Release of Information - UPDATE 06/11/2026

On June 10, 2026, the Texas Department of Public Safety and the Bell County Sheriffs
Office, served an arrest warrant for Scott Cotton, a 40-year-old Killeen resident. Cotton
was charged with Manslaughter in connection with the fatal traffic crash that occurred in
the 400 block of FM 3219 on January 1, 2026, in Harker Heights, Texas.

The Harker Heights Police Department extends its sincere appreciation and gratitude to
the Bell County Sheriffs Office and the Texas Department of Public Safety for their
dedication, professionalism, and investigative work that ultimately led to Scott Cotton's
arrest in this case.

~January 6th, 2026~
On January I, 2026, Emergency Services were dispatched to the area of FM 3219 and East
Veterans Memorial Blvd in reference to an OnStar vehicle crash alarm that was activated.
Responding Officers located a blue 2006 Cadillac that had collided with a tree a short distance
away from the main traveled portion of the roadway. EMS arrived, attended to the driver and
an unresponsive passenger who was still inside the vehicle. The passenger was transported to 
Seton Hospital in Harker Heights for further treatment, while the driver was transported to
Scott and White Hospital in Temple.

The passenger later succumbed to her injuries and was pronounced deceased by
Judge Gregory Johnson at 2:43 a.m. An autopsy has been ordered.
The deceased has been identified as Cierra Nowlin of Harker Heights.

The Harker Heights Police Department Traffic Management Unit is actively investigating
this crash to determine the cause of the crash and the factors that led to the collision and
death of the passenger. Anyone with information related to this case is encouraged to
contact the Harker Heights Police Department at 254-953-5400.

Authority:
Sonja V. Clay
Chief of Police
Harker Heights Police Department
402 Indian Trail
Harker Heights, TX 76548

Due to saturated ground conditions from recent rains, Harker Heights Parks & Recreation had to change to the location for this event to the Harker Heights Activity Center/Library at 400 Indian Trail, across from Central Fire Station. All the start times remain the same. The only other change is, there won’t be a walk.  If you have any additional questions please contact Parks & Rec at 254-953-5657.

Harker Heights’ Mayor Michael Blomquist attended the III Armored Corps Commanding General’s Semi Annual Fort Hood Award Ceremony on May 6th, at the Phantom Warrior Center on Fort Hood. 

The program was initiated to formally recognize individual and team contributions to installation operations and promote an installation-wide focus on innovation and performance excellence.  Awards were given out over nine categories.  In the Team of Excellence Award category, Central Texas Regional Water Team, Ft Hood, Bell County WCID, Killeen, Harker Heights, Copperas Cove and Nolanville were all honored. The award acknowledges collaboration between the entities to promote sustainability.  

Receiving the award on behalf of the City was Public Works’ Director John McElroy.  Notable team members from the various cities included:  Kevin Keller, Anna Rodriguez, Roxanne Flores, Houston Johnson, Kristina Rameriz, and Jeffery Reynolds.

The City of Harker Heights is addressing a wastewater overflow that occurred overnight at the City’s sewer treatment facility on Pecan Drive.

At approximately 9:30 p.m., the facility experienced a power surge that caused the plant’s Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) system to go offline.  The SCADA system monitors and operates the entire treatment process and also sends alert notifications to staff as needed.  Due to being offline, the plants systems did not operate, nor send alerts, resulting in a wastewater overflow of 726,250 gallons into South Nolan Creek. For context, the facility typically processes about 2.12 million gallons per day. The Trimmer wastewater station diversion remained active and operational during the incident, helping to reduce the overall impact.

Upon discovery of the issue with the SCADA, City staff immediately restored operations and began response protocols at 6:15 a.m. The City promptly notified the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality – Region 9 Waco (TCEQ) and submitted the required Notice of Spill Report and Unauthorized Discharge Report. All required testing, reporting, and notification procedures were conducted including dissolved oxygen levels taken in South Nolan Creek.  Dissolved oxygen levels are normal with no adverse impacts noted in South Nolan Creek.

City staff, along with SCADA system support personnel, are actively investigating the cause of the incident. The City is also evaluating system improvements to help prevent similar occurrences in the future.  One point of failure already identified was a new uninterruptible power supply (UPS) for the SCADA system that did not operate appropriately.  This UPS unit has already been replaced this morning.  Cleanup efforts and additional notifications are ongoing.

The City of Harker Heights is committed to maintaining the reliability of its infrastructure and to responding quickly and responsibly when issues arise. We will continue to provide updates as more information becomes available.

For additional information you may contact Assistant City Manager, Mark Hyde at 254-953-5600 or by email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

The April 11, 2026, Boil Water Order has been lifted for the following areas:

101 W. Mockingbird Lane through 216 W. Mockingbird Lane

101 W. Robin Lane through 222 W. Robin Lane

1000 Harley Drive

1100Harley Drive

1002 S Ann

1102 S Ann

Normal water usage may resume immediately. Service has been restored,  and all water quality tests have been completed. The water is now safe to drink and use without boiling.  

TCEQ Required Notice

On April 11, 2026 the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality required the City of Harker Heights public water system, PWS ID #0140023, to issue a Boil Water Notice to inform customers, individuals, or employees that due to conditions which occurred recently in the public water system, the water from this public water system was required to be boiled prior to use for drinking water or human consumption purposes.

The public water system has taken the necessary corrective actions to restore the quality of the water distributed by this public water system used for drinking water or human consumption purposes and has provided TCEQ with laboratory test results that indicate that the water no longer requires boiling prior to use as of April 14, 2026.

If you have questions regarding this matter, you can contact: