STORIES FROM THE PAST
50 years ago
Two Imperial children were hurt yesterday afternoon when they set off a live mortar signal shell they found in a local junkyard.
According to Police Chief Orville Jones, John Brady, 14, and Ronda Alloway, 6, found the finned shell, about seven inches long and three inches in diameter, and took it to the kitchen in the Brady home. They hit the nose of the projectile with a bolt and it went off.
The children suffered minor lacerations and were treated at El Centro Community Hospital. The kitchen was stained with blue smoke and a shell fragment blew a hole through the ceiling.
The shell was turned over to the Navy which is checking the junkyard for more.
40 years ago
Success in Imperial Valley and delays in the Mojave Desert marked the United States’ Space Shuttle Program this week.
A Drop Test Vehicle (DTV), simulating the size and weight of the shuttle’s solid rocket booster, was dropped this week from a B-52 aircraft at the National Parachute Test Range.
Meanwhile, computer failure today forced a 24hour postponement in the first manned test flight of the shuttle at Edwards Air Force Base.
The shuttle, named “Enterprise,” is designed as the workhorse of the American space program for the rest of the century.
The malfunction was in one of the four computers that control the complex maneuvering gear scheduled for testing aboard the shuttle.
The piggyback flight atop a Boeing 747 jumbo jet will be the first in a series of four dress rehearsals for the crucial day when the 150,000-pound shuttle will be cut loose from the mother plane to fly on its own.
30 years ago
Abraham Sanchez, an Imperial County sheriff’s deputy and amateur wrestler, bitterly remembers a defeat he suffered without even competing — and it has haunted him for almost 15 years.
At age 19, Sanchez qualified to compete in the 1972 Olympic Trials to represent Mexico in wrestling. But although he trained and worked to attend those fateful trials, he never got to compete in Munich because his employer then would not give him the time off he needed. And Sanchez said he fet he could not quit, because he needed the security of his job.
But now the 34-year-old will get a second chance to compete and fulfill his lifelong dream when he and fellow deputy Jesse Lopez attend the California Police Olympics later this month in Stockton.
Although the Police Olympics is admittedly not the same as the Olympic Games, the two deputies are counting on weeks of weight-lifting, running and training to help “bring home the gold” as they wrestle against law enforcement officer from all over the state.
20 years ago
Carlo Cota and Miguel Guluarte were named comost valuable baseball players at the recently held Calexico High School spring awards banquet.
The tennis MVP was Art Jaramillo, Almee Melendez was the girls’ track MVP, Jose Sanchez the boys’ track MVP. Karla Alatorre took MVP honors for the softball team.
Other baseball awards went to, Raul Arvizu, as most improved. The coaches’ award went to Marcos Arellano.
Franco Nunez was picked as the most improved tennis player. Carlos Leos was selected as the best double player.
One track awards went to Ana Lopez for most improved girl. The coaches’ award for the girls was given to Sara Gonzalez. Eric Anguiano was selected most improved male and Andres Carreno received the coaches’ award for the boys in track.
The coaches award for softball went to Veronica Martinez. The softball rookie of the year was Karen Rivera.