Driver dies after hitting guardrail on Southwest Freeway

  Crystal KobzaHOUSTON (KTRK) -- A driver died overnight after crashing into a guardrail on the Southwest Freeway feeder road.

The southbound feeder road of Highway 59 just before Beltway 8 had been closed for the police investigation of the deadly accident, but it reopened at around 5:15am.

Houston police say at around 2:30am the 37-year-old man drove his car off the exit ramp, through the barricades and ended up on the feeder road.

With the amount of damage to the vehicle and the guardrail, police say it appears the driver was exceeded the posted speed limit of 60 miles per hour.

"We don't have any witnesses who actually saw what happened, but evidence here at the scene indicates that he was about to take the north-south ramp onto Beltway 8 when for some reason, failed to drive in a single lane and struck the guardrail," said Sgt. I Izaguirre with the Houston Police Department.

At this time, police say there are no signs of impairment.

"He was wearing his seatbelt. There is no indication at this time that alcohol was involved. There is no alcohol inside the vehicle, we didn't smell any odor of alcohol," Sgt. Izaguirre said.

No other passengers were in the car with him at the time.

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SWAT standoff unfolding in southwest Houston

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- SWAT officers are currently at a home where investigators say an armed man has barricaded himself inside.

Police got a call about a 21-year-old suspect being holed up inside an apartment on Sandpiper at Willowbend firing a gun. A SWAT team arrived shortly after 3am.

Authorities say the man is alone at a residence and they are currently in negotiations with him to surrender safely. No word of any injuries.

We're following this developing story and will have more for you on Eyewitness News and abc13.com.

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Cab driver carjacked by four suspects in southwest Houston

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Three people are in custody and a fourth still on the run after a carjacking a Houston cab driver overnight.

After police say they stole the car, they led officers on a chase in southwest Houston. But that's not all they're accused of doing.

Houston police say that all four suspects are teenagers. The guy driving that stolen minivan-cab eventually crashed it through a fence, through one backyard and partially into another backyard.

This all started when police say four teens carjacked a cab driver around 11pm Sunday. They boxed him in with another vehicle, and pointed a gun at him. The cab driver gave up his cab and ran off on foot.

About an hour later at around midnight, police spotted the stolen cab and chased the thieves through side streets. The chase lasted between 10 and 15 minutes. During that time, three of the four suspects jumped out of the cab. They were arrested.

Eventually, the chase ended about 2.5 miles away. But the teenager driving the stolen cab hopped fences and ran off.

Police called out a chopper and K-9 units, but weren't able to find him. Neighbor Joseph Bui woke up to a police helicopter hovering above his house.

"They come through the backyard fence of my home and the whole taxi (was) right there. And he broke the fence of my neighbor," said Bui.

Police say they know who the at-large suspect is and now just a matter of finding him.

All suspects face evading arrest charges and weapon charges. Police say they also found drugs and copper tubing in the cab, so the teens could face drug and theft charges on top of it all.

The robbery division is still investigating.

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Pharmacy sustains major damage in fire in southwest Houston

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- A fire broke out at a shopping center in southwest Houston overnight.

The Houston Fire Department was dispatched to an apartment in a strip center in the 14500 block of Main Street at Fondren at 12:46 this morning. Firefighters arrived on scene within four minutes and discovered a smoldering fire in the Main Stop Pharmacy.

Approximately 45 firefighters responded to the incident which was extinguished about 1:20am. Officials say the fire started in the back room and spread.

A business next door sustained smoke and water damage, but no one was hurt.

The fire caused heavy smoke damage throughout the strip center. The fire is still under investigation, but investigators believe it was likely an accident.

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At least one injured in shootout in southwest Houston

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Houston police are trying to sort out the details of a massive shootout Wednesday afternoon in southwest Houston.

Dozens of shots were fired between two cars driving along Dairy Ashford near Bellaire. Witnesses tell us at around 2pm they heard anywhere from 20 to 50 gunshots. They say they saw someone in a car shooting at a group of people in another car. And that second car reportedly returned fire.

The mother of one shooting victim says her son, 21-year-old Denzel Redman, was shot in the arm.

