Flight delays and cancellations have left thousands stranded across the country, including here in Oklahoma City. The vast majority of cancellations and delays have come from Southwest Airlines.
According to FlightAware.com, the airline canceled more than 2,500 flights as of Tuesday morning. Southwest said severe weather this past weekend forced the airline to make substantial unprecedented changes to its flight schedule. CEO Bob Jordan says the airline is working to get back on track.
“We're doing everything we can to return to a normal operation," said Jordan. "With our large fleet of airplanes and flight crews out of position in dozens of locations, and after days of trying to operate as much of our full schedule across the busy holiday weekend, we reached a decision point to significantly reduce our flying to catch up. Our plan for the next few days is to fly a reduced schedule and reposition our people and planes, and we're optimistic to be back on track before next week.”
The U.S. Department of Transportation called out Southwest Airlines on Twitter, saying they are responsible for taking care of the customer, and that the airline needs to make good on its promise to travelers.
A former public school administrator and current state lawmaker is hoping to encourage new teachers to stay in the classroom by expanding the state’s mentor teaching program.
Senate Bill 48 was filed by Midwest City Republican Sen. Brenda Stanley, who has 43 years of public school experience under her belt. Under her bill, a mentor teacher would earn $2,000 a year to guide a new teacher for three years.
Stanley says the state’s responses to its teaching shortage by consistently lowering the bar to be an educator has led to devaluing of the training and expertise that comes with traditional certification.
“Those are years lost for children too, when you have somebody in front of a classroom that truly does not know how to teach, how to form a lesson plan, how to figure out where my starting point is and what my goal is to finish with my students. You don’t produce quality for students if you don’t have a well-trained instructor in front of them," said Stanley.
The bill will be up for review when the legislative session begins in February.
A bridge over the Oklahoma River that once accommodated trains in the latter half of the 20th century is scheduled to be converted to a pedestrian bridge starting in the summer of 2024. The bridge conversion project will be funded by a 2017 voter-approved bond.
According to an article in The Oklahoman, the city’s budget allows for 1.3 million dollars to convert the bridge, but a preliminary report from an architecture company predicts even the most basic design will be over budget by $275,000 due to economic factors and the need to remove lead paint from the current structure.
Oklahoma City officials say the city has enough funds to complete the base design, but further enhancements could be funded through another bond package.
The City of Edmond is offering a recycling option to their residents for live Christmas trees.
Residents can drop off trees at Mitch Park now until the end of January. Christmas tree lots and other businesses can also drop off trees for processing. The trees will be turned into mulch.
Residents are asked to remove all tree stands, nails and ornaments.
The mulch will be available to residents to pickup at no cost.
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