San Manuel
MINER
Proudly serving as the Tri-Community’s source of weekly news since 1954 Vol. 57 No. 12
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Periodicals Postage Paid at San Manuel, Ariz. 85631
50 Cents
Local man saves lives By John Hernandez Michael Walker doesn’t think of himself as a hero but his actions last Sunday say otherwise. Michael was spending the night at a friend’s house when he awoke to the sounds of a crying infant. When he opened his eyes he saw that the room was filled with black smoke. He could barely see as the only light source was coming from flames in the hallway. The trailer was on fire! Without thinking he made his way to baby Frankie. He punched out the window in the bedroom cutting his arm badly in the process. Michael crawled out the window then reached back in the room to retrieve Frankie. Frankie’s mother Robyn Cooper had been awakened by Michael
and the sound of breaking glass and was able to help Michael lift the child through the window. Michael placed Frankie out of harm’s way then returned to help Robyn out of the trailer. After getting Robyn and Frankie to safety, he ran across the street to his grandmother’s house, dripping a trail of blood along the way. He woke his grandma and told her to call 911. Another friend that had been sleeping in the trailer was able to get himself out without injury. When the Fire Department and EMTs arrived at approximately 6 a.m., the doublewide trailer was almost completely engulfed in flames. Frankie and Robyn were transported to Oro Valley Hospital where they were treated for a few minor burns
and some smoke inhalation. Robyn also received stitches on one of her hands. Michael was sent to University Medical Center where he underwent surgery on his right arm. He had cut an artery in the arm when he punched the window. Michael said that the medical staff was surprised that he had not passed out from the loss of blood. He also suffered burns on his face, arms and chest as well as some scrapes and abrasions. “I love kids and will do anything for them,” Michael said. “There was no way I could leave the baby or the baby without a mother.” Webster’s Dictionary defines the word “hero” as someone admired for their courage. I think Michael can be called a hero. I know Robyn and little
Frankie think so! Robyn said she is doing great, thanks to Michael. “He’s our hero,” she said. “I wouldn’t have woke up, if it wasn’t for him.” After the fire Robyn and her family were pretty much homeless and had lost everything. By the end of the day people in San Manuel had come to their aid. The owner of the trailer park found them a trailer. “Mostly people we did not know helped us,” Robyn said. People brought them furniture, clothes, a TV, and food - everything they needed. “I don’t know what we would have done without them,” Robyn said about the community’s generosity. “Thank them so much for everything.”
Michael Walker
Power woes? Disgruntled SCIP customers want to hear your issues By Lana Jones Cathy Gorman, Liz HarrisTuck, Mary Myers, and Linda Kadlecek are trying to get SCIP and its parent agency, the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), to address local concerns about electricity service. They’ve been collecting SCIP (San Carlos Irrigation Project) customer complaints since February 2010. They need your help to collect examples of the kinds of problems people are having and how SCIP has responded to them. Electricity customers in Aravaipa, Mammoth, Oracle, Winkelman and other SCIP service areas are invited to participate. The group needs specific examples of problems, like damage to electric appliances caused by power surges or outages. Examples of damage caused by unexpected outages, like thawing frozen food and malfunctioning timers, are needed. Billing and customer service problems are also needed. Finally, the group would like examples of problems communicating with SCIP. Problems might include
Local Census numbers released; Copper Corridor population declines By Lana Jones Populations declined over the first decade of the millennium in many southeastern Pinal towns, according to the new 2010 Census release. Overall though, the population in the area grew by about 24 percent. The majority (99 percent) of that growth came from SaddleBrooke. The other 1 percent came from Oracle. The places with the largest 10-year population declines in terms of number of people were San Manual (-824) and Superior (-417). The places with the largest population declines in percentage terms were Hayden, Dudleyville, and Top-of-the-World. In Hayden and Dudleyville, over a quarter of the towns’ residents left in the last ten years. In Top-of-the-World, almost a third left. Mammoth and Winkelman populations declined by 19 percent and 20 percent.
