Beaumont | featured news

Shane Chesson stood in awe in the front yard of his Hamshire home, surrounded by Christmas trees and decorations. "You made a little boy's dream come true," he said. Chesson's son, Trevor, died in an ATV accident on Monday. The 10-year-old wanted Christmas lights and decorations at the house, even though the family wasn't living there due to Harvey flood damage, Shane Chesson said. On Tuesday night, friends and family gathered at the home, armed with yards of lights, rows of candy canes and a fleet of inflatable Christmas-themed animals and Santas, determined to fulfill Trevor's wish.

Grappling with recent tragedies, some area school districts have brought in outside counselors to help take pressure off their own employees who might be grieving.
Region 5 Director Danny Lovett, who helps coordinate shared counselors across districts, said it's common for educators to help each other in times of crisis.
"They have always done that, especially for things involving students and faculty," he said.

A man was shot in the leg during an early morning argument at a residence on Sunset Drive in Orange, Captain Robert Enmon said.

For more than two decades, Deidra Marler and her family piled into pickup trucks after Thanksgiving lunch and headed over to the K&K Evergreen Farm to pick out their annual Christmas tree. Marler, who grew up about five miles from the expansive Orange County farm, said the group would spend hours hunting for the perfect tree. "As a little kid, the fields seemed like they would go on and on forever," said Marler, 30.

A fire started at Beaumont's Exxon Mobil refinery downtown at about 6 a.m., the company said.

A 10-year-old died in an ATV accident in Hamshire on Monday, the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office said.