We continue looking back at 2006 tonight picking up from July. Donnell Preskey has some of our news headlines from the last six months of the year.

July arrived with a bang in central North Dakota - in the form of 100-mile per hour winds that blasted through Coleharbor. The storm flattened buildings, grain bins, and even the landmark brick schoolhouse. Mother Nature also caused destruction in Sioux County. Lightning started a fire July 18th. It took three days to contain it. North Dakota National Guard flew in helecopters equipped with water buckets to help battle the blaze. A hot, dry summer leads to the state being declared an Agriculture disaster. North Dakota's members of Congress spend the summer touring parts of the state, looking at crop losses. Many ranchers are forced to sell cattle sooner because of bare pastures. The idea of a disaster aid bill was rejected several times in Congress. Hundreds of farmers and ranchers even traveled to D.C. in September to make the pitch for a vote. As of the years end a bill has yet to pass

The U-S Mint starts making the new North Dakota State Quarter. The quarters show a pair of grazing buffalo with the badlands and the sunset in the background. Perhaps the most exciting news of the summer in the region was when Extreme Makeover built a new home for a Minot family

A Bismarck couple gives birth to conjoined twins Abygail and Madysen Fitterer. They're joined at the abdomen. They are scheduled to be seperated the begining of January

Jurors convict Alfonso Rodriguez in the death of Dru Sjodin. 53 year old Rodriguez was charged with kidnapping resulting in Sjodin's death. Jurors later sentence Rodriguez to death. It's the first death sentenced handed down in North Dakota in nearly 100 years

Jurors find Ben Newman guilty of a fatal May 2005 apartment fire. Newman was sentenced to life in prison without parole. A New Salem girl is murdered in Valley City where she was going to college. Moe Maurice Gibbs is charged with Mindy Morgenstern's death. Gibbs was a jailer for Barnes County. North Dakota's second-ever mountain lion season got going in September. It wasn't long into the season before the limit of five cats had been killed. Bobcat workers go on a two week strike in October. Union workers were in disagreement over wages and health care coverage

After being away from home for more than a year members of the 112th Aviation unit return. They were in Bosnia for a 15 month peace keeping mission. The 164th returned in November. That leaves almost 250 North Dakota National Guard soldiers still deployed

Bowman's Ashley Andrews is crowned Miss Rodeo America in Las Vegas at the National Finals Rodeo

Governor John Hoeven lays out his spending plan to legislators. It's the largest spending proposal in the history of North Dakota. Legislators gather at the state capitol January third to begin the session.

Sunday night we'll have a special tribute to the North Dakota men who lost their lives while serving our country this year. watch the video | save this article / add to your favorites list