"He's in the hospital. He blocked them from shooting him in his face. But I was told they tried to kill him," she said.

Police are still investigating and searching for the suspects.

Witnesses tell us after the shooting they saw a man wearing a white t-shirt and only one shoe running down the street.

Police have not been able to confirm any other details.

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Man shot to death in southwest Houston parking lot

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Police want to find the person who shot a man early Sunday and then left him to die in a southwest Houston parking lot.

It happened around 2am at Coral Island Apartments on Kirkwood Drive near Dashwood. The victim's body was found on a sidewalk after neighbors heard gunshots.

Police say he died from a gunshot wound to the chest.

According to investigators, the victim was dressed like he had just left a night club, except he was not wearing shoes when he was found. He also was not carrying identification.

There is no word yet on a possible motive. Anyone with information on this crime can call Houston police or Crime Stoppers.

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Driver killed in southwest Houston hit-and-run

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Detectives are searching for a woman who fled the scene of a deadly hit-and-run accident in southwest Houston.

The wreck happened around 2:10am at the intersection of Harwin and Fondren, police said.

A woman driving a silver Nissan Pathfinder ran a red light and struck a Nissan truck heading northbound on Fondren. The woman got out of her vehicle, checked on the victim but then fled on foot with her male passenger. The driver of the Nissan truck died.

The woman, who's been described only as a Hispanic woman between the ages of 20 and 25, was last seen headed southbound on Fondren.

Anyone with information in this case is urged to contact the HPD Hit and Run Unit at 713-247-4065 or Crime Stoppers at 713-222-8477.

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ABC13 Exclusive: Southwest CEO speaks out about proposed Hobby Aiport expansion

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- United Airlines CEO Jeff Smisek exclusively told Eyewitness News reporter Ted Oberg the politicians celebrating Wednesday will be to blame for hundreds of lost jobs in the future. And now a one-on-one with the man at the head of Southwest, as his airline tentatively claims victory in the battle over international travel.

Southwest Airlines says it will take 15-20 years to make back its $100 million investment at Hobby Airport. We started our conversation asking why it's worth waiting so long and why it's so valuable to do international business here in Houston.

Gary Kelly: You know what the best opportunity is? Right here in Houston. And you know why? Because the fares are so high. Why is that? Because there is no competition. It is a high fare market, that is monopolized by United out of Intercontinental Airport. Those are the kind of opportunities we look for around the country.

Ted Oberg: How long do you expect fares to stay low? Can I come back to you in two years, compare apples to apples and you're confident your flight will still be cheaper?

Gary Kelly: Absolutely, absolutely.

It is a promise that won't come true for years. If Southwest really does drive international fares down, they won't start until 2015. In the meantime, United Airlines says it will mean hundreds of job losses.

Ted Oberg: Do you think United is scared of you?

Gary Kelly: You know I can't really say what motivates any of our competitors. Clearly this is an attempt to keep us from growing.

Ted Oberg: Will it hurt United?

Gary Kelly: That's for them to assess, but clearly it should not be the policy of a city or government to protect one company.

The $100 million deal is not done -- not yet -- and while Kelly and his co-workers were celebrating Wednesday morning, he knows he's not even close to selling his first international ticket out of town.

Ted Oberg: It appears you have the votes, next week, week after, whenever council passes it on. You have a worthy adversary in United Airlines is probably a nice way of saying it. How tough do you expect this fight to be in Washington?

Gary Kelly: Well, I can't speculate about what might happen in the future. We're used to this. We've had opposition from legacy carriers from the very beginning, before we even started flying. So it wouldn't shock me if we continue to see resistance going forward. But we're on the side of right here and the administration is I know for a fact is concerned with creating jobs. This is a great way to create jobs.

Ted Oberg: Do you believe 10,000 jobs can be created as a result of this deal in Houston?

Gary Kelly: I believe it's more than 10,000 jobs. No one can guarantee what the jobs are, but opportunities to grow are hard to come by and this is a wonderful opportunity to grow, not just at Hobby but also at Bush.

That 10,000 job figure comes from a city report. It's been widely criticized as outlandish, but Southwest embraces it despite the fact they don't anticipate hiring any more than 50 to 100 additional Southwest employees at Hobby.

Our entire conversations with the CEOs of United and Southwest are in the video player at the top of this page.

Stay with Eyewitness News and abc13.com for the latest on this story.

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Mayor, Southwest Airlines agree on Hobby Airport expansion

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- After months of debate over job losses, job creation, increased competion and increased confusion, Mayor Annise Parker says Hobby Airport will expand to allow for international flights.

Surrounded by Southwest employees and the airline's CEO, Mayor Parker officially announced that she is ready for the Hobby expansion plans to take off.

"Southwest Airlines has agreed to pay for all off the expenses associated with building this expansion," she said.

Southwest Airlines now says it will pay for the $100 million expansion project that, when finished, will result in five new international gates at Hobby. Southwest would control four of them.

CEO Gary Kelly made big promises.

"We will bring lower fares. We will bring more competition. It will be more jobs and we're very, very excited about all of those opportunities," he said.

United Airlines, which has been long against the expansion, on Wednesday released a statement, saying in part, "Splitting the city's international air service will harm the city's competitive advantage and cost jobs."

Mayor Parker defended the job growth scenario with Southwest's expansion, but would not say exactly how many will be created.

"I'm not going to get into discussion of how many angels can dance on the head of a pin. Is it 10,000 jobs, is it 5,000 jobs? Jobs are good for Houston," Parker said.

It will be awhile before we know if this plan will actually create jobs at all.

First, it needs City Council approval, which is scheduled for a vote next week.

Passengers we talked to say they hope it will lower fares.

"I would say more convenient, hopefully more cost effective, if they can balance out the cost versus other airlines cost," Southwest passenger Cindia Strauss said.

The big vote is scheduled for next week, but it could face the standard one-week delay. The proposal needs nine yes votes. On Wednesday, seven council members and Mayor Parker attended the conference, so that makes eight. But Mayor Parker says she's confident she has the votes. We'll see.

Before the announcement of this morning's news conference, United Airlines CEO Jeff Smisek, in an ABC13 exclusive interview, said United would lose 1,300 jobs if the Southwest expansion at Hobby happens.

United said earlier this month it might cancel $700 million in improvements to Terminal B at IAH and it might drop some service from Houston.

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Human remains found in southwest Houston

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Police say they're investigating human remains found in southwest Houston Tuesday afternoon.

The bones were found in the 1500 block of East Anderson Road at about 4:45pm Tuesday. A property owner was checking his property after a reported robbery a day before. While checking the property, he walked into a nearby wooded area and saw what he believed was a human skull. He then called police. Officers responded and found the skeletal remains of a human body, other animal bones and household trash in a heavily wooded area.

Police say the remains are completely decomposed and they have not yet determined the gender.

The investigation is continuing. Anyone with information in this case is urged to contact the HPD Homicide Division at 713-308-3600 or Crime Stoppers at 713-222-TIPS.

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FBI raids Westbury Community Hospital in southwest Houston

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Federal agents raided a local mental health clinic in southwest Houston, shutting the place down for the day without any notice.

FBI agents surprised employees and patients of Westbury Community Hospital on Hornwood Thursday. And it looks like they were after the company's records.

The entrances to the parking lot here have been sealed off. Federal agents spent much of the day there. Stunned employees and patients were turned away Thursday morning, and they left with a lot of questions.

The doors of the Westbury Community Hospital outpatient facility may be open, but the hospital is not open for business.

"I showed up for work and the place was surrounded and it caught me off guard," said Jeanette Tingle, who has served as Director of Intake at Westbury Hospital since 2006.

She watched in disbelief as federal agents loaded boxes and boxes of what appeared to be files onto a truck parked near the hospital's entrance.

"I don't know what they are being accused of. Nobody has told me anything. I think they are just investigating to see if we are doing what we're supposed to be doing," Tingle said.

Several doctors work at the hospital, which offers same-day outpatient therapy to patients with mental illnesses such as schizophrenia and then bills Medicare for it. Tingle not only stands by the quality of the services provided here, she says everything is done by the book.

