Morning Roundup: Welcome to Podunk

Good morning, Houston. Ever been to Podunk, Texas? You have if you've ever visited the east Houston neighborhood of Denver Harbor, which was affectionately called Podunk during the Great Depression because it was then far enough east to seem semi-rural. And as of yesterday, thanks to a state House resolution, Podunk is the Official Mythical Town of Texas. Grady got the resolution passed by gathering 700 signatures on a petition and persuading the area's state representative, Ana Hernandez, to introduce the resolution. Now Grady is working on getting a state historical marker for Podunk: "A lot of people in Texas think there is a Podunk, Texas, somewhere," he said. "Of course, officially there's not. But unofficially, there is." Officially unofficially now, he means. (Visit the Podunk website here.)

>> Accident shuts down Katy Freeway: All inbound lanes of the Katy Freeway were closed for about three hours this morning after an 18-wheeler ran into another truck, causing one of the tankers to jackknife and begin leaking fuel onto the roadway. The accident happened between 4:30 and 5 a.m., and the lanes remained closed while crews cleaned up the fuel spill and then removed the wrecked trucks. Though the lanes are open again, things aren't moving smoothly on the Katy yet: Several other 18-wheelers that tried to avoid the traffic backup by going the wrong way in the HOV lane ended up getting stuck there, and TxDOT says it'll likely hold them until noon — which means the eastbound HOV lane is closed at North Post Oak and there's plenty of rubbernecking in the mainlanes. Our advice, as always: Stay home.

>> Shootout in northeast Harris County: A Harris County sheriff's deputy opened fire on a suspect at a gas station last night after a motorist called police claiming that he was being followed. When the sheriff's office got the call, they told the man to pull over into a gas station at FM 1960 and Timber Forest, where a deputy was waiting. The deputy then pulled the car that was allegedly following the man over, and during the traffic stop, the passenger in the car jumped out and started running, dropping a handgun magazine as he went. The deputy saw a gun in the suspect's hand, and when the suspect made a move toward the deputy, the deputy shot the man several times. The suspect is in stable condition at an area hospital; the driver of the car that was allegedly following the man who called police fled during the shooting.

>> We always thought teachers just got drunk when grading papers: During a routine drug sweep of Galveston schools this week, drug-sniffing dogs zeroed in on the desk of Ball High Spanish teacher Stakely McConnell, 25 — and though there weren't any drugs in the desk, there were traces of marijuana on papers inside it. McConnell admitted to having smoked pot with friends over the weekend, and Galveston ISD Police Chief LeeRoy Amador said the marijuana was transferred to the papers through perspiration on McConnell's hands. McConnell gave cops permission to search his car, where they found half a marijuana cigarette in the ashtray; McConnell was charged with possession of marijuana, a charge that the DA can increase to a state jail felony because the Ball High campus is designated a drug-free zone. That means McConnell could face two years in jail and a $10,000 fine. He's been placed on administrative leave.

>> Today's weather: Storms west of Houston should be moving into the area this afternoon, and they could bring some substantial rain. Look for a high this afternoon around 81, with the rain chance continuing through the night and into Friday. The bright side: The chance of storms should subside by tomorrow night.

Now, some headlines: