Local News https://www.the-journal.com/feeds/local-news/ 2026-04-08 07:48:53 -0700 en-us https://www.the-journal.com/articles/local-news-day-is-thursday/ Dear Readers, On April 9, news organizations across the country will recognize Local News Day. It is a moment to reflect on the role local journalism plays in communities like ours and why that work c... 2026-04-08 06:13:23 -0700 c6d89e8f-14c7-4c6d-9ba5-47fbce928e77 https://www.the-journal.com/articles/coroner-identifies-man-killed-in-head-on-crash-south-of-ridgway/ A fatal head-on crash Monday night on U.S. Highway 550 south of Ridgway resulted in one person being killed and two seriously injured after one of the cars traveled out of its lane and collided with t... 2026-04-08 05:14:07 -0700 7c4780c6-79aa-4448-8ca5-1ccfc4590ac2 https://www.the-journal.com/articles/suicide-awareness-bus-looks-to-make-cortez-its-home-base/ As a quirky bus named “Zephyr” rumbles across rural Missouri, carrying Kelly Logan and her husband, Cory Richez, its passionate owners are seeking to make Cortez the home base for a so-called “mobile ... 2026-04-08 04:44:36 -0700 a3f1fac9-4714-4291-9f91-d0ebaab68713 https://www.the-journal.com/articles/county-commissioners-reject-summer-meal-proposal/ Montezuma County commissioners voted Tuesday to reject a grant proposal that would have provided weekly take-home meals to hundreds of children during the summer. Commissioners cited concerns about co... 2026-04-08 02:53:47 -0700 c6b6a35b-2851-4100-bdcb-4954fb608f39 https://www.the-journal.com/articles/southwest-health-system-to-launch-new-electronic-health-record-system-in-april/ Southwest Health System will launch a new electronic health record system and unified patient portal April 13, with all Southwest Medical Group clinics transitioning at the same time. The Oracle Healt... 2026-04-08 01:40:10 -0700 3ee9619b-b38f-4627-8599-edb8e4f18fc8 https://www.the-journal.com/articles/sand-canyon-therapy-launches-community-initiative-to-boost-training-and-rural-mental-health-access/ Sand Canyon Therapy has launched the Community Access and Support Initiative, a nonprofit designed to address gaps in rural mental health services, specialized training and emergency support in Montez... 2026-04-08 01:28:18 -0700 4527aa4b-c231-41e5-b85a-1b0828c3e072 https://www.the-journal.com/articles/middle-east-veterans-reflect-on-past-wars-as-iran-conflict-enters-sixth-week/ As the U.S. war with Iran approaches its sixth week, Durango area veterans of past Middle East conflicts are reflecting on their experiences and applying them to the current conflict. Pagosa Springs r... 2026-04-08 05:00:00 -0700 cdfcad58-e9ab-441d-87ea-1707509db547 https://www.the-journal.com/articles/cortez-votes-tonight-for-city-council-candidates-and-ballot-questions/ Clarisa Osborn, Dennis Spruell and Carly Wolf emerged as the top vote-getters in Cortez’s municipal election Tuesday night, leading a field of 11 candidates as voters filled five City Council seats an... 2026-04-07 09:24:18 -0700 3a0a0db2-0749-40ae-a9e4-c921e2248a19 https://www.the-journal.com/articles/community-pushback-grows-over-mining-exploration-in-la-platas/ Tensions flared during Metallic Minerals’ first open house in Durango, where company officials introduced an exploratory drilling project in the La Plata Mountains and fielded pointed questions from r... 2026-04-07 06:40:59 -0700 db873b97-38ee-433b-b1c7-140b26de9d04 https://www.the-journal.com/articles/fbi-report-shows-surging-losses-with-crypto-and-ai-scams-on-the-rise/ Cybercrimes are increasingly showing greater sophistication across the country, and residents of Southwest Colorado are not immune. Newly released data from the Internet Crime Report by the Federal Bu... 2026-04-07 05:42:22 -0700 