"We're so thorough and we go backwards and forwards. We have a large medical records department and they make sure that every note for every group is documented," Tingle told Eyewitness News.

The FBI stopped short of calling this an investigation with a spokesperson telling us, "We are lawfully and legally present at the location conducting law enforcement activity. No arrests have been made."

"Places like this are all these people have," said Tingle.

And she says she's committed to helping those who need it and dedicated to her employer, no matter what happens.

"It is ethical because it's a Christian-oriented company. I wouldn't be with any other company," Tingle said.

Westbury has another clinic in Baytown. We contacted the hospital administrator and are awaiting a response.

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12-foot python on the loose at southwest Houston complex

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- The residents of a Houston apartment complex came home to an unusual notice from management Thursday evening. It said a giant 12-foot-long python is on the loose.

It escaped from a unit at the Esplanade Apartments, just across the street from Hermann Park. A warning letter was given to residents there. And that's rattling some nerves.

"Definitely freaks me out a little bit. It makes me a little hesitant to go outside," resident Kimberly Stein said. "It's really precarious how it got outside to begin with."

Residents found a flyer on their front door mats. It warns residents of a 12-foot python on the loose and asks anyone who spots the reptile to call animal control.

"I called the maintenance guy this morning and they do believe that the snake escaped from someone's apartment who lives in the second floor; that's why they said. Somebody saw it in the second-floor garage area, but they don't know where in the building it is," resident Wendy Hiester said.

Now some are wondering if it's lurking the garage or if it's camouflaging itself in the lush landscaping.

Everyone there seems to have their own sense of the python, and for some, sleeping tonight won't be easy.

"I'm worried can it get into the apartment somehow, so I think we'll be talking about it when we go to sleep tonight," nearby resident Chase Culver.

A lot of people in the apartment complex are aware of the situation.

We called the number on the flyer but it was an answering service that picked up. They said they'll try to get more information and get back to us.

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Two dead in southwest Houston triple shooting, suspects at large

Police said three people were shot at this home in southwest Houston early Saturday

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Two people are dead and another injured after a shooting in a southwest Houston neighborhood.

Police responded to a shooting call on Dairy Brook Drive near Brookwulf around 3:34am Saturday.

When officers arrived, they found three people shot in an alley.

Treaon Bush, 24, and Tremaine Burnett, 21, were already dead.

The third male victim was transported to an area hospital. At last check, that person's condition was unknown.

The motive has not yet been established.

Police said they are searching for three black male suspects in a newer-model, dark-colored BMW. Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 713-222-TIPS.

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SUV slams into tree in southwest Houston, kills one

This SUV left the roadway and slammed into a tree. Officials said one person was killed in the crash (KTRK Photo / John Mizwa)

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Emergency officials confirm they are investigating a fatal accident in southwest Houston.

It happened Saturday morning on S. Gessner at W. Airport.

According to officials, a sports utility vehicle left the roadway and slammed into a tree in the median.

Additional details were not immediately available. We have a crew at the scene and will bring you more information as it comes into the newsroom.

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Man drowns in southwest Houston pool

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- A Memorial Day weekend morning at the pool ended tragically Sunday in southwest Houston.

Officials were called to a possible drowning around 10:30am Sunday on Kendalia Dr. at Westwood Village Dr. near Sharpstown.

The victim -- an older man -- was pulled from a swimming pool. Attempts were made to resuscitate the man, but he was dead by the time emergency responders arrived.

Paramedics at the scene said it appears the man had a medical issue while swimming that led to the drowning.

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Five transported from pile-up on Southwest Freeway

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- The outbound side of the Southwest Freeway at Bissonnet was shut down for more than an hour early Sunday after a four-car pile-up.

It was a quick chain of events that started around 2:15am Sunday. Officials said a car hit the back of another vehicle, and then a pickup truck slammed into a car that had slowed down for the accident.

One man jumped out of a vehicle that was involved in the accident and ran. According to investigators, he did not realize they were on an overpass.

The man jumped over the wall and landed down on the concrete below.

He survived the fall and was transported to an area hospital.

A total of five people were transported to local hospitals -- all in serious but stable condition, officials said.

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