, said Chase Horn, a spokesperson for the Oklahoma Department of Tourism and Recreation.
Lodging and campsites at Beavers Bend State Park, Lake Wister State Park and Talimena State Park are full or filling up, he said.
Four other state parks will be eclipsed 97.8% to 99%, Horn said.
“We are working with the Department of Public Safety and other agencies making sure everyone is safe,” Horn said.
The Department of Public Safety said visitors to the area should expect maximum capacity in hotels, cabins and camp grounds.
In addition, the area should expect decreased quality of cellular service, delays in deliveries and increased emergency response times, DPS said.
Hoping to capitalize on the enthusiasm, the state Capitol gift shop on Monday was selling “Official Eclipse Glasses” to visitors for $2.99. Officials said tens of thousands of pairs were for sale across the state.
House Speaker Charles McCall, R-Atoka, said he’s not sure the House will be doing anything to commemorate the occasion.“But you can get a great look at it in southeastern Oklahoma if you want to travel down there towards Atoka,” he said with a grin.
The Oklahoma State Cowboys and the USC Upstate Spartans meet in the first game of the Tuscaloosa Regional on Friday.
The Cowboys (37-20) and the Spartans (33-28) have never met on the diamond. Both enter the game on hot streaks. Oklahoma State didn’t win the Big 12 Tournament, but the Cowboys have won 11 of their last 14 games. The Spartans won the Big South Conference Tournament champions and have won 14 of their last 16 games.
The game is the first of two in Tuscaloosa. The second game features the host school, Alabama, facing Alabama State. The winners of the first two games will meet Saturday for a trip to the regional final on Sunday.
Oklahoma State fans can keep up with the game here, including lineups and inning by inning details on the game. Check out Oklahoma State On SI’s NCAA Tournament Central for everything related to the Tuscaloosa Regional.
Game Details
Oklahoma State vs. USC Upstate
Time: 1 p.m. central
TV: ESPN+ (Derek Jones & Jared Mitchell on the call). NOTE: TV is subject to change without notice. Game times and TV for games played after Friday will be announced.
Radio: Cowboy Radio Network & The Varsity Network App/93.7 KSPI-FM or okla.state/GetVarsity (Rex Holt on the call)
OSU Batting Order
The batting order for Friday’s game will be posted here when it is released by the team.
Tuscaloosa Regional
Location: Tuscaloosa, Ala. Venue: Sewell-Thomas Stadium (5,867).
Friday’s Games
Game 1: USC Upstate vs. Oklahoma State, 1 p.m., ESPN+
Game 2: Alabama State vs. Alabama, 6 p.m., ESPN+
Saturday’s Games
Game 3: Game 1 loser vs. Game 2 loser, TBA (elimination game)
Game 4: Game 1 winner vs. Game 2 winner, TBA (advances to Sunday’s final)
Sunday’s Games
Game 5: Winner Game 3 vs. Loser Game 4 (elimination game)
Game 6: Winner Game 4 vs. Winner Game 5
Monday’s Game
Game 7: Winner Game 6 vs. Loser Game 6 (if necessary)
(Times subject to change for TV purposes)
Add us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow
Brent Swadley, owner of Swadley’s Bar-B-Q, found guilty in fraud trial
A jury convicted Brent Swadley of fraud for inflating invoices involving Oklahoma state park restaurants.
A jury convicted Brent Swadley, owner of a string of popular Oklahoma barbecue restaurants, at his fraud trial and chose prison time as his punishment.
The 12 jurors reached their unanimous verdict Thursday, May 28, in a felony case that focused on Swadley’s inflated bills for the renovation and operation of restaurants at six state parks.
Jurors found Swadley, 55, guilty of one count of conspiracy to defraud the state and all five counts of presenting fraudulent claims to the state.
They chose five years in prison and a $25,000 fine as his punishment for the conspiracy. They agreed on one year in prison and a $10,000 fine as punishment on each fraudulent claims count.
Oklahoma County District Judge Susan Stallings could order Swadley to serve the time back to back for a total of 10 years.
Jurors voted for the maximum fines but showed leniency on prison time. Jurors could have chosen prison sentences totaling 20 years.
Sheriff’s deputies led Swadley from the courtroom in handcuffs to be taken to jail. Formal sentencing was set for July 16.
His defense attorney, David Smith, said, “We are not done fighting.”
Still to be decided by the judge is restitution. Prosecutors said Swadley defrauded the state of at least $3.1 million.
The owner of Swadley’s Bar-B-Q did not testify at his trial but has been outspoken in the past that he is innocent.
“The state attorney general … is pushing a false, politically motivated narrative accusing us of purposely misleading the government. Nothing could be further from the truth,” he wrote in an open letter to Oklahomans in 2024 after he was indicted.
Jurors took only 90 minutes to reach their verdict. “It was pretty easy,” one juror told prosecutors afterward.
Attorney General Gentner Drummond, who is running for governor, told reporters outside the courtroom that the case was never political.
“Mr. Swadley broke the law. His arrogance has been illustrated for the last four years, and I’m very happy that justice has been done,” Drummond said.
Swadley trial ends in guilty verdict, AG Drummond ‘proud’ of prosecution
A jury unanimously found Brent Swadley guilty of defrauding the state, sentencing him to five years in prison and $25,000 fine.
