Feral Hogs Destroy Palestine Cemetery
Special to The Messenger
PALESTINE – On Monday, Sept. 28, the City of Palestine approved contracting hog hunters to trap feral hogs that are destroying the land and turning over headstones at Memorial Cemetery.
Memorial Cemetery, located on Moody Street off Loop 256, has recently seen a spike in the number of feral hogs destroying the cemetery resulting in the need for a quick solution.
The City of Palestine signed contracts with hog hunters who have previously worked for the City of Palestine to resolve this issue. As part of the contract, the hog hunters will have to use hog traps since guns are not allowed to be used within the city limits.
“We have had issues with feral hogs in the past, but it has never been this bad”, Interim City Manager Teresa Herrera said.
On Oct. 1, a Palestine resident created and shared a post on Facebook asking for hunters to trap the hogs within the city limits. The post directed anyone interested to contact Patsy Smith, the Palestine Parks and Recreation Department Director, for more information. As a result, Smith received an influx of calls requesting further information on the unauthorized post.
Memorial Cemetery
Even though the City of Palestine is grateful to anyone interested in helping resolve this issue, in order to prevent misunderstandings and the spread of misinformation, city officials ask that residents leave posts, such as these, to be created and posted by city employees.
The post was later removed voluntarily by the individual. Currently, the trappers are on their way to resolving the feral hog issue.
“The trappers have already begun to evaluate the area,” Smith continued, “and are ready to set the traps at the different locations.”
For further information, you may contact Michele Herbert, Public Information Officer/Police Community Liaison by emailing [email protected] or by calling 903-731-8418.
