By Gaige Davila editor@portisabelsouthpadre.com A representative from Angry Tias and Abuelas of the RGV has filed a complaint with the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) for a detainee with severe diabetes at Port Isabel Detention Center (PIDC), fearing they are at risk of contracting COVID-19.  This week, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) …

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By Gaige Davila editor@portisabelsouthpadre.com The Port Isabel High School’s Class of 2020 commencement ceremony ended with a bang, several actually, in a fireworks ceremony that concluded an event that, for few months, was uncertain to ever happen. Senior-turned-graduates of PIHS, all wearing face masks, were able to move their tassels from right to left, the …

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By Gaige Davila editor@portisabelsouthpadre.com  Two people detained at the Port Isabel Detention Center (PIDC) have gone on a hunger strike, fearing they will contract COVID-19 at the facility after three persons tested positive there.  The PRESS has contacted ICE for confirmation on the hunger strike. The two men are from Cuba, Julio Cutino Sanchez and …

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By Gaige Davila editor@portisabelsouthpadre.com Port Isabel and South Padre Island residents have another chance to get tested for COVID-19 this week. On Wednesday, June 3, the Department of State Health Services (DSHS) will host another mobile COVID-19 testing site at the Port Isabel Event and Cultural Center, at 309 Railroad St, the same location as …

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By Gaige Davila editor@portisabelsouthpadre.com Approximately 65,710 people visited South Padre Island over the Memorial Day weekend, according to South Padre Island Convention and Visitors Bureau Director Ed Caum.  At South Padre Island’s public beaches behind Bar Louie, Clayton’s Beach Bar and Grill, La Quinta Inn and Suites and the Hilton Garden Inn, groups of beachgoers …

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By Gaige Davila editor@portisabelsouthpadre.com Save for it’s dining room being closed, it’s business as usual at Isabel’s Cafe, which celebrated its 47th anniversary this past Monday, May 25.  “The phone starts ringing right at seven o’clock,” Dora Ramos told the PRESS inside Isabel’s Cafe. “On weekends, it doesn’t end until close to closing (at 3:00 …

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Curated by Steve Hathcock Editor’s Note: The following reports are edited for clarity and written in third-person, using language directly from the reports.  2201 ASSAULT/ ASSAULT FAMILY VIOLENCE (CLASS A MISDEMEANOR ): On May 18, 2020, at approximately 0024hrs, an officer responded to 5600 Padre Blvd Room #109 in reference to a past assault. Investigation …

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By Gaige Davila editor@portisabelsouthpadre.com Bars, bowling alleys, bingo halls, zoos, skating rinks, aquariums, rodeos and natural caverns can reopen this Friday, May 22, per order from Texas Governor Greg Abbott, at 25 percent capacity. Also starting Friday, restaurants can increase their occupancy limit to 50 percent. Child care facilities reopened this past Monday, May 18, …

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By Gaige Davila editor@portisabelsouthpadre.com Gulfpoint Condominiums will rebuild its “B” building after a massive fire engulfed the 27-unit property this past Saturday.  The rebuild will take anywhere from 24 to 30 months, according to Carlos Chacon, owner of Chacon Realty, the entity who manages Gulfpoint Condominiums, said.  The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives …

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By Gaige Davila editor@portisabelsouthpadre.com The Atlantic Ocean, where the Gulf of Mexico lies, has a 60 percent chance to have an “above-normal” hurricane season, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), with a range of 13 to 19 named storms developing. Six to ten of these storms could become hurricanes, with 3 to …

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