Superior and Kearny had about the same percent decline: both towns’ populations decreased near 13 percent. Of southeastern Pinal/ Gila towns with declining populations, the smallest decline was in Globe-Miami. Population there declined less than a percent. The newest Census numbers include statistics on the populations of various races and ethnicities. These numbers show how diversity has changed over the last 10 years in our communities. In southeastern Pinal, there was a 92 percent increase in the Asian population (116 more people) and a 79 percent increase in the American Indian population (440 more people). The percents are high because so few people of these races were living here in 2000. In terms of number of people though, the largest increase was in the white population.
The white population increased by almost 8,000. It was already the largest population though, so that is only a 37 percent increase. The entire increase in the white population came from the growth of SaddleBrooke. In all the other communities in southeastern Pinal, the white population decreased. The Hispanic/Latino population also decreased across most communities. It increased only in Oracle and Globe-Miami. County-wide population Population for Pinal County as a whole is booming. The County’s population more than doubled from about 180,000 to over 375,000. Most of that growth came from the west side of the county. Casa Grande’s population nearly doubled. Maricopa’s population went from about 1,000 to over 43,000—a 4,000% increase.
difficulties reporting service issues, speaking with an agency representative, and getting information from SCIP by web, email, or phone. The idea to collect problems came up last year after a SCIP representative spoke at an Oracle Democratic Club meeting. “We were complaining that there was no mechanism to deal with complaints and he said that basically we have to become vocal,” Cathy said. “If enough people complain that’s when you get attention,” Linda added. She said that they tried contacting Representative Kirkpatrick’s and Senator McCain’s offices. Both offices sent letters to the BIA. The BIA’s response said that there were no problems with SCIP. Kirkpatrick and McCain said there was nothing else they could do. Mary said the real problem was SCIP’s lack of transparency. “This government agency is completely opaque. There is no way to interface, to receive any kind of communication,” she said. Linda agreed that communication was a big problem. “If you don’t get
satisfactory results, that’s it, you’re out of luck. We can’t go to the Arizona Corporation Commission or city. There is an email address and I’ve tried that and I never got a response,” said Linda. A 2006 report by the US Government Accountability Office (GAO) on the BIA’s irrigation projects, including SCIP, found similar problems throughout the agency. The GAO report said that the BIA failed to comply with federal regulations requiring them to consult with project stakeholders, including customers. The report said the BIA, “has not consistently provided project stakeholders with the necessary information or opportunities to participate in project decisionmaking.” A key management concern was high staff turnover hindering effective communication. The report also said that lack of adequate funding to operate and maintain BIA projects has left many in, “a serious state of disrepair.” As of the 2006 report, SCIP had delayed maintenance costs of $5.78 million. Linda said that she would like to see an operational
and financial audit of just the electric part of SCIP. “We feel that a lot of problems would be revealed,” she said. “Beyond that,” Mary said, “at the very minimum we need to have some way to see into the organization and have a mechanism for registering our complaints or problems that has some rules.” Linda suggested a citizen’s advisory group. In the long run, Mary said that getting electricity from a federal agency was not viable. “It would be better for us to get something else,” she said. “All these new [housing] developments didn’t want to be serviced by SCIP,” said Cathy. “Not only is this an economic development issue, you could say it’s a social justice issue.” Complaints are being collected by mail and email over the next month. The group is asking anyone who has had problems to send in the specifics. Write them down and submit them to Linda Kadlecek at yolindak@ msn.com, or Mary Myers takhi65@gmail.com. Those without email or wishing to remain anonymous can mail their complaints to P.O. Box 593, Mammoth 85618.
The Pinal County Sheriff’s Office K-9 Unit showed off their skills at the second annual San Manuel Elks Dog Show. The dogs, Belgium Malinois K-9 Aries and K-9 Bikkel, and German Shepherd K-9 LJ and their handlers, Deputy Berner and Officers Jackson and Mclean did three demonstrations. They identified narcotics odors, stopped and held resisting “suspects,” and acted as backup for their handlers in case suspects became aggressive. See more photos, Page 6. (Lana Jones photo)