TEXAS, USA — 2020 has been quite a year for people around the globe, from the Australia wildfires to the first COVID-19 vaccines being distributed in the UK and the US.
It's been a busy year for the Permian Basin as well, from the pandemic hitting the area hard to a visit from President Trump himself.
Here are the 10 biggest stories from 2020 across West Texas.
1. Texas Ranger's investigation
The allegations the group was looking into included interception of oral or electronic communications, abuse of official capacity, tampering with governmental record and theft greater than $30,000 and less than $250,000.
Additionally, an employee of the sheriff's office filed a lawsuit against her workplace over alleged wiretapping.
All of this led up to a major election on March 3 where citizens elected David Criner as the new sheriff over Rory McKinney, the Chief Deputy of MCSO.
As of December 2020, these investigations are still underway.
2. COVID-19
COVID-19 is far from a local issue, however the pandemic impacted West Texas greatly and in some ways differently from the rest of the world.
In April, oil prices fell below $0 for the first time in history. As the pandemic hit the U.S., people stopped traveling and oil prices plummeted, hitting the Permian Basin economy hard.
Additionally, the Midland Medical Lodge saw a major breakout of COVID-19 early in the pandemic, resulting in numerous cases and dozens of the first deaths in the county.
Later on, the Lodge's sister location Ashton Medical Lodge saw another major breakout as well.
3. Sam's Club stabbing
As the pandemic hit U.S. shores, a story that rippled across the country was the story of a stabbing at the Sam's Club in Midland.
A teen was charged in what authorities called a "racially motivated" attack that injured Bawi Cung and two of his son.
The attack was stopped by Sam's Club employee Zach Owen and off-duty Customs & Border Protection agent Bernie Ramirez, who later reunited.
4. Bar protestors
At the beginning of May, a number of protestors were arrested outside of Big Daddy Zane's Bar.
These protestors, many of them part of Open Texas, were in support of getting bars and other local businesses open in spite of Governor Abbott's order for them to stay closed.
The Ector County Sheriff's Office arrested eight protestors, six of them for unlawfully carrying a weapon on licensed premises.
The protestors then came to protest the sheriff's office before taking their leave, though they did come back a month later to peacefully protest again.
5. Tye Anders
Also in May, a video of a man being arrested in Midland went viral, sparking conversations about police brutality and race.
The video showed Tye Anders lying on the ground outside of his home while family watched police with their guns drawn nearby.
Midland officials spent weeks discussing the incident, holding town halls and creating a Police Advisory Committee.
Anders was later indicted by a grand jury for evading arrest, though COVID-19 has slowed the progress of the case.
6. Russian rocket rentry
It was a sight that caught many people's eyes-a Russian rocket had many questioning what meteor was falling to earth in July?
The rocket reentered the earth's atmosphere in Mexico and began breaking up over Texas and New Mexico.
It caused quite a stir for West Texans before scientists were able to clarify what it was.
7. Lee High School name change
Before the school year began, the Midland ISD School Board voted to change the name of Robert E. Lee High School.
The name change was not unanimously accepted by Midlanders-petitions, protests and even a lawsuit were thrown at the school board.
MISD's naming committee settled on Legacy of Equality and Excellence, which was changed to Legacy High School by the school board. However, the name may take a while to implement as the change will likely cost a pretty penny.
8. President Trump visits West Texas
West Texas got a visit from President Trump himself over the summer.
The president visited the area for a fundraising luncheon, but stopped by Double Eagle Energy oil rig to sign permits granting approval for pipeline and railway structure along the Texas/Mexico border.
Trump was greeted by fans and supporters both at the airport and the luncheon.
9. Mass shooting anniversary/lawsuit (police reports etc.)
August marked the one-year anniversary of the mobile mass shooting that rocked Midland and Odessa.
Memorials popped up across Odessa and citizens gathered to mourn and celebrate the lives of those lost during the shooting.
Survivors and those involved in stopping the shooter reflected on the day of August 31, 2019 and everything that happened.
In addition to the community marking the anniversary, some family members of the victims filed a lawsuit against the gun parts manufacturer and supplier behind the weapon.
Additionally, the man who sold the gun to the shooter plead guilty on federal charges.
10. Hospitals receive vaccine
After months of dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic, the first vaccines were approved by the FDA and started to be distributed to hospitals and other locations in the U.S.
Midland Memorial Hospital was one of the first locations to receive the vaccine in Texas and quickly began administering it to hospital workers.
Odessa Regional Medical Center, Medical Center Hospital and rural hospitals around Texas were not far behind.
As Texas works to get through the first phase of vaccine distribution, many see hope in the future as 2020 gives way to 2021 and the end of the pandemic may be in sight.
Other major stories:
