The test results for three suspected cases of measles reported in Burnet County are negative, according to the local health authority. The news comes amid an outbreak of the potentially deadly virus across Texas.
Burnet County Health Authority Dr. Juliette Madrigal said the three local cases were reported between Feb. 27 and March 10. Testing was done by the state.
A measles outbreak in West Texas and the Panhandle began in late January. As of Tuesday, March 18, there have been 279 confirmed cases, 36 hospitalizations, and one death reported in the state.
Burnet County is hundreds of miles away from the primary infection zones, but Dr. Madrigal warned that a potential outbreak in the county could be imminent due to the virus’ highly contagious nature and the number of unvaccinated children in the area.
Specifically, she cited the approximately 40 percent of Faith Academy of Marble Falls students who filed for conscientious exemptions from standard immunizations in the 2023-24 school year, meaning they are not required to get basic vaccinations due to reasons of conscience, including religious beliefs.
“Measles is the most contagious virus that I’ve ever heard of,” she told DailyTrib.com in a March 4 interview. “I would be flabbergasted if we don’t have a measles outbreak here.”
Dr. Madrigal’s role as Burnet County’s health authority requires her to report the potential presence of contagious, infectious, and dangerous diseases within her jurisdiction to the state.
While measles is incredibly infectious, with each infected person potentially transmitting to another 12-18 susceptible individuals, it can be stopped with 93 percent effectiveness by the measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine, often referred to as the MMR. Children usually receive two doses of the MMR, once between the ages of 12-15 months and again when they are 4-6 years old. After the vaccination is administered, recipients are typically fully protected within two to three weeks.
About one in 1,000 measles cases result in death and about one in four patients are hospitalized, according to the National Institute of Health. For perspective, about 0.018 per 1,000 people infected with influenza die, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Measles is characterized by flulike symptoms and a distinct, red rash. In extreme cases, it can lead to pneumonia, blindness, and encephalitis, or inflammation of the brain.
The virus has been mostly eradicated from the United States due to an extensive vaccination campaign that began in the 1970s, but periodic outbreaks still take place in certain communities with unvaccinated populations.
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The Wirtz Dam Bridge project hit an unexpected delay after the discovery of an archaeological site on the north shore of Lake Marble Falls. A redesign is in the works to avoid disturbing the area with construction, which now should begin in the fall of 2026 rather than this summer.
The discovery and other project updates were shared at the Burnet County Commissioners Court meeting March 11.
The $35 million, 1,750-foot bridge would connect RR 1431 and FM 2147, reducing traffic congestion on U.S. 281 and improving emergency response times in southern Burnet County. It has been in development for nearly a decade. Funding is coming from the Texas Department of Transportation and the Federal Highway Administration.
“This is a seriously needed project for our area,” Precinct 4 Commissioner Joe Don Dockery said. “We’ve done things to promote tourism, and now we have to address traffic issues.”
Historical site discovery and redesign
The archaeological site, designated 41BT546, was discovered on Lake Marble Falls’ north shore during the project’s environmental review. According to Mary Jo Galindo, an archaeologist with the Texas Historical Commission, the site contains evidence of Early Archaic Period human activity, including a fire-cracked rock feature (likely a hearth or cooking area) and lithic debris, small fragments left behind from shaping stone tools.
Most notably, an Andice projectile point, a type of spear tip used by early inhabitants of Central Texas, was unearthed, helping archaeologists date the location.
“Early Archaic sites aren’t all that common, which is probably why finding an Andice point here was so exciting,” Galindo said.
After the discovery, K.C. Engineering halted design plans for the bridge to allow coordination with state and federal agencies.
“The first phase of coordination with the (Texas Historical Commission) was the approval of the archeological report. The second phase of coordination with the THC is the approval of the avoidance plan, which is currently in progress,” said K.C. Engineering’s Greg Haley, the bridge project’s engineer. “The proposed avoidance plan is to redesign the bridge such that it will completely span over the site with no construction whatsoever occurring within the site.”
This adjustment will increase engineering costs, but those expenses are covered by Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization funding, according to Commissioner Dockery.
“It will increase the cost some, but that’s mostly on the engineering side,” he said. “The construction side of it will be the most major impact, and that will be a TxDOT (Texas Department of Transportation) cost, not a Burnet County cost.”
Dockery now estimates that construction will be pushed back to late 2026, rather than this summer. Work should last at least two years.
Right-of-way acquisition and eminent domain
Before construction begins, Burnet County must secure land along the planned route. The project requires acquiring 15 parcels of right-of-way and 17 drainage easements. Ten appraisals have already been completed. While most property owners are expected to settle through negotiations, eminent domain remains an option. Eminent domain is the government’s legal right to take private property for public use without the owner’s consent, but with compensation.
“If it comes to that, it will be a last resort,” Dockery said. “We’re working to ensure that property owners understand the project’s importance, and we hope to reach agreements without having to use that method.”
Some residents will see infrastructure changes as road alignment shifts to meet TxDOT’s 120-foot right-of-way requirement.
According to Dockery, of the 15 parcels needed for the project, three belong to the Lower Colorado River Authority while the rest are privately owned.
Several utilities along the route must be relocated, including a three-phase electric line belonging to the Pedernales Electric Cooperative. Frontier Communications has chosen to abandon its facilities rather than relocate them, but no service disruptions are expected, according to Haley.
Public response to the project
The Wirtz Dam Bridge project has received public support since planning began. A 2016 survey conducted by CAMPO gathered input from 848 residents, with 81 percent of them in favor of the bridge.
The public outreach campaign included 18 community meetings, public forums, and city council discussions. Burnet County officials noted that this was one of the most successful public engagement efforts CAMPO had ever conducted.
Despite the setback, Dockery emphasized the long-term benefits of the bridge, calling it a crucial investment in Burnet County’s future mobility.
“We don’t want to emulate Austin,” he said. “We need to develop our infrastructure so the Highlands can maintain good mobility.”
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Firefly Aerospace’s lunar lander, Blue Ghost, completed its 14-day research run March 16, the first moon mission for the Central Texas space firm and the first-ever fully successful commercial moon landing. Firefly, which has a manufacturing site in Burnet County, aims to make annual trips to Earth’s largest satellite and has more NASA missions on the horizon.
Blue Ghost landed on the moon March 2 after a 45-day trip from Earth’s surface that began Jan. 15. The company has now set the bar at 14 days for the longest commercial operation on the lunar surface.
“This team continues to make near-impossible achievements look easy, but there is no such thing as an easy Moon landing, especially on your first attempt,” said Will Coogan, Blue Ghost chief engineer, in a March 17 media release from Firefly. “We battle tested every system on the lander and simulated every mission scenario we could think of to get to this point.”
The lander and its suite of instruments transmitted 119 gigabytes of data during its mission, which lasted a little over one full lunar day, equivalent to 14 Earth days. Among Firefly’s key achievements on the mission were the successful use of GPS satellite tracking and navigation, proving that sensitive electronics could withstand space radiation, drilling into the moon’s surface robotically, and capturing images of a solar eclipse from the moon’s surface. The trusty lander, by design, powered down following the lunar sunset.
A solar eclipse as seen from the surface of the moon, captured by Firefly Aerospace’s lunar lander Blue Ghost. In this case, Earth moved in between the moon and the sun, as opposed to a solar eclipse seen from Earth in which the moon moves in between the sun and the planet. Photo courtesy of Firefly Aerospace
While Intuitive Machines was the first commercial company to get a lander to the moon in February 2024, that mission was somewhat botched when the lander, Odysseus, reportedly damaged its landing gear and toppled over, compromising its ability to effectively gather data.
Blue Ghost’s successful landing and mission are historic achievements, and work is already underway on Blue Ghost Mission 2, scheduled for 2026. It will be the second in a series of NASA projects for Firefly in the U.S. space administration’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services program.
“We’re incredibly proud of the demonstrations Blue Ghost enabled from tracking GPS signals on the Moon for the first time to robotically drilling deeper into the lunar surface than ever before,” said Firefly CEO Jason Kim in the Monday media release. “We want to extend a huge thank you to the NASA CLPS initiative and the White House administration for serving as the bedrock for this Firefly mission. It has been an honor to enable science and technology experiments that support future missions to the Moons, Mars, and beyond.”
Firefly Aerospace is headquartered in Cedar Park and has a 200-acre manufacturing and testing site in Burnet County near the community of Briggs. That site, known as Rocket Ranch, has over 300 employees and is set to expand in the coming years.
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Agendas for Highland Lakes governments are posted 72 hours before a meeting so are not always ready by the time this story is published. Check the links for more information.
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The Burnet County Commissioners Court will vote on the purchase of new election equipment during a special meeting March 17. If approved, the Hart InterCivic Ballot on Demand voting system will replace the county’s direct-recording electronic machines with a paper-based process.
The meeting takes place at 9 a.m. Monday in the second-floor courtroom of the Burnet County Courthouse, 220 S. Pierce St. in Burnet. It is open to the public.
Also regarding elections, commissioners passed a resolution at their March 11 regular meeting in support of countywide voting, which is potentially under threat in the Texas Legislature. This method allows registered voters to cast their ballot at any county site, regardless of precinct.
VOTING SYSTEM
The purchase of new election equipment has been a key topic in recent Commissioners Court meetings due to Texas Senate Bill 1 mandating all voting systems in the state provide a voter-verifiable paper trail by September 2026.
Burnet County Elections Administrator Doug Ferguson explained how the transition to the Hart InterCivic system could save money and ensure government compliance.
“This system is significantly less expensive than alternatives in long-term maintenance,” Ferguson told DailyTrib.com. “And because voters will now mark paper ballots by hand before scanning them, we’ll need far fewer machines at each location, reducing equipment costs.”
The Hart InterCivic system has an upfront cost of $856,756, with annual licensing and support fees at $38,546. The only other vendor meeting state requirements, Election Systems & Software, has an upfront cost of $668,000 and would require an additional $188,756 in parts and equipment, bringing the total initial investment to $856,756. However, ES&S has higher annual licensing and support fees of $68,610, according to Ferguson.
Burnet County was prepared for the purchase, earmarking $900,000 for a new system in the 2024-25 fiscal year budget.
Ferguson said it would be best to replace the current machines sooner rather than later, as waiting too long could delay delivery and training and make the 2026 primary election more difficult to manage.
“I’d like to have at least two elections under our belt with the new equipment before the primary,” he said. “This would give our staff a chance to get comfortable with the system before the biggest election cycle.”
HOW THE SYSTEM WORKS
Under the Hart InterCivic system, voters receive a paper ballot upon check-in, mark their selections manually, and feed their completed ballot into a scanner. Under the current system, voters do almost everything electronically, using a screen to make their selections.
Each polling site will still have at least one ADA-compliant ballot-marking device for voters needing accessibility assistance.
“This is probably the least expensive way to incorporate both paper ballots and electronic verification into an election,” Ferguson said.
COUNTYWIDE VOTING
At their Tuesday meeting, Burnet County commissioners approved a resolution opposing any legislative attempts to eliminate countywide polling places. The resolution argues that precinct-based voting would increase election costs, reduce turnout, and disenfranchise voters, especially those with disabilities.
Burnet County has used countywide voting since 2020, allowing residents to cast their ballots at any polling location instead of being limited to a single precinct.
“We know that more and more people are voting outside of their home precincts every election,” Ferguson said. “Without countywide voting, those voters could face long delays or even be turned away.”
During the meeting, a challenge to the security of countywide voting was left anonymously among public documents for distribution in the courtroom. An affidavit from Barry Wernick, a candidate in a 2024 Dallas County election, claims countywide voting violates voter privacy because, in some cases, election reports allow ballots to be traced back to individual voters.
Ferguson disputed this claim, explaining that Texas House Bill 5180 requires election officials to redact all personally identifiable information before making ballots publicly available.
“Our procedures ensure voter privacy by removing any connection between a person’s name and their ballot,” he said. “Unless you’re observing a recount in real time, there’s no way to match a ballot to a voter.”
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Marble Falls Fire Rescue firefighters performed their final inspection of the department’s new lead truck at the Pierce Manufacturing facility in Wisconsin earlier this week. The truck is kitted out with a 100-foot extension tower and a galloping Marble Falls Mustang decal on the backside. The vehicle should be on the job in about six weeks, according to MFFR. Photos courtesy of Siddons-Martin Emergency Group
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The Burnet County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a suspected case of “swatting” after a false claim of a hostage situation at a Burnet-area home was reported at 1:50 p.m. Thursday, March 13. Swatting, which is a crime in Texas, is intended to provoke a large-scale police response.
The hoax caller claimed to be a resident of the home, located off of Texas 29 east of Burnet, and said they were being held hostage by four armed individuals. A large number of agencies mobilized to respond, but BCSO Chief Deputy Alan Trevino, who lives near the house, recognized the address and called the actual homeowner, who was out of town in Colorado.
Deputies confirmed with the man’s wife, who was at home, that no emergency was taking place.
Investigators are working to track down the caller and think it might have been linked to the targeted homeowner’s professional life.
The caller is believed to have used technology to disguise their identity, making it harder to track them down.
The Burnet County Sheriff’s Office is asking anyone with information about the caller’s identity to contact the office at 512-756-8080.
“These types of calls are intended to heighten awareness and cause a tremendous response from law enforcement,” Chief Deputy Trevino told DailyTrib.com. “In this case, the caller claimed someone had been injured, which meant EMS was also involved. It’s tremendously dangerous, and, hopefully, there’s something we can do at the state or federal level to address this.”
Swatting—falsely reporting a violent crime to trigger a heavy police response—can be charged as a misdemeanor or a felony, depending on the harm caused. Often used as a prank or retaliation, it can lead to unnecessary evacuations, accidents, and even deadly encounters.
“It forces officers to respond with lights and sirens for no reason,” explained Burnet County Sheriff’s Office Capt. Mike Sorenson. “It also causes panic in neighborhoods, especially when people see a big police presence and don’t know what’s going on.”
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Lifetime Burnet County resident LaVonna “Vonnie” Riddell Fox died March 7, 2025, at the age of 98. Born in 1926, she was the last living of the four children of Rachel Hollingsworth and the county’s longest-serving sheriff, Wallace Riddell. In her time, Fox helped shape the modern Burnet community while representing its past.
She was buried at Post Mountain Cemetery in Burnet on March 12 following a funeral at Vandeveer Street Church of Christ.
Fox’s life was intertwined with Burnet County history, having grown up in the now-defunct rural ranching community of Shovel Mountain at the south end of the county and then moving into the Burnet County Jail after her father won his bid for sheriff in 1939, a role he kept until his death in 1978. From ages 13 to 24, she lived alongside the prisoners and even ate the same meals as them.
“I was scared,” Fox told The Picayune Magazine in a 2019 interview, referring to the move from the country to the county jail. “After about two weeks, I settled in and everything was just fine. I was happy there. We ate what (the prisoners) ate. It was good home cooking, just everyday food, whatever Mama cooked.”
Fox’s childhood home at 109 Pierce St. on the courthouse square is no longer a jail. It was converted into a museum and visitors center in 2022. She celebrated her final birthday with family members and the public at the historic site on Aug. 29, 2024.
Vonnie and high school sweetheart Billy Joe Fox were married for 64 years before he died in 2018. Together, they opened Thunderbird Lake Resort on Lake Buchanan, ran Fox Real Estate, and helped develop the Delaware Springs Golf Course and Delaware Springs subdivision in Burnet.
Fox continued to run her real estate business and work as a consultant and Realtor until she was 95 years old.
“I’ve never lived out of the county,” she said in her 2019 Picayune interview. “I’ve always lived with Burnet County people, and I’ve always been friends with Burnet County people. It’s like family, really. Everybody always helps each other. I’ve had a good life. We were happy.”
According to her obituary, Fox is survived by sister-in-law Ann Riddell; nephew John Grigsby; nieces Rachel Curington, MaryAnne Curington, Renee Riddell, Randi Riddell-Reifel and Rachel Riddell-Holcomb; seven great-nieces and -nephews; and four great-great-nieces and -nephews.
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STAR Republican Women’s club President Kay Guidry poses for a photo with 33rd/424th District Attorney Perry Thomas during a recent Burnet County Republican Women’s club meeting. Guest speaker Bunni Pounds, president of Christians Engaged, presented a program on “Jesus and Politics.” Courtesy photo
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