9ffa4946-9523-4502-b94b-71074cfca358 https://www.the-journal.com/articles/mancos-valley-chamber-of-commerce-to-open-new-visitor-center-in-may/ The Mancos Valley Chamber of Commerce will open a new visitor center this spring and celebrate with a membership gala on Thursday, May 7. The visitor center will be located in the same building as Mil... 2026-04-07 12:40:11 -0700 432a1c68-b744-4009-aead-ec5813a3a536 https://www.the-journal.com/articles/clearnetworx-internet-outage-reported-in-durango-cortez-farmington-and-pagosa-springs/ A widespread internet outage was reported Monday among Clearnetworx customers in Durango, Cortez, Farmington and Pagosa Springs. Clearnetworx spokeswoman Sara McCombs said the outage was reported abou... 2026-04-06 05:17:47 -0700 6e276118-a059-4e73-b4f9-1a2abd90813f https://www.the-journal.com/articles/record-warm-dry-march-shrinks-water-supplies/ After one of the warmest and driest Marches on record, managers and officials across Southwest Colorado are bracing for water supply shortages. Shortages are expected to affect farmers and junior wate... 2026-04-06 05:12:42 -0700 da8ab477-ae5f-4d92-b3d6-322ae4421e7c https://www.the-journal.com/articles/montezuma-county-decides-to-postpone-fire-ban/ Montezuma County Sheriff Steven Nowlin has decided not to suggest a countywide fire ban yet, saying recent moisture and weather conditions warrant giving residents more time to mitigate their properti... 2026-04-06 04:33:36 -0700 8f21cc4b-4fd6-47d2-ba90-5a5f58c23ed4 https://www.the-journal.com/articles/fentanyl-deaths-rise-in-the-four-corners-despite-national-decline/ In the far northwestern corner of New Mexico, San Juan County stretches across high desert mesas and long, lonely roads at the intersection of Arizona, Colorado and Utah. The landscape is vast and rur... 2026-04-06 04:20:38 -0700 695004ac-9a6a-4fe2-8b2d-a4b9fe998ed9 https://www.the-journal.com/articles/montezuma-county-apple-enthusiasts-help-rediscover-lost-apple-variety/ After gaining popularity in the U.S. West, the Walbridge apple had all but disappeared in the past century – until last fall. Since 2015, researchers have been trying to locate the remaining Walbridge... 2026-04-06 01:44:44 -0700 230bd45d-22f3-4e41-bb13-848a0fb50092 https://www.the-journal.com/articles/deflock-durango-proposes-ordinance-regulating-use-of-automated-license-plate-readers/ DeFlock Durango organizers held a news conference at the Durango Community Recreation Center on Friday to present an ordinance that, if adopted by Durango City Council, would regulate Durango Police D... 2026-04-06 11:00:00 -0700 fdee1f8c-094e-4b71-9e5c-0ba25d916852 https://www.the-journal.com/articles/after-overturned-arson-conviction-durango-man-recounts-six-year-nightmare/ To Bradley Clark, it feels like he has a scarlet letter permanently emblazoned on his chest. “A,” not for adulterer, but arsonist. “That’s a brand that doesn’t go away,” Clark said. “I mean, besides... 2026-04-06 05:00:00 -0700 96d72ee1-a696-4b2a-a8dc-c3488e2049e5 https://www.the-journal.com/articles/pope-leo-urges-peace-in-first-easter-mass-as-christians-celebrate-in-jerusalem-gaza-and-tehran/ VATICAN CITY – Pope Leo XIV celebrated his first Easter Mass as pontiff Sunday with a call to lay down arms and seek peace through dialogue, departing from the tradition of naming specific global conf... 2026-04-05 04:56:30 -0700 a929e4cf-5233-4fe4-9c57-7d2fc5dc0c53 https://www.the-journal.com/articles/21-year-old-olympian-with-durango-roots-meets-fans-at-purgatory-resort-downtown/ Charlie Mickel, 21-year-old Olympian mogul skier with roots in Durango, met fans young and old at Purgatory Sports Downtown on Saturday to take selfies, share stories and sign autographs. Mickel had a... 2026-04-05 05:00:00 -0700 c31f1565-cd0f-4f81-9052-6d2bd7404db6 https://www.the-journal.com/articles/durango-sculpture-being-repaired-by-original-artist/ After being damaged by an allegedly impaired driver late one night in March, the “Endurance” bike sculpture is being repaired by its Boulder-based creator and could return to the Chapman Hill roundabo... 