Branch News

There will be a number of fireworks displays and other Independence Day events this week across the River Valley and Northwest Arkansas.

A man who was shocked by 7,200 volts of electricity while trying to rig an unmetered power line to his house is hospitalized, and charges are pending for theft and for a methamphetamine lab deputies found in his house.

A neighbor who lives along South Hopkins Road in Branch called 911 Friday night when a man fell from a power pole near her home.

The Franklin County Sheriff's Department has six full-time officers. Sheriff Reed Haynes said that isn't enough for the county, which stretches more than 700 square miles.

Officials across Northwest Arkansas and the River Valley said they have been making preparations in case of an H1N1 flu outbreak in Arkansas, but they said they have seen no positive cases as of Thursday afternoon.

The Fort Smith Board of Directors on Tuesday will prioritize an updated list of infrastructure projects to promote in Washington as Congress considers an economic stimulus package in early 2009.

The Witt Stephens Jr. Central Arkansas Nature Center in Little Rock opened Wednesday.

OZARK SCENE: Don Nelms of Jasper took this shot of a cyote in the snow. The Observer recently attended a talk at the Clinton School of Public Service, lured there by the appearance of a NASA astronaut.

Broadway diva, Natalie Toro , will appear as the Special Guest Star in GLIMPSES ON THE MOON Monday, December 8th and Monday, December 15th as the Off-Broadway-sold-out-musical-hit continues to delight audiences ...