The Brownsville
News
HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — McDonald's has revealed its cutest monstrosity collaboration where "kawaii meets kaiju." McDonald's released its Hello Kitty and Friends x Godzilla Happy Meal on Tuesday, featuring beloved Hello Kitty characters and iconic Godzilla monsters. The...
schools
HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — Pharr-San Juan-Alamo Independent School District employees gathered at the Bert Ogden Arena on Tuesday to highlight the successes of the 2025-2026 school year and introduce new ongoing initiatives for the upcoming year. According to a PSJA spoke...
government
HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — The Cameron County Regional Mobility Authority is proposing to move forward with a 22-mile construction project that will lead to a second access at South Padre Island. The Outer Parkway project proposes to construct a new highway from I-69E to ...
safety
HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — A judge on Tuesday denied a bond reduction for a man accused in a fatal motorcycle crash. Apolonio Perez's bond will remain at $3.25 million. Perez's lawyers argued during a court hearing in the 332nd District Court Tuesday morning that Perez is...
safety
HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — A third person is dead following a head-on crash in Palmview over the weekend, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety. Efren Garcia Saldivar, 22, of Mission died from his injuries on Monday, according to DPS. At approximately 9:26 p....
zoo
Gladys Porter Zoo is inviting Brownsville residents to enjoy Brownsville Discount Days on September 11, 12 and 13, offering admission for just $2 per person....
Local
For members of the Early Bird Running Club, the day often begins with running shoes, a few miles on the trail, and a group of friends ready to start the morning together....
News
HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — While a big area of high pressure in the upper atmosphere centered over the Southwestern United States is the main culprit behind the heat dome effect bringing us a hot few days, it is getting a bit of an assist from a little helper. That helper...
space
HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — SpaceX announced Tuesday morning that Starship Flight 13 was successfully guided to a location off the coast of Christmas Island after efforts were made to recover it from the Indian Ocean. According to SpaceX, the recovery team successfully dir...
schools
HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — Monday marked the first day back to school at the McAllen Independent School District. To start the school year on a positive note, students from Thigpen-Zavala Elementary had McAllen ISD Superintendent Rene Gutierrez ride along with them on the...
space
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifts off from Space Launch Complex 4 East at Vandenberg Space Force Base on Aug. 18, 2026. Image: SpaceX Update 2:06 a.m. EDT (0706 UTC): SpaceX confirmed deployment of the satellites. SpaceX sent another batch of Starlink satellites to low Earth orbit w...
Local
HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — Another high‑pressure system parked over the Four Corners is once again steering more heat into the Rio Grande Valley, keeping our pattern locked into dry weather, sinking air, and plenty of sunshine. With this northwest‑positioned ridge strengt...
Local
HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) -- Dry conditions continue to dominate the Rio Grande Valley as another strong high‑pressure system settles over the Four Corners, reinforcing a pattern of sinking air, no clouds, no showers, and lots of sunshine. Temperatures surge into triple di...
government
C ameron County commissioners approved a 5% salary increase for elected officials, matching across-the-board pay increases for county employees, during their regular meeting last week. The raises are part of the county’s five-year plan to bring its wages closer to those of simila...
schools
Bryan Ramos | Staff Writer EDINBURG — The countdown to Year 2 of UTRGV Vaqueros football continues, as does RGVSports.com ’s fall camp position room breakdowns leading up to Week 0. Through spring ball, summer workouts and fall camp, the biggest question surrounding the Vaqueros ...
safety
HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — Jury selection is still underway in the capital murder trial for Rogelio Martinez Jr., who is accused of fatally shooting San Benito Police Lt. Milton Resendez during a 2023 vehicle pursuit. According to a district clerk, the court is still cond...
Local
HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — The Rio Grande Valley Humane Society is inviting all pet owners to bring their furry friends for low-cost essential vaccinations and services at the end of the month. The RGV Humane Society hosts its vaccine clinic on the last Saturday of each m...
schools
HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — IDEA Palmview welcomed its first-ever senior class on Monday for the first day of school. The campus first opened in 2020 and added one grade level each year. Six years later, the campus is fully scaled and is celebrating its first-ever senior c...
News
HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — More than 250 law enforcement officers from across Texas were welcomed to South Padre Island on Monday for a Law Enforcement Sexual Assault Training Conference. The conference is presented annually by the Texas Association Against Sexual Assault...
safety
HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — The Combes Police Department is recognizing one of its officers who is being credited with saving the life of a 2-year-old child during a call for service. On Friday, Officer B. Echavarria responded to a call regarding an unresponsive child. Whe...
News
HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — A judge set bail at $50,000 for a man accused of stabbing his friend multiple times. Heriberto Cazares, 33, attended a bail hearing at the Palmview Municipal Court where he was formally charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, accor...
