GALVESTON — Galveston County leaders joined pastors at the Justice Center in Galveston on Thursday to celebrate the 61st annual observance of the National Day of Prayer.

GALVESTON — Those floating, glowing lights in the sky above Galveston's East End about 9 p.m. Saturday weren't UFOs. Some teens launched about a half-dozen flying lanterns from Adoue Park.

TEXAS CITY — The city's emergency management office issued an alert to residents Wednesday morning that a military helicopter would be conducting tests along state Highway 146 this afternoon.

A visiting judge on Thursday ordered $7,500 in sanctions against Christopher Dupuy, judge of Galveston County Court at Law No. 3, stemming from a Houston attorney's attempts to depose Dupuy in connection with a $500,000 fraud and malpractice suit filed against him.

At the end of each year, we reflect on the top stories of the past 12 months. What once was news is now history. The newspaper's annual recap is presented through the eyes of our editors, but we also measure the readership of each story through your eyes as a reader.

HITCHOCK — The city, with the hiring of a full-time code enforcement officer, is placing about 100 homeowners on notice: Clean up or prepare for a day in court.

GALVESTON — City firefighters visit children undergoing treatment for severe burns at Shriners Hospitals for Children in Galveston on Friday.

GALVESTON — A ruptured wate rline formed a sinkhole, swallowing half a city street on Wednesday. Water service was disconnected to customers in the vicinity of the break, with repairs expected to be completed later tonight. The rupture could be related to extreem heat and drought causing shifting sands around the pipe, a city spokeswoman said.

An interesting twist to the case of disgraced federal judge Samuel Kent came down Saturday evening. According to reports from the Houston Chronicle and KTRK-TV in Houston, Kent's furlough from federal prison to attend his stepdaughter's wedding was reversed.

With extreme drought in Texas, electricity providers, like CenterPoint Energy and Texas-New Mexico Power, are for teh first time hiring helicopter crews to wash salt, sand and other debris from transmission insulators to help ensure reliable sources of power. Rain normally does the job.