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  • Polk County hero receives historical marker (VIDEO)

    20210417 110050BRIAN BESCH | PCE The Polk County Historical Commission held a Texas Historical Marker dedication for Lt. Col. James M. Parker. The Polk Countian was part of the Doolittle Raid, the United States’ first attack on the Japanese mainland in World War II. The dedication was Saturday morning at Restland Memorial Cemetery off Highway 59. Saturday coincided with the 79th anniversary of the Doolittle Raid. The Polk County Museum, located at 514 Mill Street in Livingston, has an exhibit honoring Parker that will continue until May 22.

    Historical marker video

  • The Texas Bucket List features Pit Row Pit Stop

    pit7COURTESY PHOTO Texas Bucket List host Shane McAuliffe (left) poses with Pit Row Pit Stop owner Frankie Vinci. McAuliffe’s show will feature Vinci’s restaurant this weekend.

    Special to the Enterprise

    LIVINGSTON – Take a step back in time into this retro 50’s diner that’s known for more than their burgers and shakes, they are known for what Texas is known for, Barbeque.

    Owner and Brooklyn born Californian Frankie Vinci went from building theme parks to building a diner to smoke barbeque like a true Texan.

    “I'm a Brooklyn boy, I had no clue what a brisket is. We don't cook brisket in Brooklyn. So, I had to learn four years ago and I guess I got good at it,” said Frankie.

    Not only does Frankie care about his brisket and ribs, he cares about his community and provides religious outreach for those in prison, since it was what helped him during his time behind bars.

    So, tune in on Feb. 13-14 as host Shane McAuliffe visits a righteous man with the gift of giving and great BBQ on The Texas Bucket List. Pit Row Pit Stop in Livingston is featured alongside two other stops - Zito’s in San Antonio and The Stephen F. Austin Statue in Angleton.

    Follow this link to find a station near you! https://thetexasbucketlist.com/where-to-watch.

    pit1COURTESY PHOTO Pit Row Pit Stop in Livingston will be featured this weekend on the Texas Bucket List.

    About the Texas Bucket List

    The Texas Bucket List, telling the tales of the Lone Star State one Texan's story at a time. The award-winning TV series shares the joy, wonder, beauty and excitement of Texas.

    Each week, host Shane McAuliffe sets out to add more people, places, food and music to a list that every Texan should experience. Shane has been recognized with numerous television broadcast excellence awards including a Regional Edward R. Murrow Award, three Lone Star Emmy Awards, the Barbara Jordan Media Award, several Telly Awards, and multiple Texas Association of Press Broadcasters awards.

    He’s a native of Round Rock, and attended The University of Houston. The Texas Bucket List is produced by McAuliffe Productions, LP located in College Station.

  • Too little too late (VIDEO)

    IMG 2610BRIAN BESCH | PCE Livingston’s Jon’Toyrian McNeal scored a game-high 27 points Tuesday.

    Liberty versus Livingston Lady Lions

    By Brian Besch

    The Livingston Lady Lions suffered their second district loss in as many games Tuesday, as the Liberty Lady Panthers escaped Polk County with a 45-42 win.

    “It was rough,” Livingston coach Brittany Jefferson said. “I at least expected the girls to come out here and do what they were supposed to do. They came out and, just to be honest, they had no energy whatsoever. We wouldn't box out, we didn't get rebounds, the turnovers with the guards that I had — we were just giving the ball straight to Liberty. They just didn't do what they were supposed to do.”

    The game Tuesday was a case of too little too late. The defending district champions seemingly picked up their intensity and focus in spots, but could not sustain a high level of play. A fourth-quarter comeback attempt fell short.

    Leading 9-4 in the first quarter, Liberty went on a 12-3 run and eventually took a 22-19 advantage into the break at the half. The Lady Panthers came out of the locker room and put another eight points up before Livingston answered.

    “The last two minutes of the game, they wanted to pick it up and tried to pick it up, but it's too late,” Jefferson said. “You are supposed to do that at the beginning. When you are trying to do that in the last two minutes of the game and you are down by six or eight points, it's too late. You should have just picked it up at the beginning. If they would have played like they did in the last two minutes, then it probably would have been an easy win. Since they didn't do that, it just didn't happen.”

    Liberty’s Madyson Goudeau led the Lady Panthers with 15 points, Drelyn Willis had 13, and Reese Evans added eight. For Livingston, Jon’Toyrian McNeal had 27 points, Z Garner finished with eight and Natavia Davis had seven.

    Livingston is now winless in two district games, dropping the first to district favorite Hardin-Jefferson in a lopsided 103-10 blowout.

    “I would have assumed that, hopefully, we would have been 1-1 now,” the coach said. “We just have to take it as it is and, hopefully, they'll learn from it. If not, it is going to be a long, long, long season.”

    Jefferson most wants her team to be able to take care of the ball. The team had problems setting up and executing an offense because of an inability to control the basketball.

    The Lady Lions’ next opportunity to get in the district win column will be Dec. 18 on the road at Hamshire-Fannett.

    Discuss this story in the East Texas News Forum

  • Vehicle fire holds highway traffic 

    20210222 135229COURTESY PHOTO Vehicle fire holds highway traffic 

    By Brian Besch

    A large vehicle fire held traffic on the county's main thoroughfare for nearly an hour Monday.

    After rear-trailer tandem brakes overheated and ignited, the tires of a tractor-trailer caught fire around 1:45 p.m. The vehicle's driver was able to unhook the trailer, as it burned on a Highway 59 overpass across from Livingston Junior High.

    "All eight tires were involved and with all the heat, it caused the trailer to buckle," Livingston Fire Chief Corky Cochran said. "With all the tires on fire and some of the materials inside, it took a little time to get it all knocked out."

    An engine and two tankers responded from the Livingston Fire Department. Also on the scene were Livingston Police, Department of Public Safety, the Polk County Sheriff's Department, Texas Department of Transportation and City of Livingston Public Utilities.

    The trailer was hauling polyethylene plastic polymer resin, a non-hazardous material.

    "The packaging burned and also some of the product as the heat intensified," Cochran said. "We were delayed just a couple of minutes researching what was in the truck before we made any fire control attempt. We needed to make sure it wasn't something that was water reactive. When we got those doors open, you could immediately see about a third of the way into the trailer."

    Traffic was blocked for around 45 minutes to extinguish the blaze and a small grass fire that began nearby. Officers diverted traffic into downtown and the highway's feeder road.

    Livingston also assisted the Corrigan Fire Department with nine firefighters and two trucks around 9:45 a.m. Saturday at a residence just off Highway 59.

    On Collins Street, 11 Corrigan firefighters and three engines responded to the nearby house.

    "It was pretty significant," Corrigan Fire Chief Jimmy McDonald said of the damage. "It's a total loss. It had a good jump on us before we ever got there. We were all in the truck headed to hand out some water that day to the area. The call dropped when we were all in the truck. We didn't even need an address because you could see the smoke when we pulled out of the station. It had been burning for a little bit before someone called."

    No one was at the residence at the time of the fire and no injury was reported.

    McDonald took over the Corrigan Fire Department about a year ago and has several new members. The chief said they are looking for others to join.

    "We're always looking for people," he said. "Anybody interested in joining up can come by the fire station on Monday night at 6 p.m. and pick up an application."

  • VFDs fight Indian Springs fire (GALLERY)

                                   COURTESY PHOTO

    From Staff Reports

    Five volunteer fire departments responded to a residential fire in the Indian Springs subdivision Monday afternoon.The VFDs from Alabama-Coushatta, Indian Springs, Livingston, Onalaska and Woodville fought the blaze for 3-4 hours. Polk County Fire Marshal Jacob Chapman also was on hand.The cause of the fire has yet to be determined. The fire is still under investigation.

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  • Winter weather slams through Polk County

                                   PHOTOS BY JASON CHLAPEK AND PAM NOBLES I PCE Winter weather made driving conditions treacherous for a Toyota pickup truck and an 18-wheeler earlier this week.

    By Jason Chlapek

    Like the majority of the state of Texas, Polk County was not spared by Mother Nature this week.

    A winter storm came through most of the state Sunday night and Polk County was one of the storm’s destinations. The storm left snow on the ground, which prompted schools and some businesses to close its doors because of adverse travel conditions.

    Polk County Judge Sydney Murphy called a declaration of disaster from Sunday to Wednesday. The northern portion of the county received 4-6 inches of snow, while Livingston received 3-4 and the southern portion received 1-2.

    Temperatures did not go above freezing (37 degrees) and are not projected to until Friday when the high is supposed to be 43. Temperatures dropped to as low as 4 Tuesday morning.

    Truck 1

    As of press time, the Polk County Office of Emergency Management reported that approximately 2,600 homes were without water and 292 were without electricity. A second cold front was projected to sweep through the county Wednesday afternoon, which would make driving conditions treacherous again.

    All six county school districts – Big Sandy, Corrigan-Camden, Goodrich, Leggett, Livingston and Onalaska – either closed or performed virtual learning Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. C-CISD is closed for the remainder of the week, Goodrich is closed today and the other districts didn’t make a decision about today or Friday as of press time.

    The Polk County Office of Emergency Management can be reached at 936-327-6826, or visit the website at http://www.PolkCountyOEM.com/ . Other agencies that can be reached during winter storm emergencies are the Polk County Sheriff’s Office (936-327-6810), Department of Public Safety (936-327-6806), Livingston Police Department (936-327-3117), Onalaska Police Department (936-646-5676), Corrigan Police Department (936-398-2551) and the Alabama-Coushatta Police Department (936-563-1200).