2026-04-04 11:00:00 -0700 2851e04f-21ed-436b-8ca1-284158e63087 https://www.the-journal.com/articles/jail-officials-say-mercy-hospital-returning-inmates-without-care/ On a whiteboard in the nurses’ office at the La Plata County Jail, a deputy has written: “When in doubt, send them out.” That phrase has become the jail’s new maxim and was repeated during the La Plat... 2026-04-04 05:00:00 -0700 af5c922e-6c33-43e5-858d-d6dc21b743ff https://www.the-journal.com/articles/fort-lewis-college-launches-four-week-womens-leadership-in-practice-series/ Fort Lewis College has announced a four-week women’s leadership series in response to “strong feedback” from attendees of the February Durango Women’s Leadership Conference, the school said in a news ... 2026-04-03 06:09:50 -0700 aa797a4f-3349-40b8-be27-8c45535149f0 https://www.the-journal.com/articles/new-bill-proposed-lowers-threshold-to-cite-residents-in-bear-conflicts/ A House bill in the Colorado Legislature would lessen legal hurdles for wildlife enforcement officials, allowing them to more easily cite people for attracting bears. Language in House Bill 26-1342 se... 2026-04-03 04:31:52 -0700 4a969612-0c81-49ca-8d12-5e0953f905fe https://www.the-journal.com/articles/rep-jeff-hurd-meets-with-la-plata-county-business-leaders/ Affordability, workforce housing, business regulation and unpredictable federal policies: Those were the top concerns business leaders from across La Plata County expressed while meeting with Colorado... 2026-04-03 03:03:52 -0700 5d031e5b-813d-4970-9a1c-5775cd7be53a https://www.the-journal.com/articles/southwest-health-system-spring-health-fair-set-for-april-18/ Southwest Health System is partnering with the Montezuma County Health Department to host a free community health fair Saturday, April 18, offering blood tests, wellness stations and complimentary imm... 2026-04-03 01:12:22 -0700 057ee869-128a-46e3-840d-71cf39226954 https://www.the-journal.com/articles/second-homes-prove-tricky-issue-for-durango-officials/ The city of Durango has a high number of “vacant” or second homes compared to most communities ‒ but compared to mountain resort towns, the vacancy rate is notably low. Local government officials say ... 2026-04-03 11:00:00 -0700 af91c3c8-dd90-4a2b-939c-e2c32dd027bc https://www.the-journal.com/articles/piecemealing-a-solution-ute-mountain-tribe-pursues-next-phase-of-waterline-overhaul/ Ute Mountain Ute tribal leaders are moving forward with plans to replace sections of a failing water line that serves as the sole water supply for Towaoc, citing repeated breaks, contamination risks a... 2026-04-03 10:50:50 -0700 de02002c-195a-4a73-83bd-87fda6e222ec https://www.the-journal.com/articles/durangos-crown-jewel-animas-river-trail-is-50-years-in-the-making/ “Lovely, winding, soothing and peaceful” are how residents describe Durango’s Animas River Trail, said Sweetie Marbury, longtime resident and former city councilor. Often called the “crown jewel” of D... 2026-04-03 05:00:00 -0700 0f57c57f-7838-48a8-bb27-cf59f4be0555 https://www.the-journal.com/articles/appeals-court-sides-with-roofer-in-legal-battle-with-former-cortez-business/ A long-running legal dispute over a leaky roof at a downtown Cortez commercial building has ended in a loss for the property owner. The Colorado Court of Appeals affirmed a ruling by District Court Ju... 2026-04-02 06:40:09 -0700 4ef7627a-bd63-480b-b3e4-46ab70d6f286