Texans Urged to Heed Travel Warnings About Mexico

Texans planning to travel to Mexico or currently visiting there are urged to closely follow warnings from the U.S. Department of State, which advises U.S. citizens to not travel to the states of Colima, Guerrero, Michoacan, Sinaloa and Tamaulipas. Travelers to other states in Mexico are urged to either reconsider or at least exercise increased caution. This comes after violence broke out in Jalisco following the death of a cartel leader in a gunfight with Mexican authorities.

Gov. GregAbbott has directed the Texas Department of Public Safety to increase security along the border region.

“Mexican drug cartels pose a significant threat to public safety and national security,” Abbott said. “By increasing proactive efforts to defend against cartel violence, Texas will continue to utilize every tool and strategy to protect our state and our nation. We will not cower to criminals who impose terror on our fellow Texans and Americans.”

Texans in need of immediate assistance can call the U.S. Department of State (from outside the U.S: 1-202-501-4444; from inside the U.S.: 1-888-407-4747) or the Texas Fusion Center (1844-927-0521.) Patrick Seeks to Block Camp Mystic’s Reopening Texas should not renew the license for Camp Mystic this summer until necessary changes are made to ensure more lives aren’t lost in a flood, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick wrote in a letter to the state health commissioner, according to the Texas Standard.

“It would be naive to allow Camp Mystic to return to normal operations before all of the facts are known,” Patrick wrote to Department of State Health Services Commissioner Jennifer Shuford. “Camp Mystic should have decided on their own to suspend operations this coming summer, but it appears they are planning for camp in 2026 and will likely be seeking your approval to operate with a renewed license.”

Flooding last July 4 killed 25 campers, two counselors and the camp’s executive director. Parents of some of the campers who died have sued Shuford and other DSHS officials, claiming the state failed to follow Texas law when licensing the camp without ensuring it had adequate evacuation plans. In the months following the flood, Camp Mystic has announced plans to reopen its Cypress Lake property, which it says is independent from the older Guadalupe River location where the girls died.

Wildfires Popping Up Across the State 

Dry conditions and brisk winds are fueling a rise in wildfires across the state. The Texas A&M Forest Service reported that forecast rain could lessen the wildfire risk in early March.

As of Sunday, the service reported two active wildfires: one in Orange County, in Southeast Texas, and the other in Schleicher County, in Central Texas. Most of the wildfires reported last week and now contained were in East Texas. Burn bans are in place in 184 of the state’s 254 counties.