Our first Red Phone matter of the week came from a frequent Red
Phone caller who asked if the Crimson Crusader could pass on
information about tracking Santa’s progress on Christmas Eve. Our
caller said the information would be of
”
vital importance
”
to San Benito County children. Fret not, oh frequent Red Phone
caller, the Crimson Crusader is here to help.
Our first Red Phone matter of the week came from a frequent Red Phone caller who asked if the Crimson Crusader could pass on information about tracking Santa’s progress on Christmas Eve. Our caller said the information would be of “vital importance” to San Benito County children. Fret not, oh frequent Red Phone caller, the Crimson Crusader is here to help.
Those wishing to track Santa this Christmas via the Internet can do so at www.noradsanta.org. The site is run by the North American Aerospace Defense Command, a bi-national United States and Canadian organization charged with the missions of aerospace warning and aerospace control for North America. On Dec. 24, beginning at 1am, the Web site will feature a minute-by-minute update on Santa’s travels around the world.
In 2005, the Web site received a whopping 912 million hits from 204 countries and territories. In addition, the NORAD Tracks Santa Operations Center, occupied by 550 volunteers on Christmas Eve, answered nearly 55,000 phone calls and nearly 98,240 e-mails from children around the world, according to a NORAD press release.
More Rough Crossings
Our next Red Phone caller asked the Crimson Crusader to get something done about the railroad track crossing on Fourth Street in Hollister after getting quite a jolt on his way to a nearby shopping center. The Crimson Crusader made a call to Ray Rojas at the Hollister Public Works Department to see what could be done to ease our caller’s railroad crossing woes.
Rojas said the railroad crossing was owned by Union Pacific and could not be fixed by the city. So the Crimson Crusader called up Union Pacific Regional Public Affairs Director Mark Davis to find out how such a problem could be reported.
Davis said crossing surfaces are typically improved during rail improvement projects, but sometimes the crossings would need repairs between projects. Davis took note of our caller’s problem and said he would have someone go and inspect the crossing as soon as possible. In the future, residents should feel free to call the railroad company directly to report problems, he said.
Davis encourages residents to call the Union Pacific community relations department toll-free at 1-800-848-8715 during regular business hours to report rough railroad crossings. Callers should be prepared to tell community relations personnel the name of the street and city where the crossing is located when calling, Davis said.