“I think we in state government have a tendency to trust Oklahomans,” he added. “I think it’s a lesson for state actors. We need to not trust as we have before.”
In a news release, the attorney general said, “Today is a win for Oklahoma and for the rule of law.”
Swadley signed a contract with the state in March 2020 to remodel and operate state park restaurants. The agreement was finalized weeks before COVID-19 shutdowns began across the world.
Swadley went ahead with the remodeling, completing work at four of the parks in months. His restaurants became a huge hit as Oklahomans spent more time outdoors because of the pandemic.
Jurors heard testimony that many of the invoices sent to the state for reimbursement of construction and other costs were marked up. Some were inflated as much as 300%.Swadley operated the state park restaurants under the company name Swadley’s Foggy Bottom Kitchen. The last one opened in 2022.
The Oklahoma Tourism and Recreation Department in April 2022 canceled its contract with Swadley’s Foggy Bottom Kitchen due to “suspected fraudulent activity and questionable business practices.”Much of the testimony centered around meat smokers sold to the state in 2021. The cancelation of the contracts came after tourism officials learned the smokers were used.
Swadley put the smokers in at Robbers Cave State Park and Quartz Mountain State Park. They had been in storage after he removed them from a Swadley’s Bar-B-Q in Ardmore.
He paid $23,680 each for the smokers in 2018, according to evidence in the case. He billed the state $51,346 each for the smokers in 2021.
A restaurant supplier testified at trial that he faked paperwork that Swadley used to support the bill to the state. “He told me to make them as expensive as I could,” Mike McWhorter told jurors.
Swadley’s defense attorneys maintained at trial that it was an understood standard business practice to inflate invoices.
“Their case is − and this is no joke − Brent Swadley was supposed to do all of this construction work and not make a dime,” Smith told jurors in his closing argument.
The attorney said Swadley became the fall guy for a mess created by Jerry Winchester, the executive director of the Tourism Department at the time, and Gino DeMarco, the deputy director.
Smith argued that Winchester knew the smokers were used and lied at trial. Winchester told jurors he thought the state was buying brand new smokers.
The defense attorney also told jurors, “What we’ve got here is a paperwork dispute, not fraud.”
Prosecutors told jurors Brent Swadley was greedy and had said the state contract might save his business during the pandemic.
“Brent Swadley believes the rules do not apply to him,” Assistant Attorney General McKenzie McMahan said in his closing argument.
The key witnesses against Swadley were former employees.
His former vice president, Curtis Breuklander, and former chief operating officer, Tim Hooper, testified invoices were marked up at Swadley’s direction.
Breuklander, 51, pleaded guilty to the conspiracy count and four of the fraudulent claim counts. “I did all of this at the direction of Brent Swadley,” he said in his plea paperwork.
Under a deal with prosecutors, Breuklander was sentenced to probation for 10 years. He stopped working for Swadley in September 2021.
Hooper, 57, also pleaded guilty to the conspiracy count. He pleaded guilty to one fraudulent claim count and no contest to another fraudulent claim count.
Under his deal, Hooper was put on probation for five years. He was fired by Swadley in 2023.
Under the state contract, Swadley’s Foggy Bottom Kitchen was reimbursed for the costs of improvements to the restaurants, up to a limit. The state also covered the company’s operating losses, at first up to $1 million a year and later up to $2,116,900 a year.
The state further paid the company management fees, at first $571,808 per year and later $1,332,000 per year.
Swadley is expected to appeal. His defense attorneys are expected to complain about the judge’s refusal to let two expert witnesses testify at trial.
(This story was updated to add new information.)
The roof of a home in Oklahoma City collapsed following a fire early Thursday morning, according to firefighters.
The Oklahoma City Fire Department says firefighters were called around 2 a.m. to the scene of a fire at a home near Southeast 29th Street and South Shields Boulevard.
After arriving at the scene, firefighters reported flames coming from the home and serious structural damage, including the roof, which had collapsed due to the fire.
Additionally, OKCFD reported this was not the first emergency services response to the home, with a call for medical services being placed to the same address only a few hours earlier.
“We know that earlier today, they’d made a medical call over here,” OKCFD Battalion Chief Greg Lindsay said. “Somebody was staying in that building, so we’re being extra careful to check and make sure that everybody got out.”
No injuries were reported. Fire investigators believe the cause was related to a cooking incident.
-
World8 minutes agoIsrael, Russia among new additions on UN sexual violence ‘blacklist’
-
News38 minutes agoWhich first lady feared her husband might be having a stroke? The quiz knows
-
Los Angeles, Ca2 hours agoRescued sea lion pups released in Manhattan Beach
-
Detroit, MI3 hours agoSunda New Asian brings bold flavors to Detroit
-
San Francisco, CA3 hours agoDriver Arrested After Pedestrian Killed, Three Injured In Mission District Crash
-
Dallas, TX3 hours agoMcAllen Welcomes Texas Hockey | Dallas Stars
-
Miami, FL3 hours agoPair arrested in connection with armed home invasion robbery in Miami, cops say
-
Boston, MA3 hours agoSaturday storm will bring bursts of rain, strong winds, and… snow?
