-
Show up. Vote. Be heard.
The final week of the 2026 Primary Election has arrived, and Martin County voters now have multiple opportunities to make their voices heard. No-excuse early voting begins Thursday at the Martin County Clerk’s Office. Election Day follows May 19. Between early voting, absentee voting and traditional Election Day polling places, access to the ballot box
-
When the creek runs orange, trust runs dry
When a creek turns the color of “tomato soup,” something is wrong and everyone knows it. In Delbarton and Ragland, West Virginia, residents did what responsible citizens do. They looked, they asked, they documented. And when answers did not come quickly enough, they began testing the water themselves. That alone should trouble us. No community
-
Anger does not rise in a vacuum
A community does not become angry and disrespectful for no reason. It happens when trust breaks down and frustration goes unanswered long enough to harden into resentment. People who feel heard do not usually lash out. People who believe the system is fair do not automatically assume the worst. But when residents feel ignored by
-
Accountability applies to everyone or it means nothing
Here in Martin County, people say they want accountability. Some mean it 100% while others mean it only until accountability lands on someone they know. There is tension in that. Residents want better roads, clean water, safe public spaces, honest spending and lawful decisions. They want government to work and public officials to do what
-
PSC was right to say not yet
The Kentucky Public Service Commission made the right call. On April 8, the PSC denied the Martin County Water District’s request to end state monitoring and close the long-running case that has tracked this county’s water system through years of failure, crisis and costly repair. That decision may frustrate local officials but it is the
-
Needed first step on feral horse problem
For years, Martin County has lived with a contradiction. Free-roaming horses have become part of the county’s identity. People stop to photograph them. Visitors admire them. Officials have even pointed to them as part of the county’s rural charm. At the same time, those same horses have posed a real and growing danger on public
-
When the roads ran coal black
A patch of spilled coal on a Martin County roadway Monday was enough to stop more than traffic. It stirred memories. For those who have lived here long enough, coal scattered on the pavement was once no sight at all. It was ordinary. Coal trucks rumbled the roads daily. Loose chunks bounced from overloaded beds.
-
Expo shows what local initiative can do
Sometimes the most encouraging signs of progress do not arrive with fanfare from Frankfort or Washington. They show up in the form of a packed community center, out-of-town license plates and local businesses seeing more customers than usual on a weekend in Inez. That is what happened Friday and Saturday with the second annual Inez
-
Stability returns to a vital lifeline
When an ambulance is necessary, nothing matters more than knowing help is on the way. For several weeks, communities in Eastern Kentucky and Southern West Virginia faced an unsettling question after Patriot EMS abruptly closed locations and laid off workers: Who will respond when someone calls 911? In rural areas like Martin County, where distances
-
Kentucky lawmakers should not rewrite rules to deny Martin County
The General Assembly created the Kentucky Water and Wastewater Assistance for Troubled or Economically Restrained Systems program by statute. Lawmakers defined its purpose, established its eligibility criteria and set its scoring framework in Kentucky law. In December 2025, the Kentucky Infrastructure Authority applied those criteria and finalized the rankings for the second round of funding.