Local
The Plant Exchange at the Main Library is blooming thanks to generous donations from library patrons. The exchange now features a variety of plants that community members can take home for free....
schools
E very single team across the Rio Grande Valley is officially back on the practice field this week as the countdown to kick off of the 2026 Texas high school football season continues. With Week 1 of the regular season less than two weeks away, the RGVSports.com staff continues i...
Local
BROWNSVILLE, Texas (ValleyCentral) — Dr. James Berry, DO, a neurosurgeon with Rio Grande Valley Brain and Spine in Brownsville, stopped by the NBC 23 studio Monday morning to discuss the expansion of access to complex nerve reconstruction for brachial plexus injuries. Dr. Berry d...
safety
HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — A grass fire that broke out Saturday night at South Padre Island near the Margaritaville Beach Resort was caused by sky lanterns, according to South Padre Island Fire Chief Jim Pigg. Witnesses at the scene told officials that sky lanterns with c...
Local
Brownsville residents are being urged to take precautions on Monday as a combination of hot temperatures and high humidity is expected to produce dangerous heat index values across Brownsville and the Rio Grande Valley....
border
HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — In this week's episode of Inside Valley Politics, host Brian Svendsen breaks down changes to U.S. Navy policies and border wall construction and sits down with U.S. Senate candidate James Talarico for a discussion. The United States Navy announc...
schools
HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — The Los Fresnos Consolidated Independent School District announced it has officially approved the employment contract of Dr. Joseph Villarreal as Superintendent of Schools. According to a news release from Los Fresnos CISD, the Board of Trustees...
safety
HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — The Texas Department of Transportation issued a traffic alert as FM 2556 between US Bus. 83 and I-2 in La Feria is expected to close Tuesday through Friday. Crews will be working on emergency repairs to railroad tracks, TxDOT said. Drivers are b...
government
HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — The Hidalgo County Sheriff's Office invites the community to its Back-to-School Bash happening on Tuesday. An evening filled with fun, food and school-supply giveaways starts at 6 p.m. The event will take place at the Precinct 2 CRC located at 5...
News
HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — It is the middle of August and the forecast does not look to stray away from the hot and mostly dry conditions through the extended forecast. Over the next seven days, we are anticipating temperatures to stay near to slightly above normal, with ...
News
HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — The City of Edinburg held its sixth annual triathlon, where approximately 500 competitors participated. The event kicked off Sunday morning at the Edinburg Municipal Park, located at 714 S Raul Longoria Rd. Competitors participated in numerous a...
business
HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — The Texas Department of Transportation announced six scheduled road closures at intersections in Brownsville. According to the news release from TxDOT, the six closures are due to road work and will be scheduled along SH 4, between Grant Street ...
safety
HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — The Texas Rangers are investigating an overnight fatal officer-involved shooting in Mission. According to a news release from the Mission Police Department, at approximately 12:04 a.m. Sunday, authorities responded to a 911 call regarding a pers...
safety
HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — Five people, including three children, were taken to a hospital following a two-vehicle collision, according to city of Rio Hondo officials. At approximately 5:26pm on Saturday, the Rio Hondo Volunteer Fire Department responded to a crash in the...
space
M cALLEN — Los Fresnos’ head volleyball coach Anissa Lucio said her team still has opportunities to be better. She said that after the Falcons did something that Lower Valley teams usually do not do, win McAllen’s Poundfest. Lucio has not won the tournament as a coach despite num...
News
A s the battle against marijuana legalization as well as efforts to fight Texas’ recent ban on various hemp-derived THC cannabis products continues, there was one Harlingen man who took his commitment for legalization further 33 years ago. Charles Schoonover attended one of Harli...
space
A streak shot of SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket lifting off from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on Aug. 15, 2026. Image: Michael Cain/Spaceflight Now SpaceX launched back-to-back missions for Globalstar and the U.S. Space Force Saturday night, shrinking i...
schools
Los Fresnos Izzy Guerra, right, slams a ball past Edinburg Vela’s Lily Carter, left, during the championship match pound fest at McAllen High school gymnasium Saturday August 15,2026 in McAllen. (Delcia Lopez | dlopez@themonitor.com) Edinburg Vela’s Madeleine Luedeker, left, hit ...
space
M cALLEN — The Los Fresnos Falcons defeated the Edinburg Vela Sabercats here on Saturday, marking the Lower Valley team’s first win in the McAllen ISD’s Poundfest tournament in at least 15 years, according to head coach Anissa Lucio. “Super proud of them, we went through some adv...
safety
HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — A Harlingen actor got the chance of a lifetime by being part of an indie film that was filmed and produced in the Rio Grande Valley. Israel Zallar plays the supporting role of Mateo in the 2026 indie film Borderline, directed by Ryan Jordan and ...
schools
IVAN PALACIOS | STAFF WRITER EDITOR’S NOTE: This story continues our position-by-position look at the top returning high school football players in the Rio Grande Valley. Follow the series in the coming weeks as we count down to the release of our annual Top 30 players list. The ...
safety
HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — The Texas Department of Public Safety is investigating a deadly two-vehicle crash that took place Friday night. At approximately 9:26 p.m., DPS troopers responded to a fatal two-vehicle crash on Texan Road south of Freedom Avenue north of Palmvi...
Local
T he Rio Grande Valley is one of our nation’s most homogeneous, with a population that is 92% Latino, and a majority of that population remain loyal to their Latin roots, with 75% identifying themselves as Roman Catholic. A majority of other residents adhere to various other Chri...
business
STAFF REPORT EDITOR’S NOTE: Coaches, please send corrections or results to ivan@themonitor.com. McAllen Bulldogs Friday Night Lights XC Invitational McAllen Sports Park McAllen, TX BOYS 5K INDIVIDUAL 1. Alexander Nava, Weslaco East, 15:28.5; 2. Trey Llanes, Corpus Christi Veteran...
Local
McALLEN — The Rio Grande Valley will have two volleyball tournaments crown a champion on Saturday. McAllen’s Poundfest and the Donna ISD tournament ring in the volleyball season. Most Valley teams choose between the two annual tournaments, some will go out of town, but the majori...
News
HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) -- This weekend is shaping up to be about as close to normal as it gets for mid-August across Deep South Texas. Expect plenty of sunshine, moderate southeast winds, and afternoon temperatures climbing into the upper 90s to near 100 degrees. For co...
business
PHARR, Texas (ValleyCentral) — Avocado inspections in Michoacán, Mexico, have resumed after the U.S. temporarily halted them over security concerns, disrupting operations for importers in the Rio Grande Valley. The U.S. Department of Agriculture paused inspections last week, prev...
safety
HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — A teen wanted in connection with a 2023 murder case was arrested on Thursday, according to the Brownsville Police Department and the Cameron County District Attorney's Office. According to the Cameron County District Attorney Luis V. Saenz, in F...
News
I t started with a cheeky little bird. A great kiskadee, to be precise. Valley artist Ryan Henry decided to paint the yellow-plumed fowl as though it was perched on the doorway of his art gallery in the South Padre Island arts district. South Padre Island artist Ryan Henry sprays...
business
HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — Congressman Vicente Gonzalez (TX-34) secured $2 million in federal funding to support upgrades to the Donna Multi-Purpose Sports Complex. Gonzalez presented the $2 million to Donna city leaders outside the sports complex on Friday morning. "I'm ...
schools
Bryan Ramos | Staff Writer EDINBURG — The countdown to Year 2 of UTRGV Vaqueros football continues, as does RGVSports.com ’s fall camp position room breakdowns leading up to Week 0. Today, we’ll dive inside a Vaqueros running back room featuring several returners who ran wild dur...
business
The City of Brownsville Parks and Recreation Department will host Lunar Yoga, a free evening yoga session on Saturday, at 7:30 PM Aug. 29, at the dock at Dean Porter Park, located at 501 E. Ringgold St....
safety
HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — The Palmview Police Department arrested a wanted man accused of stabbing his friend with a bladed weapon. According to an update from Palmview police Chief Jose Trevino, Heriberto Cazares, 33, was apprehended Friday night by Palmview PD in McAll...
business
HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — AEP Texas is reporting that power has been restored in the Harlingen area after hundreds of customers were left without power on Friday. The first wave of power outages was reported at 3:30 p.m. on Friday, with approximately 1,831 Harlingen resi...
government
HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) -- Mercedes city manager Alberto Perez has resigned from his position, the city announced. Perez, a Starr County native, started his role as city manager in 2021. The Pan American graduate moved to Houston and Austin before returning home to the R...
safety
HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — A man was arrested on an animal cruelty charge after McAllen police say he left his chihuahua inside his truck in 100-degree heat while he was inside a Cheddar's restaurant, according to an offense report obtained by ValleyCentral. Jonathan Dani...
Local
E DINBURG — Dr. Sridhar Allam, medical director of the transplant institute at DHR Health, spoke softly as he talked about the impact organ donation can have on a patient’s life. He smiled as he thought of a father and daughter who grew closer together after the daughter donated ...
schools
HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — With back-to-school season underway, kids might feel nervous about heading back to class. Bob Cooper, a licensed clinical social worker and the director of Utilization Review at STHS Behavioral, has tips for parents to support their children's m...
Local
HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — The Ringling Circus Hype Crew stopped by our studios Friday morning to present the "Greatest Show on Earth", which is coming to the Rio Grande Valley next month. The high-energy circus experience is taking place from Sept. 3 through Sept. 6 at t...
