Update for Monday, January 26, 2026

WINTER STORM ENDS, DANGEROUS COLD CONTINUES – Three days of wintry precipitation has left Wise County covered in ice. While the storm may be over, Wise County remains under an extreme cold warning through 9 a.m. Tuesday. Temperatures dropped to as low as 11 in Decatur early Sunday and Monday mornings, and today’s high temperature is only expected to climb to 26 degrees. Tonight, we’re expected to dip into the single-digits before finally climbing above freezing on Tuesday afternoon. Roads became slick over the weekend, according to local law enforcement, and not much improvement is expected today. Decatur Police Chief Delvon Campbell reported on Sunday that officers assisted with more than 20 stranded motorists overnight due to the ice. “We ask that people stay home, it’s simply not safe to be out on the roads,” Campbell said.

SCHOOLS, GOVERNMENT OFFICES CLOSE – All Wise County school districts are closed today and Tuesday due to the ongoing icy road conditions. This includes Decatur ISD, Bridgeport ISD, Northwest ISD, Boyd ISD, Paradise ISD, Slidell ISD, Chico ISD, Alvord ISD and Victory Christian Academy. Weatherford College Wise County and Wise Christian School will be closed today as well. All Wise County government offices will be closed today, and the commissioners meeting has been moved to Wednesday. Decatur city offices will be closed today and will reopen at 1 p.m. Tuesday, weather permitting. The city council meeting has been rescheduled for 6 p.m. Tuesday. Bridgeport city offices will be closed today, but today’s city council meeting is expected to be held as normal. Boyd, Paradise, Alvord, New Fairview and Rhome also announced city office closures for today. A list of closures can be found here.

HOUSE FIRE VICTIM IDENTIFIED – The person found dead in a Jan. 14 house fire was identified Friday as a 35-year-old resident of the home near Newark. Dustin Sampson was one of several residents living in the home at 443 County Road 4659 that was destroyed in an intense blaze. His body was found by firefighters after the two-story structure collapsed. The fire was reported just after 4 a.m. also injured a woman, killed several animals and destroyed multiple vehicles including an RV parked near the home. Upon the discovery of the body, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and the Tarrant County Arson Task Force were brought in to support the Wise County Fire Marshal’s Office investigation. The body was sent to the Dallas County Medical Examiner for an autopsy. That investigation into the fire and Sampson’s death remains active as of Friday, Jan. 23, the fire marshal’s office said. Read more here.

TRASH COLLECTION DELAYED – Waste Connections has notified local cities that due to the icy road conditions, residential and commercial waste collection services will be delayed by approximately 24-48 hours.

CHILD KILLED IN RHOME WRECK – An 8-year-old Prairie View Elementary student was killed last week in a crash near his neighborhood in Rhome, and now his mother is calling on state and local officials to take action to prevent another family from experiencing a similar loss. Matteo Hernandez, a second grader at Northwest ISD’s Prairie View Elementary School, died Thursday after the vehicle he was riding in with his grandmother was struck at the intersection of Texas 114 and Alliance Boulevard, also known as County Road 4841. The crash was reported shortly before 3:45 p.m. as Matteo and his grandmother were traveling home from school. Officials said the sedan was attempting to turn from Texas 114 into the By Well Estates neighborhood when it was struck on the passenger side by a three-quarter-ton pickup truck traveling along the state highway. A third vehicle was also involved after the initial collision. The driver of the pickup truck was not injured. A woman in the third vehicle sustained minor injuries but declined transport. Matteo’s grandmother suffered a broken hip and a spinal fracture and was transported to John Peter Smith hospital. The intersection had frightened Matteo’s mother, Maria Rodriguez, a kindergarten teacher at Matteo’s school, years before it devastated her last week. Matteo’s grandmother told Rodriguez that she never saw the pickup truck coming. There was a line of traffic blocking the view of oncoming traffic, she said. “From around 3 to 6 p.m. it’s impossible to cross,” Rodriguez said. “It’s a four-way intersection, and there’s a huge amount of cars waiting to cross over that block the view.” Now, Rodriguez is urging the installation of a traffic signal at the intersection — a change she said residents in By Well Estates have sought for years. Read more here.

UTILITY OUTAGES – Atmos reported several customers in the Decatur area lost gas service Saturday morning. Crews were able to restore gas service by Saturday evening. Also, Oncor customers in parts of Runaway Bay lost electricity on Saturday. Power was reported to be restored by 1 a.m. Sunday.

FRIDAY WRECKS – Despite being hours away from possibly icy roads, Wise County EMS and other area first responder agencies had their hands full with drivers crashing in more ordinary rain conditions Friday morning. Chief Randall Preuninger confirmed that Wise County EMS responded to three accidents from around 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. Friday. The most severe was a rollover wreck that involved two vehicles two-vehicle collision that involved a rollover near the Wise-Parker County line on Farm Road 920. Two patients were injured in the T-bone crash near Boonsville. At least one of the occupants had to be extricated and the road was shut down as first responders worked the collision. Boonsville-Balsora (Wise County ESD No. 2), Parker County Hospital District EMS, Parker County ESD No. 1 and law enforcement also worked the accident that reported near Division Lane, south of Highway 199. Due to the Parker County Hospital District EMS transporting the patients, additional details on the severity of the injuries were not readily available. The busy morning started with a wreck on U.S. 81/287 and County Road 4840 near Rhome, followed by a single-vehicle accident from a car losing control on County Road 4421. Neither wreck resulted in injuries.

FUNERALS – Service for John Waggoner Polhemus, 76, of Decatur is 2 p.m. Tuesday at Hawkins Funeral Home in Decatur. Family visitation is two hours prior to the service at the funeral home.

GRAVESIDE service for Howard Freitag, 98, of Decatur is 11 a.m. Saturday at Shaffer Funeral Home in San Angelo. Hawkins-Decatur is handling arrangements.

FUNERAL for James Archer, 81, of Decatur is 11 a.m. Friday at Hawkins Funeral Home in Decatur with burial at Oaklawn Cemetery. Visitation is 6-7:30 p.m. Thursday at the funeral home.

FUNERAL for Lorenzo Garza, Sr., 81, of Bridgeport is 11 a.m. Tuesday at Hawkins Funeral Home in Bridgeport with burial at The Mexican Cemetery. Family visitation is 6-8 tonight at the funeral home. 

MASS of Christian Burial for Benita Gonzalez, 67, of Bridgeport is 10:30 a.m. Wednesday at St. John the Baptizer Catholic Church in Bridgeport with burial at East Bridgeport Cemetery. Family visitation is 6-8 p.m. Tuesday at Hawkins Funeral Home in Bridgeport with rosary at 7. 

GRAVESIDE service for Timothy Schmidt, 72, of Chico is 2 p.m. Feb. 28 at Chico Cemetery. Family visitation is 12:30 – 1:30 p.m. before the service at Hawkins Funeral Home in Bridgeport.

MEMORIAL service for John McNamara, 61, of Highland Village is 6 p.m. Tuesday at Hudson & Torres Family Funeral Home in Bridgeport. Visitation is 5 p.m., one hour before the service.