Author: reporter

A space heater that was being used to keep pipes warm in an unoccupied apartment sparked a fire on Friday, Nov. 8, 2024, that destroyed the Lakewood building, displacing four people and killing two cats. (Courtesy of West Metro Fire) Four people were displaced and two cats died Friday morning in an apartment fire in Lakewood. The fire sparked before 5 a.m. from an electric space heater in an unoccupied apartment unit at a building near Ammons Street near its intersection with West 12th Avenue, West Metro Fire Rescue said in a post on X. The building was totally destroyed.…

Denver Public Schools’ Board of Education will host special public comment sessions next week ahead of members’ vote on whether to close or restructure 10 schools. Superintendent Alex Marrero on Thursday announced his school consolidation plan, which the district is considering because of declining K-12 enrollment. The school board will vote on whether to close and restructure schools on Nov. 21. The board has a regular public comment session scheduled for 4:30 p.m. Nov. 18 at DPS headquarters, 1860 Lincoln St. Students, educators, families and community members can weigh in during that meeting on the proposed closures and restructuring, which…

Denver is extending its cold-weather shelter hours through Saturday morning to protect homeless residents from an ongoing winter storm.Shelter will be available through 11 a.m. Saturday at the Stone Creek shelter, located in the repurposed Best Western hotel at 4595 Quebec St., as well as in city facilities located at 2601 W. 7th Ave. and 375 S. Zuni St.“Cold weather poses a serious danger to people who are unsheltered, and the city encourages people to come inside,” the City and County of Denver said in a news release.Other Denver shelters that have also increased their capacity during the cold weather…

Fans of electronic music producer Of The Trees will have to wait another week for performances scheduled at Red Rocks Park and Amphitheatre, as the venue took the rare step of postponing shows this week due to an ongoing winter storm. “I’ve been trying to keep faith all week as snow has continued to dump down on Colorado, but alas: due to safety and inability to get the venue ready in time, the city is not allowing us to continue operating this weekend as planned,” the producer wrote in a Facebook post Thursday. Concertgoers at Red Rocks have braved winter…

The Chiefs have become the Patriots. And that is not a compliment. At least not in these parts.I am getting irritable in my 50s. Losing patience for reruns. What started innocently five years ago has become a full-blown annoyance.It all began when the Chiefs won the Super Bowl in 2019. They stepped onto the biggest stage, stopped paging Dr. Heimlich and announced themselves as a power. Cap tip. Congratulations. What has happened since is unfathomable and unacceptable. They have gone from fantastic to dynastic, appearing in four Super Bowls in five years and winning three.The diagnosis: Chiefs fatigue. And there…

Another round of winter weather will sweep across Colorado’s Front Range and Eastern Plains on Friday, with forecasters expecting treacherous road conditions and nearly 3 feet of snow in some areas.Metro Denver and the southern foothills will see 7 to 14 inches of snow starting Friday morning and continuing into Saturday, with the heaviest snowfall along Interstate 70 and to the south.“Travel will be impossible east and southeast of Denver,” National Weather Service forecasters said in a winter storm warning Thursday. “Do not travel or expect to travel in those locations through at least Saturday as heavy snow impacts will…

A Denver Public Schools social worker was arrested on Thursday for sexual assault of a child, according to a statement from the Denver Police Department.Emilio Ramos-Avila, 44, is under investigation for sexual assault on a child by a person in a position of trust. Ramos-Avila was a school social worker at Force Elementary School, 1550 S. Wolff St.Police did not release any details about the alleged crime, including whether the victim was a student at the elementary school.Given the nature of the case and because the victim is a juvenile, the arrest affidavit is not available for release. Ramos-Avila’s mugshot is…

Denver Public Schools Superintendent Alex Marrero on Thursday recommended the Board of Education vote to permanently close or restructure 10 schools across the city in response to declining K-12 enrollment in Colorado’s largest district. READ MORE: Superintendent recommends DPS close or restructure 10 schools as enrollment continues to fallMarrero made the announcement Thursday during a meeting of the elected school board. Earlier this year, the board adopted a policy that opened the door for DPS officials to consider potential school closures for the second time in two years. The seven-member school board is scheduled to vote on Marrero’s closure plan…

For about 58 minutes, the Colorado Avalanche played a fantastic game at Canada Life Center in Winnipeg.The problem for the Avs? The best team in the NHL to date was the opponent, and Jets goaltender Connor Hellebuyck looked a lot more like a two-time Vezina Trophy winner than he did the last time the Avalanche saw him.Gabriel Vilardi scored 66 seconds in, and that was enough for the Jets to fend off the Avs in a 1-0 game Thursday night. Alexandar Georgiev easily had his best game of the season. The offensive stars all played well, but couldn’t beat Hellebuyck.This…

The Golden police officers killed and injured Wednesday in a suspected DUI crash were identified Thursday. Earlier that day, a Colorado School of Mines professor accused in the crash appeared in court.Golden officials on Thursday afternoon said Evan Dunn, 33, was killed in the line of duty while responding to the crash on Colorado 58. Officer Bethany Grusing was seriously injured.Stephen Geer, a 43-year-old Colorado School of Mines mechanical engineering professor who was arrested and held overnight in the crash that killed Dunn, is being investigated for vehicular homicide and vehicular assault. He appeared Thursday morning before Jefferson County Court…