Stories from Tuesday, January 11, 2005

TRENTON -- Hitchcock County authorities, the Nebraska State Patrol and the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services are investigating the death of a three-month-old baby girl from rural Palisade. The investigation started Friday when officials from Community Hospital of McCook reported the death of Kyla N. Martinez to officers in the Hitchcock County sheriff's office...

SCOTTSBLUFF -- The McCook wrestling team competed at the Scottsbluff tournament on Saturday. Dallas Korus was the top Bison finisher, placing third at 130 pounds. Korus picked up a win over Ty Werdel of Chadron, who is ranked at 130 pounds. Also winning against a ranked opponenet was Jon McCart...

The family of Lavina Palic is hosting an open house in honor of her 90th birthday Jan. 16, 2-4 p.m., at Sunset Haven Hillside Estates in Curtis. She was born Jan. 19, 1915.

Sept. 24, 2004-Jan. 7, 2005 PALISADE -- Kyla Nichae Martinez, three-months-old, died Friday (Jan. 7, 2005) at Community Hospital of McCook. She was born Sept. 24, 2004, in North Platte to Charity Bateman and Floyd Martinez. Survivors include her parents of Palisade; brother, Kaleb Bateman; sister, Sharese Bateman; grandparents; great-grandparents; great-great-grandmother, Viola Sneddon; uncles; aunts; great-uncles; and great aunts...

Members of the Nebraska Republican River Management Districts Association voted Monday morning to investigate a concept designed to address water supplies needed to comply with the settlement of the Kansas vs. Nebraska Republican River Compact lawsuit...

Two actions by the McCook City Council involve what could be considered ground-breaking technology. A Minnesota company will be developing the first equipment ever used in the United States to remove a combination of arsenic, uranium and nitrates from a water supply...

Red Willow County Attorney Paul Wood told county commissioners they should plan to remove the bleachers from Kiplinger Arena, at least temporarily. Wood predicted that the manufacturing company that built the bleachers would fail to respond to the county's request to honor its warranty. The City of McCook has filed a summary judgment against the county in Red Willow County Court to have the bleachers removed by Feb. 2...

Now, more than ever, we are aware of weather's deadly power. Whether it be the tsunami, the mudslides in California or ice and snow in the Midlands, we have seen how lives can be ruined and man-made structures turned to rubble by quick-hitting natural disasters...

**Dear Editor, I can't understand how the railroad leaked 3-5 million gallons of diesel fuel from its tanks and no one noticed ["City takes BNSF offer (http://www. mccook gazette.com/story/1080801.html)"]... Let's see, if I was paying a dollar a gallon and I lost 3 million gallons, I would certainly want to know where on earth it was going...

Jan. 7, 1955-Jan. 11, 2005 STERLING, Kan. -- Bruce Lee Fichtner, 50, of Sterling, Kan., died Tuesday (Jan. 11, 2005) at the Hospice House in Hutchinson, Kan., after battling with pancreatic and liver cancer since October 2004. He was born Jan. 7, 1955, in North Platte to Lesley and LaVada (Lucas) Fichtner. He was baptized as an infant on February 6, 1955 and confirmed on May 25, 1969 at St. John's Lutheran Church in White. He was active in Walther League...